Pre-Tribulation Rapture – The church, the body of Christ, in its entirety, will, by resurrection and translation, be removed from the Earth before any part of the seventieth week of Daniel begins.

 

I. The Basis for The Pre-Tribulation Stand – literal method of Interpretation.

A. The Pre-Tribulation stand takes a dispensational interpretation to Scriptures

B. The church and Israel are two distinct groups with which God has a plan

1. The church is a mystery, revealed in the New Testament

2. This mystery age intervenes in the program of God because Israel rejected the Messiah in His first Advent.

3. This mystery program must be completed before God resumes His Israel program

II.  Arguments of Pre-Tribulationism – cumulative evidence is strong

A. Literal Method of Interpretation – Amillenialsists admit freely that the difference is in the method of interpretation used – literal or figurative

1. Literal interpretation of a literal Kingdom is the outcome of literal interpretation of  the Old Testament

2. Only natural to use the same interpretation of the rapture question

B. Consistent literal interpretation leads to Pre-Trib  Pre-Trib

1. The Post-Tribber must either historically spiritualize Revelation, or treat is as future, and then spiritualize away the literalness of events to make things fit.

2. The Mid-Tribber must interpret literally the first half of the seventieth week, while spiritualizing the last half, to permit the church to encounter it.

 

III. The Tribulation is for God to deal with Israel, and the church doesn’t participate in this

 

A. The Tribulation is divine wrath –

 

Revelation 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

Revelation 6:17  For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

 

Revelation 11:18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. {destroy the earth: or, corrupt the earth}

 

Revelation 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

 

Revelation 15:1 And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

 

Revelation 15:7 And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.

 

Revelation 16: 1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

 

Revelation 16: 19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.

 

I Thessalonians 1: 9 For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;

I Thessalonians 1:10  And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

 

I Thessalonians 1:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

 

Zephaniah1:15  That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

 

Zephaniah1:18  Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.

 

B. The Tribulation is Divine Judgment –

 

Revelation 14: 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

 

Revelation 15: 4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

 

Revelation 16: 5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.

Revelation 16: 6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.

Revelation 16: 7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

 

Revelation 19: 2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.

 

C. The Tribulation is Divine Indignation –

 

Isaiah 26: 20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.

 

Isaiah 26: 21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. {blood: Heb. bloods}

 

Isaiah 34: 1 Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. {all that…: Heb. the fulness thereof}

Isaiah 34: 2 For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter.

Isaiah 34: 3 Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.

 

D. The Tribulation is Divine Punishment –

 

Isaiah 26: 20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

Isaiah 26: 21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. {punish: Heb. visit upon}

 

E. The Tribulation is the Hour of Trial –

 

Revelation 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.

 

F. The Tribulation is the Hour of Trouble –

 

Jeremiah 30: 7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

 

G. The Tribulation is Destruction –

 

Joel 1: 15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

 

H. The Tribulation is Darkness –

 

Joel 2: 2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. {of many…: Heb. of generation and generation}

Zephaniah 1: 14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

Zephaniah 1: 15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

Zephaniah 1: 16 A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.

Zephaniah 1: 17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.

Zephaniah 1: 18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.

 

Amos 5: 18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.

 

I. The Tribulation is for Israel – bring her back to God – called Jacob’s trouble, etc.

 

J. The church was not in existence during the 69th week

 

1. Not until after the death of Christ –

 

Ephesians 5: 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

Ephesians 5: 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

 

2. Not until after the Resurrection –

 

Romans 4:25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

 

Colossians 3: 1 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

Colossians 3: 2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. {affection: or, mind}

Colossians 3: 3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.

 

3. Not until after the Ascension –

 

Ephesians 1: 19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, {his mighty power: Gr. the might of his power}

Ephesians 1: 20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

 

 

K. Every Passage dealing with the Tribulation relates it to God’s program for Israel, this prevents the church from participating in it.