Post by Watchman on Sept 30, 2005 22:52:31 GMT -5
1 Thess. 5:1-9
In 1 Thess. 4, Paul dealt with the relationship of the resurrection to the rapture. The dead in Christ will rise first, then the living will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Paul continued in chapter 5 by addressing the question of when they might expect the rapture and resurrection to come.
1 Thessalonians 5
1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
Notice Paul was placing the rapture in the "Day of the Lord." This is an extremely important point. Here Paul shifted from describing the events surrounding the rapture to speaking about when the rapture might come. And he referred them again to something they already knew, "yourselves know perfectly..." The "Day of the Lord" was coming as a "thief in the night."
Paul used a phrase that was familiar to these Christians. The "Day of the Lord" is found several times in the Old Testament, always in the context of Christ's coming to destroy the enemies of Israel, [see: Isa. 13:6-13, Joel 3:9-17, Zech. 14]. This is exactly what Revelation 19 records as the "battle of Armageddon."
The nature of the "Day of the Lord" is crucial to understanding this passage. It is also critical to any foundational understanding of eschatology in general. Pre-tribulationists claim the "Day of the Lord" includes the alleged pre-trib rapture and the entire tribulation. This allows them to reconcile 1 Thessalonians 5 with pre-tribulationism, since Paul instructed believers to be watching for the "Day of the Lord," [1 Thess. 5:1-6]. If the "Day of the Lord" comes after the tribulation, as every Old Testament occurrence seems to indicate, then Christians must still be here at the end of the tribulation in order to watch for that day.
Much has been written by pre-tribulationists trying to stretch the Day of the Lord forward to include the entire tribulation and pre-trib rapture. Comparisons of similar themes, such as wrath, judgment, etc. have been offered as evidence. Yet, no one has provided any biblical requirement supporting making them synonymous. None of the Old Testament passages support this conclusion. It comes only from a preconceived assumption of a pre-trib rapture superimposed on the Thessalonian passage. ( a doctine which was startd by the Jesuits in the late 1800's!). Their theory is a product of reverse engineering of the Scriptures in order to get the desired outcome rather than applying sound rules of interpretation. The fact is, there are definite biblical passages that forbid the "Day of the Lord" from overlapping the tribulation. The two are mutually exclusive.
First, throughout the Old Testament, a catastrophic sign is associated with the coming of the "Day of the Lord." The darkening of the sun and moon will herald that day. [See: Isaiah 13:9,10, Isaiah 24:19-23, Joel 3:13-15]. Here is one example.
Joel 2
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.
Matthew 24
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, ...
These verses establish a clear sequence of events. They place the cosmic signs, the darkening of the sun and moon, between the end of the tribulation and the beginning of the "Day of the Lord." This absolutely forbids any overlapping of the tribulation into the "Day of the Lord." They are distinct events. No other interpretation is possible without doing violence to these passages.
Secondly, the very first time the "Day of the Lord" is mentioned in the Bible, the text clearly forbids associating it with the tribulation. Isaiah two describes the "Day of the Lord" with the following words:
Isaiah 2
10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:...
17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
18 And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
19 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Twice these verses indicate that the Lord alone will be exalted in the "Day of the Lord." This is an exclusive statement. No one else can be exalted or worshipped during the "Day of the Lord." Yet, during the tribulation, the Antichrist will be worshipped as God. [See: Rev. 13:3-8,14 & 2 Thess. 2:3,4] And, his image will be worshipped as well. Isaiah's statements about the Lord alone being exalted, and the idols being abolished during the "Day of the Lord," forbid any overlapping with the tribulation and reign of Antichrist.
The celestial sign, and the statements in Isaiah two, absolutely forbid stretching the "Day of the Lord" forward to include the tribulation, as pre-tribbers attempt to do. Furthermore, Paul made another clear statement which eliminates the possibility of the "Day of the Lord" including the entire tribulation and the false pre-trib rapture.
