Chapter 1: Scripture --- The Biblical Timeline

Overview

This chapter examines every biblical passage relevant to the timing question: When does the rapture occur in relation to the antichrist’s appearance? We analyze each text in the King James Version as our primary translation, comparing with other major translations to illuminate debated terms and phrases.

Key Principle: All other components (Christocentrism, Antiquity, Reality) must align with Scripture. If Scripture is clear, that takes precedence. If Scripture is ambiguous, we look to the other components for guidance.

The Central Passages

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 — The Rapture Passage

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” --- 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (KJV)

Translation Comparison:

Translation	Key Rendering	Notes
KJV	”caught up”	Primary translation
ESV	”caught up”	Same Greek harpazō
NASB	”caught up”	Same Greek harpazō
LSB	”caught up”	Same Greek harpazō
NIV	”caught up”	Consistent across versions

Key Terms:

Caught up — harpazō (ἁρπάζω) — to seize, take by force, catch up. Used elsewhere in Acts 8:39 (Philip caught away), 2 Corinthians 12:2 (caught up to third heaven), Revelation 12:5 (child caught up to God). The term indicates sudden, powerful action.
Trump/trumpet — salpinx (σάλπιγξ) — a trumpet, used in military and religious contexts for gathering or signaling.

Context:

Paul addresses Thessalonian believers grieving over those who “sleep” (died) in Christ
The passage promises that both dead and living believers will share in Christ’s return
No mention of antichrist, tribulation, or specific timeline

What Is Clear:

Christ will return bodily and visibly
The dead will be raised first, then the living caught up
Believers will be forever with the Lord

What Is Debated:

Whether this event is “imminent” (could happen at any moment) or has prerequisites
Whether “caught up” implies removal from earth or gathering to meet Christ in the air

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 --- The Day of the Lord

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 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. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” --- 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 (KJV)

Key Terms:

Times and seasons --- chronos kai kairos --- both duration and appointed moments. Paul says believers already know these.
Thief in the night --- the Day comes unexpectedly for the unprepared, but NOT for believers (“ye, brethren, are not in darkness”)
Not appointed to wrath --- orgē (ὀργή) --- wrath, anger. Pre-tribulationists see this as promise of escape from the tribulation; post-tribulationists distinguish between God’s wrath (which believers escape) and tribulation/persecution (which they endure).

Context:

This passage immediately follows the rapture passage (4:13-18) --- Paul continues the same discussion
The “day of the Lord” is presented as sudden for unbelievers but expected by believers
“Whether we wake or sleep” --- whether alive or dead at His coming, believers will “live together with him”

What Is Clear:

Believers are not appointed to God’s wrath
The Day of the Lord comes unexpectedly for the world
Believers should be watchful and sober
Both living and dead believers will be united with Christ

What Is Debated:

Whether “wrath” (orgē) refers to the tribulation period or to final judgment
Whether the passage teaches escape from tribulation or preservation through it

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 --- The Man of Sin

“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 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. 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; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 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.” --- 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (KJV)

Translation Comparison:

Translation	Key Rendering	Notes
KJV	”man of sin” / “son of perdition”	Classic formulation
ESV	”man of lawlessness”	More legal language
NASB	”man of lawlessness”	Same as ESV
LSB	”man of lawlessness”	Consistent
NIV	”man of lawlessness”	Common translation

Key Terms:

Man of sin — ho anthrōpos tēs hamartias — the man characterized by sin, the embodiment of rebellion against God
Son of perdition — ho huios tēs apōleias — one destined for destruction (cf. Judas, John 17:12)
That which letteth — to katechon — what holds back, restrains. The identity is heavily debated — “more than a dozen views have been proposed” (Powell, BSac 154 [1997]: 320). The documented spectrum includes: the Roman empire (the dominant patristic reading — see Appendix B); the Holy Spirit indwelling the church (W. K. Harrison, BSac 115 [1958]: 22-23); the Spirit working through the church’s gospel mission (Powell, BSac 154 [1997]: 331-32); and a minority evil-restraint reading in which to katechon is the mystery of lawlessness and ho katechon is Satan himself, “taken out of the way” at his expulsion from heaven in Revelation 12 (Dixon, JETS 33 [1990]: 445-49)
Wicked — ho anomos — the lawless one, the antichrist figure

