The Church the covid19 and the Tribulation

The Church and Tribulation

Over the years I have noticed an argument against pre-tribulationism which goes something like the following: "The New Testament teaches that we will suffer persecution and tribulation as followers of Christ, therefore, I believe the Church will go through the tribulation." The New Testament does teach that Believers will suffer persecution and tribulation, but it does not follow that because of this the Church will go through the tribulation.

Church Age Tribulation

Jesus clearly teaches that the Church Age, before the rapture and the tribulation, would be a time in which Believers would experience "tribulation" from the world. Jesus said, "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also" (John 15:18–20).

It is said of the Apostles in the early Church:

"So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name" (Acts 5:41).

Later it was also said, "strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, 'Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God'" (Acts 14:22). Paul tells us, "For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake" (Phil. 1:29). Paul wrote in his farewell epistle, "indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 Tim. 3:12).

Peter noted the following: "but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation" (1 Pet. 4:13). Therefore, there is a clear biblical basis for expecting Church Age persecution from the world toward believers.

Gerald Stanton declares the following about Church Age tribulation:

"and one has but to think of Christians being thrown to the lions in a Roman arena, or Christians being torn on the racks of a Spanish Inquisition, or Christians today being put to death in godless Communistic lands to realize that believers have undergone fiery trials down through the years since the days of the early church. Such persecutions with their untold agony, no matter how severe, are nevertheless not "the great tribulation."

If they were, one could hardly read Fox's Book of Martyrs without concluding that there have been two or three "great tribulations" every century from the time of Christ. Down through the centuries, believers have suffered, bled, and died for their faith in Christ, counting it not loss to seal their testimony with their blood."[1]

I have read from various sources that at least 100,000 believers die each year throughout the world in our own day and age, not to mention the various levels of persecution short of death that goes on as well. These are the Church Age tribulations that the New Testament speaks of in relation to believers throughout the entire dispensation of the Church.

The point is that non-pretribulationists believe that future tribulation during the seven-year tribulation is basically more of the same kind of persecution that has been going on for the last two thousand years.

On the other hand, pre-tribulationists believe that the Bible indicates that tribulation during the future seven-years will be something that has never been seen before, it will be the judgment from God upon a Christ-rejecting world. What has been going on since the founding of the Church about two thousand years ago has been the animosity of Satan, his demons and the hatred of the unbelieving world, not the wrath of God.

The Tribulation

The tribulation, which is spoken of dozens of times with various labels like "day of the Lord," time of "wrath," "the tribulation," etc., is mentioned throughout the Bible. Some of the many references include passages throughout almost all of the prophets, the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:4, 28; Mark 13:3,23), and most of the Book of Revelation (4—19).

That time is referred to throughout Revelation as the wrath of the Lamb or God. Note the following: "the wrath of the Lamb" (6:16); "for the great day of their wrath has come" (6:17); [God's] "Thy wrath" (11:18); "he will also drink of the wine of the wrath of God" (14:10); "and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God" (14:19); "seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished" (15:1); "seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God" (15:7); "Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God into the earth" (16:1); "Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath" (16:19); "He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God"(19:15).

It is quite clear in the biblical text that tribulation is a time of God's wrath, not of mankind or of Satan. Scripture speaks of some episodes of Satan and the world against God's people, but the emphasis is clearly upon the wrath of God throughout. In fact, throughout the tribulation there is first a fourth of the earth's population that is killed (Rev. 6:8), then a third is killed Rev. 9:18), and finally, by the end, all unbelievers are killed (Matt. 13:40, 43; 25:31, 46; Rev. 19:11, 16). Obviously, these passages speak of a time unlike anything that has ever happened throughout the Church Age.

Kept from the Hour

Clearly the New Testament teaches that the Church will be kept from the time of God's wrath. Paul, in one of his earliest epistles makes note of this fact as follows:

"and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come" (1 Thess. 1:10). In the same epistle he says, "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thess. 5:9).

Paul assumes the much used Old Testament term "wrath" to mean what it does in the Old Testament, which is the time of God's wrath or the tribulation period when God's wrath will be poured out upon the earth. Thus, these two passages, which speak of a future time different than the current Church Age which they were in, clearly see that wrath occurring during the tribulation. Therefore, the Thessalonian believers and all Church Age believers have a promise from God that we will not experience the wrath of God. A similar point is made from Paul's statement in Romans 5:9.

"Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the earth."

This promise made to the Church of Philadelphia and thus all believers throughout the Church Age promises that we will be kept out of the time of the tribulation. This passage has very clear pre-trib implications.