II Thess 2:1-3
1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Most translations read "Day of the Lord" in verse 2. There is a variation in the Greek manuscripts here. Some ancient manuscripts read "day of Christ" and others read "day of the Lord." I don't want to get into a debate on which is correct. It really doesn't matter. If "Day of the Lord" is correct, the text indicates that the "Day of the Lord" comes after the tribulation, because events that occur during the tribulation, [the falling away and revelation of Antichrist], are said to come before the "Day of the Lord." If the "Day of Christ" is the correct reading, then this verse alone settles the pre-trib / post-trib debate, since the phrase "Day of Christ" is only used by Paul elsewhere to refer to the rapture of the Church. In this case, Paul is saying that the rapture cannot come until after the falling away and the Antichrist.
The meaning of the phrase "Day of the Lord" holds the key to the interpretation of Paul's instructions to believers in 1 Thessalonians. The meaning of 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:9 is entirely dependent on the meaning of this phrase. There is no question the rapture and the coming of the "Day of the Lord" are firmly connected by Paul in this passage. He uses the term "Day of the Lord" as a synonym for the rapture. Notice Paul instructed Christians to be watching for the coming of the "Day of the Lord." And, as we have just demonstrated, the "Day of the Lord" is after the tribulation. Therefore, Christians must pass through the tribulation in order to watch for the "Day of the Lord." The "rapture" that Paul referred to is after the tribulation.
1 Thess 5:2-6
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
Since he instructed Christians to watch for the "Day of the Lord," and, as we have seen, that day comes after the tribulation, Paul was simply confirming Jesus' teaching in the Olivet Discourse. There is nothing here to suggest new revelation of a secret pre-trib rapture. In fact the opposite it true. Paul said in verse 2 that they already knew this perfectly. He was simply refreshing their memory. Yes, in chapter 4 Paul gave them some new revelation. He placed the timing of the resurrection just before the catching up of the living. This exact sequence was previously unknown to them. But, in chapter 5, his comment about their being already familiar with the coming of the Day of the Lord, indicates he was now pointing them back to something already revealed in Scripture.
How did the Thessalonian believers know perfectly that the Day of the Lord was coming as a "theif in the night?" Because they were familiar with Jesus' teaching in the Olivet Discourse! The idea of Christ's coming as a "thief in the night" was originated by Jesus Himself when describing His coming. After describing His coming in glory "immediately after the tribulation," Jesus said to His disciples:
Matt 24:42-44
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
Obviously, Paul was refering to Jesus' teaching! His reminding them of Jesus' "thief" illustration leads to the conclusion that he was confirming the chronology Christ gave. He was simply repeating Jesus' instructions to the disciples. In effect, he was applying the teaching of Jesus to them, connecting their "watching" for the rapture with Jesus' instructions to be watching for His coming "immediately after the tribulation."
Here is a comparison of the teachings of Jesua and Paul:
Matt 24:30 "... they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." 1 Thess. 4:16 "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven..."
Matt. 24:31 "...He shall send forth His angels..." 1 Thess. 4:16 "with the voice of the archangel..."
Matt. 24:31 "...with the sound of a trumpet..." 1 Thess. 4:16 "...with the trumpet of God"
Matt. 24:31 "...they shall gather together His elect..." 1 Thess. 4:17 "...shall be caught up together..."
Matt. 24:43 "...if the goodman ...had know in what watch the thief would come..." 1 Thess. 5:1,2 "...so cometh as a thief in the night."
Mark 13:36 "lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping." 1 Thess. 5:6 "...let us not sleep as do others"
Luke 21:34 "take heed ... lest your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness" 1 Thess. 5:6-8 "be sober...they that are drunken are drunken in the night. ...be sober"
Mark 13:35-37 "Watch ye therefore ... What I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch." 1 Thess. 5:6 "let us watch..."
There is no question that Paul referred his readers to the Olivet Discourse, which only teaches a post-trib coming of Christ, to answer their questions about the rapture. His use of the phrase "Day of the Lord," which other Scriptures place after the tribulation, to describe the rapture, makes it impossible to reconcile this passage with pre-tribulationism. Once again, we have every reason to connect Paul's teaching on the rapture to Jesus' teaching on the second coming. Nothing here excludes this linkage. Therefore, the natural inferrence is Paul was simply building on Jesus' teaching, and was encouraging the Thessalonian believers to be watching for Jesus' coming after the tribulation!
