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Is the Rapture Depicted in Revelation 14:14-16?

by Charles Cooper November 16, 2011

The Structure of the Book of Revelation – Part I

Charles Cooper

As an advocate for the PreWrath rapture view I find it unfortunate, yet necessary, that a good portion of my time is spent disproving claims. For example, the confusion about the structure of the book of Revelation naturally leads to erroneous views regarding the timing of the rapture. Any similarity, detail, parallel or whisper of a heavenly descent or ascent may present the opportunity for someone to argue for his own rapture position preference based on that particular passage. Perhaps the greatest obstacle is uncertainty about the structure of the book. Until there is a consensus about the structure of the book, little will be accomplished regarding a consensus about the timing of the rapture in the book of Revelation.

November 16, 2011 0 comment

Day of the Lord Pretribulationism

A Biblical Response to Eric Douma – Part 2

by Alan Kurschner November 8, 2011

written by Alan Kurschner

I am responding to Eric Douma’s sermon on April 3rd 2011, “The Day of The LORD: A Look at the Imminent Day of Salvation and Judgment.” We continue.

In this part, I will respond to Douma as he posits a distinction between, what he calls, the “Broad Day of the Lord” and the “Narrow Day of the Lord.” Consequently, it results in two future days of the Lord.

But does Scripture actually divide the day of the Lord into a “broad and narrow” schema?

He asserts that the Broad day of the Lord starts at the beginning of the 7 year period, and the Narrow day of the Lord at the end of the seven year period. He also claims that there are precursors before the narrow day, but not before the broad day, thereby, maintaining that the broad day is imminent. Sound familiar? It should because the same phenomenon is when pretribulationists assert a coming/parousia of Christ at the beginning of the 7-year period and a coming/parousia of Christ at the end of the 7-year period. Or, as is sometimes stated, first phase and second phase. Any passages which describe events occurring before the coming of Christ they relegate to the second phase, thereby maintaining their presupposition of an “any-moment” rapture.

Douma claims that the pre-exilic prophets understood the day of the Lord to refer to an epoch (broad day), and the post-exilic prophets understood the day of the Lord as a “twenty-four” hour day (narrow day). There is absolutely no basis for this. And he provides no argumentation for his claim. Not to mention, he does not explain what pre- and post-exilic era have anything to do with it. In contrast, I have provided exegetical reasons why the day of the Lord is not conceived as a mere 24-hour day, here.

Incidentally, in the audio, Douma admits that he received strange looks from the audience after his claim. I don’t blame them because this interpretation is not derived from Scripture, but contrived to fit a preconceived idea. He then tried to explain his odd division by—not using Scriptural evidence—but using an example from his “grandpa’s day.”

I would have liked to interact with his argumentation for his claim, but he provides none. One would think that such bold assertions would have explicit biblical support. At least one argument from a passage should be given to support this conclusion. Where are the arguments that support these conclusions? No where to be found!

What Douma fails to understand is that frequently the prophets, Jesus, and other NT writers when they spoke of Christ’s coming/day of the Lord they often emphasized the glorious inception to the epochal event; that is, the first day when he comes in the clouds and delivers his people and begins to pour out his wrath. But Douma takes that emphasis on the first day and assumes it must only be a single day. Instead, the coming/day of the Lord is an epochal event, not limited by a mere 24 hour day in some “narrow” schema.

In conclusion, Douma has failed to:

(1) Demonstrate that there is a second “[narrow] day of the Lord” at the end of the 7 year period. The biblical evidence, instead, shows that there is a single future day of the Lord’s judgment that begins with the trumpet judgments and increasingly intensifies in the bowls and culminates in Armageddon. It will be a coherent-whole event.

(2) Demonstrate that the post-exilic prophets Joel and Malachi thought of the day of the Lord as a 24-hour day.

The motivation for Douma to create a bifurcation of the day of the Lord is to preserve his preconceived theological system of imminence. Joel and Malachi are two prophets in the Old Testament who explicitly place an event before the day of the Lord: Cosmic Disturbances (Joel 2:29-31); Elijah must return (Malachi 4:5). So Douma’s erroneous presupposition of imminence has forced him to posit a whole new day of the Lord so as to avoid the necessary implication that key events will occur before the rapture.

Similarly, someone told me that pretribulationism is like those who followed Ptolemy’s earth-centered cosmos. When the theory did not portray the observed motions of the planets, epicycles were introduced, and when the epicycles failed to correspond to reality, epicycles within epicycles were the “answer.”

As an aside, as I have listened to Douma speak on this subject, I have noticed that he speaks fast and makes many huge assumptions on the way, without slowing down and giving any basis for his assertions. In my opinion, this manner is not beneficial for God’s people, for the goal is to help people understand a biblical line of reasoning, instead of asserting a string of assumptions.

