Rapture of The Saints

The Rapture of the Saints (2)
I n the previous installment of this department, we saw

that the rapture of the saints who are living at the end
of this age will be in two stages. Prior to the time of the
In our previous installment we considered the two
aspects of the rapture mainly from Revelation. In this
article we will consider them further from the Gospels,
great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), the overcoming, watchful, and in the coming installment we will consider the rap-
and mature believers will be raptured to the throne of ture as revealed in the Epistles.
God in the heavens. However, the immature believers,
who are genuinely saved but who are consumed with the The Appearing and Revelation of Christ
anxiety and enjoyment of this age, will remain on the
earth to pass through the tribulation for their discipline The rapture of the saints will take place at the time of the
and perfection. These later-maturing believers will be rap- Lords second coming. In the New Testament three
tured near the end of the tribulation, just prior to the words are primarily used related to the Lords coming.
Lords appearing on the earth in power and great glory.1 The context and usage of these words refer sometimes to
That the saints at the end of the age would pass through events prior to the great tribulation and sometimes to
the tribulation was the common expectation of many of events at the end of the tribulation. One such word is
the early church fathers. This is evidenced, for example, epiphaneia (ejpifavneia), meaning to shine forth, to make
by their predictions of the churchs struggle against visible (1 Tim. 6:14; 2 Tim. 4:1; Titus 2:13). Second
Antichrist (2 Thes. 2:3), as Justin Martyr said, [Christ] Timothy 4:8 says, Henceforth there is laid up for me the
shall come from heaven with glory, when the man of apos- crown of righteousness, with which the Lord, the right-
tasy, who speaks strange things against the Most High, eous Judge, will recompense me in that day, and not only
shall venture to do unlawful deeds on the earth against us me but also all those who have loved His appearing [ejpi-
the Christians (253-254). Alexander Reese notes, favneia]. The Lords appearing is mentioned here with
respect to the crown, the reward, that will be given to
All down the centuries there had existed Christians who Paul. As such, Christs coming back is a warning, an
longed for the Revelation of Christ, whilst expecting that encouragement, and an incentive to us. We should love it
Antichrist would come firstChrists approaching and look forward to it with earnest expectation and joy.
Advent would be followed, not by the rise, but by the Second Thessalonians 2:8 says, The lawless one will be
destruction, of Antichrist. (227) revealed (whom the Lord Jesus will slay by the breath of
His mouth and bring to nothing by the manifestation
However, beginning from the early part of the nineteenth [ejpifavneia] of His coming). Clearly, this refers to the
century, many once-lost truths concerning the Lords sec- Lords coming at the end of the tribulation when He will
ond coming began to be recovered, including the truth of defeat Antichrist and smite the nations with His judging
Christs secret coming and the rapture prior to the com- word (Rev. 19:15).
mencement of the tribulation. To a great degree, it was to
John Nelson Darby and the British brothers that this por-
tion was given, but even Darby failed to see the full
breadth of the truth related to the end times. As a result,
A nother word used for the Lords coming is apokalup-
sis (ajpokavluyi"), the taking away of a veil (1 Pet.
1:7, 13; 4:13). First Corinthians 1:7 says, So that you do
the school of dispensationalism holds to a one-sided view not lack in any gift, eagerly awaiting the revelation
of the rapture of the saints. Since the time of Darby, the [ajpokavluyi"] of our Lord Jesus Christ. To await the
lamp of the prophetic word has shined more brightly appearing of the Lord is a normal sign of true believers.
(2 Pet. 1:19), and many more details concerning the end Second Thessalonians 1:7 says, To you who are being
of the age are now clear. We can now see that the rapture afflicted, rest with us at the revelation [ajpokavluyi"] of
is in two aspects, or stagesone before the tribulation the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of His
and one near the end. The early, pretribulation rapture is power, in flaming fire. Power and fire indicate that
a judgment act, as David M. Panton says (43), coming this revelation will transpire with the Lords open com-
in the day of reward, to reward the watchful and ready ing at the end of the tribulation (Matt. 24:29-30; Isa.
believers. 66:15-16; Mal. 4:1).
68 Affirmation & Critique

The Parousia of Christ and the epiphany of our Lord. They are one and the same
event (69). However, the days before the flood (Matt.
The most significant word for the Lords coming is parou- 24:38) cannot possibly be one and the same event as
sia (1 Cor. 15:23; 1 Thes. 2:19; 3:13; 4:15; 5:23; 2 Thes. after the tribulation of those days (v. 29), though both
2:1, 8; James 5:7-8; 2 Pet. 1:16; 3:4, 12; 1 John 2:28), describe the coming of the Son of Man (vv. 27, 37).
whose meaning includes that of both His epiphaneia and Rather, the various mentions of the Lords coming, taken
His apokalupsis. In Matthew 24:3 the disciples asked, together, indicate that the parousia, the coming of the
What will be the sign of Your coming [parousiva]? Lord, extends from the beginning to the end of the three
Verses 37 through 39 say, and a half years of the great tribulation.
Just as the days of Noah were, so will the coming Parousia denotes both an arrival and the consequent pres-
[parousiva] of the Son of Man be. For as they were in ence with the arriving one (Vine 208). Thus, Christs com-
those days before the flood, eating and drinking, marrying ing will be His presence with His believers, and as such, it
and giving in marriage, until the day in which Noah will extend over a period of time. It will begin with the
entered into the ark, and they did not know that judg- rapture of the man-child to the throne of God in the
ment was coming until the flood came and took all away, heavens, which will transpire prior to the thousand two
so also will the coming [parousiva] of the Son of Man be. hundred and sixty days (Rev. 12:5-6), and with the rap-
ture of the firstfruits to the heavenly Mount Zion prior to
T hat the coming of the Son of Man will be like the the hour of His judgment, the fall of religious Babylon,
days of Noah indicates that the Lords coming and the worship of the beast (14:1-4, 7-9). Following this,
involves a period of time with a particular characteristic. Christ will continue His parousia by coming from heaven
Before the flood indicates a time of perceived prosperity, to the air, where He will still be concealed from the world
peace, and safety. At this time the ones eating, drinking, by being clothed with a cloud (10:1), at which time the
marrying, and giving in mar- majority of the believers will
riage will not know that judg- be raptured to the air (1 Thes.
ment is coming. In sharp con- The various mentions of the Lords 4:15-17), Christ will judge all
trast to this, the great tribulation coming indicate that the parousia the believers at His judgment
will commence with super- seat (2 Cor. 5:10), and the
natural calamities, a clear sign extends from the beginning marriage of the Lamb will take
of the time of the wrath of to the end of the three and a place (Rev. 19:7-9). Finally,
God, when men will call out half years of the great tribulation. Christ will complete His par-
to the mountains and rocks to ousia by coming from the air
fall upon them (Rev. 6:12-17). with His saints to appear on
Therefore, the days before the flood must refer to the the earth (19:11-16; Matt. 24:27; 2 Thes. 2:8).
time just prior to the great tribulation. It is at this point
that the Lords parousia begins. On the other hand, The Two Comings of Christ
Matthew 24:27 through 30 say,
As demonstrated by the above, the Scriptures reveal that
Just as the lightning comes forth from the east and shines the coming of Christ will be in two main stages, separat-
to the west, so will the coming [parousiva] of the Son of ed by the duration of the great tribulation. In His coming
Man beAnd immediately after the tribulation of those prior to the tribulation, Christ will come as a thief. In
days,the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, Matthew 24 Jesus said,
and then all the tribes of the land will mourn, and they
will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your
with power and great glory. Lord comes. But know this, that if the householder had
known in which watch the thief was coming, he would
After the tribulation of those days is strong proof that the have watched and would not have allowed his house to be
open coming of Christ will take place after the great broken into. For this reason you also be ready, because at
tribulation, at which time all Israel will see Him and an hour when you do not expect it, the Son of Man is
repent (Zech. 12:10), and He will defeat Antichrist and coming. (vv. 42-44)
his armies (Rev. 19:11-21). By this we can see that the
New Testament words for the Lords coming, particular-
ly parousia, refer to events both before and after the
great tribulation. George Eldon Ladd wrongly concludes,
S imilarly He said to the church in Sardis, Remember
therefore how you have received and heard, and keep
it and repent. If therefore you will not watch, I will come
If one can make anything of language at all, no distinc- as a thief, and you shall by no means know at what hour
tion can be made between the parousia, the apokalypse, I will come upon you (Rev. 3:3).2
Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 69

