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You won't find a pre-trib reapture in the bible.

1Co 15:51 Behold, I speak a mystery to you; we shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed;
1Co 15:52 in a moment, in a glance of an eye, at the last trumpet. For a trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall all be changed.

These verses are usually quoted as biblical proof of a pre-trib rapture. Believers ARE caught up and changed, but notice WHEN it happens. At the LAST trumpet. This refers to the book of Revealations.

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded. And there were great voices in Heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ. And He will reign forever and ever.

Just before this, the two witnesses were resurrected and went up with God. In the Left Behind books, this event occurs about halfway through the 7 year tribulation period.

There are three different judgements in the book of Revelation: The Seal Judgements, the Trumpet Judgements, and the Bowl Judgements. Paul, in I Corinthians 15:51 speaks of the "mystery" which I believe is the "Rapture" of the Church. In vs. 52, Paul mentions the sound of the trumpet.

In I Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul again speaks of the "Rapture" of the church. In vs 16, He again mentions the trumpet.

Now go to Revelation 10:7..."But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his "trumpet", the mysteryof God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets."

Some versions read, "the mystery of God is finished". Nonetheless, something definitively is "accomplished" or "finished" at the sounding of the last judgement in the "Trumpet Judgements".

Just something to ponder.

A single verse as "proof" is difficult. It is much more clear when you take the many verses with reference together. Here are a couple which may help:

The most clear that I have found:

Revalations Chapter 3:Verse 10

10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.

And another:

1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 Verses 13-14

13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

Ha ha ha. Good luck.

There is no such verse. If one starts with the premise beforehand, a number of verses can be twisted to fit the premise, but there is no "starting point" biblically. There is no evidence of an invisible rapture, either. There are no disappearing Christians anywhere in the Bible, in spite of all the novels that describe the event in presumptuous detail. Again, once the premise is accepted, it can be argued that the Bible doesn't say it's not invisible, but that's an argument based on lack of evidence. The Bible doesn't say we won't ride elephants to heaven, either, but that's hardly a reason to count on a ride on dumbo.

I've challenged the pre-tribs here countless times to come up with such a verse, and all I've gotten were insults, and comments like, "I'm not going to do your homework for you. Look it up yourself."

I'll be glad to provide several passages that indicate that the rapture will come AFTER the tribulation, but BEFORE the "Wrath of God".

2 Thessalonians 2:6ff always clinched the pre-trib position for me. Someone is holding back Satan from revealing his man of sin-- and that someone has been holding him back for 2000 years. Thus, it almost certainly is the Holy Spirit.

So... which of the millenial positions can account for the removal of the Holy Spirit at the start of the Tribulation? Only one which has the church off the earth when the man of sin comes into power (or at least, significent enough power to be recognized as antichrist.) So, thats why I am unequivically pre-trib.

A single verse is difficult to make doctrine out of, there needs to be more. Here is one

Rev 3: 10: Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.

Here is another, but it can also mean a great departure from sound doctrine, and that describes today, for sure!

2Thes:2:3: Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

The man of sin is the Anti-Christ, so this falling away, RAPTURO, must come first. When taken in context with other verses, it helps explain the doctrine of the rapture, those alive before the man of sin is revealed, being taken up.

Here is another 'hint':,p. 51: Behold, I shew 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 trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53: For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54: So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

This twinkling of an eye, means an instantaneous change, not a person by person change, but all believers. To sleep means to die, and not all will die, but some will be changed, in an instant.

Quick question: I'm working on a novel and need to know what you think would be the single most definitive verse or brief passage that supports a pre-tribulation Rapture? I know there's a verse that does such but can't seem to find it at the moment.

Ha ha ha. There isn't a single solitary one. The entire doctrine is pieced together from a phrase here and there. There isn't a single place where such a doctrine is taught. Intellectually it's equivalent to the pages of a phone book being used to construct a papier mache object and then having the artist tell you that that object was inherently in the phone book. That's what it amounts to.

