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The Argument for a Pre-Tribulation Raptureby Barry and Helen Setterfield
In order to understand something often referred to as the Rapture, or the sudden gathering of the church away from the earth to be with Jesus in heaven, it is necessary to look at a general timeline as the Bible presents it. This time now is considered the church age. What will follow on earth is called the Tribulation, a seven year period when evil reigns and during which God’s anger is poured out on the world. This closes with a massive battle (the Battle of Armageddon) in which Christ personally appears to fight His enemies – whom He defeats. This ushers in the Millennium, as described in Revelation, which is a thousand years in which Christ reigns upon the earth, with Jerusalem as His capital. One final rebellion closes this time, after which the heaven and earth of this creation are utterly destroyed and a new heaven and new earth are created. There is no sin in this new creation, and the Bible tells us the dwelling of God will be with man. There are claims that the Rapture idea was new in the 19th century and was not known before that. In order to examine this, we need to remember that there is a well-known collection of about 50 or so volumes of early church writings. One of the early church fathers was Irenaeus. He studied under Polycarp, who was a student of the Apostle John. On page 558 of the first volume of these writings, we find the following quote from Irenaeus: “And therefore, when in the end the church shall suddenly be caught up from this, it is said, ‘There shall then be tribulation such as has not been since the beginning, neither shall be.’” He is clear the Tribulation comes after the church is caught up. This is not something invented almost 2000 years later – it was the blessed hope of the church from the beginning. How did that doctrine get lost? Around 500 AD, the Roman Empire was pretty much finished, having fallen not only due to internal corruption, but barbarians of different tribes invading around its extensive borders. It is at this point the Roman Catholic Church actually begins to exert its dominance, and it does so, very shortly, under the guise of it being the thousand year reign of Christ through the Pope. Thus, the concept of a Rapture was not only erased by that church, but by the fact that the populace, mostly concerned now with survival, was essentially illiterate. And, indeed, a thousand years passed. The Reformation was not until the sixteenth century. THEN the Reformers considered the Pope the Antichrist! This, again, would negate the Rapture, at least any pre- or mid-Trib rapture, since the Antichrist was already there. And that is why it was not until the nineteenth century, when people were actually studying the Bible for themselves again, that the knowledge of a Rapture became known. That is why it is so important for you to really know your Bible, start to finish. If you don’t, you are an easy target for any number of false doctrines. But let’s continue…. A quick look at the Tribulation: It begins with the ratification, or signing, of a seven-year Covenant between the Antichrist (the false Messiah) and “the many” (the parliamentary majority in Israel - Daniel 9:27). This Covenant allows the Jews to rebuild their Temple. However, after three and a half years, Antichrist causes the sacrifices to cease and sets himself up in the Temple to be worshipped as God (Daniel 9:27 and 2 Thessalonians 2:4). Daniel calls this event the Abomination of Desolation (Daniel 8:13; 9:27; 11:31). Around 33 AD, Yeshua (Jesus the Messiah) said that this event was still future (Matthew 24:15) and so it is not a reference to the Temple desecration of Antiochus IV (Epiphanes). The seven years of Tribulation is marked by natural and supernatural disasters. There are four main views concerning something called the Rapture, or the sudden gathering of all true believers out of this world to be with Christ.
Our position in this paper is that it is not only a real event that will take place, but that it must happen prior to the Tribulation. The following reasons are why.