A thief comes at an unknown time to steal precious particular, indicate separate stages or manifestations per-
things. Moreover, that a thief comes in the night (1 Thes. taining to the same Second Advent. Without allowing
5:2) indicates that the Lords coming is kept secret and something of this kind, several acts pertaining to the one
will transpire suddenly, being known beforehand by no great Coming to this earth, it is impossible to reconcile
one. Hence, the Lords coming as a thief denotes a secret such passages. (318)
appearing to His seekers, in which He will come to those
who love Him and take them away as His treasures. Likewise, William Kelly notes that the verses cited above
According to the context of Matthew 24:37-39, this will point to the two great parts of the presence of the Lord
transpire in the days before the flood, that is, prior to Jesus:
the great tribulation. To be ready to be taken by the Lord
in this way requires our watchfulness. He will first come for the saints, and in the second place
He will come with them. Both are called the coming, or
On the other hand, verse 27 says, Just as the lightning presence, of the Lord. They are the two main aspectsif
comes forth from the east and shines to the west, so will one may so sayof Christs coming: the first, to gather
the coming of the Son of Man be. The second coming of the heavenly saints to Himself; the second, to bring them
Christ has two aspects. One is the secret aspect, related with Him when He appears in glory. (413)
to His watchful believers, and the other is the open
aspect, related to the unbelieving Jews and Gentiles. Darby says similarly,
Lightning here signifies the open aspect, which will take
place after the great tribulation, as indicated by verses 29 When He appears, we shall appear with Himhence we
and 30. The Lords coming like a flash of lightning will be must be with Him before even He appears at all[His
a sign of the end of His parousia. saints] will appear with Him in glorybe like Him. Now
it is quite certain they will not appear with Him when
S everal other prophetic indications point to the two they are caught up to meet Him in the air. (Writings
aspects of the Lords future coming. In His secret 11:115)
coming He will come as the morning star (Rev. 2:28;
22:16; 2 Pet. 1:19), which will dawn at the end of the This is the only accurate way to reconcile all the verses
dark age. The morning star is like the star that appeared we have cited above.
at the birth of Christ (Matt. 2:2, 9-10). At that time the
Jews had mental knowledge in dead letters concerning However, in order to maintain the posttribulational con-
Christ, but the magi received a living vision concerning cept, some have attempted to compress the Lords
Him. Similarly, in the first stage of His second appearing, coming for and with the saints into a single, two part
Christ will not be seen by the Jews and the unbelieving motion, two aspects of a single indivisible event (Ladd
world. Rather, He will be the morning star to His over- 91), that takes place at Christs coming in glory at the end
comers who watch for His coming. To all the others He of the tribulation. Alexander Reese says,
will appear only as the Sun of righteousness on the day of
Jehovah, a day that comes, burning like a furnace (Mal. At the Parousia in triumph of our Lord Jesus Christ, His
4:1-2). This will transpire at the end of the great tribula- faithful people, as they see Him coming, will be caught
tion when Christ comes with power to be seen by all up to meet Him in the air: they go forth to meet Him,
Israel and the world. and then return with Him to earth to share His triumph
in the Kingdom of Glory. Christ has come for His saints,
and with them at the same crisis. (238-239)
Coming for the Saints and with the Saints
At His second appearing, Christ will come to rapture the

ready believers. This will be His coming for the saints. T his argument comes mainly from the phrase eij"
ajpavnthsin, translated as meet in 1 Thessalonians 4:17,
which says, Then we who are living, who are left remain-
The language in 1 Thessalonians 3:13, however, is differ-
ent. This verse says, So that He may establish your ing, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to
hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at meet the Lord in the air. Reese cites the analogy between
the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints. This meet here and its other uses in the New Testament (Matt.
and other passages speak of the Lords coming not only 25:1, 6; Acts 28:15), claiming that the party met contin-
for the saints but with the saints (4:14, 17; Jude 14; Rev. ues after the meeting to advance still in the direction in
19:14; Zech. 14:5). George N. H. Peters concludes, which He was moving previously (238). The argument
here is that the Lord will descend, meet the ascending
The Scriptures describe a Coming of Jesus for or in behalf saints, and continue to descend to the earth, requiring that
of His saintsand then again another with all His the ascending saints immediately turn around to join Him
saints, and these two, differing thus in an important in His descent. In Matthew 25 and Acts 28, however, little

is actually said about the direction of the motions or the In order to maintain the proper attitude toward immi-
timing and intervals involved in the movements. In addi- nence, many teach that we cannot look for further fulfill-
tion, the verbs cognate to ajpavnthsin (uJpantavw and ments of prophecy or visible, telling events in the world
sunantavw) do not offer the technical meaning that Reese that would signal His soon appearing. It is the thesis of
suggests. In general, his argument is weak. pretribulationism that to look for such events imposes a
necessary delay between the present time and the time of
P rior to the beginning of the tribulation, Christ will

come as a thief for the watchful and ready believers
and take them to the throne of God in the heavens, the
the Lords coming. Arthur T. Pierson states,
The imminence of the Lords coming consists in two

heavenly Mount Zion (Rev. 14:1), to stand before the Son things: its certainty as a revealed fact, and its uncertainty
of Man (Luke 21:36). Near the end of the tribulation, He as to timeIt constitutes therefore an overhanging immi-
will catch up the majority of the believers to the air (Rev. nent event always liable to occurHow can one look for
14:14-16; 1 Thes. 4:17). Then in the air He will set up His an event as imminent which he knows is not to take place
judgment seat, before which all the resurrected and rap- for a definite time to come? (48-49)
tured believers will appear (2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:10), at
which time the overcoming saints will be called to the Gerald B. Stanton concurs: No prophesied, or clearly
marriage dinner of the Lamb (Rev. 19:8-9). Following this, scheduled, event stands between the present hour and
He will come to the earth, with His overcoming saints as the catching away of the Church at the rapture (108).
His army, to defeat Antichrist (vv. 11-14). All these events However, the Scriptures do seem to foretell certain
will intervene between the Lords coming for the saints events as needing to transpire before the Lords com-
and His coming with the saints. This sequence gives meaning. In the years after Christs ascension, even the
ing and coherence to the two separate aspects of the destruction of Jerusalem (Matt. 24:2), the preaching of
Lords coming. the gospel of the kingdom (v. 14; 28:19-20), and the
martyrdom of Peter (John
The Imminent Coming 21:18-19) may have been
of Christ Prior to the tribulation, Christ will considered as prerequisites to
come as a thief for the watchful and the Lords return. Although
Philippians 3:20 and 21 say, We these have now transpired,
eagerly await a Savior, the Lord ready believers. Near the end of the certain signs of the Lords
Jesus Christ, who will trans- tribulation, He will catch up the coming in Matthew 24 have
figure the body of our humilia- majority of the believers to the air. not. These include the abomi-
tion to be conformed to the nation of desolation being set
body of His glory. First Corin- up in the temple (v. 15), the
thians 1:7 likewise tells us that the believers are eagerly coming of false Christs (vv. 23-24), and signs in the heav-
awaiting the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, and ens (v. 29), all of which must precede the coming of the
Hebrews 9:28 says that Christ will appear a second time Son of Man (v. 30).
to those who eagerly await Him. Titus 2:13 says that we
are awaiting the blessed hope, even the appearing of the
glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. All these O n the one hand, the imminence of the Lords com-
ing demands an any-day expectation, but on the
verses show that the proper attitude of believers is to other, certain signs are said to precede His appearing. It
constantly look for the Lords coming, an event that may is in the apparent antagonism of these two aspects of
occur at any time. The imminence of the Lords coming prophecy that a major factor of the debate lies.
is indicated in Revelation 22:7, 12, and 20, in which Jesus Dispensational pretribulationists maintain that the immi-
says, I come quickly. It is also apparent in Matthew nence of Christs coming precludes signs, and post-
24:42, which says, Watch therefore, for you do not know tribulationists insist that signs preclude imminence.
on what day your Lord comes, and in verse 44, which Accordingly, the one-sided conclusion of the former is
says, For this reason you also be ready, because at an that the entire church will be raptured prior to the great
hour when you do not expect it, the Son of Man is com- tribulation, and that of the latter is that no believers will
ing. That the Lords coming is imminent, strictly speak- be raptured until Christs coming in power at the end.3
ing, need not mean that it is immediate but rather that it
will be unexpected and may be at any time. Therefore, as Nevertheless, it is both true that the New Testament
we eagerly await His coming, we prepare ourselves by speaks of the signs of Christs coming and that His coming
watching and praying. This has been the attitude of faith- will be sudden and unexpected, like that of a thief.
ful saints throughout the course of the entire church age, Without reconciling both aspects of these truths, only con-
and it will be the condition of the overcomers when tradictions can be found. Truth ever flies on two wings;
Christ returns. and no prophecy is of isolated interpretation (Panton 20).

