Where is the concept of the Rapture mentioned in the Bible?

Question

Not the word "rapture", but the idea of it. (All the Christians being sent up to Heaven at once during the "End Times".) If it isn't, then why would you believe in it, if it's not a biblical concept?

Answer 1

The verses they use are Christ's second coming.

Answer 2

1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
And there are others in the Bible. The rapture(snatched out, carried way) is true in Scripture. This will happen prior to the 7 year Tribulation, and also if you study the prophecys of the Bible this is the next event to be fulfulled. YAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Greek work for "air" is "aer" and refers to the lower atmoshphere, or from about 6,000 feet down; so, the Lord will come at least within 6,000 feet of the Earth, perhaps even lower, with all the Saints meeting Him there; but He, at that time, will not come all the way to the Earth, that awaiting the Second Coming, which will be seven or more years later.

The Bible clearly states that Saints will not have to endure the Wrath of God, Which is what the (Tribulation) is. Its 7 years of Gods Wrath upon the Earth and the Unbelievers. So with this meaning; what would be the point of being a Saint of God if one has to endure the Wrath of God the same as the unbelievers do? God is not going to punish his Saints for having Faith in him, That is why he snatches out the saints before he pours out his Wrath on the rest of them. You guys can stay here if you want, but I am going in the Rapture!And heres another point, How can the Saints come back with Jesus Christ in the Second Coming if they didn't leave?

Answer 3

most Christians would like to believe that God will take his people away before the u-know-what hits the fan...the rapture, or being caught up, with the Lord will happen, but the debate about when in the tribulation this happens is up for much debate...rapture is just a word we use to describe being "caught up in the air". one could make the arguement that in Revelations, the Church is not even mentioned between i think chapters 7 and 19 and in chapter 19 is when the great battle will take place and the Church will witness the battle of Armageddon.
i personally don't believe in the concept that some of us will be taken and then Jesus will come back for the rest of us...that's kinda cooky!!!

God Bless and ask God for the answers because he will give you what you need!

Answer 4

A lot of people confuse this "rapture" with the first resurrection mentioned in Revelations.
The first resurrection, however, is for the 144,000 who have been truest to God and His ways.
And this 144,000 will be those who rule with Christ for 1,000 after his return.
Some of these people will still be alive when Christ returns--most will have passed. All will be raised to meet Christ at his return.
THIS IS NOT THE RAPTURE--IT IS THE FIRST RESURRECTION.
These are the ones chosen to help Christ establish his government system that he is going to be bringing with him at his return.
This is the original government system that God intended for humans before Adam and Eve thought they could do a better job at governing themselves.
Since that time, humans have been trying to find the perfect government system that all could live under. Thus far, none (not even the democracies) have been successful.

Answer 5

Which concept of rapture? There are half a dozen different ones, none of them ever heard of until the early 1900's. Just one more example of what can happen when imagination replaces authority in interpreting Scripture.

Answer 6

No. It's a catholic idea. They used this whole theory to take off of their shoulders the claim in Revelations of the papacy being the "little horn" of the satanic beast seen by apostle John on Patmos.

Christians will go through the tribulation. And then, Jesus will come with His reward with Him. And punishment for the evil and deceived. Not 2 or 3 or 4 times but once. Soon.

God bless

Answer 7

It isn't.

'But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep (dead), that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first; then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, RSV.


REad this part again: we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
Rev. says Jesus will separate them left and right, sheep and goat (saved and unsaved paraphrasing).
It happens all at once, no 1000 yr anything-that's symbolic.
†

Answer 8

There is a popular concept of the Rapture and a TRUE concept of the Rapture.

http://www.whitehorsemedia.com/

This will explain the myth and the truth.

GOD bless

Answer 9

It isn't. It is false idea that will lead many away from the truth.Read Revelations and check out info at bibleuniverse.com

Answer 10

The Time is Unknown
Matt. 24:36 - many sects try to predict the coming of Christ. But Jesus says, "no one but the Father knows the day and the hour." The sects that try to predict Christ's coming ignore these words.

Matt. 24:36 - we should also note that Jesus’ statement does not mean than Jesus does not know the day of His Second Coming. Jesus does know, because He is God. With this statement, Jesus explains that He chose to know by His human knowledge only that which He wanted to know for His mission of salvation. In other words, Jesus could have chosen not to know everything by His own human knowledge, but Jesus knew everything in His human knowledge through its hypostatic union to His eternal and infinite divine knowledge.

Matt. 24:44 – Jesus warns us that the Son of Man is coming at an hour we do not expect.

The Rapture
1 Thess. 4:16-17 - Paul writes that "we will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." Many Protestants call this experience the "rapture" (even though the word "rapture" is not found in the Bible, although is derived from the Latin vulgate of this verse – “rapiemur”). John 14:3; 1 Cor. 15:52 - these are other passages that Protestants use to support the rapture experience. The question Protestantism has raised is “when will the rapture occur?” They have developed three theories – (1) post-tribulation; (2) pre-tribulation; and, (3) mid-tribulation. We address these theories later on. But first, here is some more background.