The "hour" or "time" of testing is what believers will be kept from. Further, the hour of testing is said to be something that will in the future come upon the whole earth. Thus, it is clear that it is not something that has happened during the days of the Church Age, since no one knows of a global testing that came upon the whole earth since the first century.

John speaks in this passage of the tribulation period, which is clearly a time in which the Lord will test the earth dwellers (always persistent unbelievers throughout Revelation) and not Church Age believers. The passage makes it clear that the present Church Age is when the Church is being tested and that is the reason given for why we will be exempted from the time period when God will test the earth dwellers during the period we know as the tribulation.

Conclusion for this part

The Bible distinguishes between trials and tribulations that are destined to occur to Believers during the Church Age from the wrath of God, which will be poured out during the tribulation that is intended for the world.

To say that the Church will go through the tribulation because the Bible predicts that Believers will experience tribulation is an erroneous statement in light of the Bible's distinction between present and future tribulation. It is also more likely for an American, who has not experience persecution yet, to think that we must, since America has a different history in relation to Christianity than is common throughout the Church Age.

I have often heard Dr. Ed Hindson make an excellent analogy concerning this issue. He says that having the Church, which is pictured in the New Testament as the Bride of Christ, go through the tribulation is like a man taking a girl to whom he is engaged and beating her to the point of near death and then saying, "Hey babe, let's get married." Such behavior would rightly be thought to be crazy.

The New Testament clearly teaches that Christ marries the Bride in heaven (Rev. 19:1 - 10 ) before she accompanies Him to earth. She is already in heaven since she was raptured before the tribulation in order to experience the judgment seat of Christ during the tribulation. Therefore she is ready, married and victoriously returning to earth at the second coming with Christ (Rev.19:11- 21). Only the pre-trib scenario makes sense of the details, thus demonstrating that the belief that the Church needs to go through the wrath of the tribulation is a false conclusion.

what is the 'Rapture

First of all, "what is the 'rapture'", you ask. Well, the 'rapture' is an event foretold in the Bible whereby Christians, and only Christians, are suddenly and without warning taken out of the world by Jesus Christ before the last seven year period on earth known as 'the tribulation' begins.

The 'tribulation' is a time when a world leader will arise with all the answers (by deception), and thus most will be deceived into following him, and most who resist and become Christians at that time will be killed, (but go to be with Jesus Christ). God pours out his judgment on the world, BILLIONS die and it will be a hellish time. If you're here at that time, accept Jesus as your God and do NOT co-operate with the antichrist (world leader) in any way. The Bible says that if you do, your eternity will be in hell.

" THE RAPTURE "

So, where will all the Christians be after this event takes place? In the book of Revelation, John is called away to Heaven in Revelation 4:1 when he is told to "come up hither." John, a Christian, is Raptured in this passage.

While he is in Heaven, John records events taking place, both in Heaven and on the earth, during the period of time commonly referred to as the Tribulation Period. John sees two completely different environments, as recorded in the book of Revelation.

In Heaven, John witnesses a time of celebration, worship, and praise as Jesus Christ is revealed as the Saviour of the world. On earth, John records a horrible series of judgments that are taking place, the likes of which no man has ever seen nor will ever see again, as seen in Matthew 24:21.

In Heaven, John sees, as recorded in Revelation 19:7-8, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb as it takes place between the Bridegroom, Jesus, and His Bride, the Church. Since the Bride is in attendance at the wedding, we know the Bridegroom, Christ, has come to earth for His Bride. In the same manner John was told to "come up hither" in Revelation 4:1, the Church has been Raptured!

To properly understand the Pre-Tribulation Rapture, it's important to grasp the fact the Pre-Tribulational Rapture event parallels the actions of the bridegroom in the pattern of ancient Jewish wedding tradition. In this tradition, after the engagement, but before the wedding, the groom departed to prepare a new home for his bride, which was usually an addition to his father's house.

The bride was kept in a state of anxious waiting pending his return which would often come at an unexpected hour, perhaps in the middle of the night, as a surprise. The wedding was usually followed by a honeymoon of seven days which matches up nicely with the Antichrist's covenant between Israel and her enemies which the prophet Daniel told us would be one biblical week in duration (seven years - the length of the Tribulation Period).

When Jesus returns at the end of the Tribulation Period, as seen in Revelation 19:14, He is followed by the armies of Heaven (the Bride), which are seen riding white horses dressed in fine linen, white and clean. The fine, white linen is symbolic of the righteousness of the saints, as seen in Revelation 19:8.