Seemingly opposing testimonies of Scripture are comple- the true force of the injunction to constantly look and
mentary, not antagonistic, and it is in the synthesis of these watch for the Coming of Jesus can be appreciated (318-
truths that the broader, governing view is found. The 319). Thus, a gathering of saints before the harvest is
proper synthesis of the prophecies of Christs coming is indeed one of the Divine procedures pertaining to the last
that He will appear quickly and in a hidden way to rap- things of this dispensation (322).
ture His watchful believers prior to the great tribulation.
Then, near the end of the tribulation, after the fulfillment
of the signs concerning the temple and the Antichrist,
Christ will catch up the majority of the believers and
P eters identifies the harvest as genuine believers in the
church who will remain on earth to pass through the
great tribulation. The effect of their being left behind will
openly manifest Himself in power to the Jews and to the be salutary to their own spiritual maturity and to the
world. Thus, the twofoldness of the divine truth is that spread of the gospel during that time. Being corroborated
the Lords coming is both imminent and will be preceded by the certainty of the judgments of God, the preaching
by signs, pointing to the two aspects of His coming and of of the church will be powerfully renewed. Such a revival
the rapture. will be inspired by the
The Two Stages of the Rapture astonishing removal of certain chosen ones, accounted wor-
thy, owing to their distinctive faith in Gods promises, to
The Theocratic Kingdom by George N. H. Peters, a par- escape. Let this event occur just as it is described; let here
ticipant in the prophetic Bible conferences of the 1870s one and there one of the believing and watching be taken,
and 1880s, is considered perhaps the most factual and and surely those who believe in Gods Word and are left
voluminous written defense of the premillennial system behind will be most wonderfully affected by the event
(Stanton 154), from which Lewis Sperry Chafer quotes The Churchwill recognize its chronological position, will
extensively and frequently. It is presented in the form of see what is before it, and, energetically infused by fear and
two hundred and six propositions in three volumes. The hope, prepare itself for the fearful ordeal through which it
thesis of Proposition 130 is that both the second coming must pass. And we are assured that the Church in this
of the Lord and the accompanying rapture of the saints contest, overpowered as she will be, will sustain the per-
should not be considered as a single event. Peters says, secution with triumphant faith. (327-328)
Comparing all the events that are included in the Sec. As to who will be raptured at the secret coming of Christ,
Advent, it is simply impossible, without great violation of Peters notes,
order, etc., to crowd them all together as the instanta-
neous resultants of such a Coming. This, then, impresses There is a difference between mere salvation and the spe-
caution in not compressing what is intimated concerning cial honor, station, dignity, etc., that God in addition may
the translation or removal of saints necessarily to one be pleased to bestow upon certain ones. There were other
transaction or day. (315) pious ones when Enoch and Elijah were translated, and
yet they only were favored; and we doubt not that many
H e notes several scriptural indications of the two

aspects of the Lords coming (318-319). First, he
points out that the Lord will come for and subsequently
who ultimately will be saved with great glory (because of
their faithful witnessing during the last severe trial) will
be left at this translationA personal, individual accepta-
with the saints, indicating separate stages or manifestation of the truth combined with a happy experience of its
tions pertaining to the same Second Advent, without sanctifying influence, together with testifying in its behalf
which understanding it is impossible to reconcile the var- before others, is imperatively needed. (332)
ious passages that speak of that coming. Second, he notes
that the Lords coming will be at a time of peace and Peters is definite that although some persons of distinc-
security, on the one hand (1 Thes. 5:3; Matt. 24:37-39), tive faith will be raptured, others of the church who
and at a time of war, great distress, and suffering, on the believe in Gods Word will be left behind. This is
other (vv. 21-22). The Lord will also come in a concealed, the difference between mere salvation and the honor
thief-like way (vv. 43-44), and again in a way so open and bestowed on those who will partake of the early rapture.
conspicuous that all shall witness Him (v. 30). Most sig- We commend the foregoing as a strong statement both of
nificantly, Peters points to the two Old Testament types the early rapture of the watchful and ready believers
applied to the rapture: firstfruits and harvest (Rev. 14:4, prior to the great tribulation and of the general rapture
14-16; Exo. 23:19; Lev. 23:10), explaining that the mean- of the majority of the believers near the end of the tribu-
ing of these two terms would be entirely lost if we did lation. That the twofold coming of the Lord in His parou-
not allow that the one necessarily goes before the other, sia at the end of this age will be accompanied by a rapture
leaving an interval between them (318). He adds, It is in two stages is the only way to reconcile the several and
by observing this characteristic of the Sec. Advent that various passages of Scripture on the subject.

The Prophecy of the Kingdom in Matthew 24 and 25
Matthew 24 and 25, the Olivet discourse, is a significant

T o be sure, Matthew 24:1-31 is the prophecy of the
kingdom concerning Israel. Verses 4 through 14 span
the time from the Lords ascension to the consummation
passage in the New Testament, unveiling through prophecy of the age. Some aspects of this prophecy have been ful-
the condition of the world from the time of the Lords filled, and some are in the process of being fulfilled.
ascension to the end of the age. As such, it is a significant Although this section primarily concerns the Jews, the
prophecy of the eschatology not only of the Jews and of tribulations and the preaching of the gospel mentioned in
the nations but also of the New Testament believers, and it take place generally in the entire world. All the tribula-
thus has much bearing on the proper understanding of the tions of the New Testament age (the birth pangs, v. 8),
rapture of the saints. In 24:3 the disciples asked, When along with the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom,
will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your are used by God to produce His many sons so that He can
coming and of the consummation of the age? The disci- constitute the church in this age, accomplish the kingdom
ples questions concern three matters: the time when in the coming age, and produce the New Jerusalem in
these things would take place, including not only the eternity as the ultimate consummation of the church and
destruction of the temple spoken of by the Lord in verse 2 the kingdom that He may have an eternal expression in
but the things mentioned in 23:32-39the filling up of eternity future (Recovery Version, see notes in Matt. 24).
the sins of Jerusalem and her desolation, the sign of The preaching of the gospel of the kingdom may be con-
Christs coming, and the sign of the consummation of the sidered a sign of the consummation of the age, in partial
age. The Lords word from 24:4 through 25:46 answers the answer to the disciples third question.
disciples question concerning these three matters.
Verses 15 through 26 speak directly of the great tribula-
I t is crucial to understand to whom this prophecy of the tion, beginning with the abomination of desolation, the
kingdom was spoken and to whom it applies. Dispen- setting up of the image of Antichrist in the rebuilt temple
sational teaching emphasizes in Jerusalem. This idol will be
the application of the Gospel another sign of the consumma-
of Matthew to the Jews and All the tribulations tion of this age. Following this,
the political nation of Israel. of the New Testament age verses 27 through 30 portray the
C. I. Scofield summarizes this Lords open coming in power,
view by the following system- are used by God to produce His which will take place at the
atic precepts: many sons so that He can end of the great tribulation.
constitute the church in this age. No one knows the length of
Israel is in the foreground from time spanning the events men-
the call of Abram to the resur- tioned in verses 4 through 14,
rection of ChristThe mission of Jesus was, primarily, to but the prophecy in verses 15 through 31, concerning the
the JewsThe doctrines of grace are to be sought in the remnant of the Jews, will be fulfilled in the last three and
Epistles, not in the Gospelsthe Gospels do not unfold a half years of this age, the second half of the seventieth
the doctrine of the ChurchThe Gospels present a week prophesied in Daniel 9:27.
group of Jewish disciples, associated on earth with a
Messiah in humiliation[Much in the Gospels] belongs Dispensational Theology and the
in strictness of interpretation to the Jew[Matthew] is Jewish Character of the Prophecy of the Kingdom
peculiarly the Gospel for Israel. (vi, 989-990, 993)
To cast Matthew 24 and 25 primarily in view of the rem-
Robert Anderson, who preached with Darby in western nant of the Jews at the end of the age obscures a
Ireland, speaks even more emphatically of Matthew in significant word of prophecy for the New Testament
particular: believers, particularly concerning the rapture of the saints
of the church age. The dispensational view is that the
The First Gospel does not contain a single word that is reference [in Matthew 24] to Daniel and the great tribu-
inconsistent with its scope and purpose in the Divine lation, which never concerns the church, but Israel,
scheme of revelation, as a record of the Lords mission shows us that we are not on Christian, but Jewish
and ministry as Israels Messiah; and it will be studied by ground (Ladd 131). Stanton speaks very strongly in this
believing Israelites in days to come as if the present manner:
Christian dispensation had never intervened. (126)
Dispensationalists hold that Matthew 24 speaks of Israel
This extreme and peculiar conclusion virtually erases the in the Tribulation and not of the Church, which they
Gospel of Matthew from the Christians Bible, except to believe to be already rapturedThe setting and the cast
make it a historical appendix to the story of Israel.4 of the chapter is unmistakably JewishThe Church and

