The Rapture is an event that most Evangelical Christians believe in and understand will happen thanks to writings by the Apostle Paul and others in the Bible. While many who claim to be “Christian” and many non-believers don’t really understand what the Rapture means; it’s importance cannot be overstated. The Apostle Paul describes the Rapture in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17.
The term “Rapture” comes from a Latin word meaning “a carrying off, a transport, or a snatching away.”
In verses 16 and 17, the Apostle Paul says: “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: 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.”
This event should not be confused with the second-coming of Jesus. The second-coming is after the Great Tribulation period, a period of seven years on earth which will be terrible. Thankfully for followers of Jesus, they will have been “raptured up” into the clouds, first those who are believers who were “asleep” in the graves, followed by the living believers who will get spiritual bodies at that moment. This means they will be spared from the awful time which will be the tribulation.
The great tribulation will see incredible suffering on the earth. In the book of Revelation, we learn that a quarter of the earth’s population will be killed in a great war. The antichrist is introduced to the world and is a soldier of the devil.
The antichrist promises diplomacy and the promise of peace to establish his one-world government. We have seen the political left, and their push for a one-world government along with the World Economic Forum. These things are already happening and ushering in the introduction of the antichrist. After a great world war, which the world is entering into as I write, the Bible tells us there will be “suffering of famine and inflation.” The inflation portion should sound familiar to most Americans already.
In chapter 7 of the book of Revelation, we learn of the 144,000 Jewish witnesses who go out around the world and bring the message of the good news of Jesus to people everywhere, many of whom accept Jesus as Lord. These Jews, much like the Apostle Paul, are super evangelists who bring millions to Jesus. A quarter of the world’s population will be saved by these evangelists. Yet, those new believers will suffer as the Bible tells us they are “martyred by the government leader and harlot,” a woman who works for the antichrist.
At this point, the world will experience a terrible earthquake like nothing every seen before. But, all of this happens in just the first quarter of the Tribulation and the remaining time is described as God pouring out his wrath on the world. At this point, the Bible says that: “one-third of all trees and green grass being burned up by hail, fire, and blood cast upon the earth.” Then, in Revelation, we are told that: “a great mountain of sulfur falling into the sea and destroying a third-part of the sea and all living creatures in it and a third of the shipping vessels.”
Remember that John saw these things in a dream 2,000 years ago, so many things can represent things he would not have recognized or have been able to describe way back then. It would seem that things could not possibly get worse on earth, but they do.
In chapter 8 or Revelation, we are told: “a great star (or meteor) called Wormword (or “bitter”) to fall on the fountains of water and third of rivers to turn bitter, resulting in the deaths of millions.” Then, “one-third less sun, moonlight, and stars, extending the darkness of night.” Yet, after all of this, an angel will circle the world warning of even worse things to happen. At this point, anybody who had the chance to accept Jesus before the tribulation was obviously lucky, because life on earth gets even worse.
The Bible says that at this point that we are visited by, “hideous demon-like creatures such as scorpions and locusts out of the bottomless pit. Not able to kill men, they torture them so badly that they “will seek death and will not find it.” It continues and gets worse. There will be: ” two hundred million horsemen (demon spirit-like death angels), who kill one-third of the people. This will occur between the fortieth and forty-second month of the first part of the Tribulation, which brings to 50 percent the population that is destroyed by God before the midpoint of the Tribulation. These individuals have taken the mark of the Beast and are considered incorrigibles.”
At one point, half way through the tribulation period, the antichrist will be wounded and satan “enters antichrist’s body and resurrects him to a new and even more vicious life.” Anyone who has not accepted Jesus at this point will be required to worship the antichrist and his image, or be killed. Everyone will be compelled to display the mark of the beast (666) in order to hold a job and “buy and sell.”. This is unfolding even today. A digital dollar will be introduced in the U.S., a project of tech companies and the U.S. administration (as of 2024). This gives the government the ability to “turn off” the ability to engage in financial transactions. There are also implantable devices that can track people and devices in many homes allow tech companies to listen in to what is being said in those homes. The prophesies in Revelation are not in the future, but have begun already.
The second half of the tribulation period now begins, a period of forty-two months. It will be worse than the first half, if that is even imaginable. This is when those who have rejected Jesus and taken the mark of the beast will pay a terrible price on earth. There will be giant sores on those who rejected Christ and instead accepted the mark of the beast, signifying their worship of him.The waters of the ocean then are turned blood red and every creature in the sea dies.
The heat of the sun will then intensify and those who have rejected Jesus will blaspheme God’s name. Darkness will then cover the throne of antichrist and his entire kingdom. The sores will be unrelentingly, producing such agony that people will gnaw their tongues for pain and blaspheme God and refuse to repent. Then, one of the most famous battles, one that even nonbelievers have heard of will be staged as lying demon spirits enter the kings of the whole world to bring them down to the battle known as the Battle of Armageddon.
Then, there will be a judgment of Almighty God that destroys the entire world system and judges all unsaved men severely. But even though enormous hailstones fall, the unbelievers still refuse to repent. This judgment is so devastating that it prepares the world for the coming of Christ to set up His earthly kingdom.
The destruction of commercial and governmental Babylon—the New World Order for which man has yearned ever since his rebellion at Babylon—now occurs, just before earth’s final judgment. It will totally collapse the antichrist’s system and further pave the way for the best event of the Tribulation.
This is when the believers, who were Raptured up to Heaven, will come back to earth.
They will return with Jesus at the end of this seven-year period in order for Jesus to begin his rule of the world; said to be for 1,000 years. At this point, when Jesus returns to rule on earth, he will descend to stand on the Mount of Olives. This is the actual second-coming of Christ. Jesus will return in power and glory as King of kings and Lord of lords.
