What are the strengths and weaknesses of the pre-wrath view of the rapture?

Answer

There are various viewpoints on eschatology (the study of future events). Nevertheless, nearly all Christians concur on three key points: 1) there will be a forthcoming period of tribulation, 2) following that period of turmoil, Jesus will come back to establish His kingdom, and 3) believers will be transformed from mortality to immortality—in essence, there will be a rapture (John 14:1-3;1 Corinthians 15:51-52;1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). One lingering question is, when will the rapture take place in relation to the tribulation and the second coming of Christ?

The three primary theories regarding the timing of the rapture are pretribulationism, positioning the rapture before the tribulation; midtribulationism, situating the rapture at or near the midpoint of the tribulation; and posttribulationism, locating the rapture at the conclusion of the tribulation. Somewhat connected to midtribulationism is the belief in a “pre-wrath” rapture, which is the focus of this article.

The pre-wrath rapture theory suggests that the rapture happens prior to the “great day of . . . wrath” «For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?», (Revelation 6:17). According to the pre-wrath perspective, believers experience most of the tribulation but are spared from God’s wrath just before the end of the tribulation «for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. », (Matthew 24:21). The church will endure Satan’s fury and persecution by man, but will not face God’s wrath. Before God unleashes His final judgment on the world, the churchWill be caught up to heaven. Here is a brief summary of the pre-wrath rapture position.

The pre-wrath rapture theory views the trumpet and the bowl judgments (Revelation 7–16) as the wrath of God, from which the church is exempted “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,” (1 Thessalonians 5:9). However, the first six seal judgments (Revelation 6) are not considered the wrath of God; rather, they are viewed as “the wrath of Satan” or “the wrath of the antichrist.” This is because there is no direct mention of God’s wrath until after the sixth seal is broken “For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”, (Revelation 6:17). According to the pre-wrath rapture theory, the church will be present to experience the first six seals.

Comparing Revelation 6 with Matthew 24, the pre-wrath rapture theorists identify the first seal judgments with Jesus’ description of the end times in Matthew 24:4-7. Jesus then refers to these events as “the beginning of birth pains” (verse 8). In verses 29 and 30, “the sign of the Son of Man” appears in the sky, and it is at this time, according to the pre-wrath rapture theory, that the rapture of the church occurs.

One weakness of the pre-wrath rapture position is its presumption that the “elect” mentioned in Matthew 24:22, 31 are church-age saints. These saints could just as easily be individuals saved during the seven-year tribulation; in fact, Jesus tells those who flee the antichrist’s persecution to pray that their flight does not occur “on the Sabbath” (verse 20). Since the church is not under the Mosaic law and does not keep the Sabbath, Jesus’ words cannot be directed to the church.

Another flaw in the pre-wrath rapture theory is its teaching that the first seal judgments are not the wrath.Of God. Scripture reveals that it is the Lamb who breaks the seals (Revelation 5:5; Revelation 6:1). No other man is found worthy to break them (5:3-4). Therefore, it appears that these are not judgments of man, but of God. The tribulation commences when Jesus breaks the first seal, and from that moment on, the wrath of God is poured out on a sinful world.

A final weakness of the pre-wrath rapture perspective is shared by the other theories: namely, the Bible does not provide a clear timeline regarding future events. Scripture does not explicitly endorse one view over another, which explains the diversity of opinions regarding the end times and the various ways in which the related prophecies are interpreted.