her removal finds no mention in Matthew 24. (57, 59, limited knowledge and expectation, Jesus answer was
61) broad and inclusive, dealing with both the Jews, the New
Testament believers, and the nations.
John Walvoord concurs: The rapture is not found at all
in Matthew, Mark, or Luke, although the second coming Walvoord concludes, To the pretribulationist it is obvious
of Christ is clearly spoken of and the events that precede that the rapture is not in view in [Matthew 24] (Tribu-
it are described (Tribulation 92-93).5 However, the jus- lation 86-87). However, it is not at all obvious that the
tification that he offers is flawed. At the time of the Lord would omit the church and its taking up from His
Lords word in Matthew 24, it had not been revealed to longest, clearest prophecy concerning the end of the age.
the disciples that His coming to establish His kingdom Once again, to understand Walvoords statement and the
would be long delayed, nor did they understand how the general view of the Jewish character of Matthew 24, we
believers would be taken up to meet Him. Thus, must bear in mind the overriding hermeneutic of dispen-
Walvoord concludes, sationalism, that is, that the church and the remnant of
the Jews cannot both share in the fulfillment of the same
Up to this point the disciples had had no instruction on prophetic portion of the Word. Stanton asks, When
[the rapture]. They did not even clearly understand the before did God ever have two separate witnessing bodies
difference between the first and second comings of upon earth? God is not a God of confusion. Does He not
Christ. Their questions indicated that they were first of terminate a former course of action before establishing a
all concerned about the destruction of Jerusalem new one? (68-69). It is only the perceived ecclesiologi-
cal necessity of the churchs absence from the final three
What they were talking about was Christs coming to and a half years of this age that makes the dispensational
establish His kingdom and the end of the age preceding view of Matthew 24 obvious. Thus, as we saw in the
it, during which, from their viewpoint, they could still be previous installment of this department, it is dispensa-
living. Accordingly the nature of the question is such that tional theology, not consistent exegesis, that drives this
the church is not in view, nor is the rapture introduced. view of eschatology.
(87)
Rightly Dividing the Prophetic Word
W alvoords reasoning is that if the disciples asked
only concerning the restoration of the theocratic
kingdom of Israel, the Lords answer should have
The teaching that is now called dispensationalism was ini-
tially developed by John Darby, whose understanding of
matched their question and not touched matters con- the prophecy of the kingdom emphasizes the role of the
cerning the church, since, as Walvoord states, The remnant of the Jews in the last days. In particular, he sees
disciples were in no mood or situation to understand such the three and a half years of the great tribulation as per-
a new doctrine (88). In actuality, though, the Lords taining primarily to the Jews, pointing out that it will be
speaking was continually new (Mark 1:27; John 13:34) a time of distress for Jacob (Jer. 30:7), for your peo-
and frequently not according to the disciples mood or ple (Dan. 12:1), that is, Daniels people, the Jews.6 He
situation. When the disciples spoke in admiration of the sees the same emphasis in Matthew 24. Verse 15 says that
temple, Jesus spoke of its destruction (Matt. 24:1-2). the abomination of desolation will stand in the holy
When they inquired as to which of them was the great- place, the sanctuaries in Gods temple. Verse 16 says,
est, Jesus spoke to them concerning childlike humility Let those in Judea flee to the mountains, and verse 20
(18:1-4; Mark 9:33-37), and when they were eager to see says, Pray that your flight may not be in winter, nor on a
Jesus received by the crowds, He spoke to them of falling Sabbath. Darby concludes, All is local and Jewishhas
into the ground and dying (John 12:20-26). Nevertheless, no application to hopes which rest on going to meet
Walvoord insists, At this point in their spiritual education Christ in the air. Thus, these verses apply the great
the disciples would not have understood the subject of tribulation distinctly to Jacob, Jerusalem, and Judea, and
the Rapture any more than they understood the subject the Jews, not to the church (Writings 11:111). Darby
of the death and resurrection of Christ (Question 186). speaks similarly of the warning against false Christs and
Here is the flaw in his logic. Although the disciples did false prophets in verse 24, finding this to be a convinc-
not understand the Lords word concerning His death and ing proof that the passage does not apply, properly
resurrection, He spoke it anyway (Matt. 16:21; 17:22-23; speaking, to the church, which by that time, Darby feels,
20:17-19). In the same way, it is not logical to say that should already have been caught up to the air to meet the
Jesus answer in Matthew 24 and 25 was constrained Lord (5:206). Again he concludes,
to match the disciples question. Watchman Nee notes,
Even though they were mistaken, the Lord did not The Lord was speaking of Jerusalem and the
answer in a mistaken way. Ignorance cannot stop the templeThe age has nothing to do with the christian
answer of the Lord (15:277). Regardless of the disciples dispensation, so-called, or the ChurchJuda and

Jerusalem are named as the exclusive scene of what is unmistakably Jewish (59)cannot be taken at face value.
passing and the events which are to take place. (10:267- This observation will assist us in our consideration of
268) 24:40 and 41, in which we see the rapture of the believ-
ers, the constituents of the church, prior to the com-
mencement of the great tribulation.7
T o try to find the church in this portion of the Word,
he says, is to reduce the Church to the level of Jews
(10:268). Such arguments are common among dispensa- The Prophecy of the Kingdom concerning the Church
tional writers, such as Stanton, who asks concerning verse
20, Are Christians bound by a sabbath lawHow then is The Lords answer to the disciples questions in Matthew
this the Church? (59). In arriving at this conclusion, 24:3 is in three sections. The first section, in verses 4
Darby and subsequent dispensational teachers consistent- through 31, concerns the Jews. As such, the many items in
ly focus on verses 1 through 31, especially citing the vers- this sectionincluding wars, famines, earthquakes, false
es with a distinctly Jewish character, such as those quot- prophets, signs, wonders, the temple, winter, the Sabbath,
ed above. However, when Darby considers the entirety of the flight of the Jews, the tribes of the land, the sign of the
chapters 24 and 25, he presents a more accurate and gen- Son of Man, and the gathering of the chosen ones
eral view. This he does in his Synopsis of Matthew. After should all be interpreted literally. Following this, verse 32
24:31 and before 25:31, he says that we see another class says, But learn the parable from the fig tree. But indi-
of persons, the disciples of Christ, outside the testimony cates the beginning of a new section and thus represents a
borne in the midst of Israel, that is, the church, com- great divide in the Lords discourse. For the first time in
posed of those who have come out from the world, and this chapter a parable is introduced. In 13:11-13 the Lord
still more from Judaism. All this part of the discourse indicated to the disciples that He spoke in parables in
namely, from chapter xxiv.31 to chapter xxv.31is order to hide the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens
an exhortation, an address from the Lord, on the subject from the opposing and rejecting Jews. Thus, the introduc-
of their duties during His ab- tion of a parable in 24:32 indi-
sence (165-166, 172). These cates that what follows is spo-
duties include both the corpo- Only the perceived ecclesiological ken to the church. Witness Lee
rate responsibilities of His necessity of the churchs absence from notes,
household (the church) and
the individual responsibili- the final three and a half years The disciples, the audience for
ties of the believers. Then at of this age makes the dispensational the Lords word here, had a
25:31 the prophetic history, view of Matthew 24 obvious. twofold status, one as repre-
suspended at 24:31, resumes sentatives of the remnant of
with the judgment of the the Jews and the other as the
nations. New Testament believers, who constitute the church. In
the section of the Lords word that concerns the Jews (vv.
Thus the whole effect of Christs coming, with regard to 4-31), the disciples represent the remnant of the Jews,
the kingdom and to His messengers during His absence, whereas in the section that concerns the church (24:32
is unfolded: with respect to the Jews, as far as verse 31 of 25:30), they represent the New Testament believers. In
chapter xxiv.; with respect to His servants during His the four Gospels, in matters regarding outward circum-
absence, to the end of verse 30 of chapter xxv., including stances, the Lord treated His disciples as Jews, but in
the kingdom of heaven in its present condition, and the matters concerning spirit and life, He considered them
heavenly rewards that shall be given; and then, from verse New Testament believers. (Recovery Version, Matt.
31 to the end of chapter xxv., with respect to the nations 24:20, note 2)
who shall be blessed on the earth at His return. (175)
It is clear that Darby associates the second portion of the

prophecy, from 24:32 through 25:30, with the New
W atchman Nee points out that the very disciples to
whom the Lord spoke in Matthew 24 were being
cultivated by Him to be the pillars in the church (19:527;
Testament dispensation and the New Testament house- Gal. 2:9). To say that their status before the resurrection
hold of God, repeatedly mentioning the assembly, the of Christ was only as Jewish disciples is to require them to
church, and Christians (166-168, 171-172). His three- abandon their training in the Gospels once they became
fold division definitely places the church and the New New Testament believers. In Matthew 28:19 and 20 the
Testament believers into Christs prophecy of the king- Lord said, Go therefore and disciple all the nations,
dom in Matthew 24 and 25, and as such, it is a clearer dis- teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
tinction than is ordinarily offered by Darbys twentieth- According to the Lords charge, all the nations were to
century adherents. Thus, generalizations such as Stan- become His disciples, and they, as Christians, were to
tonsThe setting and the cast of the chapter is observe all the words He had spoken in the four Gospels.

