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In eschatology, it is crucial to recall that nearly all Christians concur on these three points: 1) there is a forthcoming period of immense tribulation unlike any in history, 2) following the Tribulation, Christ will come back to establish His kingdom on earth, and 3) there will be a Rapture—a transformation from mortality to immortality—for believers (John 14:1-3;1 Corinthians 15:51-52;1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). The issue is when the Rapture happens in relation to the Tribulation and the Second Coming of Christ?
Over time, three primary theories have arisen regarding the timing of the Rapture: pretribulationism (the belief that the Rapture will take place before the Tribulation begins), midtribulationism (the belief that the Rapture will occur at the midpoint of the Tribulation), and posttribulationism (the belief that the Rapture will happen at the end of the Tribulation). This article focuses specifically on the pretribulational perspective.
Pretribulationism asserts that the Rapture transpires before the onset of the Tribulation. During that period, the church will meet Christ in the air, and subsequently, the Antichrist is revealed, and the Tribulation commences. In essence, the Rapture and Christ’s Second Coming (to establish His kingdom) are separated by a minimum of seven years. According to this standpoint, the church does not undergo any of the Tribulation.
From a scriptural standpoint, the pretribulational stance has many strengths. For instance, the church is not destined for wrath (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10, 5:9), and believers will not be caught off guard by the Day of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:1-9). The church in Phila
Delphia was promised to be kept from “the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world” «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. », (Revelation 3:10). Note that the promise is not preservation through the trial but deliverance from the hour, that is, from the time period of the trial.
Pretribulationism also finds support in what is not found in Scripture. The word “church” appears nineteen times in the first three chapters of Revelation, but, significantly, the word is not used again until chapter 22. In other words, in the entire lengthy description of the Tribulation in Revelation, the word church is noticeably absent. In fact, the Bible never uses the word “church” in a passage relating to the Tribulation.
Pretribulationism is the only theory which clearly maintains the distinction between Israel and the church and God’s separate plans for each. The seventy “sevens” of Daniel 9:24 are decreed upon Daniel’s people (the Jews) and Daniel’s holy city (Jerusalem). This prophecy makes it plain that the seventieth week (the Tribulation) is a time of purging and restoration for Israel and Jerusalem, not for the church.
Also, pretribulationism has historical support. From John 21:22-23, it would seem that the early church viewed Christ’s return as imminent, that He could return at any moment. Otherwise, the rumor would not have persisted that Jesus would return within John’s lifetime. Imminence, which is incompatible with the other two Rapture theories, is a key tenet of pretribulationism.
And the pretribulational view seems to be the most in keeping with God’s character and His desire to deliver the righteous from the judgment of the world. Biblical examples of God’s salvation include Noah, who was delivered from the worldwide flood; Lot, who was delivered
Delivered from Sodom was Lot; and Rahab was delivered from Jericho (2 Peter 2:6-9).
One perceived weakness of pretribulationism is its relatively recent development as a church doctrine, not being formulated in detail until the early 1800s. Another weakness is that pretribulationism divides the return of Jesus Christ into two “phases”—the Rapture and the Second Coming—while the Bible does not clearly outline any such phases.
Another challenge facing the pretribulational view is the presence of saints in the Tribulation «And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. », (Revelation 13:7,20:9). Pretribulationists address this by distinguishing between the saints of the Old Testament and the saints of the Tribulation from the church of the New Testament. Believers alive at the Rapture will be taken before the Tribulation, but there will be those who will turn to Christ during the Tribulation.
Some point to Jesus’ statement in John 6:40 as a challenge to pretribulationism: “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” Jesus assures believers a resurrection “at the last day,” but the pretribulational model has believers being raised at the Rapture, at least seven years before Christ’s second coming. The explanation for this involves a general use of the word day—the end times, known as “the last day,” will cover the entire period from the Rapture to the Second Coming. Additionally, the Rapture will signify the end of the church age and thus is “the last day” of this era.
A final weakness of the pretribulational view, shared by the other two theories, is that the Bible does not specify an exact time.
Concerning future events, scripture does not explicitly favor one perspective over another. This is why there is a diversity of opinions regarding the end times and various approaches to harmonizing the related prophecies.