Pre Tribulaltion rapture doctine is a lie:
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
In 1 Thess. 4, Paul dealt with the relationship of the resurrection to the rapture. The dead in Christ will rise first, then the living will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Paul continued in chapter 5 by addressing the question of when they might expect the rapture and resurrection to come.
1 Thessalonians 5
1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
Notice Paul was placing the rapture in the "Day of the Lord." This is an extremely important point. Here Paul shifted from describing the events surrounding the rapture to speaking about when the rapture might come. And he referred them again to something they already knew, "yourselves know perfectly..." The "Day of the Lord" was coming as a "thief in the night."
Paul used a phrase that was familiar to these Christians. The "Day of the Lord" is found several times in the Old Testament, always in the context of Christ's coming to destroy the enemies of Israel, [see: Isa. 13:6-13, Joel 3:9-17, Zech. 14]. This is exactly what Revelation 19 records as the "battle of Armageddon."
The nature of the "Day of the Lord" is crucial to understanding this passage. It is also critical to any foundational understanding of eschatology in general. Pre-tribulationists claim the "Day of the Lord" includes the alleged pre-trib rapture and the entire tribulation. This allows them to reconcile 1 Thessalonians 5 with pre-tribulationism, since Paul instructed believers to be watching for the "Day of the Lord," [1 Thess. 5:1-6]. If the "Day of the Lord" comes after the tribulation, as every Old Testament occurrence seems to indicate, then Christians must still be here at the end of the tribulation in order to watch for that day.
Much has been written by pre-tribulationists trying to stretch the Day of the Lord forward to include the entire tribulation and pre-trib rapture. Comparisons of similar themes, such as wrath, judgment, etc. have been offered as evidence. Yet, no one has provided any biblical requirement supporting making them synonymous. None of the Old Testament passages support this conclusion. It comes only from a preconceived assumption of a pre-trib rapture superimposed on the Thessalonian passage. ( a doctine which was startd by the Jesuits in the late 1800's!). Their theory is a product of reverse engineering of the Scriptures in order to get the desired outcome rather than applying sound rules of interpretation. The fact is, there are definite biblical passages that forbid the "Day of the Lord" from overlapping the tribulation. The two are mutually exclusive.
First, throughout the Old Testament, a catastrophic sign is associated with the coming of the "Day of the Lord." The darkening of the sun and moon will herald that day. [See: Isaiah 13:9,10, Isaiah 24:19-23, Joel 3:13-15]. Here is one example.
Joel 2
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.
Matthew 24
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, ...
These verses establish a clear sequence of events. They place the cosmic signs, the darkening of the sun and moon, between the end of the tribulation and the beginning of the "Day of the Lord." This absolutely forbids any overlapping of the tribulation into the "Day of the Lord." They are distinct events. No other interpretation is possible without doing violence to these passages.
Secondly, the very first time the "Day of the Lord" is mentioned in the Bible, the text clearly forbids associating it with the tribulation. Isaiah two describes the "Day of the Lord" with the following words:
Isaiah 2
10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:...
17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
18 And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
19 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Twice these verses indicate that the Lord alone will be exalted in the "Day of the Lord." This is an exclusive statement. No one else can be exalted or worshipped during the "Day of the Lord." Yet, during the tribulation, the Antichrist will be worshipped as God. [See: Rev. 13:3-8,14 & 2 Thess. 2:3,4] And, his image will be worshipped as well. Isaiah's statements about the Lord alone being exalted, and the idols being abolished during the "Day of the Lord," forbid any overlapping with the tribulation and reign of Antichrist.
The celestial sign, and the statements in Isaiah two, absolutely forbid stretching the "Day of the Lord" forward to include the tribulation, as pre-tribbers attempt to do. Furthermore, Paul made another clear statement which eliminates the possibility of the "Day of the Lord" including the entire tribulation and the false pre-trib rapture.