When Jesus returns with His Bride, the Church, He will be dressed for war at the Battle of Armageddon where He will defeat the armies of the Antichrist and the false prophet. In the aftermath of their defeat, the Antichrist and the false prophet will be cast alive into the lake of fire that burns forever.

1st Thessalonians 4:18: Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

I hope you are somewhat comforted by this explanation of the Rapture, but you'd do well to recognize there are many who don't believe there will be a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church. Some prefer to think Christians are going to have to suffer to get into Heaven rather than be protected by the Saviour.

Here are a few things to remember from the Bible that point toward that line of thinking being erroneous:

When the flood came (a judgment from God), Noah, a righteous man, was kept safe inside the ark.

When Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed (a judgment from God), Lot, a righteous man, was kept safe.

Considering the fact the Church is referred to as the Bride of Christ, wouldn't He have an interest in protecting the Church? Of course! We don't call Him Saviour for nothing! The Church is not appointed to wrath, according to 1st Thessalonians 5:9, but to salvation through our Lord, Jesus Christ.

A PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH – DOES THE BIBLE TEACH IT?

The above New Testament quotation describes the Rapture of the Church. The blessed hope of the Christian is Christ taking him to Himself forever, as He promises in John 14:2,3, “In my father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” The question is: WHEN?

“Rapture” is taken from the Latin word raptus, translated “caught up” from the verb rapere, which means “to transport from one place to another.” The Greek original is harpazo, which denotes a violent SNATCHING AWAY.

The Rapture is the time when faithful Christians are suddenly snatched away from the earth to be with the Lord Jesus Christ. A split second ahead of the translation of living Christians is the resurrection of “the dead in Christ.” In heaven, or in earth’s atmosphere, or in space, they will be judged before the Judgment Seat of Christ for rewards (2 Cor. 5:10 ; 1 Cor. 3:10-15) while on earth, for seven years, those left behind will be undergoing the test of their lives under the most terrible period of time known as “the Tribulation” (Matt. 24:29).

I used to ignore the topic “Rapture of the Church” whenever I encountered it in my readings. After all, I had been taught that the only Second Coming of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be visible, with power and great glory; that there will be no secret Rapture. Some writers I've read virtually ridiculed the “rapture theory.” I gave my silent assent as a matter of course.

Lately, however, I got myself interested in the subject and, to my surprise, I found out that a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church has more scriptural bases than Post-Tribulationists will care to admit. At the outset let me point out that Post-Tribulationists – those who hold that the Rapture will happen after the Great Tribulation – have no great doctrinal variance with Pre-Tribulationists, those who believe that the Rapture will occur shortly before the Tribulation Period starts. They are both premillennialists. The bone of contention, therefore, is the timing of the Rapture in relation to the Tribulation Period.

First of all, let’s make sure what period of time we are referring to. We’ve all heard about “the great tribulation,” at least those of us who are Bible readers. Even then there are different beliefs about this subject. Some say it all had happened in AD 70 when the Roman General Titus burned Jerusalem and the temple. Others believe that the great tribulation has been going on since the first century. Let’s see what the Bible says.

THE TRIBULATION

The Olivet Discourse recorded in Matthew 24, 25 gives us the certainty we are looking for. The disciples asked Jesus, “Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Here it is clear that it is about the end of the age that the disciples were asking about. The Tribulation, then, is that short period of time – seven years – that immediately precedes the “end of the world,” or age.

The Lord gave the general course of events in the world from His time to the end of this age. He enumerated a series of prophesied occurrences which have characterized the world. False teachers, wars, famines, pestilences, and earthquakes spoken of in Matt. 24:4-7 have been happening since our Savior uttered those words, only with increased intensities in the last century.

Persecutions described in verses 9-13, as applied to Christians, began almost immediately after the establishment of the Church on Pentecost. The fulfillment of this part of the Olivet Prophecy is well documented (I have my copy of Fox’s Book of Martyrs), and will no doubt continue with increased severity in the near future.

Matthew 24:14 has a double reference. In line with the great commission in 28:19,20 this prophecy refers

first to the Church preaching the gospel of salvation to the world, beginning in Jerusalem (Acts 1:8).

Secondly, it refers to the powerful preaching of the gospel of the Kingdom during the Tribulation Period to be carried out by the 144,000 Jewish evangelists (Rev. 7:3,4) and by the Two Witnesses (Rev. 11:3).