The Lords commandments were given not only to the dis- literal, but the house in verse 43 is spiritual, signifying the
ciples of that time but also to those who later heard the conduct and work that a believer has built up in his
apostles teaching and believed. It is a mistake, therefore, Christian life. Robert Govett (Olivet 9; Rapture 37) and
to restrict the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels to the Watchman Nee (15:256-257) note the following further
Jews, or Jewish disciples, only. differences between the first and second great sections of
chapters 24 and 25. The first section is local, principally
Robert Gundry proposes further reasons why the Lords in Judea, but the second section is universal, transpiring
audience in Matthew 24 should be considered as wherever the gospel has spread. The first section is mate-
Christians (134).8 Two days after the Olivet discourse rial, composed of men, women, and nursing babies, but
(26:2), the Lord spoke to the same disciples the deeper the second section is moral, composed of slaves and vir-
mysteries of Gods New Testament economy, including gins. The first section distinguishes between Jews and
their mutual indwelling with the Father and the Son Gentiles (e[qno", 24:7, 9, 14) and speaks of false Mes-
(John 14:20, 23), their mutual abiding in Christ (15:4), siahs, the Sabbath, and the nations, but all distinctions
and the Spirit of reality (14:17; 15:26; 16:13). To be sure, in the second section, such as those between the wise
the audience on this day was New Testament disciples. and foolish virgins, are spiritual, not national or ethnic.
Only a few weeks later these same disciples were bap- Moreover, in the first section the Lords exhortation is to
tized in the Holy Spirit to form the nucleus of the first flee (vv. 16-20), but in the second section it is to watch
church in Jerusalem (Acts 2:4; 8:1). Moreover, the names and be ready (vv. 42, 44). By all indications, the object of
of the twelve disciples are upon the twelve foundations of the Lords word of prophecy changes in verse 32, and the
the New Jerusalem, as distinct from the names of the subsequent parables are all directed to the church. This is
twelve tribes of Israel inscribed on the twelve gates (Rev. of crucial consideration with respect to the rapture of the
21:12, 14). All these confirm that the disciples present at believers.
the Lords discourse in Matthew 24 were the first repre-
sentatives of the church, the New Testament people of One Is Taken Referring to the Rapture
God.
In verses 37 through 39 the Lord said,
Douglas J. Moo draws parallels between the Lords word
in Matthew 24 and the words of Paul in 1 and Just as the days of Noah were, so will the coming of the
2 Thessalonians (Reiter 194).9 The false Christs and false Son of Man be. For as they were in those days before the
prophets in Matthew 24, for example, may correspond to flood, eating and drinking, marrying and giving in mar-
Satans operation in power, signs, and wonders of a lie in riage, until the day in which Noah entered into the ark,
2 Thessalonians 2:9-11. The apostasy in the former chap- and they did not know that judgment was coming until
ter (v. 12) is parallel to the apostasy in the latter (v. 3). To the flood came and took all away, so also will the coming
be sure, Antichrist in the former chapter (v. 15) is the of the Son of Man be.
man of lawlessness in the latter (v. 3). Likewise, the
Lords coming with power in the former chapter (v. 30)
is His coming to slay Antichrist in the latter (v. 8).
Notably, the Lords exhortation to watch and be ready in
T his indicates that in the days of the Lords parousia,
people will be befuddled by eating, drinking, marry-
ing, and giving in marriage, that is, in the abuse and excess
Matthew 24:42 and 44 parallels Pauls word concerning of the necessities of human life, which occupy man and
watching in 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8. Since Pauls word to a keep him from Gods interest, having no sense of the com-
New Testament church is substantially similar to the ing judgment (vv. 38-39). This corresponds to 1 Thes-
Lords speaking in Matthew 24, there is no reason to con- salonians 5:2 and 3, which say, Like a thief in the night,
clude that the whole of the latter chapter is distinctly so the day of the Lord comes. When they say, Peace and
Jewish and not for the church. This helps to set Matthew security, then sudden destruction comes upon them, just
24 and 25 in their proper context as a prophecy whose as birth pangs to a woman with child; and they shall by no
audience includes the believers of the New Testament means escape. To be sure, the indulgences of eating,
church. drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage in the false
sense of security will not be characteristic of the great
T he section of the prophecy of the kingdom from

24:32 through 25:30 speaks of the fig tree, the ark,
the householder, the thief, household slaves, virgins, and
tribulation, a time of calamities and sufferings. Rather,
they point to the end of the present age, at its darkest
hour, prior to the coming of the Lord as the thief. Hence,
talents, all of which should be interpreted spiritually. the events spoken of beginning from Matthew 24:37 tran-
Winter in 24:20, for example, is a literal winter which spire with the Lords secret coming and the subsequent
makes flight difficult, but summer in verse 32 signifies beginning of the tribulation.
the age of the restored kingdom, which will begin at the
Lords second coming. Likewise, the house in verse 17 is Verses 40 and 41 say, At that time two men will be in the

field; one is taken and one is left. Two women will be from the church (1 Cor. 5:2, 13). The use of ai[rw in
grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left. Taken Matthew 24:39, for taking away in judgment, is consis-
(from paralambavnw) means to take with ones self, to tent with this negative sense.
join to ones selfan associate, a companion (Thayer
484). That the same word is used in Luke 17:34-36 indi-
cates its particular appropriateness. When it is used of the
Lord as the taking One, it is always positive. Jesus took
T he positive and personal denotation of taken in
Matthew 24:40-41 is echoed in Genesis 5:24, which
says, Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God
(paralambavnei) His closest disciplesPeter, James, and took him. Took here in Hebrew is laqach, denoting to
Johnto the Mount of Transfiguration to reveal to them take and carry along with oneself (Brown 542), which
His glory (Matt. 17:1), and He took (paralabwVn) them is almost identical to Thayers definition of paralam-
aside to a place called Gethsemane to watch and pray bavnw. In 2 Kings 2:9-11 Elijah is taken up into heaven
with Him (26:37). In 20:17 He also took (parevlaben) through rapture (received, accepted, Young 959), and
the twelve disciples aside privately to unveil to them His in Ezekiel 3:14 the prophet is lifted up and taken away
death and resurrection. In John 14:3 He said, If I go and by the Spirit. In Genesis 5 Enoch was taken, raptured,
prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will into the presence of God. The Septuagint renders laqach
receive (paralhvmyomai) you to Myself, so that where I in verse 24 as metativqhmi, to translate, to transfer to
am you also may be. To receive the disciples to Himself another place. This is Pauls word in Hebrews 11:5,
was to put them into Himself in His resurrection (v. 20). which says, By faith Enoch was translated so that he
Thus, with respect to the relationship between the Lord should not see death; and he was not found, because
and His disciples, paralambavnw has the most intimate God had translated him. By all of the above, we may
and even organic denotation. Thus, taken in Matthew confidently conclude that taken in Matthew 24:40-41
24:40 and 41 refers to the Lords taking of His watchful refers to the rapture of the believers, like that of Enoch
believers through rapture to, with, and for Himself prior and Elijah. This will transpire before the great tribula-
to the time of His judgment of tion.
the earth in the great tribula-
tion. The indulgences of eating, drinking, Being Watchful, Ready,
marrying, and giving in marriage Faithful, and Prudent
T he one distinctly negative

use of paralambavnw is
found in John 19:16, in which
in the false sense of security will not
be characteristic of the great tribulation,
Verses 40 and 41 tell us that
one is taken and one is left.
the Roman soldiers took a time of calamities and sufferings. Several reasons point to the
Jesus to be crucified. How- fact that both the one taken in
ever, even here the verb is rapture and the one left
consistent with its other usages in the Gospels, signifying behind are genuine New Testament believers. The
a personal escort, a leading by accompaniment. The com- strongest reason is based on a proper view of the coher-
mon argument against taken as referring to the rapture is ence of 24:32 through 25:30. As we have seen, verses 40
that Matthew 24:39 says, The flood came and took all through 42 in chapter 24 speak of two in the field or at
away. In this verse, to take away is to take into judgment. the mill, with the exhortation, Watch therefore, for you
Walvoord applies this understanding by saying, do not know on what day your Lord comes. Following
this is the parable of the householder and the thief, in
In the illustration from the days of Noah, those who are verses 43 and 44. The householder refers to the believer,
taken away by the flood are the ones who are drowned, and house, to his conduct and work. A thief comes at an
and the ones who are left are ones who are left in safety unknown time to steal precious things. The Lord will
in the ark. It would be strange to have a clear illustration come secretly as a thief to those who love Him, and He
like this be completely reversed in the application of vers- will take them away as His treasures. The Lord conclud-
es 40-41. (Question 188) ed by saying, For this reason you also be ready, because
at an hour when you do not expect it, the Son of Man is
However, took in verse 39 is from an entirely different coming. Thus, the portion from verses 32 through 44 is
verb, ai[rw, which has a much less personal denotation. It on watchfulness and readiness with respect to the rap-
is mostly used related to taking up common objects, such ture. After this, in verses 45 through 51, is the parable of
as household items, garments, and even stones (vv. 17-18; the household slaves, which is a word concerning our
John 8:59) and is not infrequently used in a negative need to be faithful and prudent in expectation of the
sense, such as to take violently (Luke 6:30), to take away Lords coming.
unto death (Away from the earth with such a man, Acts
22:22), to take away the gift from the slothful slave Although watchfulness, readiness, faithfulness, and pru-
(Matt. 25:28), and to take away, remove, a sinful brother dence are covered in chapter 24, they are not covered

