Pre-Trib Rapture vs. Post-Trib Rapture

In this video we will examine the Rapture in relation to the Great Tribulation Period, the Day of the Lord and other events. Over 3 dozen passages will be compared so we have a complete understanding of the culmination of this age.

Spoiler - post-trib wins. We will answer many questions about the Rapture -

What is the Rapture? The Rapture is the transformation of our bodies to be like Christ’s resurrected body.

What Does Rapture Mean? Those who are alive at His coming will be “caught up.” Rapture simply means to snatch (or save) from destruction coming upon the earth.

There is another example of snatching found in Jude 1:22-23 using the same root word as the Rapture of 1 Thessalonians 4:17. To be snatched means saved from wrath in this context, so Paul and Jude utilized the same meaning. Believers are saved from destruction.

No Person Can Know “The Day and the Hour”? Matthew 24:36 states that no person can know “the day and the hour” of the beginning of the end-times.

Instead of looking up the source of “the day and the hour” from a Hebrew perspective, some people just assume this to mean that Christ could come back at any moment. It seems necessary to have the element of complete surprise. We will see if this is really true.

What Does “Thief in the Night” Mean? A related topic to the “day and the hour” is the Thief in the Night. Both terms are foundational to a pre-trib Rapture in relation to a surprise return of Christ. The takeaway of the Thief in the Night is to be prepared. There will be no surprise for believers.

When is the Rapture? Timing is everything. Instead of looking at more difficult passages, let’s look at the clearest passage about timing. “Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the Resurrection on the last day.’” — John 11:24

What Does “Meet the Lord in the Air” Mean?

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. — 1 Thessalonians 4:17

Paul does not specify whether we will go to some celestial realm or back to earth to be with Christ in this passage, but there are some other important details here that we can compare with other passages.

The Greek root translated “to meet” fits our normal English usage of the phrase. To meet someone at the door is to welcome them into a building. To meet someone for dinner may involve going to a restaurant that is halfway between the parties involved.

So is Christ coming to meet us halfway on our trip from earth to Heaven? Or are the living believers rising to meet Christ on his way from Heaven to earth? In related “meeting” passages using the same Greek root word (Matthew 25:6 and Acts 28:15), there is a return to the starting point after the meeting. And in the 1 Thessalonians 4:17 passage, the point of reference is Paul’s position, not Christ’s position.

Other questions include -

Who Will be Left Behind?

Is the Rapture Before or After the Great Tribulation Period?

Will Believers Go Through the Great Tribulation Period?

When is the Placement of the Rapture in the Book of Revelation?

Other important topics in include -

All Eyes Will See Christ’s Return - Uses of related “optic” and “epiphany” root words convey physical eyes involved to see Him when He arrives. Passages such as Matthew 24:30, Luke 17:24 and Luke 17:30 convey a physical appearance of Christ. All end-time events revolve around a physical Advent and Resurrection that everyone will see.

This Generation Will Not Pass - What does “generation” mean in context? Matthew 24:34 states that this “generation” will not pass until statements (prophecies) made by Christ in Matthew 24 are realized. If we use Matthew to interpret Matthew, we notice that the word “generation” appears several times.

Matthew 23:36 is a good example: “Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.”

The verses directly preceding Matthew 23:36 speak to fathers and sons over a very long time period, not just the people listening to Christ at that moment. In this instance, “generation” refers to the people of Israel. They will be alive to see the final events of this age come to a close.

As in the Days of Noah - The Days of Noah is another good analogy of timing before the wrath of God is poured out again upon the earth, since both Peter and Christ use the flood to explain their point.

In 2 Peter 2:5, we see Noah as preserved, kept, spared, etc., from the impending judgment of the flood. This is our example. Noah went through the flood but was spared the judgment of the flood (i.e., spared God’s wrath).