The end will come, Christ says, only after the gospel of the Kingdom has been preached in all the world. The exact fulfillment of this particular prophecy will come only during the Tribulation, when, once again, the focus of God will be on the Jews’ part in proclaiming the promised Kingdom of God to be established literally on earth.

Some contend that there will be no literal Kingdom of God, also known as the Millennium (Rev.20:1-6), but they are mistaken. Acts 1:6 says, “When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” We should remember that Jesus had been with His disciples for forty days after His resurrection, “speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).

The fact that they asked the Lord about “the kingdom” points to Him having taught them about it. Notice that He did not censure the disciples’ query. He did not say, “who says there’s going to be a literal Kingdom of God on earth?” Instead, He answered, “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power” (verse 7). But I have digressed… our concern for the moment is to pin down the Tribulation. Then we will determine, from the word of God, when the Rapture is going to happen in relation to the Tribulation.

A UNIQUE PERIOD OF TIME

Matthew 24:15-28 deals with the Great Tribulation. Notice in particular verses 21 and 22. “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”

The Tribulation will be a unique period of time in world history. Nothing that has gone before is like it. This proves that the preterists’ belief that the prophecies of Matthew 24 had all been fulfilled in AD 70 is wrong. Hitler’s Holocaust was greater than AD 70 in the number of Jews killed. And Christ foretold that the Tribulation will be greater than the Holocaust! Not only for the Jews, but this time the whole world will be affected by the coming judgment from God.

I don’t want to sound like a doomsday prophet, but, if we are going to be realistic about it, we can’t help but conclude this world is not facing the best of times. Somehow we can feel that something ominous is going to descend upon us all. Recently, I watched a news item on television about Russia testing her 1991 missiles “for future use.”

The Middle East continues to be volatile like a tinder box ready to explode anytime; violence there has not stopped. Iran is very vocal about her intentions. But global war is not the only threat to world stability. The weather pattern worldwide has gone awry, with more than the normal number of strong typhoons, tornadoes, hurricanes. Depletion of ozone gas layer continues unabated, with impending dire consequences to all life on the planet. Earthquakes, as prophesied by the Lord, are occurring “in divers places.”

The December 26, 2004 earthquake-generated tsunami that hit south Asia and part of east Africa is a specific fulfillment of His prophecy – “…upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth…” (Luke 21:25,26). I have always believed that this prophecy will come to pass inside the Tribulation Period. Now I have to adjust a little bit. No doubt the full fury of tsunamis are yet to come, but the December 26 catastrophe serves to warn the world of the soon-coming judgment of God, and at the same time to awaken a sleeping Church, asleep to prophecy (Luke 18:8 ; Matt. 25:5).

For clarity and for specific signification we will call the last seven years of this world the Tribulation, and the second half of that period – the last three and a half years – the Great Tribulation (Matt. 24:21). This brings us to the book of Daniel. We will return to the Olivet Discourse later.

DANIEL’S 70 -WEEK PROPHECY

Here is the explanation why the Tribulation will last seven years, after which Christ will come in power and great glory. It is in Daniel 9:24-27.

The prophet Daniel was given by God a prophecy on the nation Israel and its capital city Jerusalem about 530 BC. The prophet had been confessing Israel’s sins and his own when the angel Gabriel delivered to him probably the most amazing prophecy in the Bible, the prophecy of the “Seventy Weeks.”

“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy” (Dan. 9:24). Seventy weeks of years is meant here, or 490 Biblical years of 360 days a year. We know that the first half of the verse was fulfilled by Christ at His first coming almost two thousand years ago – “to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity.” The other half He will fulfill at His Second Coming.

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after three score and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself” (verses 25, 26a). Nehemiah testified (Nehemiah 2:1-8) that the proclamation by Persian King Artaxerxes Longimanus to rebuild Jerusalem came out on Nisan 1, 445 BC, calculated by the Royal Observatory, Greenwich to be March 14, 445 BC. Sixty nine weeks, or 483 years (i.e., 173,880 days) from March 14, 445 BC would bring us to April 6, AD 32, the exact day when Jesus Christ was presented to the Jews as their Messiah (Luke 19:36-44).

(This is based on the computations made by Sir Robert Anderson in his Christological interpretation of the 70-Week Prophecy.) The exact timing of His triumphal entry into Jerusalem is a proof of His Messiahship. Had he entered Jerusalem sooner or later, it would mean He was not the “Messiah the Prince.” Here we have an example of how exact and reliable Bible prophecies are. We can therefore be sure that the specific prophecies that refer to our time will come to pass precisely as written in the Holy Scriptures (1 Pet. 1:19-21).

