Many who embrace a pretribulation rapture do so out of fear of the persecution that will take place under the brief reign of the antichrist when he is empowered by Satan to trouble the Earth. How comforting it is, therefore, to embrace a belief that promises an escape from this persecution.
I believe that a careful and honest study of the various trumpets spoken of by Jesus Christ and his apostles, in the gospels, the letters to the churches and in the book of Revelation is key to coming to a clear understanding regarding the timing of the resurrection of the saints and the rapture of the church of Jesus Christ.
So … do post-tribulation advocates believe in a rapture of the church? Yes, of course they do. There is no dispute on whether or not there is a rapture, but rather the timing of the rapture.
Let’s take a look at the rapture as described by Christ and the apostles. One of the clearest and most detailed description of the rapture of the church is found in 1 Thes 4:14-17:
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that 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, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: 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 meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
(Please note: The word ‘prevent’ by the King James in 1 Thes. 4:15 warrants some clarification. The meaning of this word has changed in the centuries since the King James was penned. This word actually means ‘precede’ in modern usage, and is so translated in most newer Bible translations.)
For instance, here is the same verse 15 in the New King James version:
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
And in the NIV:
15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
Another rapture passage is found in 1 Cor. 15:5-53, where Paul writes,
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.
In verse 52 of this passage a trumpet is mentioned. Remember this trumpet. It is vital in our discussion and in our understanding of the timing of the rapture.
We have now seen in two of Paul’s writings where he describes the rapture of the church and some of the circumstances involved in that event. Note in verse 1 Thes. 4:16 that we see that same trumpet mentioned again. Notice that this trump is sounded just prior to the resurrection of the dead in Christ, the event which immediately precedes the rapture of the church.
Also notice that Paul includes an adjective to describe this particular trumpet. In this passage he calls it the “last” trump. The trumpet mentioned in 1 Thes. 4:16 is the same trumpet as in 1 Cor. 15:52, (i.e the ‘last’ trump) because both passages describe the rapture of the church immediately following the sound of this trump.
The word ‘last’ as found in this King James English translation of 1 Corinthians 15:52 is accurate in its rendering. In the Greek it is the word eschatos. It is from this word that we get our English word, eschatology, which means the study of last times.
Examine Strong’s notes on the word eschatos:
2078 escatwv eschatos es'-khat-os
- a superlative probably from 2192 (in the sense of contiguity); TDNT-2:697,264; adj
AV - last 46, lowest 2, uttermost 2, last state 2, ends 1, latter end 1;
1) extreme
1a) last in time or in place
1b) last in a series of places
1c) last in a temporal succession
2) the last
2a) last, referring to time
2b) of space, the uttermost part, the end, of the earth
2c) of rank, grade of worth, last i.e. lowest
Note Strong’s use of the word ‘superlative’ in the passage quoted above. According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, the meaning of ‘superlative’ is:
of, relating to, or constituting the degree of grammatical comparison that denotes an extreme or unsurpassed level or extent
Strong’s use of ‘superlative’ conveys the idea that the word ‘eschatos’ (i.e. ‘last’ in English) signifies that there will be no further trumpets after this one. In other words, last truly means last.