Rev. 20:2-3; 7-8 – John sees the vision of an angel who seizes satan and binds him for a period of a thousand years. Protestants generally call this period of a thousand years the “millennium.” The “millennium” is a harbinger of the end of the world, and the theories of when the “rapture” will occur center around this period of time. We should also note that the “thousand years” language is part of apocalyptic literature and should not be interpreted literally. For example, in Psalm 50:10, we see the cattle on a "thousand hills." The word "thousand" here obviously means a lot of hills. In Dan. 7:10, a "thousand thousands" served him. Again, "thousand" means a lot. In 2 Peter 3:8, with God one day is a "thousand" years and a "thousand" years is one day. "Thousand" is symbolic for a long time. It is not to be taken literally.

There are three ways that Protestants interpret the meaning of the thousand year “millennium” (and the interpretation leads to answering when they think the rapture will occur).

(1) Post-millennialism – this view interprets the “thousand years” as a very long time. This view also holds that God’s kingdom is being advanced in the world by His grace and the world will eventually be Christianized. Then Christ will return at the close of this period during a time of righteousness and peace. The problem with this view is that the Scriptures do not teach that the world will be even relatively Christianized before the Second Coming. For example, in Matt. 13:24-30;36-43, Jesus says the wicked and the righteous will co-exist until the end of the world, when they will be judged, and either inherit eternal life, or be thrown into eternal fire.

(2) Pre-millenialism (also called “millenarianism”) – like post-millennialists, this view also interprets the “thousand years” as a golden age on earth when the world will be Christianized. But they believe that this period will occur after Christ’s second coming, during which time Christ will reign physically on earth. They believe the Final Judgment occurs when the millennium is over. But Scripture does not teach that there is a thousand year span between the Second Coming and Final Judgment. Instead, Jesus said that when He comes a second time in glory, He will immediately repay every man for what he has done. Matt. 16:27. When Jesus comes, He will separate the sheep from the goats and render judgment. Matt. 25:31-46. There is nothing about any period of time between His coming and final judgment.

(3) Amillennialism – this view also interprets the “thousand years” symbolically, but, ulike the pre and post views, not as a golden age on earth. This view believes the millennium is the period of Christ’s rule in heaven and on earth through His Church. This is because the saints who reign with Christ and to whom judgment has been committed are said to be on their thrones in heaven. Rev. 20:4; cf. 4:4; 11:16. During this time, satan is bound and cannot hinder the spread of the gospel. Rev. 20:3. This is why, they explain, Jesus teaches the necessity of binding the “strong man” (satan) in order to plunder his house and rescue people from his grip. Matt. 12:29. This is also why, after the disciples preached the gospel and rejoiced that the demons were even subject to them, Jesus declared, “I saw satan fall like lightening from heaven.” Luke 10:18. Nevertheless, during this period, the world will not be entirely Christianized because satan, though bound, is still in some sense able to prowl around and attack souls. cf. 1 Peter 5:8. Of the three, this position is most consistent with Catholic teaching (the pre and post-millennium views have been rejected by the Church).

2 Thess. 2:1-4 – concerning the Second Coming of Christ, Scripture teaches (and most Protestants believe) that Christ’s coming will be preceded by a time of rebellion, lawlessness and persecution. Protestants often refer to this period as the “tribulation” (although the word “tribulation” cannot be found in the Scripture passages Protestants use to support the “rapture”). So the question is, when will the 1 Thess. 4:16-17 “rapture” occur, in light of the tribulation and Christ’s Second Coming? Here are the three theories previously mentioned:

(1) Post-tribulational view – this view holds that the rapture will occur right after the tribulation and immediately before the Second Coming of Christ. This view can be consistent with Scripture and Catholic teaching to the extent it holds that the rapture and Christ’s Second Coming occur together, after the tribulation and the Church Militant on earth. See, for example, Matt. 24:29-31; Mark 13:24-27; 2 Thess. 1:1-12.

(2) Pre-tribulational view – this view holds that the rapture will occur before the tribulation. The problem with this view is that it requires three comings of Christ – first, when He was born in Bethlehem; second, when He returns for the rapture before the tribulation; third, when He returns at the end of the tribulation and establishes the millennium. Scripture rejects three comings of Christ. In Heb. 9:28, it is clear that Christ will appear a second and final time, when he comes in glory to save us. This view also is inconsistent with Matt. 24:24-31; Mark 13:24-27; and 2 Thess. 2:1-12 where the rapture and the Second Coming occur together.

(3) Mid-tribulational view – this view holds that the rapture will occur during the middle of the tribulation. The problem with this view is that it also requires three comings of Christ – first, when He was born in Bethlehem; second, when He returns for the rapture during the middle of the tribulation; third, when He returns at the end of the tribulation and establishes the millennium. As seen in Heb. 9:28, Scripture rejects three comings of Christ. The view is also inconsistent with Matt. 24:24-31; Mark. 13:24-27; and 2 Thess. 2:1-12.

2 Peter 3:8-15 – instead of worrying about when the rapture will occur, Christians should follow Peter’s instruction to repent of their sins, live lives of holiness and godliness, be zealous and at peace, and wait for the Lord’s coming with forbearance and joy!

Answer 11

Paul wrote of it in Thessalonians and John in Revelation. Christ himself said that He would return to take the faithful home.