1. -- In Luke 21:35-36, Jesus says that the Tribulation will come as a snare upon the whole earth. He then concludes by saying “Watch therefore and pray always that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things which will come to pass and stand before the Son of Man.” He urges us to be worthy to escape all these things, meaning the Tribulation, not to have the strength to go through them. The implication is that the Rapture takes the Church out before the Tribulation. 2. -- In Matthew 24:36-51, Jesus treats the Rapture as a separate subject to the general discussion of end-times. Jesus reiterates that no-one knows the day or hour of that event, only the Father (v.36). Verses 42 & 44 say that Jesus is coming for the Rapture when no-one expects Him. If the Rapture is mid-Trib or post-Trib, the actual date of Jesus coming will be fixed by the date of the signing of the 7 year Covenant according to the times given in Daniel and Revelation. So once that signing takes place, the day would be known, contrary to Jesus statement. 3. -- In that Matthew 24 passage, Jesus further states that the same old social round will be going on with business as usual when the Rapture happens. He likens it to what happened with Noah and the Flood in verses 38 &39 – everything was going on unchanged when it happened. However the Tribulation years are a time of incredible upheaval and disaster. So this is another indication that the Rapture of the Church must take place before that time of turmoil and chaos. 4. -- In Revelation 3:10, Jesus has a specific message to the group of faithful believers. “Because you have kept my commands…I will keep you from the hour of trial which will come upon the whole world to try those that dwell on the earth.” That “hour of trial” is a synonym for the Tribulation. Jesus promised to keep His faithful ones “from the hour”. In Greek it is EX tes horas (FROM the hour), not EN tes horas (IN the hour). There is a distinct difference between the two words, EX meaning “out away from the hour” and EN or being “kept in the hour”. In the Old Testament, Lot and his daughters were kept FROM the hour of judgement, while Noah and his family were kept IN the hour. All this suggests the Rapture occurs before the Tribulation and the Church is kept out from the time of judgement. 5. -- In the book of Revelation, Jesus addresses the Church in chapters 1-3. The Church is not mentioned again until 19:7-9. Everything in between involves the Tribulation and all those who come to the Lord from around the earth at that time. It is important not to confuse the Church with the Tribulation saints. They are three different classes of people and the Lord has a different program for each. Remember the Church is a distinct entity in God’s program, separate from Israel. Relevant Parables and Teachings 1. -- Several times in the New Testament, references are made by Jesus to a harvest. Paul also makes references to this picture. That gives us an interesting timeline. The first fruits are exactly that – the earliest part of the harvest before the main harvest is ready. Not everything ripens at the same time. Then, a bit later, comes the main part of the harvest. Since not everything ripens at the same time, there are those parts left for the poor or which simply ripened a bit later. These are the gleanings. We know Christ Himself is the firstfruits (1 Corinthians 15:20). Included with him are the ‘train of captives,’ or those he took from Paradise to be with Him in heaven (Ephesians 4:8). Interestingly, Jeremiah 2:3 lists Israel as the firstfruits of the harvest of the Lord. So, it might be argued that Jesus, leading the Old Testament believers from Paradise to heaven at His ascension constitutes the firstfruits. Then, when the Jewish leaders rejected Christ, as did most Jews, the church age began. This harvest has been ongoing, as indicated in passages such as Matthew 9:37-38, 21:34, and other places. What about the ‘gleanings’? The seventieth week of Daniel, the Tribulation, would certainly qualify. Those who come to Christ late. But, if these are the gleanings, then that means the main harvest is finished, and that again indicates a pre-Tribulation rapture. The question about the tares being harvested before the wheat comes up is often raised, but if you look at it in context, it is applying to the Millennium when Christ rules on earth. The parable can be found in Matthew 13:24-30. The servants ask the owner of the field if they should pull up the tares. The owner says no. There is no time now when we are told to root out evildoers. Instead we are warned that they will proliferate and everything will get worse. But in the Millennium there will be those saints who rule with Christ and therefore they would have the capability of destroying the evil people. But they are told not to. At the end of the Millennium there is one final battle when the evil people join forces with the unchained demons and are finally and forever defeated by Christ. This is when the tares are finally uprooted and burned. The field then is harvested for the final crop. At that point the field is made new: ploughed up for the next year’s crop – or, in the case of biblical history, for the new heaven and the new earth. Jesus explains all this a few verses later in Matthew 13:37-43. The lovely thing about the new creation is that there will be no more rebellion; no more sin. 2. -- Another picture that is relevant is that of the Jewish marriage tradition. First the engagement, far from being what it is in the modern Western culture, is a legally binding agreement between two families. The groom gives the bride an engagement gift, or a Gift of Promise. He then leaves