Just as the angel Gabriel predicted, the Messiah was “cut off,” that is, slain – crucified – after the 69 weeks of years had expired, not for Himself but for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16). It happened within five days. Then what?

“and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined” (Dan. 9:26b). This was fulfilled in AD 70 when the Romans under Titus burned Jerusalem and the temple. Thirty seven years had passed since AD 32 before verse 26b was fulfilled, therefore it is obvious that the last week of the Seventy-Week-Prophecy – or the last seven years – cannot have been fulfilled at that time. God’s time clock for Israel must have stopped at the close of the 69 weeks in AD 32. Yet the prophecy must fulfill all of the 70 weeks.

The 70th Week: “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (verse 27). Who is “he” that shall confirm a covenant with many for one week? Here is an error in interpretation made by some. It is supposed that “he” is the Messiah accomplishing His ministry for seven years but was killed “in the midst of the week.”

It is believed that God’s time clock for the Seventy Weeks stopped at the Crucifixion and will restart at the Second Coming, and the Messiah will preach again for another three and a half years. That there is a Prophetic Gap of about 2000 years after the 69 weeks is seen correctly. But the interpretation is wrong. For one thing, and this is important, the antecedent of “he” is misplaced. And the “covenant” is misunderstood. The whole seventieth week is wrongly interpreted to be the Messiah’s preaching ministry to the Jews.

Who, then, is “he” and what is the “covenant”? The “he” in Daniel 9:27 is none other than “the prince that shall come” mentioned in verse 26. Bible expositors agree that he is the end-time Antichrist. He is the Beast from the sea (Rev. 13) and the “little horn” of Daniel 7:8. He is referred to by Christ in John 5:43, “…if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.” This coming personal Antichrist will be accepted by the Jews as their messiah. When this powerful man appears on the world scene he will make a “covenant” – or a treaty – with many for seven years. The “many” refers to the nation of Israel and other nations.

Since Jerusalem, in the last days, will become “a cup of trembling… a burdensome stone for all people” (Zech. 12:2,3), the covenant spoken of in Daniel 9:27 must be a peace settlement for Jerusalem and the whole Middle East. The man who will be able to bring about peace in the region will be looked up to by the whole world as a hero, in fact more than a hero – he will be worshipped (Rev. 13:3,4,8). But after three and a half years from the signing of the treaty – “in the midst of the week”- his true colors will come out. He will break the formal agreement with the Jews and will enter the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, causing the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and proclaim that he is God (2 Thess. 2:4)! Why? He is also “that man of sin… the son of perdition” (verse 3).

We have seen that the 70th Week of Daniel 9:24-27 is yet to come. God’s prophetic time clock for His plan for the Jews and for the establishment of the Kingdom stopped on April 6, AD 32, when the Messiah was formally rejected by the Jews (John 1:11). Within two months the Church was inaugurated on the day of Pentecost (John 1:12.13 ; Acts 2).

We are right now in the closing days of the Prophetic Gap between the 69 Weeks and the 70th Week. The last seven years to complete the prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27 are being held in abeyance by the presence of the Church of God on earth (2 Thess. 2:6-8). The Church, because it will no longer have role on the earth during that time (Rom. 11:25), will be raptured to heaven shortly before the 70th Week sets in.

We are now ready, in this article, to appreciate the scriptural proofs for a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church. But before that, let me get back to the Tribulation which corresponds to the 70th Week.

THE TRIBULATION DESCRIBED

The following scriptures give other names for the impending Tribulation that will engulf this unsuspecting world:

“Howl ye; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty… Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it… Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger” (Isaiah 13:6,9,13).

“Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it” (Jer. 30:7).

“And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end” (Dan.12:9).

“For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Rev.6:17)

“…Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” (Rev. 14:7).

“As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of the world” (Matt. 13:40).

“Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee; hide thy self as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast… For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies…” (Isaiah 26:20 ; 34:2).

“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time…” (Dan. 12:1).

1. “AS THE DAYS OF NOE WERE. . .”

Proof number one for a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church is in the Olivet Discourse itself. I never realized it before but it is now clear to me.

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:29,30). This is the glorious Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It is plain that He will come after the Tribulation. Verse 31, at first glance, is the strongest proof for a Post-Tribulation Rapture: “And he shall send his angels with a great shout of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”

Now, where is the Pre-Trib Rapture there, you might say. It’s so plain that Christ, as He descends from heaven, uses His angels to rapture the Church at His Second Coming. How could you explain that away in order to push a Pre-Trib Rapture?