II Thess 2:1-3
1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Most translations read "Day of the Lord" in verse 2. There is a variation in the Greek manuscripts here. Some ancient manuscripts read "day of Christ" and others read "day of the Lord." I don't want to get into a debate on which is correct. It really doesn't matter. If "Day of the Lord" is correct, the text indicates that the "Day of the Lord" comes after the tribulation, because events that occur during the tribulation, [the falling away and revelation of Antichrist], are said to come before the "Day of the Lord." If the "Day of Christ" is the correct reading, then this verse alone settles the pre-trib / post-trib debate, since the phrase "Day of Christ" is only used by Paul elsewhere to refer to the rapture of the Church. In this case, Paul is saying that the rapture cannot come until after the falling away and the Antichrist.
The meaning of the phrase "Day of the Lord" holds the key to the interpretation of Paul's instructions to believers in 1 Thessalonians. The meaning of 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:9 is entirely dependent on the meaning of this phrase. There is no question the rapture and the coming of the "Day of the Lord" are firmly connected by Paul in this passage. He uses the term "Day of the Lord" as a synonym for the rapture. Notice Paul instructed Christians to be watching for the coming of the "Day of the Lord." And, as we have just demonstrated, the "Day of the Lord" is after the tribulation. Therefore, Christians must pass through the tribulation in order to watch for the "Day of the Lord." The "rapture" that Paul referred to is after the tribulation.
1 Thess 5:2-6
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
Since he instructed Christians to watch for the "Day of the Lord," and, as we have seen, that day comes after the tribulation, Paul was simply confirming Jesus' teaching in the Olivet Discourse. There is nothing here to suggest new revelation of a secret pre-trib rapture. In fact the opposite it true. Paul said in verse 2 that they already knew this perfectly. He was simply refreshing their memory. Yes, in chapter 4 Paul gave them some new revelation. He placed the timing of the resurrection just before the catching up of the living. This exact sequence was previously unknown to them. But, in chapter 5, his comment about their being already familiar with the coming of the Day of the Lord, indicates he was now pointing them back to something already revealed in Scripture.
How did the Thessalonian believers know perfectly that the Day of the Lord was coming as a "theif in the night?" Because they were familiar with Jesus' teaching in the Olivet Discourse! The idea of Christ's coming as a "thief in the night" was originated by Jesus Himself when describing His coming. After describing His coming in glory "immediately after the tribulation," Jesus said to His disciples:
Matt 24:42-44
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
Obviously, Paul was refering to Jesus' teaching! His reminding them of Jesus' "thief" illustration leads to the conclusion that he was confirming the chronology Christ gave. He was simply repeating Jesus' instructions to the disciples. In effect, he was applying the teaching of Jesus to them, connecting their "watching" for the rapture with Jesus' instructions to be watching for His coming "immediately after the tribulation."
Here is a comparison of the teachings of Jesua and Paul:
Matt 24:30 "... they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." 1 Thess. 4:16 "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven..."
Matt. 24:31 "...He shall send forth His angels..." 1 Thess. 4:16 "with the voice of the archangel..."
Matt. 24:31 "...with the sound of a trumpet..." 1 Thess. 4:16 "...with the trumpet of God"
Matt. 24:31 "...they shall gather together His elect..." 1 Thess. 4:17 "...shall be caught up together..."
Matt. 24:43 "...if the goodman ...had know in what watch the thief would come..." 1 Thess. 5:1,2 "...so cometh as a thief in the night."
Mark 13:36 "lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping." 1 Thess. 5:6 "...let us not sleep as do others"
Luke 21:34 "take heed ... lest your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness" 1 Thess. 5:6-8 "be sober...they that are drunken are drunken in the night. ...be sober"
Mark 13:35-37 "Watch ye therefore ... What I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch." 1 Thess. 5:6 "let us watch..."
There is no question that Paul referred his readers to the Olivet Discourse, which only teaches a post-trib coming of Christ, to answer their questions about the rapture. His use of the phrase "Day of the Lord," which other Scriptures place after the tribulation, to describe the rapture, makes it impossible to reconcile this passage with pre-tribulationism. Once again, we have every reason to connect Paul's teaching on the rapture to Jesus' teaching on the second coming. Nothing here excludes this linkage. Therefore, the natural inferrence is Paul was simply building on Jesus' teaching, and was encouraging the Thessalonian believers to be watching for Jesus' coming after the tribulation!
Pre Tribulaltion rapture doctine is a lie:
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.