There is no such verse that supports a pre-trib rapture. First and foremost, I should note I'm a Christian. I've studied prophecy long enough to know that the new contemporary 'rapture dogma' about the end times is a fanciful speculation, taken as the gospel truth, because some many evangelical religious leaders believe in it.... It evolved from the teaching of the 19th century Irvingites who espoused a progressive social gospel. Darby adopted it and changed it bit, and it was popularized in the U.S.

Jesus' parable of the harvest in Matthew 13 actually refutes the notion of a pre-trib rapture... Not surprisingly, there are a number of denominations from Calvinists to Catholics opposed to such a doctrine, as 'pre-trib rapture.' There are a lot of people claiming to have fully interpreted the prophecies of Revelation... The Bible warned of 'false prophets and false teachers.' Take any speculation with a grain of salt. If you don't take what I say at face value than study the scriptures.

Left Behind Culturally

Are you thinking of this passage:

1 Thessalonians 4 15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Maybe these will help:

Matthew 24:29-31
²⁹Immediately after the distress of those days ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’
³⁰At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
³¹And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
2 Thessalonians 2:1-3
¹Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers,
²not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come.
³Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
Revelation 6:9-11
⁹When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.
¹⁰They called out in a loud voice, How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?
¹¹Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.
Revelation 7:13-14
¹³Then one of the elders asked me, These in white robes who are they, and where did they come from?
¹⁴I answered, Sir, you know. And he said, These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

In addition to the prior posts of verses implying a pre-Tribulation Rapture, consider that of the four Gospels, John was especially written to the Church and the Gentiles; therefore, he was a picture (or symbol) of the Church when the voice in Rev. 4:1 said to him "Come up here" BEFORE the description of the Tribulation started in the subsequent chapters of Revelation. Also, Enoch was another picture (or symbol) of the Rapture in Gen. 5:24.

In addition, the Tribulation Dispensation does NOT apply to the Church (Gentiles) because it is called the time of JACOB's Trouble Jer. 30:7 NOT the time of the Church's Trouble or the time of the believers' Trouble.

I Thessalonians 4 and 5 describe the Rapture and the circumstances that surround it.

I Thess 4 describes the events that precede the Rapture ending with 15-18 which say: 15 . . . we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout . . . and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to mee the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (15 to 17 are the Rapture)

I Thess 5 tells us when: 1 But of the times and the seasons brethern, you have no need that I tell you--proceeding on through 8 about the events of the time and then in 9 telling us when the Rapture happens: "For God has not appointed us to Wrath."

The Rapture happens before "Wrath" starts.

Revelation 6:17 says "For the great day of his wrath is come . . . . " Wrath starts after the events of Revelation Chapter 6 and before Chapter 7 which is logicial since in 7:9 we see the Raptured Church in heaven ("out of the great tribulation"--7:14); and in 7:3-8; the Jewish remanent on Earth who have accepted Jesus Christ as Messiah who had the Rapture not occured before they do so, would be Raptured.

So where are we now: Revelation 6:6: Wheat three times the price of Barley; and the oil and wine hurt not. Wheat has been three times the price of Barley one time and one time only during the church age and that was in May 1996 when the 200% penalty tax on imported cooking oil and wine, adopted to leverage the Europeans to agree to GATT; suspended when they agreed to the terms of the treaty; was finally eliminated when the treaty had been signed, thus hurting not the oil and wine.

6:2 was Saddam; 6:4 was Desert Storm.

After 6:6: As I have told you many times, the quarter of the earth is the area occupied by the Moslem Jihad--74 degrees East Longitude to 16 degrees West Longitude; 90 degrees and exactly a quarter of the earth. The war is the Jihad War now starting; famine is widespread; death from AIDs is widespread; death from the beasts of the earth comes from ebola and Mad Cow which are transmitted by the flesh of the beasts of the earth.

All exactly and precisely as set out in his Holy Word. Praise God for the precision, accuracy and guidence he has given us in his Word to know where we are in time and can be watchful.

Here's a verse:

1Thes.4

[17] Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

IMHO, this is the most difinitive verse for a pretribber.

Others might see this as more difinitive but I don't. Even though, I'll list it:

Rev.12

[5] And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

I'd be VERY careful in sensationalizing prophecy. There is also a penalty attached to those who add and subtract from the book of Revelation. I suspect there are other penalities, unspoken for other offenses.