fully. Thus, there is the need for the parables in chapter the believer who is filled with the extra portion of the
25, which offer a complementary word for each aspect in Spirit, and the one who is left is the believer who,
chapter 24. At the end of the parable of the virgins, in although regenerated, lacks the filling of the Spirit.
25:1-13, the Lord said, Watch therefore, for you do not
know the day nor the hour. Watch therefore indicates that Both the One Taken and the One Left Being Believers
this passage completes the word concerning watchfulness
and readiness for rapture in 24:32-44. Although chapter There are definite indications that the persons in 24:32
24 tells us to watch, it does not tell us the way to watch. 25:30 are the believers of the New Testament age. First,
The way to be watchful and ready, which is revealed in the Lord said, You do not know on what day your Lord
chapter 25, is to buy the extra portion of oil, that is, to be comes (24:42). Your Lord in verse 42 corresponds to my
filled with an extra portion of the Spirit by paying a price, master in verse 48 and the master of those slaves in 25:19.
such as giving up the world, dealing with the self, loving An unsaved person has no master-slave relationship with
the Lord above all, and counting all things loss for Christ. the Lord. Rather, the unbelievers say, We do not want this
Verse 8 says, The foolish said to the prudent, Give us man to reign over us (Luke 19:14). Only genuine believ-
some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. Going out ers can say, Jesus Christ our Lord, our Lord Jesus
is sbevnnuntai (present passive), as in 1 Thessalonians Christ, and Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 1:4; 5:1, 11,
5:19, in which Paul tells the believers, Do not quench [mhV 21; 6:23; 7:25; 8:39; 15:6, 30). Apart from the Spirit of
sbevnnute] the Spirit. The lamps of the foolish virgins God one can say, Jesus is accursed, but only in the Holy
were lighted; their lamps contained some oil but did not Spirit can a man say, Jesus is Lord! (1 Cor. 12:3). Even if
have an adequate supply to bear a shining testimony at the an unbeliever speaks presumptuously to call Christ his
coming of the bridegroom. Hence, they represent the Lord, the Lord Himself does not speak amiss, and He did
believers who are regenerated with the Spirit of God and not use unbelievers false terms in Matthew 24 and 25.
indwelt by the Spirit but who have not been filled with Therefore, the household slave and the steward of his mas-
Him sufficiently to have their whole being saturated with ters talents in these chapters are New Testament believers,
Him. Thus, to watch and be ready is to be filled with the who take Jesus as their Lord. In this principle, both the one
Spirit and not quench the Spirit. taken and the one left in 24:40 and 41 represent the believ-
ers of the church age who live until the Lords coming.
I n the same principle, the parable of the talents in

Matthew 25:14-30 is a word concerning faithfulness
and prudence, which completes the corresponding word S econd, the Lord exhorted them, Watch therefore
and, be ready (vv. 42, 44). To watch and be ready is
in 24:45-51. Chapter 24 deals with the slaves unfaithful- an exhortation given only to Christians. The Lord would
ness in fulfilling the Lords commission, and chapter 25 not charge unsaved people to watch. To the Jews the Lord
deals with the slaves unfaithfulness in using the Lords said, Flee to the mountains (v. 16). To escape from the
talent. Again, it is the longer parable in the latter chapter housetops to the mountains will be the means of deliver-
that shows us the way to be faithful. The way to be faith- ance for the Jews at the end of this age. Jews are not
ful and prudent is to be positive, aggressive, and active to charged to watch for the Lords coming. Rather, to be
use the Lords gift to the fullest extent. Thus, the Spirit ready to meet the Lord, a Jew must receive the Lord
affords the believers not only the infilling for their readi- Jesus, the Christ, and be saved. Otherwise, he will be
ness but also the gifts for their faithfulness. found in his status as an unbelieving Jew at the manifes-
tation of Antichrist and will have to flee to the
Another indication that the parables in chapter 25 are a mountains.
completion of 24:32-51 is found in the numbers two and
ten. Ten is the major part of twelve (Gen. 42:3-4; 1 Kings Likewise, unbelieving Gentiles are also not called to
11:30-31; Matt. 20:24). Hence, the ten virgins in chapter watch and wait for the Lord. Watch (grhgorei'te) means
25 represent the majority of the believers, who will have to give strict attention to, be cautious, active (Thayer
died (slept) before the Lords coming, and the two in 122). For what should an unbeliever watch, in light of the
24:40 and 41 represent the remaining believers, who will Lords coming, and to what should he give strict atten-
be alive (in the fieldat the mill) until the Lords com- tion? Should he be ever alert as to his need to be saved,
ing. Therefore, the two in the field or at the mill, the yet uncertain about when, assuming that the day of his
householder, the virgins, and the household slaves are the salvation is not in his control but comes unexpectedly?
same persons, in principle, viewed from the aspects of This is opposed to the genuine gospel, which says, Now
watchfulness and readiness in life and faithfulness and is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2). To the unbelievers
prudence in service (Lee, Matthew 745-746). Only by the apostles preached, Repent (Acts 2:38), and Believe
being filled with the Spirit as virgins and trading with the on the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved (16:31).
Lords gifts as faithful slaves can we be prepared to be Unbelievers are not called to watch; they are called
raptured at the Lords coming. The one who is taken is to receive salvation today. For a Jew or an unbelieving

Gentile to watch, wait, and look for the coming of the Jesus words their highest force, which really ministers
Lord, thus delaying his salvation until the future, is a per- the most potent motive to vigilance; which, while it
version of the New Testament gospel. Who then is to acknowledges the perseverance and final salvation of the
watch at the end of the age? It is the believers. Watch- saint, preaches yet the differences, great and eternal, of
fulness implies a heart already awakened by grace: we do reward according to works. (Rapture 86)
not tell the dead to watch (Panton 21).
The complete gospel of the New Testament calls on
unbelieversboth Jews and Gentilesto believe, and it
G ovett points out that in Matthew 24:17-18 the Lord
warned against physical burdens for the ones fleeing
to the mountains, but in verse 38 He warned against the
calls on believers to watch and be ready by their growth
in life and faithfulness in service. Although all genuine
spiritual burdens of the abuse and indulgence of physical believers are certainly and eternally saved, and their sal-
necessities. Take heed to yourselves as regards your vation will persevere, only those who are watchful and
moral state, is the cry to the church: beware of things prepared will be rewarded with the early rapture prior to
without, is the call to the earthly elect (Taken 518). the great tribulation.
Herein is the distinction between the warning to the flee-
ing Jews and the warning to the two in the field and the To Stand before the Son of Man
two at the mill. To be sure, those who are commanded to
watch are the believers. Luke 21:34 through 36 says,
Take heed to yourselves lest perhaps your hearts be

Watch Therefore and Be Ready
weighed down with debauchery and drunkenness and the
Matthew 24:44 says, For this reason you also be ready, anxieties of life, and that day come upon you suddenly
because at an hour when you do not expect it, the Son of as a snare. For it will come in upon all those dwelling on
Man is coming. The Lords the face of all the earth. But
word in chapters 24 and 25 be watchful at every time,
was a private discourse with Although all genuine believers beseeching that you would
His disciples (24:3). Therefore, prevail to escape all these
are eternally saved, only those who things which are about to hap-
the you in verse 44, those
who are commanded to be are watchful and prepared will be pen and stand before the Son
ready, are the representatives rewarded with the early rapture of Man.
of the New Testament believ- prior to the great tribulation.
ers. To be ready (e@toimoi) is to This passage is parallel to
make the necessary prepara- Matthew 24:37-42. The eat-
tions, get everything ready (Thayer 255). What prepara- ing, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage in
tions should an unbelieving Jew or Gentile make to Matthew correspond to the debauchery, drunkenness,
receive Christ? Rather, all things are ready (e@toima, and anxieties of life in Luke. Likewise, the flood in
22:4). Unbelievers prepare in vain, for the preparations Matthew is parallel to the sudden, unexpected coming of
for salvation have already been made. Rather, the call to the day of the Lord as a snare in Luke, and watch there-
watch and be ready is for believers alone (1 Thes. 5:6). To fore in Matthew 24 corresponds to Jesus exhortation in
assign the duty of watching and preparing to the unsaved Luke to be watchful at every time and to beseech.
is to sacrifice the whole import of the Lords words. Clearly, the conditions and instructions in these two por-
Govett notes, tions are the same. 10 Moreover, the snare upon all those
dwelling on the face of all the earth in Luke 21 is the
Ifthe one taken be a believer, but the one left an unbe- hour of trial, which is about to come on the whole
liever, then the Saviors lesson is not only lost, but inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth in
inverted. Instead of acting as a keen lesson to the saints to Revelation 3:10. Therefore, to escape all these things is
be vigilant at all times, it will have the effect of an opiate. to be taken, raptured, before the great tribulation.
Then its strain must be as follows. O happy believer! Hence, the Lords word in Luke 21:36 is the fulfillment
come Christ when he may, you are always ready. Fear not! of the promise He gives to the church in Philadelphia.
Though you pamper the lusts of the flesh, though you are
seeking to heap up riches as the sand, though you love the Just prior to the tribulation, the Lord will still be on the
world, and mingle in all its gaieties, you will sustain no throne in the heavens (Mark 16:19; Rom. 8:34; Eph.
damage. Fear not! None but the wicked will be left. Sleep 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3), from which His parousia will
on and take your rest! begin. At this time, certain believers, such as the first-
fruits in Revelation 14, will be raptured to the throne of
I must stand then by the interpretation which gives to God to stand with the Savior on the heavenly Mount

