The Rapture: A Sudden Event Before Global Chaos
The Bible is clear: before the wrath of God is unleashed on the world, life will seem normal—people will be eating, drinking, marrying, and working without realizing how close they are to judgment. But if the rapture happened at the end of the tribulation, this would be impossible!
Life Will Seem Normal Before the Rapture
Matthew 24:37-39 – “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”
Luke 17:26-30 – “Just as it was in the days of Noah… and in the days of Lot… they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But on the day Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.”
The world will be functioning as usual when the rapture happens—then sudden destruction comes!
If the rapture happened at the end of the tribulation, life would NOT be normal. The world will have been devastated by war, famine, earthquakes, plagues, demonic torment, and cosmic upheavals (Revelation 6-18).
Problems with a Post-Trib Rapture:
The World Will Be in Chaos, Not “Business as Usual”
•Half the world’s population will be dead (Revelation 6:8, 9:15).
•The sun, moon, and stars will be darkened (Revelation 6:12, Matthew 24:29).
•People will be hiding in caves, crying for the mountains to fall on them (Revelation 6:15-16).
There Would Be No One Left for the Sheep and Goat Judgment
•Matthew 25:31-46 – Jesus separates the righteous from the wicked after His Second Coming.
•If the rapture happened then, all believers would already be glorified—so who would be left to populate the Millennial Kingdom in human bodies?
The Rapture is Sudden & Unexpected, But the Second Coming is Predictable
•1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 – “The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them.”
•But the Second Coming happens AFTER seven years of plagues, judgments, and destruction—no one will be saying “peace and safety” then!
Jesus Promised We Would Escape The Tribulation
•1 Thessalonians 1:10 – “Jesus… delivers us from The wrath to come.”
•Revelation 3:10 – “I will keep you from The hour of trial that is coming on the whole world.”
•Just as Noah entered the ark and Lot left Sodom before judgment fell, so will believers be removed before God’s wrath begins.
The Rapture Must Happen Before the Tribulation!
Life will seem normal before the rapture—impossible at the end of the tribulation.
The rapture is a sudden, unexpected event—the Second Coming is a clearly prophesied event.
Jesus removes His bride before wrath falls—just as He did with Noah and Lot.