to prepare a place for her, while she prepares herself for him. At a ‘secret’ time, he appears to claim his bride, the wedding ceremony takes place, and then he takes her with him to the place he has prepared for her. They then spend seven days quietly together, consummating the marriage. It is only after that seven day period the marriage feast, which could last up to a week, commenced. We checked a number of videos about the ancient customs in Israel and the best we could find was presented by a young lady regarding the betrothal process itself. We encourage you to watch this, as there will be some references to it as we go. During the marriage feast, the bride is seated with the groom at a place of honor. Revelation 3:21 may be a reference to this But we can go a little further. I know of no prospective husband who, after the engagement ceremony says to his prospective wife, “Oh, by the way, just before the Wedding, I am going to punish you and all your family and friends severely because of all the bad things you have done in the past. But be of good cheer; look forward to the Wedding!” The Tribulation occurs because of the reason given in Isaiah 13:10-11 “The stars of heaven will not give their light…and I will punish the world for its evil.” We read in 2 Peter that God is not willing that one should perish. On the cross, Jesus paid the bride-price for everyone who has ever lived. All sins from all time were atoned for. That is not the same as forgiveness, which is a personal thing. It was, instead the legal payment for sin, to buy back, or redeem, the Bride. As the video linked above mentions at the end, the chosen woman has the option at any time up until the actual wedding ceremony, to back out. She can refuse to answer the door in the beginning; she can refuse any of the sips of wine; she can refuse to light her lamp when the groom is due (these may possibly be pictured in the parable of the sower of seeds and what happens to the various seeds). But the woman who accepts the Groom is now forgiven by him for any past misdeeds. That personal forgiveness is available to all who accept Jesus Christ. And it is this forgiveness which is a guarantee that the Bride – the body of true believers – will be taken out of the world before God’s wrath is poured out on it in the Tribulation. So would the Rapture be possible at mid-tribulation? Not if the picture of the Jewish ceremony is correct. The bride and groom have seven days together before the feast. Those seven days would be the seven years of the Tribulation for the world, when Jesus is with His bride and not in the world. Thus the concept of the Rapture occurring in either the middle or end of the Tribulation does violence to the character of God and Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross. 3. -- The Old Testament calls the Tribulation “the Day of the Lord,” “the Wrath of God,”” the Indignation,” and specifically “The time of Jacob’s trouble”. This is the time when God takes up His dealings with the Jewish nation once again after the interlude of the Church in His program. This is Daniel’s seventieth week. This is necessary since the leaders of Israel committed the offense of delivering Messiah for Crucifixion. Then, after having had their error pointed out to them around the Roman Empire (as in the book of Acts) they generally continued to reject Yeshua as their Messiah. This was outlined in Hosea 5:15 where the Lord says “I will go and return to My place (Messiah’s ascension to Heaven) until they (the Jews) acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face, for in their Affliction (the Tribulation) they will seek Me earnestly.” God has to get them to acknowledge their offense and for 2000 years they have not done so as a nation. So the Tribulation is specifically the Time of Jacob’s Trouble, not the time of the Church’s (or Ecclesia’s) trouble. But for those people around the world who acknowledge Messiah, which group the OT calls “the meek of the earth,” there is the promise that they will be hidden (in Heaven) during the Tribulation. Zephaniah 2:1-3 says that, after the regathering of Israel, and before the Tribulation comes “Seek the Lord all you meek of the earth (that is not only Jews, but the Gentiles around the world). It may be that you will be hidden in the day of the Lord’s wrath.” 4. -- The story of Lot in the Old Testament presents us with another picture. First, there is the view that the Church will go through the Tribulation or the first half of it. But Revelation tells us that by mid-Tribulation most, or all, Christians have been killed by the antichrist. This is emphasized by Christ himself in Luke 18:8 when he effectively states that when He comes to rule at the close of the Tribulation, he will not find “the Faith” on the earth. Essentially no believers are left at that stage – all have been destroyed. It is therefore legitimate to ask if the Lord has destroyed the righteous with the wicked. This comes down to an issue of God’s character, which is something Abraham recognized. In Genesis 18, when the Lord revealed that He was about to destroy Sodom for its wickedness, Abraham stood before Him and asked this same question: “Would you destroy the righteous with the wicked? … Far be it from you to do such a thing!” (Genesis 18:23, 25). Abraham knew God’s character well enough to know this was not like Him. We know the outcome; Lot and his daughters were saved away from the inferno – they were taken out before the judgement was poured out. Indeed, this was the very example that Messiah used in speaking of the Rapture in Luke 17:28-36 and in so doing emphasized that there was life going on as usual when the Rapture event was to occur. Life will not be normal during the Tribulation, neither is its God’s character to punish the righteous with the wicked when it is His specific judgement involved. Therefore, this Old Testament example strongly suggests that the Rapture occurs before the Tribulation, but that the Tribulation does start either immediately or very soon after the Rapture. 