In the next part, I will respond to his assumption about the birth pangs that is used by Paul and Jesus.

November 8, 2011 0 comment

Pretribulationism Prewrath Revelation

A Brief Note on the Fourth Seal of Revelation

by Alan Kurschner October 17, 2011

written by Alan Kurschner

“(7) Then when the Lamb opened the fourth seal I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” (8) So I looked and here came a pale green horse! The name of the one who rode it was Death, and Hades followed right behind. They were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill its population with the sword, famine, and disease, and by the wild animals of the earth.” (Rev 6:7–8 NET)

Prewrath teaches that the first six seals are not the wrath of God, instead, only with the opening of the seventh seal will the day of the Lord’s wrath begin. We have argued this point in the past.

One of the common pretribulational arguments I hear is that the fourth seal must be God’s wrath since it is said that a quarter of the population of the world is killed. This is a surface-level reading for that is not what the text actually says. Let me explain.

The fourth seal shifts from the world at large to a limited scope, and it indicates an intensity of death. The final horse is pale green, which symbolizes death; and the final rider is personifying Death, with Hades following him. Authority was given to these two forces by God’s permission to kill by various means: sword, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts of the earth. But this authority is limited and concentrated. It is important to observe that it is said that this authority to kill is given “over a fourth of the earth.” The expression “to kill” suggests intention, not necessarily requiring accomplishment.

In contrast, the book of Revelation will actually state when such a massive amount of people are killed: e.g., “A third of humanity was killed by these three plagues, that is, by the fire, the smoke, and the sulfur that came out of their mouths” (Rev 9:18; cf. Rev 11:13).

In addition, there is authority over a fourth of the earth. The question emerges about whether it is a fourth of the earth geographically or demographically? The fourth seal does not provide us this answer. However, if the fifth seal was considered a result of the fourth seal, which the text suggests, then it would appear to be more probable that the fourth of the earth is in a population sense, but we cannot be dogmatic on that point. And this is not to assume that a fourth of the earth’s population are believers and will end up being martyrs.

Nevertheless, Antichrist will control the globe politically and religiously, but in God’s sovereignty his purposes to kill all of God’s people will apparently be restricted. So in the immediate contextual relationship we have in the fourth seal the means of killing (apokteinō), with the fifth seal as the resultant killing (apokteinō).

October 17, 2011 0 comment

Church History Historicism Imminence Preterism Pretribulationism Prewrath

Cyprian (c.200–c.258)

by Alan Kurschner October 2, 2011

written by Alan Kurschner

Cyprian (c.200–c.258)

For you ought to know and to believe, and hold it for certain, that the day of affliction has begun to hang over our heads, and the endof the world and the time of Antichrist to draw near, so that we must all stand prepared for the battle; nor consider anything but the glory of life eternal, and the crown of the confession of the Lord; and not regard those things which are coming as being such as were those which have passed away. A severer and a fiercer fight is now threatening, for which the soldiers of Christ ought to prepare themselves with uncorrupted faith and robust courage, considering that they drink the cup of Christ’s blood daily, for the reason that they themselves also may be able to shed their blood for Christ. (Epistle 55, 1)

Nor let any one of you, beloved brethren, be so terrified by the fear of future persecution, or the coming of the threatening Antichrist, as not to be found armed for all things by the evangelical exhortations and precepts, and by the heavenly warnings. Antichrist is coming, but above him comes Christ also. The enemy goeth about and rageth, but immediately the Lord follows to avenge our sufferings and our wounds. The adversary is enraged and threatens, but there is One who can deliver us from his hands. (Epistle 55, 7)

October 2, 2011 0 comment

Church History Preterism Pretribulationism Prewrath Uncategorized

Hippolytus (c.185–c.235)

by Alan Kurschner October 1, 2011

written by Alan Kurschner

Hippolytus (c.185–c.235)

When the times are fulfilled, and the ten horns spring from the beast in the last (times), then Antichrist will appear among them. When he makes war against the saints, and persecutes them, then may we expect the manifestation of the Lord from heaven. (On Daniel, II, 7)

[I]n order that when those things [Antichrist’s mark of the beast] come to pass, we may be prepared for them, and not deceived. For when the times advance, he too, of whom these thing are said, will be manifested. (Treatise on Christ and Antichrist, 50)

Now, concerning the tribulation of the persecution which is to fall upon the Church from the adversary . . . . That refers to the one thousand two hundred and threescore days (the half of the week) during which the tyrant is to reign and persecute the Church. (Treatise on Christ and Antichrist, 60, 61)

October 1, 2011 0 comment