Humans and their human intellectualism get caught up in all kinds of traditions and overcomplicated theories, but God has made things clear for anyone to grasp using simple logical deduction. Not that there isn’t value in the knowledge of history and how that gives understanding to scripture and the time it was recorded. But regarding the Rapture of the church, the Apostle Paul lays it out clearly that the dead believers and those who are left on earth will be caught up into the air to meet Christ and be transformed in the blinking of an eye into our new imperishable bodies to forever be with our Lord. And notice this isn’t the second coming of Christ, as He doesn’t yet set foot on earth.
1 Corinthians 15:50–56
Mystery and Victory
[50] I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. [51] Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, [52] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. [53] For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. [54] When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.” [55] “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” [56] The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. (ESV)
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
The Coming of the Lord
[13] But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. [14] For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. [15] For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. [16] For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. [17] Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. [18] Therefore encourage one another with these words. (ESV)
Immediately following the verses on the Rapture, the Apostle Paul talks of the Day of the Lord when Christ does return to earth. The church is extracted from the earth before the Day of the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 5:1–11
The Day of the Lord
[1] Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. [2] For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. [3] While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. [4] But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. [5] For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. [6] So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. [7] For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. [8] But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. [9] For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, [10] who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. [11] Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. (ESV)
The Apostle Paul also gave us wonderful details on our new bodies when we’re raptured.
1 Corinthians 15:35–49
The Resurrection Body
[35] But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” [36] You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. [37] And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. [38] But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. [39] For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. [40] There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. [41] There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
[42] So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. [43] It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. [44] It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. [45] Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. [46] But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. [47] The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. [48] As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. [49] Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. (ESV)
Philippians 3:20–21
[20] But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, [21] who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. (ESV)
And Jesus Christ in Revelation tells this to the church of Philadelphia, “I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those that dwell on the earth.” In talking about the hour of trial on the whole earth it is the tribulation period followed by the Day of the Lord and the judgement of the whole earth. And remember that statement about the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven.
Revelation 3:8–13
[8] “‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. [9] Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you. [10] Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. [11] I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. [12] The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. [13] He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (ESV)
And what is the Day of the Lord? It’s the final battle before the Millennial Kingdom of Christ. There is so much prophetic detail in Zechariah 14, it’s work including the entire chapter. And note, this is the time when Christ’s foot touches down on the earth, and look at the final judgement on the unbelievers, “their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.” And pay close attention to “then the LORD my God will come, and with all the holy ones with him.” This chapter is powerful in proving a pretribulation rapture of the church, why be caught up in the air to come right back to the earth at the end of the tribulation? And it also establishes conditions for an actual Millennial Kingdom reign of Christ. At the end of the Millennial Kingdom this earth and heavens will be burned up and replaced, not remade as described here. And as we’ll see later at the end of the Millennial reign, those gathering against Jerusalem will be consumed by fire from heaven.
Zechariah 14:1–15
The Coming Day of the LORD
[1] Behold, a day is coming for the LORD, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst. [2] For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. [3] Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. [4] On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. [5] And you shall flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. And you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
[6] On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost. [7] And there shall be a unique day, which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but at evening time there shall be light.
[8] On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea. It shall continue in summer as in winter.
[9] And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one.
[10] The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses. [11] And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. Jerusalem shall dwell in security.
[12] And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.
[13] And on that day a great panic from the LORD shall fall on them, so that each will seize the hand of another, and the hand of the one will be raised against the hand of the other. [14] Even Judah will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance. [15] And a plague like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys, and whatever beasts may be in those camps. (ESV)
Regarding the tribulation period, or the final week of Daniel, a period of 7 years, we have a detailed prophecy of the 69 weeks including the rebuilding of the temple by the remnant that returned from Babylon up until Christ is cut off and crucified, bringing in the church age and removing the focus from Israel pausing the 70 week clock with one week left, the seven years of tribulation. Daniel references the Beast, Antichrist, who will rule the world for one week, seven years, with a strong covenant. The abomination that causes desolation cutting off the sacrifices in the temple comes at the mid point, and then the seal, trumpet and bowl judgements in Revelation are unleashed before Christ’s return. But the point to take here is before the paused 70 week clock is resumed, this church age comes to an end with the extraction of the church and the focus returning to Israel.
Daniel 9:24–27
The Seventy Weeks
[24] “Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. [25] Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. [26] And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27] And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.” (ESV)
And to support the literal reign of Christ for 1,000 years, I’ll include the entire chapter 20 of Revelation. There are key points to take away from this chapter, that is the church age saints aren’t mentioned because they have already been resurrected and come with Christ. It specifically mentions all the new saints from the tribulation who were slain being resurrected to join those alive that came through the tribulation period. And it starts with Satan being imprisoned for a literal 1,000 years for Christ’s perfect earthly reign where the fallen angels can’t interfere, ending Satan’s reign of the earth. Following Satan’s release for his final rebellious act, he’s finally sent into the Lake of Fire. And as this earth and universe are destroyed we have the second resurrection of the unbelievers and the great white throne judgement, where they will be righteously adjudicated and sent to the Lake of Fire, the second spiritual death. Interestingly, the Book of Life including the names of the believers is mentioned, but they’re already resurrected, so this is a reference to the book being present to show none at the great white throne judgement are recorded within the book.
Revelation 20
The Thousand Years
[1] Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. [2] And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, [3] and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
[4] Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. [5] The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. [6] Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
The Defeat of Satan
[7] And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison [8] and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. [9] And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, [10] and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Judgment Before the Great White Throne
[11] Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. [12] And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. [13] And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. [14] Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. [15] And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. (ESV)
And what follows you might ask? Remember where Christ told the church of Philadelphia about the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven.
Revelation 21:1–4
The New Heaven and the New Earth
[1] Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. [2] And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. [3] And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. [4] He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (ESV)
Human intellectualism is a trap, and even God fearing men get caught up in it as just look at an overview of premillennialism, postmillennialism and amillennialism. What I’ve highlighted and I think scripture puts forth is a dispensationalist premillennial view, but I don’t get too caught up in these manmade terms and philosophies. What’s important is what did God say, or have men record as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. That’s what’s great about reading the Bible, as there is a supernatural being revealing to us His creation in perfection… I read the writings of man and often times it’s confusing, contradictory…. Human. And what a mighty testimony about God for how His word has been preserved through time and how many ancient copies still exist. And it can be grasped and understood by anyone laying out everything for us to know about what is to come. Maranatha!