The Rapture and Tribulation
Three
Views
The issue of the
relationship of Christ’s return to a complex of events is known as the great
tribulation. In theory, all premillennialists hold that there will be a great
disturbance of seven years’ duration prior to Christ’s return. The question has
been whether there will be a separate coming to remove the church from the
world prior to the great tribulation or whether the church will go through the
tribulation and be united with the Lord only afterward. The view that Christ
will take the church to himself prior to the tribulation is called
pretribulation; the view that he will take the church after the tribulation is
called posttribulation; and a lesser known view that Christ will come for His
chosen people just before the terrible, Wrath of God, at the end of the
tribulation is called pre-wrath. In practice, only premillennialists, who tend
to devote more attention to the details of the end times than the advocates of
either postmillennialism or amillennialism, draws these distinctions.
1 Pretribulation
Pretribulationists
emphasize the uniqueness of the tribulation, while recognizing the church has
gone through many tribulations throughout its history. It will be quite
unparalleled to anything experienced before. The tribulation is not to be understood
as a period of time for disciplining believers or purifying the church.
A second major idea
of pretribulationists is that of the rapture of the church. Christ will come
for the church just before the tribulation period begins as described in 1 Thessalonians
4:17. The pretribulationist notes that in this verse we see Christ not
descending all the way to the earth, as he will when he comes with the church
at the end of the tribulation. By this they maintain there will be two phases
in Christ’s coming. There will also be three resurrections.
The first will be the resurrection of the righteous dead at the rapture, for
Paul teaches that believers who are alive at the time will not precede those
are dead. Then at the end of the tribulation there will be a resurrection of
the saints who have died during the tribulation. Finally, at the end of the
millennium, there will be a resurrection of unbelievers.
This all means the
church will be absent during the tribulation. They can expect deliverance
because Paul promised the Thessalonians that they would not experience the
wrath which God will pour out upon unbelievers (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9).
But what of the
references in Matthew 24 which indicates that some of the elect will be present
during the tribulation? Pretribulationists believe that Matthew (24: 29-31) was
taught within a Jewish framework because the disciples were asking what would
be the sign of Jesus’ coming and of the end of the age. They feel Jesus,
speaking of the “elect” ,was speaking of the Jews not the church, thus the
distinction between Israel and the church is determined to be crucial to the
thinking of the pretribulationist. The tribulation is viewed as being the
transition from God’s dealing primarily with the church to his reestablishing
the relationship to his original chosen people, Israel.
The third major idea
is the return of Christ could be at any time. Since his return will precede the
tribulation, nothing remains to be fulfilled prior to the rapture. Jesus urged
watchfulness upon his hearers, since they did not know the time of his return
(Matthew 25:13). The parable of the ten virgins conveys this
message. Just as in the time of Noah, there will be no warning signs (Matthew
24:36-39). The wicked knew nothing until the flood came and took them away.
Finally,
pretribulationists maintain that there will be at least two judgments. The
church will be judged at the time of the rapture. It is then the rewards for
faithfulness will be handed out.
2 Posttribulation
Posttribulationists
maintain that the coming of Christ for his church will not take place until the
conclusion of the great tribulation. They avoid the use of the term rapture
because:
- It is not a biblical expression
- It suggest that the church will escape or be delivered from the tribulation
Posttribulationists
do not accept the notion that the church will escape the sufferings of the
tribulation.
While
pretribulationists believe the literal conception of the millennium where many
prophecies will be fulfilled within the thousand year period,
posttribulationists believe in a less literal interpretation. For example
posttribulationists do not feel Daniel 9:27 to be speaking of seven years but
of a period of time and the millennium is much more generalized in nature,
meaning it may not be necessarily speaking of one thousand years in length.
They see the church
as being present during and experiencing the great tribulation. Unlike the
pretribulationist they see the term “elect” in Matthew (24: 29-31) should be
understood in the light of its usage elsewhere in Scripture, where it means
“believers”. Since Pentecost the term elect has denoted the church. Posttribulationists
see the Lord preserving the church, but not sparing, during the tribulation.