1. -- The Apostles appear to have held to the doctrine of the Immanence of Christ’s coming, the Rapture, even in their own time, and this is reflected in their teachings. The Apostle Paul mentions this in Titus 2:13 where he told us to be continually “looking for the Blessed Hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” If the Antichrist and the Tribulation were to come first, such an exhortation would be not only unnecessary and spurious, but also misleading. There would be no Hope in His Coming, but rather a dread looking for the Tribulation. In contrast to that black backdrop, Jesus said to lift up your heads as you see world events moving in that direction, while the book of Hebrews says to rejoice as you see the day approaching (Luke 21:28; Hebrews 10:25). You cannot rejoice in the prospect of heading into disaster, death and devastation. So, Jesus’ words, and those of the writer to the Hebrews, imply that the Rapture comes first. 2. -- However, Paul explains further in his letters. In 1 Thessalonians 1:10, Paul reaffirms that we are “to wait for God’s Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the Wrath to come [the Tribulation].” Paul is using the specific Old Testament designation of God’s wrath or indignation as the Tribulation period. This can be seen in a number of prophets, Isaiah 13:9, 13; 60:10; Jeremiah 10:10; Ezekiel 7:19; 22:31 Zephaniah 1:15, 18; 2:3 and so on as well as in several Psalms. It is a specific period when God pours out His judgement on the whole earth; it is not just a general displeasure with sinners. In Genesis 15, God tells Abraham that his family may not yet inherit the land to be given them “because the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached full measure.” At the time of Sodom, if even ten righteous men were in the town, it would not be destroyed. So, in line with God’s character, we may know that at the time of the Tribulation, all that are left on earth will be fully steeped in evil and delusion of their own choosing. In that special period, iniquity has come to a full throughout the whole earth and God pours out His wrath in judgement against it. Paul reiterates this message in 1 Thessalonians 5:9 where he specifically states “For God has not appointed us to the wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” That word “salvation” is not just today’s commonly used euphemism “I’m saved”, but rather it is referring to the salvation of our physical bodies at the Rapture as Paul was talking about this event in the preceding verses. In the same way, “the wrath” is not just a general term for God’s displeasure at sinners, but a specific event designated as such in the Old Testament. 3. -- In addition, 1 Thessalonians 5:2 reiterates the fact that things will be going on as normal and everyone will be discussing “peace and safety” or “peace and security”. This is the situation today with every pronouncement from the Middle East emphasizing that all the political maneuvering is to bring in this “peace and security”. Paul says that “When they say ‘peace and safety’ then sudden destruction [the Tribulation] comes upon them as labor pains with a pregnant woman. And they (the world) will not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness that that day will overtake you like a thief…but let us who are of the day be sober … and put on as a helmet the hope of [the ultimate] salvation. For God has not appointed us to the wrath but to obtain salvation….” Here, then is the difference between us (salvation of our bodies at the Rapture) and them (the judgement of the Tribulation). 4. -- In 2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 Paul makes a surprising comment. He says: “it is a righteous thing with God to repay with Tribulation those who trouble you, and give you who are troubled, rest, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven … taking vengeance on those who do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” So, the import of this passage is that the Tribulation is not for the harassed believers, who will be given rest, but rather for the unbelievers who deny and ignore God. This is in full accord with Abraham’s comment that God will not destroy the righteous with the wicked; it is not in His character. Rather the righteous will be given rest in Heaven as a reward, while the unbelievers will have the judgement of the Tribulation on earth. 5. -- The second chapter of 2 Thessalonians is recognized by most Christians as a key section regarding the timing of the end events. Verse 1 is extremely important: “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him…” This is clearly a reference to the Rapture. The verses which follow must be viewed in that light. The very next thing Paul says, before the first sentence is even completed, is to reassure the Thessalonian Church that this event has not yet occurred, despite some kind of false letter they evidently received indicating they had been left behind. Paul says “the day of the Lord” has not yet come. The “Day of the Lord” was a specific designation of the Tribulation as, for example, in Zechariah 14:1 and Malachi 4:5. So the problem these Christians had was that someone had told them they were already in the Tribulation. Since Nero had ascended the throne in Rome, that possibility certainly loomed as real for