Zion (v. 1; Heb. 12:22). This is to stand before the Son Coming Forward to the Throne of Grace
of Man in Luke 21:36. Then near the end of the tribula-
tion, the Savior will come from heaven with those who In order for our hearts to not be weighed down (v. 34),
were raptured and descend to the air to continue His we must go forth to meet the Bridegroom, dropping
parousia. At this point, the majority of the believers will every encumbering thing and going out of the world to
be raptured. This later rapture will transpire in the air meet the coming Christ (Matt. 25:1). We must also pray
(1 Thes. 4:17), not at the throne of God in the heavens. unceasingly, praying at every time in spirit and being
After this later rapture Christ will judge all the resurrect- watchful, on the alert, for the maintaining of our prayer
ed and raptured believers at His judgment seat, and He life (1 Thes. 5:17; Eph. 6:18). In order to ascend to the
will enjoy His marriage feast with the overcomers. Then throne of God in the heavens on the day of the rapture,
in the final stage of His parousia, Christ will descend we must every day come forward with boldness to the
from the air to the earth with His overcomers as His con- throne of grace (Heb. 4:16). The very Christ who is sit-
quering army to defeat Antichrist and set up His kingdom ting on the throne in heaven is also now in us (Rom.
on the earth. 8:10), that is, in our regenerated human spirit (2 Tim.
4:22), where the dwelling place of God is (Eph. 2:22).
T he subject of the Lords admonition in Luke 21 is the

believers escape from the tribulation by means of
rapture. In order to escape, we must prevail. Prevail
That Christ is both in the heavens and on the earth is
illustrated prophetically by Jacobs dream in Genesis
28:12-17, in which he saw a ladder set up on the earth
(katiscuvw) means to be strong to anothers detriment, and reaching to heaven, on which the angels of God were
to prevail against; to be superior in strength; to overpow- ascending and descending. Jacob said, This is none other
er (Thayer 341). It is a word used for an antagonistic than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. As
struggle, as in Matthew 16:18. To be sure, to prevail is not the fulfillment of Jacobs dream, Jesus told Nathanael,
for the purpose of gaining eternal salvation; we receive Truly, truly, I say to you, You shall see heaven opened
salvation freely by grace, not by struggle. Rather, it is to and the angels of God ascending and descending on the
be vigilant against the stupefying and drugging trend of Son of Man (John 1:51).
the age, an exercise which takes place after salvation. The
strength and ability to prevail come from watchfulness
and beseeching. We need to be watchful and pray daily in
a particular way so that we may receive the strength that
A t Bethel, the house of God, which is the gate of heav-
en, Christ is the ladder that joins earth to heaven and
brings heaven to earth. Since today our spirit is the
comes from the resurrection life within us to stand dwelling place of God, it is now the gate of heaven, where
against the trend, the tide, of the world. If we are Christ is the ladder that joins us, the people on earth, to
strengthened in this way, we shall not be caught by the heaven and that brings heaven to us. Hence, whenever we
trend of this age. Rather, we shall be full of Christ and be turn to our spirit, we enter through the gate of heaven and
buoyant, ready to stand before the Son of Man in the touch the throne of grace in heaven through Christ as the
early rapture. Concerning Luke 21:36, Watchman Nee heavenly ladder. Therefore, we must seek the things
notes, which are above by setting our mind on the spirit and
walking according to the spirit (Col. 3:1; Rom. 8:6, 4). In
This verse is a promise, but it is a promise with condi- this way we come forward to the throne of grace, where
tions. If the whole church will be raptured before the Christ is today as our Minister and our High Priest (Heb.
tribulation, are all the Christians watching at every time 8:2; 4:14-15; 7:26), ministering to us the heavenly life,
and beseeching? If some of them are not, this verse can- grace, authority, and power and sustaining us to live a
not be used as an evidence that the whole church will be heavenly life on earth (Recovery Version, 1:3; 4:16;
raptured before the tribulation. (19:514) notes). As such a heavenly people, we will not be unac-
customed to the enjoyment of Christ in the heavens, and
Peters says likewise, noting that even some who seem to the rapture will not carry us into a foreign and unfamiliar
watch for the Lords coming will not partake of the early realm. Rather, we will be prepared to be raptured to the
rapture: It is not simply those who watch that shall throne of God in the heavens, which will transpire at the
escape, but those, Luke 21:36, who watch and pray early, secret coming of Christ before the beginning of the
always, avoiding the corrupting influences around great tribulation.
them; and he quotes Joseph Seiss to the same effect,
The first translation, if I may so speak, will embrace only The Rapture in the Day of Reward
the select few who watch and pray always (332). The
believers at the end of this age must be watchful and Robert Govett notes, The rapture takes place, not in the
beseeching in order to escape the things which are about day of grace, but in the day of reward according to works
to happen, that is, the things in the great tribulation, and (Tracts 65). As we have seen, Genesis 5:24 speaks of
be raptured to the throne of God. the taking, the translation, of Enoch. The first mention of

a matter in the Bible should be considered as the seed of taken and the one left behind are both saved ones, born-
all subsequent instances, establishing its principle. As the again believers in Gods New Testament economy, of
development of the seed, Hebrews 11:5 and 6 say, whom onelike Enochis rewarded for watchfulness,
and the other is left behind. Similarly, in Luke 21:34-36
By faith Enoch was translated so that he should not see Jesus exhorted His disciples to take heed, be watchful,
death; and he was not found, because God had translated and beseech that they would prevail to escape the things
him. For before his translation he obtained the testimony which are about to happen, that they may be raptured
that he had been well pleasing to God. But without faith early to stand before the Son of Man in the heavens.
it is impossible to be well pleasing to Him, for he who Again, this implies that some, even genuine New
comes forward to God must believe that He is and that Testament disciples, may not prevail and thus may not
He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. escape the things of the great tribulation at the end of this
age but will remain on the earth to be taken at a later time.
E noch was the first person to be raptured. Thus, the

first mention of the rapture establishes the principle
that our being raptured depends on our being mature in
This is the faithful word of the Bible concerning the rap-
ture of the saints in the day of reward.
the divine life by our walking with God. Enoch walked

with God day and night for three hundred years, and He by John Campbell
did this by faith, believing that God is and that He is a
rewarder (misqapodovth", from misqov" [wage] and Notes
a*podivdwmi [pay]; thus, a payer of wages) of those who
diligently seek Him. After three hundred years of seeking 1Please see The Rapture of the Saints (1), Affirmation &
God and walking with Him, Enoch was taken by God, Critique XI.2 (Oct. 2006): 74-91.
thus obtaining the reward of not seeing death. 2It is argued by many that the
Lords prophetic word in Mat-
Watchman Nee concludes,
thew 24 was spoken to the Jews,
Enoch was the first person to be not to the church. However, the
All of the words in the four raptured. The first mention of the warning spoken in Revelation 3:3
Gospels are for the Christians.
In this way, the words that rapture establishes the principle that is clearly to the church in Sardis, a
church in the New Testament dis-
indicate that the rapture is being raptured depends on being mature pensation. This strongly implies a
only for those who are watch- in the divine life by walking with God. similar audience for the almost
ing, praying, and preparing, as
identical word spoken in Matthew
spoken in the four Gospels,
24:43 and 44. Moreover, the warn-
are for all the Christians. If this is the case, not all
ing to Sardis is not made to mere unbelievers in the appearance
Christians will be raptured before the tribulation.
of a church, for the Lord calls them the church (Rev. 3:1).
Therefore, the condition for the rapture is not regenera-
False believers may call themselves the church, but the Lord
tion, but being watchful. (19:534-535)
would never call them so. Hence, the Lords warning concern-
ing His coming as a thief in Matthew 24 and Revelation 3 is spo-
Concerning Luke 21:36, George H. Lang speaks similarly,
ken to genuine believers in the church.
This most important and unequivocal statement by our 3J. Barton Payne attempts a synthesis of the two views in
Lord sets aside the opinion that all Christians will escape which the coming of Christ is both posttribulational and immi-
irrespective of their moral state, and also negatives the nent. However, he accomplishes this only by avoiding rigorous
notion that no escape is possible. There is a door of futurism (105) in the interpretation of prophecy. According to
escape; but as with all doors, only those who are awake his view, many of the antecedents to the Lords coming
will see it, and only those who are in earnest will reach it including the seventieth week of Daniel 9, the time of Jacobs
ere the storm bursts. (38) trouble, and the ten horns (Rev. 13:1)may be past (106-108,
115-116), and the great tribulation is potentially present, and
The condition for the rapture of the believers prior to the perhaps almost finished (133), except for a brief portion yet
great tribulation is not merely regeneration but also to come (114, 141). Thus, the requisite signs of Christs com-
watchfulness in life and faithfulness in work after a person ing and His coming itself can still be as occurring at once (92),
is saved. If regeneration were the only condition, there and Christs coming at the end of the tribulation still might be
would be no reason for the Lord to exhort us to be watch- tonight (102). However, this interpretation is not based on the
ful. In Matthew 24:40-42 the Lord did not entreat the more accurate futurist interpretation of prophecy. Payne calls
disciples to repent, believe in Him, and be regenerated. his view the classical viewpoint of the early and the reforma-
He charged them only to be watchful. Hence, the one tion church (158-159), although he admits that Irenaeus,