Posttribulationists
draw a distinction between the wrath of God and the tribulation. The wrath of
God is spoken of in Scripture as coming upon the wicked (John 3:36; Romans
1:18; 1 Thess. 1:8; Rev. 6:16-17). On the other hand believers will not undergo
the wrath of God (Romans 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:10). In this Scripture
makes it clear that believers will not face the wrath of God but will
experience the tribulation. What is spoken in the tribulation of persecution
conducted by the Anti-Christ on the saints is to be equated as the wrath of
God, which will be sent on the wicked.
While
posttribulationists do not deny a distinction between tribulations in general
and the great tribulation, they believe that the difference is one of degree
only, not of kind. Since the world had experienced tribulation throughout its
history, it would not be surprising if the church also experiences the great
tribulation.
Where the Bible speaks
of believers who will escape or be kept from the impending trouble (Luke 21:36;
Rev. 3:10), postribulationists look at this telling them the church will be
kept from the midst of the tribulation, not that it will be kept away from the
tribulations, being reminded of the experience of the Israelites during the
plagues on Egypt.
The postribulationist
also has a different understanding of Paul’s teaching in 1 Thessalonians 4:17
to meeting the Lord in the air. The pretribulationist maintain this event is
the rapture, posttribulationists also believe this to be the taking away, by
saying this usage of the Greek word “to meet” is used elsewhere in the Bible
and each time it is used the picture is going to meet someone and coming back
with them. So the meeting the Lord in the air is not a case of being caught
away, but of meeting him and then immediately coming with him to the earth as
part of his triumphant entourage. It is the church not the Lord who will turn
around at the meeting.
Posttribulationists
have a less complex understanding of last things than their pretribulational
counterparts. For example there is only one second coming. Since there is no
interlude between the coming of Christ for the church and the end of the
tribulation, there is not a need for an additional resurrection of believers.
They see only two resurrections. The first is the resurrection of believers at
the end of the tribulation and the beginning of the millennium and the second
is the resurrection of the ungodly at the end of the millennium. They also
believe the complex events at the end as having basic unity. They believe the
second coming is impending. Their blessed hope is not an expectation that
believers will be removed from the earth before the great tribulation, but
rather a confidence that the Lord will protect and keep believers regardless of
what may come.
Pre-wrath
The pre-wrath name is
chosen simply to differ it between the pre and post tribulation positions.
Those who hold to this position look at the pretribulationist as being
logically invalid and unconvincing. They see the posttribulationist position as
being closer to their leaning because of the clear teaching in Matthew 24, the
teaching of John in Revelation 12 and 13, and the teaching of Paul in 2
Thessalonians 2 all which put the elect of God in the heart of Antichrist’s
persecution, but see posttribulationist falling short.
Those who hold this
position look at Christ’s coming preceding the sign given in the sun, moon, and
stars (Matthew 24:29-31). By looking at Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Revelation in
the New Testament and Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Joel in the Old Testament all, which
speak of the same thing. In the last days, a sign will be given in the sun,
moon, and the stars that will initiate the Day of the Lord. This position is
the common denominator that makes the biblical truths of both pre and post
tribulation positions come together, without contradiction or inconsistency.
When the day of the
Lord appears in the heavens (sun, moon, and stars), the persecution of God’s
elect at the hands of Antichrist will be ended and the wrath of God against the
children of Satan will begin. Simply stated, the persecution by Antichrist
during the great tribulation will be the wrath of Satan (Revelation 12:12), not
the wrath of God. When the sign of the sun, moon, and stars is given in the
heavens, the wrath of Satan against the elect of God will be terminated, the
faithful to God will be raptured, and then the wrath of God will begin against
the wicked that remain, ending with the battle of Armageddon.
This point of view is
also consistent with the writings of the early church fathers (those who had
been taught directly by the Apostles or one or two generations removed) that
touched on end time events in any detail at all, holding to the same general
premise that the church would undergo persecution by Antichrist. One example is
an ancient Greek manuscript entitled the Didache or The
Teaching of the Lord through the Twelve Apostles. The manuscript has been dated
between A.D. 70 and A.D. 140. Most scholars believe it to be closer to A.D. 70
due to the book not mentioning the book of Revelation in the final chapter of
the Didache. This book consists of sixteen short chapters that fall
into two parts. The first being Christian living. The second part is a manual
of church order. The early church considered this book, although not inspired,
to be very beneficial reading to every Christian living at the time. The entire
book is filled with allusions and quotations from both the Old and New
Testament. The gospel of Matthew is quoted more frequently than any other part
of Scripture, in particular, the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24). The final
chapter of this book is both a powerful warning and a sober conclusion.