them. Paul writes to counteract that error. He says “let no one deceive you by any means for that Day will not come unless the ‘apostasia’ comes first”. So the Tribulation cannot come until the apostasia happened, and it was apparent to all Paul’s readers that this had not occurred, whatever the ‘apostasia’ was. It is interesting that the definite article “the” is in front of apostasia so it is something quite specific, a unique event. It is that word, “apostosia” which causes some problems. Today in our modern English we use the word “apostacy” to describe a religious departure from the faith. Our word apostacy is a late derivative of that same Greek word, and so it has become fashionable to translate it as “the apostacy” or “the departure from the faith” or “the religious departure.” First of all, there have been many departures from the faith historically. We can see this in any number of sects and cults. Second, the translation which indicates a departure from the faith came about as a result of the Reformation doctrine which saw the Pope as the Antichrist and the Roman Catholic Church as having departed from the true faith. The Reformers and those who produced the King James Version therefore favored “the apostacy” as it hinted at their problems with Rome and the language was now making it a possible translation. Interestingly, the 7 English translations before the KJV did not use the word “apostacy” or its equivalent of “falling away.” They simply used the word “Departure”, because that is what the root word actually means in Greek – physically going away. In the Greek language there is a root word from which the noun apostasia is derived and from which the verb aphistemi is also derived. All told this root is used 15 times in the New Testament. In most cases it is the verb which has been used and is almost always translated as “departure,” since it really does mean a physical departure as in Luke 2:37 and 4:13. It is only the noun form which has been translated on two occasions as “falling away” or a religious departure due to the influence of the Reformers. The conclusion is that a strict rather than colloquial translation would read as follows: “Let no one deceive you by any means for that Day (the Tribulation) will not come unless THE DEPARTURE comes first.” In the context of verse 1 of our gathering together to Christ, “The Departure” must be referring to the Rapture, and that must happen before the Tribulation. So, when rightly understood, this passage positively affirms a pre-Trib Rapture. 6. -- That passage has another gem, namely 2 Thessalonians 2:6 – 8. Here, Paul states that “the mystery of iniquity or lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will continue to do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed.” The pronoun used is “he” not “she” so it cannot be the Church, the bride of Christ as some claim. However, there is one Individual who has been restraining evil from coming to full fruition over the last 2000 years, and that is the Holy Spirit. Paul is saying here that, when the Holy Spirit is removed, the Antichrist will be revealed (by signing, or confirming, the 7-year Covenant). The Holy Spirit came in a special way at Pentecost to start the Church age. When He leaves, the Church age ends. So what becomes of us? Jesus said He would not leave us as orphans, without the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-18). Therefore when He is taken out, we also will leave. This again indicates the Rapture will be before the Tribulation starts.
Reconsidering the Rapture, June, 2020 We have considered some basic issues relating to the Rapture of the Church, or true believers in Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, as written above. The Rapture was called “the Blessed Hope” by some Church Fathers and the Reformers on the basis of Titus 2:13, where that “blessed Hope” is described as the “glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” Those who look forward to this event are divided into two main groups. There are those who hold that the Rapture will occur before the 7-year Great Tribulation is poured out on an unrepentant world. The Believers are then in Heaven for that 7-year period and return with Christ at the close of the battle of Armageddon to set up Christ’s Millennial reign on earth. Those who hold this view are called Pre-Tribulation Rapture Christians. Then there are those who believe that the Christians have to go through the Tribulation and the Rapture happens as Christ returns at the Battle of Armageddon to set up the Millennium. These are the Post-Tribulation Rapture believers. Another group thinks the Rapture may be in the middle of the Tribulation, and yet another group think it is after the close of the Millennium. As world events are moving rapidly towards the prophesied onset of the Great Tribulation, the question of which view is correct assumes some importance. Let us look at this first, then gain additional insight from considering the Tribulation itself. On the first matter, some recent information has a bearing on the discussion and gives an unexpected answer to an old puzzle. The passage in question is 2 Thessalonians 2. The Apostle Paul gives the context of this entire chapter in verse 1. Paul writes as follows: “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him…”(NKJ). This places the Rapture firmly in view as the topic under discussion. He then says that the “Day of the Lord,” the Old Testament name for the Tribulation (Zechariah 14:1 & Malachi 4:5) “…will not come unless the falling away comes first and the Man of Lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition…” (NKJ). It is at this point that these words have