The ‘biblical’ pre-tribulation rapture is non-biblical
Anyone who has grown up in the Protestant world of Christian America has come into the concept with the rapture, where all Christians will disappear before the Tribulation — a period of great suffering and emergence of the Antichrist before the 2nd Coming of Jesus — and go into Heaven.
Movies and books like the Left Behind series have entered into the religious zeitgeist on this concept.
However, despite what people say, there is no biblical basis for the rapture taking place before the Tribulation.
In fact, there is more evidence to support that all Christians will be going through the Tribulation.
Why the Rapture Is Non-Biblical
Reason 1: Paul mentions “we who are left”
The common verse used to support the pre-Tribulation rapture is 1 Thessalonians 4:17, with people stating that “we shall be be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.” However, this is a misquotation of the verse.
Paul actually writes:
Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. — 1 Thessalonians 4:17, NKJV
Paul’s mention of “remain” denotes that this event takes place after a period wherein many people die. However, we also notice the “then” at the start of the sentence, meaning that we have to look earlier to see the context of this result.
For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. — 1 Thessalonians 4:15–17, NKJV
So we can see that there is a time of great suffering and after this period, the dead in Christ will rise first, and then those who are still alive will meet the Lord.
Reason 2: Christ said Christians will be in the Tribulation
In Matthew 24, the disciples asked Jesus what will happen at the End of the Age. Jesus notes in Matthew 24:9–14 and 24:21-22 that Christians will endure tribulation:
Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come…
For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. — Matthew 24:9–14; 21–22, NKJV
If we look at this logically, if all Christians are already in Heaven by the time the Tribulation takes place, why would He say that it will be shortened for the sake of the elect?
Furthermore, why would He promise salvation to those who endure to the end? This statement especially presumes that there will be people at the start of the Tribulation who will make it all the way through.
This then means there are Christians who go through the complete tribulation, leading to the conclusion that Christians will not be raptured pre-Tribulation.
Reason 3: Christians will be Tested, and Wheat and Tare will be Sorted
In Matthew 13:24–30, Jesus tells his disciples a parable about the wheat and the tare.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’
The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” — Matthew 13:24–30, NKJV
We see here that wheat and tare have been sowed together, such that wheat could be thrown out with the tares. The farmer decides to let both grow together until the harvest, when they are both separated and taken to their respective destinations.
The order of such separation is interesting. First, the tares are gathered together and burned, and the wheat is lastly gathered and brought into the barn.
This order follows the same general order of the Tribulation:
- First, the Tribulation allows the those on the side of the Antichrist to gather themselves, shown through the Mark of the Beast.
- Next, Jesus returns and Final Judgement takes place. Those who took the Mark and those whose name is not listed in the Lamb’s Book of Life are tossed into the Lake of Fire.
- Finally, those whose name is in the Book live in communion with God for eternity.
One thing to note about tares and wheat is that they look nearly identical throughout the growth process until harvest time.
If we think about it, the Tribulation will be the ultimate test, the ultimate sorting process. Jesus noted that it will be so bad that the evil could stand to deceive the elect (Matthew 24:24).
With the depth of suffering the Tribulation will have, it follows that such period is the time in which we must give a final answer to the following questions:
- Do we truly love Christ?
- Are we truly willing to deny ourselves, pick up our Cross and follow him?
- How much are we willing to endure for Christ?
- How much do we love this physical world and temporary life?
There are false Christians out there, ones who profess to love Christ in mouth but don’t show through their actions. The Tribulation is the perfect time for them to choose who they will stand for.
All Christians hence being gathered up early doesn’t make sense, as there will still be tares among the wheat.
So what does this all mean?
Christ has told us that in the Tribulation, salvation is to those who endure to the end. Being followers of Christ, we have not been promised an easy life, and though it may not feel physically comfortable to endure evil and suffering, we are doing it for something greater.
We are doing it out of love for Christ and the Father, just like how Christ endured His passion out of love for us.
It might suck to hear, but we as Christians are not getting a free pass out of the Tribulation.
Yes, we have grown in a time of peace and relative non-persecution for our faith relative to 1st Century Christians, but should the Tribulation happen in our time, we shouldn’t be afraid of it.
We should rejoice in the suffering, because nothing can separate us from God if we truly love Him.
It’s okay to be nervous about the prospects of phsycially suffering for Christ. I mean, even Christ, in being 100% God and 100% human, didn’t want to undergo the torment and pain His passion incurred.
But it’s in His response we can find the model for how we should structure our lives:
“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” — Luke 22:42, NKJV
Following Christ has never been and never will be easy, and the Tribulation will be the hardest time Christians of that age will have to go through.
However, Jesus has already won the battle. It is then up to us to choose whose side we want to be on.
I mean, the model for enduring and earning our crown of life (Rev. 2:10) has been given to us.
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. — Revelation 12:11, NKJV
All of these things highlight the fact that there will be no pre-tribulation rapture, that logic and Biblical evidence support the fact that both Christians and non-Christians will go through the Tribulation, and that it is up to the individual as to whom they will serve.
We can rejoice and walk in perfect peace no matter the situation because of our love for God and He us, our relationship with Him, and the victory Jesus achieved over Satan.
As Jesus told His disciples (and us, too):
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” — John 16:33, NKJV
Let’s walk the talk and talk the walk, and amidst the chaos and evil that’ll come with the Tribulation, be willing to profess our faith, love others as Christ loved us, and endure to the end, even if it comes at the ultimate price.
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