Tertullian, and other early fathers are exceptions to this view establishes the crucial threefold division of the prophecy of the
(17-18, 146, 150). Ironically, these exceptions to Paynes kingdom that clearly places the church in a portion of the Word
classical view are the most important and accurate millenari- that is often but mistakenly called Jewish.
ans of their time. 8Gundrys thesis is one of posttribulationismwith a
4Although most dispensationalists claim that the New scripturally measured dispensationalism (28). Although his
Testament is silent toward the church until the day of stance as a whole is peculiar, certain specific observations, such
Pentecost, Anderson moves the transition even further, to the as the ones we cite here, are sound.
calling of Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles (75). However, Acts 9Moos view, like that of Gundry, is posttribulationism,
8:1 clearly mentions the church which was in Jerusalem prior which we do not accept as such. Once again, though, the spe-
to the conversion of Paul in chapter 9. Another of Andersons cific observations we cite here are valid.
claims that the Gospels are entirely Jewish is that the title Son
10According to the parallelism between Matthew 24 and
of Man, so frequent in the Gospels, is never used in relation to
the church (78). This claim ignores Stephens vision in Acts Luke 21, to escape all these things in the latter (v. 36) is
7:56 and Johns in Revelation 1:13 and 14:14. Andersons equivalent to be taken in the former (vv. 40-41). This
extreme dispensationalism moves us even further from the strengthens the understanding that to be taken in Matthew 24
truth. is to be raptured prior to the great tribulation. Regrettably, con-
cerning the Lords command to watch in these two chapters,
5It is commonly taught that John 14 is the first mention of
Stanton states,
the rapture in the New Testament, and for many dispensation-
The primary reference in these passages is not to the
alists, the only time it is mentioned in the Gospels. Walvoord
Church at all, but to Israel in the Tribulation (Matt.
says, The only passage clearly indicating a rapture is John 14:1-
24:29, 30). Christian watchfulness is based on verses
3This passage, taken literally, indicates that the believer is
such as 1 Thessalonians 5:6 and Titus 2:13, and these say
going to go to heaven at the time of Christs coming for Him
nothing about being accounted worthy to escape. (175)
[sic] (Question 193, 195). The subject of John 14 is the dis-
pensing of God in His Divine Trinity to build up a spiritual, He supports this statement by citing Matthew 24:29-30, which
organic, and mutual abode with the redeemed and regenerated speaks of the Lords open coming to the Jews. As we have seen,
believers in Christ. Thus, the Lord went on the day of His though, the object of the Lords speaking changes at verse 32,
crucifixion and came on the day of resurrection so that He after which He is speaking to the church, a fact that is clearly
may indwell the disciples and bring them into the Triune God recognized by Darby. The misled concept that teachings and
to form a divine-human incorporation (vv. 6, 17, 20, 23). Robert exhortations for the church are found only in the Epistles and
H. Gundry attempts a similar exposition, stating that Jesus not in the Gospels is typical of dispensationalism, and in this
went to prepare spiritual abodes within His own person (152- case it has the effect of divorcing Christian watchfulness from
155). Regrettably, Walvoord calls this a fanciful and extreme the Lords exhortation to watch, be ready, and beseech to
form of exegesis, a desperate attempt of posttribulationists to escape. This is to strip the words of both Jesus and Paul of their
spiritualize this passage and eliminate it as referring to the rap- crucial significance.
ture (Tribulation 92-93). It is regrettable that, having denied
Works Cited
the rapture in Matthew 24, dispensationalists find it instead in
John 14, thus annulling the significance of one of the deepest Anderson, Robert. Forgotten Truths. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1980.
passages in the Bible. For a thorough exposition of John 14 in
the light of Gods New Testament economy and the erroneous Brown, Francis, et al. The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and
teachings concerning heaven, see In My Fathers House: The English Lexicon. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2003.
Unleavened Truth of John 14, Affirmation & Critique V.2 Darby, J. N. The Collected Writings of J. N. Darby. Ed. William
(April 2000): 22-36. Kelly. 34 vols. Sunbury: Believers Bookshelf, 1971-1972.
6The fact that Jeremiah 30:7 and Daniel 12:1 speak only of
. Synopsis of the Books of the Bible. Vol. 3. Addison: Bible
Israel in the tribulation is often invoked to argue that the tribu-
Truth Publishers, 1979.
lation is distinctly Jewish; thus, it is said, the church will not be
present in it. However, one of the tenets of dispensationalism is Govett, Robert. One Taken and One Left. The Dawn. Vol. 12,
that the church, being a mystery revealed only in New No. 11. Ed. D. M. Panton. London: Thynne, 1936.
Testament times (Eph. 3:4-5), is nowhere mentioned in the Old . The Prophecy on Olivet. Miami Springs: Conley &
Testament. Therefore, it is hardly remarkable that the churchs Schoettle, 1985.
place in the tribulation seems to be omitted from the Old
Testament prophets, and it is unsafe to build a thesis on that . The Saints Rapture to the Presence of the Lord Jesus.
observation. Miami Springs: Conley & Schoettle, 1984.
7We are not, of course, invoking Darby for support of a dif- . Tracts on the Kingdom, No. 13. Kingdom Studies.
ferent view of the rapture in 24:40-41. This discussion simply Miami Springs: Schoettle, 1989.

Gundry, Robert H. The Church and the Tribulation. Grand Pierson, Arthur T. The Coming of the Lord. London: Passmore
Rapids: Academie, 1973. and Alabaster, 1896.
Justin Martyr. Dialogue with Trypho. The Ante-Nicene Reiter, Richard R., Paul D. Feinberg, Gleason L. Archer, and
Fathers. Eds. Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson. Vol. Douglas J. Moo. The Rapture: Pre-, Mid-, or Post-
1. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1979. Tribulational? Grand Rapids: Academie, 1984.
Kelly, William. Pamphlets. Sunbury: Believers Bookshelf, 1971. Reese, Alexander. The Approaching Advent of Christ: An
Examination of the Teachings of J. N. Darby and His
Ladd, George Eldon. The Blessed Hope. Grand Rapids: Followers. London: Marshall, Morgan, and Scott, 1937.
Eerdmans, 1956.
Scofield, C. I. The Scofield Reference Bible. New York: Oxford
Lang, George H. Firstfruits and Harvest. Miami Springs: University Press, 1945.
Conley & Schoettle, 1985.
Stanton, Gerald B. Kept from the Hour. Miami Springs:
Lee, Witness. Life-study of Matthew. Anaheim: Living Stream Schoettle, 1991.
Ministry, 1986.
Thayer, Joseph H. Thayers Greek-English Lexicon of the New
. Footnotes. Recovery Version of the Bible. Anaheim: Testament. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2003.
Living Stream Ministry, 2003.
Vine, W. E. An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words
Nee, Watchman. The Collected Works of Watchman Nee. 62 with Their Precise Meanings for English Readers. Vol. 1. Old
vols. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1992-1994. Tappan: Fleming H. Revell, 1966.
Panton, David. M. Rapture. Miami Springs: Schoettle, 1988. Walvoord, John F. The Blessed Hope and the Tribulation: A
Historical and Biblical Study of Posttribulationism. Grand
Payne, J. Barton. The Imminent Appearing of Christ. Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 1980.
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1962.
. The Rapture Question. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1979.
Peters, George N. H. The Theocratic Kingdom of Our Lord Jesus,
the Christ, as Covenanted in the Old Testament and Presented Young, Robert. Analytical Concordance to the Bible. Grand
in the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1952. Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974.
Footnotes from the Recovery Version of the Bible
And I saw, and behold, there was a white cloud, and on the cloud One like the Son of Man sitting, having a golden
crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud
voice to Him who sat on the cloud, Send forth Your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come because the
harvest of the earth is ripe. And He who sat on the cloud thrust His sickle upon the earth, and the earth was
reaped (Rev. 14:14-16).
sharp: The sharp sickle in the Lord's hand indicates that the Lord is the One who reaps Gods field.
harvest: The harvest of the earth is Gods people on earth, the believers in Christ (1 Cor. 3:9). At His first
coming to the earth, the Lord sowed Himself into His believers (Matt. 13:3-8, 24). All the believers since
that time, who have received Him as the seed of life, have become Gods crop on the earth. The first-ripe
ones will be reaped as the firstfruits to God before the great tribulation, as indicated in vv. 1-5. The major-
ity will ripen with the help of the sufferings in the great tribulation and will be reaped, raptured, at the
end of the great tribulation.
ripe: Lit., dried. To be ripe is to be dried of all the earthly water. The suffering of the great tribulation,
like the parching sun, will dry up the earthly waters from the believers who are left on the earth in the
great tribulation, enabling the believers to ripen.
reaped: The reaping here will take place after Antichrist forces people to worship him and his image (v. 9).
Hence, it refers to the rapture of the majority of the believers, who are left on the earth to pass through
the great tribulation.

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The Rapture of the Saints (2)

I n the previous installment of this department, we saw

68 Affirmation & Critique

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 69

At His second appearing, Christ will come to rapture the

70 Affirmation & Critique

P rior to the beginning of the tribulation, Christ will

The imminence of the Lords coming consists in two

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 71

H e notes several scriptural indications of the two

72 Affirmation & Critique

Matthew 24 and 25, the Olivet discourse, is a significant

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 73

74 Affirmation & Critique

It is clear that Darby associates the second portion of the

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 75

T he section of the prophecy of the kingdom from

76 Affirmation & Critique

T he one distinctly negative

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 77

I n the same principle, the parable of the talents in

78 Affirmation & Critique

Take heed to yourselves lest perhaps your hearts be

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 79

T he subject of the Lords admonition in Luke 21 is the

80 Affirmation & Critique

E noch was the first person to be raptured. Thus, the

the divine life by our walking with God. Enoch walked

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 81

82 Affirmation & Critique

Footnotes from the Recovery Version of the Bible

Volume XII No. 1 April 2007 83

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