been interpreted two different ways to give the two main positions of a pre- or post-Tribulation Rapture. The original Greek is some help here. The word employed is APOSTASIA which generally means a physical departure; literally to “stand away from” something. However, since the time of the Reformation, a spiritual departure or “falling away” from the faith has been the idea which was promoted for this word. But there is something more. In the Greek, the definite article “the” is placed before apostasia, so a definite event is in view here; it may be rendered “the departure” or “the falling away.” If the context of the passage in verse 1 is followed through with “our gathering unto the Lord,” it is very likely that the translation option of “the departure” refers specifically to that event, namely the Rapture. It is then of Interest to note that Wycliffe’s Translation of 1384 reads it simply as “the departure.” So, too does Tyndale’s version of 1526, and Coverdale’s of 1535. Cranmer in 1539 gave exactly that same translation, as did the 1576 Geneva Bible and that of Beze in 1583. In fact, as late as 1599 and 1608, these updated versions of the Geneva Bible also translated it that way. Each one of these versions had a physical departure in view from the Greek text. As a result, all these versions support the specific physical departure of the Christians in the Rapture as the event being referred to here. However, the Roman Catholic translation from Jerome’s Vulgate into English in the Rheims Bible in 1576 did something entirely different; it was the first translation to take the word apostasis as referring to a spiritual departure or “falling away” from the faith. That version and succeeding Catholic versions read “that day will not come unless there come THE REVOLT first…” In some cases, it is specifically mentioned as “the Protestant revolt,” which is how the Reformation is still taught in Catholic seminaries. The Reformation started with Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral in 1517. This started the ‘Revolt’ that gave them the idea of a spiritual “falling away,” and even the 1611 King James Bible translated it that way. This translation has been copied by translators many times since. The Reformers saw a twofold advantage in accepting the 1576 Catholic translation. First, that allowed them to see the Pope as the Antichrist, who was to come soon after “the departure” or “the revolt.” Second, they saw this development as attesting the soon coming of Christ for the true Church as the Blessed Hope, since “the Revolt” had to happen first. In other words, this verse had much to do with some aspects of Reformation prophetic doctrine. In so doing, the original thrust of the passage was lost. Furthermore, the spiritual falling away closed the possibility of a Pre-Tribulation Rapture and opened the option of a Post-Tribulation event. The second matter concerns the Great Tribulation itself, which lasts 7 years from the time Antichrist signs the Covenant with Israel to bring peace to the Middle-East (Daniel 9:26,27; 11:22-23; Revelation 11:2,3; 12:6; 13:5 etc). This Covenant allows the Temple to be rebuilt (Revelation 11:1, 2; 2 Thessalonians 2:4; Daniel 8:11-14; 11:30-32). The Tribulation is variously known in Scripture as “the Wrath of God” (Ezek. 38:19), “God’s indignation” (Dan. 8:19), “the time of Jacob’s trouble – so there is none like it” (Jer. 30:7), and so on. The Tribulation is unique: it has never happened before. In fact, Jesus said that it will be worse than anything this planet has experienced since the creation (Mark 13:19). Daniel 8:19 also indicates that “the indignation” lasts for the full 7 year covenant period. This is because the Abomination of Desolation is set up at the mid-point of the Tribulation, and Daniel is told that this event starts the ”latter end of the Indignation.” So those who say the Wrath of God or the Indignation is only the last 3 ½ years of the 7-year period are incorrect Scripturally. To gain some idea of how God feels at this time, the word Indignation in Hebrew carries with it the idea of ‘frothing at the mouth with anger… ‘ There are three reasons for the Tribulation which Isaiah 24:1 says comes as a result of God’s direct action. The first is that mankind has transgressed God’s laws and broken His everlasting covenant (Isaiah 24:5, 6). Second, it is to “punish the world for its evil” (Isaiah 13:11). Third, it is to turn the heart of the Jews to accept Yeshua, Jesus as the Messiah and His blood sacrifice for sins. Note it is not to punish the Church for its evil, neither is it the time of the Church’s trouble. In fact, while the focus is on the churches in Revelation 1-3, from Revelation 6 to 19 when the Tribulation is poured out on earth, the church is not once mentioned. Though many accept Christ’s sacrifice during that time, the Bible does not call them part of the Church; they are the ‘Tribulation Saints’ who pay for their allegiance with their lives (Revelation 7:9 ff. 20:4.) They are described as “before the throne” in Revelation 7:15 & 20:4. In contrast the Church is described as “seated with Christ on His throne” (Ephesians 2:6; Revelation 3:21). While those who make up the Body of Christ (the Church) will have and have had tribulation on earth from the attacks of mankind and the devil & his demons, this is different from the Great Tribulation that God Himself pours out in judgment on an unrepentant world. The Church has accepted Christ’s blood sacrifice and so is raptured to avoid this traumatic period. As Paul in 1 Thessalonians 1:10 notes, “the Lord Jesus has delivered us from the wrath to come.” In other words, we do not have to go through the Wrath or