Before further explanation, let me go forward in Matthew 24. “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (vv. 36,37). Two facts can be gathered here: 1) The day or the hour of Christ’s coming cannot be known by any man, and 2) His coming is compared to the days of Noah. We don’t have to guess what the days of Noah were like, for the next verses say, the Lord speaking, “For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; SO SHALL THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN BE” (vv. 38,39).

“The coming of the Son of man” in verses 37 and 39 refers to the first stage of the Second Advent, that is, Christ coming to rapture the Church to heaven before the Tribulation begins, as promised in John 14:2,3.

A) Our Lord enumerated the signs that would precede His Second Coming, including cataclysmic occurrences such as international conflicts, famines, pestilences, and earthquakes. And He gave the specific sign of the “abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” When people see these signs happening they should be sure the Second Coming is near, in fact, only three and a half years away from the Abomination of Desolation. “So likewise ye, when ye shall see these things, know that it is near, even at the doors” (v. 33).

But Jesus also says, “Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh” (v. 44). How can these His seemingly contradictory statements be reconciled? Surely, Christ will not contradict Himself! In one verse He says watch for signs of His coming; a few verses later He warns us to be ready, for there is no specific sign of His coming.

We are therefore forced to conclude that our Savior must be talking about two distinct and separate events. There must be two future Comings. The first one requires no specific sign to watch before it occurs; the other will be preceded by so many signs. In other words, first He comes to rapture His Church. Then seven years later (refer back to the 70-Week Prophecy) He comes to end the Great Tribulation (v. 22) and rescue the Jews at Armageddon (Rev.19).

B) The Rapture cannot be Post-Tribulational because just like in days of Noah it will be “business as usual” in the world just before “the coming of the Son of man” (v. 39) – “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage.” That is hardly the situation during the Great Tribulation, when hundreds of millions will die from wars, famines, etc. If we go by the book of Revelation BILLIONS will have already died by the end of the Great Tribulation; the days of Noah were not like that before he and his family were taken into the ark. If Jesus is coming at a time similar to the days of Noah when the world is relatively peaceful this coming must occur before the Tribulation. Therefore, He is coming for the Church at that time – the first phase of His “parousia.”

C) The Second Coming in glory can be pinpointed to the day by believers who will be alive during the Tribulation. How? By simply counting days from the setting up of the Abomination of Desolation and referring to Daniel 12:11,12. But the Coming discussed in Matthew 24:36-44 will be sudden and unexpected. This “coming of the Son of man” cannot be the one that is referred to in verse 30, where it is stated that all the tribes of the earth will finally see the Son of man after a series of signs have happened.

D) “Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left” (vv. 40,41). These verses immediately follow the Noahic comparison. People are “taken” – raptured – before the time of global cataclysm suddenly comes on the whole world. This is a Pre-Tribulation taking-away of Christians to heaven (John 14:2,3).

Now concerning the gathering of “the elect” Matthew 24:30, 31 does not substantiate a Post-Tribulation Rapture of the Church, contrary to what many believe. When the Second Coming occurs Jesus Christ comes down to earth with His saints from heaven; the saints will have been in heaven for seven years by that time (Zech. 14:5 ; Jude 14 ; Col. 3:4 ; 1 Thess. 3:13 ; 4:14 ; Rev. 19:14). The Church, the Bride of the Lamb, is already in heaven when the Lord returns to earth in glory (Rev. 19:7-9). Wherever the Husband goes there goes His Wife.

Who, then, are the “elect” whom the angels will gather from the four winds? Mark 13:27 makes it clearer; “And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.” The Bible does not leave us in the dark as to who God’s “elect’’ are. In Isaiah 45:4 God is quoted as saying, “For Jacob my servant’s sake and ISRAEL mine elect. . . .” Therefore, it is the remnant of Israel in the last days who are the “elect” that will be gathered from around the globe when Christ begins to establish His Kingdom in the Millennium. It is thus prophesied by God in Isaiah, “And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains; and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there” (Isa 65:9). Ezekiel sheds more light: “As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you” (Ezek. 20:33). The language strongly indicates that the fulfillment of this prophecy is shortly after the Tribulation.

Matthew 24:31 and Mark 13:27 are enlarged upon by the following verses from Ezekiel: “And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out. And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD.

And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant: And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the LORD” (vv. Ezek 20:34-38 ),