Although not an indebt treatise on end time events, it does speak directly to
the subject matter referred in the Olivet Discourse. The Didache in
chapter 16 sees the Olivet Discourse as a reference to the second coming of
Christ.
Because of the
severity of the Day of the Lord, God has promised to first give the world a
sign in the heavens announcing that the day of His wrath is about to commence.
The book of Joel is devoted almost entirely to the Day of the Lord. Joel
2:30-31 and again in 3:15-16 refers to this awesome day of God’s wrath. The
final book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, in particular 6:12-17, also
predicts this sign given in the sun, moon, and stars as a precursor to the Day
of the Lord. John writes in Revelation as this the opening of the sixth seal.
The same is seen in Matthew 24: 29-31; Luke 21:25, 26, 28; 2 Peter 3:10-12.
In the pre-wrath
position the Scripture clearly teaches that Antichrist’s persecution will be
against the elect of God (Matthew 24:21-22). On the other hand, Scripture
clearly teaches that the wrath of God will be against the ungodly (2 Peter
3:7); Zephaniah 1:17-18. Romans 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:10; 5:9 all promise
that His children will not see the wrath of God.
Luke 17:22, 26-30 is
Christ teaching on when the day of the rapture will begin. These two events the
rapture and Day of the Lord are tied together.
The
pre-wrath position teaches four concepts:
2. The
wrath of God will immediately follow a sign that He will give in the heavens,
in the sun, moon, and stars, warning the world of what is to follow, and
telling the saints of God to look up because the time for their deliverance has
come.
3. The
wrath of God should never be confused with the wrath of Satan, who is the power
behind Antichrist’s persecution of God’s elect.
4. On
that day, Jesus is revealed, the saints will be rescued (raptured) and God’s
wrath will begin against those who remain.
Those who look at
this position believe it to be Scripturally sound and see the church going
through the great tribulation. Those who endure to the end will be raptured on
the same day the wrath of God begins.
Pre,
Post or Wrath
By far the most
popular Rapture position taught is the pretribulation position. They look for
Christ to return before the seven-year tribulation period begins. They do not
believe the church will experience the persecution by the Antichrist during
that terrible time that Christ specifically refers to in the Olivet Discourse
(Matthew 24) and that John describes in the book of Revelation. This position
is taught at many Bible Schools and Seminaries, such as Moody Bible School and
Dallas Theological Seminary.
A far smaller group
of evangelical teachers of prophecy argue that the rapture of the saints will
not occur until the very end of the tribulation period, meaning the church will
undergo persecution at the hands of Antichrist. This position known as
posttribulation is taught at far fewer schools.
An even smaller group
of evangelical teachers and pastors hold to the pre-wrath position. It puts
together the teaching of both previous positions looking to Scripture, as all
three do, but doing so using face-value hermeneutics. It is said
many who are of the pre-wrath position were formally pretribulationists. But,
most are fearful of losing their position teaching or in the Church they lead
so they keep quiet concerning the pre-wrath position. One recently published
article claims that one of the greatest Baptist preachers of the 19th century,
Charles Hadden Spurgeon’s, position was most closely identifiable with that of
historic premillennialism in teaching the church will experience the tribulation.
This same article states that key features of historic premillennialism are two
fold. The first stating the kingdom will be the culmination of the church age
and the second is that the rapture will follow the tribulation, with the church
going through the tribulation.
All three positions
are given in hope that interest in learning more about the different thoughts
concerning the tribulation, which all three have agreement, and how each sees
the rapture fitting into these positions. My desire is the
reader will research and define their own position.
References:
Christian
Theology by Millard
J. Erickson
The
Rapture Question Answered, Plain & Simple by Robert Van Kampen
Translation
of the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles (The Didache) compiled in the book The
Apostolic Fathers edited by J. B. Lightfoot and J. R. Harmer
The
Millennial Position of Spurgeon by Dennis M. Swanson
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