Indignation because we have been blood-bought and Spirit-filled. Jesus in Luke 21:36 says the same thing: “Watch therefore and pray always that you be accounted worthy to escape all these things which will come to pass upon the whole earth (the Tribulation) and stand before the Son of Man.” This aspect of God’s character is the whole reason why Abraham stood before God as they walked towards Sodom. The Lord had told Abraham that He was going to pour out His specific and unique judgment on Sodom. But in Genesis 18:23 and 25. Abraham reiterates “Would you also destroy the righteous with the wicked? …Far be it from You to do such a thing as this to slay the righteous with the wicked…Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” And Jesus used this example of the righteous being saved from Sodom before the divine firestorm as an illustration of the Rapture before the fiery Tribulation is unleashed. Abraham appealed to the character of God. We can appeal to His own words. Jesus promised in John 14 that He would uniquely give the Holy Spirit to us Believers “to abide with you forever” as the Comforter (verse 16). He assured us He would not leave us as orphans (verse 18). The Holy Spirit came in a special way at Pentecost to indwell believers. In 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 it says the Holy Spirit is restraining lawlessness from coming to full fruition until He is taken out of the way. Then the Antichrist, “the man of lawlessness” is revealed. Since Jesus said the Spirit will never leave us, if He is taken out of the way, we go out with Him at that same moment; the Rapture. Then and only then is antichrist revealed. We have Jesus own specific words for that. He is the Truth. One final aspect of God’s character also is apparent here. Jesus said in Luke 21:28 that “when these things BEGIN to come to pass” that is when the run-up to Tribulation events becomes apparent, “look up and lift up your heads, for your redemption draws near.” God is not perverse. He was not saying rejoice (but you will have to put up with 7 years of my wrath first), then my coming will occur. He really meant what He said. When these things start to happen in the ramping up to Tribulation events, you know that His Coming for the Church is drawing near, even at the very doors, so lift up your heads and rejoice. The dramatic rise in recent lawlessness might thus be a sign that both the Rapture and the Antichrist, the man of lawlessness, are close at hand. Barry Setterfield, June 26th, 2020.
Addition: July 1, 2020 -- There is another important point to consider. When Jesus asked Peter who He was and Peter responded, Jesus remarked that on that response, that Jesus was the Son of God, or God Himself, that He would build His church, and that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. Now look at Daniel 7:21 -- "And I was watching; and the same horn [the Antichrist who had set up the Abomination of Desolation] was making war against the saints and prevailing against them until the Ancient of Days came." Clearly these saints are not part of His Church, although they are saved. This is a different group of people -- those who were alive before the Tribulation and probably had a chance to believe then, and refused. But when the Tribulation came, they realized the truth and "changed sides." In Revelation 13:7 it says, of the Antichrist (or the beast), "And it was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them." So did Christ not know what He was talking about? Not at all! The gates of hell never prevail against the Church because the Church itself is taken out of the way, along with the Holy Spirit, before the revealing of the Antichrist and the beginning of the Great Tribulation. See 2 Thessalonians 2. So, if they are not part of the Church, what happens to them? Revelation 20:4 answers that: "And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the Word of God, who had not worshipped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years." So there is no doubt about the salvation of these people. What is different from the church? In Matthew 9:15, Christ refers to Himself as the Bridegroom. So who is the Bride? Paul writes, in 11 Corinthians 11:2, "For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present a chaste virgin to Christ." We, the Church, are the Bride of Christ. In Ephesians 2:6-7, we read, And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." In Revelation, Christ speaks first to the churches during the Church Age. To the last church, Laodicea, He closes with, "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne." Howver, in Revelation 7, we fine the Tribulation saints are not seated with Christ on the Throne, but stand before the Throne. Read the chapter for full context. In conclusion, Jesus was telling the absolute truth when He said the gates of hell would not prevail against His Church. He takes us out of the way in the Rapture before the wrath of God is poured out on the rest of men. One more note: we have already received quite a few emails from mid- and post- tribbers. These emails have one of two things in common: either they are taking individual verses out of the Bible without paying attention to the rest of the Bible, or they are trying to depend on what others have said about the Bible. Read for yourself. Pray for wisdom, but understand that if fishermen could understand it, so can you. For those who are still convinced they have to be 'prepared' in case they have to go through the Tribulation, either in in part or in whole, why are you not trusting God with your life and security and all you need? Sources of Information:
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