Reader comments on recent Rapture article series

"I wanted to comment on the rapture articles you posted. Like many, many Christians, I was brought up in a church that preached the rapture; and I know many people who firmly believe we will be whisked away into the clouds before things get hairy down here on Earth.

I'll give you credit--I never really thought about it too much until I saw some of your viewpoints on this issue. I am nowhere near your level when it comes to studying the scripture, but recently I saw some views on this topic that I found very interesting and easy to understand.

In 1 Corinthians 15: 51-52, Paul writes:

Behold, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed--in a flash, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised, and we will all be changed.

Then in Revelation, John writes:

But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the MYSTERY of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants and prophets.

It sounds to me like they are speaking of the same thing, no? All there is another verse in Thessalonians that references this occurrence as well.

I no longer believe that we are going to be whisked away...I do believe that there will be a rapture at some point.

There are also several other references in the bible to God's people being "raptured" or "delivered"...

Noah "delivered" via the Ark
Israel "delivered" from Egypt via God and Moses' leadership
Lot "delivered" from Sodom and Gomorrah

Your thoughts? 

Michael B."

Michael, these are excellent questions.  Let's look at them in detail. 

In 1Corinthians 15, Paul is concluding his letter with the ultimate hope for the believer--the bodily resurrection from the dead!  Because Jesus was bodily raised up from death's grip into a glorified Spirit-empowered existence--which was still very much physical in some unimaginable way--all who are "in Christ" share in the hope of God's promise that we will be made like him when He returns.  Paul puts it this way:

"But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.  For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.  Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power." (1Cor. 15:20-24)

Note that this passage doesn't say anything about Jesus raising up SOME of his followers off of the earth before 7 years of horrible suffering followed by 1000 years of earthly bliss followed by a final battle with Satan before the end.  Yet all of that is what proponents of Dispensational Rapture scenarios insert into this sequence.  But according to Paul, Christ will return, Resurrection of the body will take place for all who are in him and the end will come.  Much simpler; much more faithful to the wording of the text.

So what is Paul describing in vv.51-52?  He is answering the question asked by believers in v.35:

"But someone may ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?"" (1Cor. 15:35)

He goes on for the rest of that section to tell them what kind of body will be resurrected: a Spirit-powered body.  Incorruptible.  Glorified.  Like the exalted Christ's.  Paul ends this chapter (and the main body of the whole letter) with these words of hope and joy--not of a future deliverance from earthly geo-political horror, but of sin, death and corruption once and for all:

"The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
      I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.  Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed--in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true:
     "Death has been swallowed up in victory."
     "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
     Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1Cor. 15:47-58)

Again, there is nothing in this passage about a beaming up of believers from the earth in an invisible pre-tribulation Rapture.  Rather, this is describing the ultimate hope of all believers--the Return of Jesus to raise the dead, judge the earth and usher in the New Creation where sin, death and evil are no more.  Seeing this as describing a pre-tribulation Rapture is an example not of exegesis (drawing the actual meaning out of the text), but rather eisegesis (reading a foreign idea into the text).

So then, what mystery was John talking about in Revelation 10?  Here's the passage in context:

"Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven. He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars. He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke.
And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, "Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down."
      Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven. And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, "There will be no more delay! But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets."
      Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: "Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land."
      So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, "Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey."
      I took the little scroll from the angel's hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour.
      Then I was told, "You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings."" (Rev. 10:1-11)

Now what's interesting is that all of this imagery has already appeared earlier in Revelation.  The description of the "Angel" is very much similar to descriptions of God and Jesus as they are portrayed apocalyptically using imagery of grandeur (i.e. cloud, rainbow, face shining, fiery pillars, etc.).  And the scroll that was in the hand of God Himself back in ch.5 is now in the hand of this one.  John, once again, is given a commission to speak God's word and unfold the contents of the scroll to His people--and experience that will be both sweet and bitter. 

This wouldn't make much sense if it were simply narrating events as they literally are to happen.  But that's not what Apocalyptic literature like Revelation (and Daniel, Zechariah, 2Esdras or many of the other apocalypses in ancient Jewish can Christian literature) is trying to do.  Apocalyptic visions are fluid.  They recapitulate events, describing them multiple times from different angles or prophetic perspectives.  They paint a picture of reality rather than write a detailed historical narrative of it.  This is all part of Revelation's structure.  To better understand it in detail I recommend the following resources in particular to the interested reader:

"The Throne the Lamb and the Dragon: A reader's guide to the book of Revelation" by Paul Spilsbury

"The Revelation of St. John" (Black's New Testament Commentary series) by Ian Boxall

"Three Months with Revelation" by Justo Gonzalez

Also, the study notes for Revelation in the Quest Study Bible are as good as any in print.

Once again, it's important to note that there is no mention of a Rapture in this passage. 

So what do we conclude?  What about past times when God delivered people like Moses, Lot, Noah, etc.?  Will God deliver His people in such a way again? 

Sometimes.

But more often than not, God calls His people to remain faithful THROUGH suffering rather than by getting taken out of it.  Jesus Himself said it best:

"My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one." (John 17:16)

Nowhere in Scripture does one EVER find a promise that God will universally save His people from physical suffering until Christ returns once and for all and judges the world.  Only then when He has established His kingdom completely will the joyous celebration of His people over the defeat of sin, death and suffering commence.  The Bible refers to that in many ways--New Jerusalem, the wedding banquet of the Lamb, the Day of Yahweh, the New Creation, etc. 

So deliverance is certain.  Jesus WILL come again for His people...but not to whisk them away to some heavenly skybox to watch the destruction below.  Rather, to return as the triumphant King of creation accompanied by all of his faithful followers throughout the ages, whether alive at the time or already having died.  That is what Paul describes so vividly in 1Thessalonians 4.  And he does so by co-opting the imagery of the well-known Roman Triumph Procession (where a conquering king is greeted out in the countryside by his people who have been "caught up to meet him" at his return and accompany him back to his rightful throne):

"Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words." (1Thess 4:13-18)

This is the creme-de-la-creme of Rapture passages...yet when seen in its context, the only thing being depicted is the greeting of Jesus at His final return (not invisible or secret or any of the other "Left Behind" scenarios) by all of the faithful and the celebration that they will no longer be apart from their King. 

This is how this passages was read for 1850+ years by Christians.  Only in the last century and a half has the idea of a Pre-tribulation Rapture been invented and read into this passage.  For a fuller treatment of this passage and how it's been misused, check out N.T. Wright's article "Farewell to the Rapture."

Hope this helps, Michael.  Thanks for the questions and comments.  And thanks for reading!