Context:

Paul corrects false reports that “the day of Christ is at hand” (the rapture/tribulation had already occurred?)
Two events are named in relation to “that day”: (1) a falling away, (2) the man of sin revealed
This is commonly read as sequence: antichrist revealed FIRST, then “that day” (Christ’s return) follows — though whether the two events precede the day or are its opening contents is itself debated (see below; the pre-trib development of the opening-contents reading --- the Day beginning with the church already gathered --- is given in Chapter 4)

What Is Clear:

There will be a rebellion/falling away before Christ’s return
A singular “man of sin” will be revealed
He will oppose and exalt himself above God
Christ will destroy him at His coming

A 19th-century academic reading of the sequence. Henry Cowles, in an 1872 Bibliotheca Sacra article on “The Man of Sin, 2 Thess. 2:3-9,” summarized the passage’s own claims in three points: “(1) That the final coming of Christ was not then near at hand; (2) That ‘the great apostasy’ must precede that coming, in which apostasy a somewhat, designated as ‘the man of sin,’ ‘the son of perdition,’ ‘the wicked one’ (vs. 8), bears a principal and leading part; (3) That this ‘man of sin’ will immediately precede Christ’s final coming, inasmuch as the blaze of that coming will be his destruction” (Cowles, BSac 29:116 [Oct 1872]: 625). Cowles’s conclusion: “Christ cannot come yet, or soon, because there must first be ‘the great apostasy,’ and ‘the man of sin must be revealed.’” This is 1872 American academic exegesis reading 2 Thess 2 as a sequence-text against imminence — a full generation before pretribulationism reached serious traction in mainline American academic journals like Bibliotheca Sacra (though Darby’s own US speaking tours had begun a decade earlier and pre-trib was already reaching popular American audiences). Cowles’s reading — apostasy first → man of sin revealed → Christ’s coming destroys him — reflects the surface sequence of the passage; pretribulational alternatives and counter-readings are presented at length in Chapter 4.

What Is Debated:

The identity of “that which letteth” (the restraining force)
Whether the rapture is included in “that day” or precedes it
Whether the falling away and the man of sin’s revealing precede the day of the Lord or are its first events within it — Blaising argues from the parallel “unless… first” (ean mē prōton) syntax of Mark 3:27 that “the day of the Lord includes the apostasy and the man of lawlessness” (BSac 169 [2012]: 268-69)
The timing relationship between the rapture and the revealing of antichrist
Whether “our gathering together unto him” (v. 1) refers to the same event as “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, or describes the same event with different metaphors. See Appendix H (“The ‘Gathering’ Terminology”) for analysis.

Matthew 24:1-51 — The Olivet Discourse

“And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” --- Matthew 24:3-14 (KJV)

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” --- Matthew 24:15-22 (KJV)

The Abomination of Desolation:

Jesus explicitly connects His end-times teaching to Daniel’s prophecy of the “abomination of desolation” (Daniel 9:27; 12:11). This refers to a future desecration of the temple that triggers the final tribulation period.

The Great Tribulation:

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” --- Matthew 24:29-31 (KJV)

Key Observations:

The tribulation comes “immediately after” the abomination
Cosmic signs accompany the end: sun darkened, moon not shining, stars falling
The sign of the Son of man appears
Trumpet gathers the elect — this is the gathering of believers
The language parallels 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (trumpet, gathering)

Note on the Matt 24:31 = 1 Thess 4:17 identification. The identification of Matthew 24:31’s “gathering together of the elect” with 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17’s “meeting the Lord in the air” is not a modern post-tribulational innovation; it was the standard American academic reading before the dispensational system reached American exegesis in serious form. Calvin Ellis Stowe, Lane Seminary professor and husband of Harriet Beecher Stowe, wrote in an 1850 Bibliotheca Sacra article on “The Eschatology of Christ” that Matthew 24:31 should be read alongside “Matt. 13:41, 42. 1 Cor. 15:51, 52. 1 Thess. 4:15–17. 2 Thess. 1:7–10. Rev. 20:11–14” (Stowe, BSac 7:27 [July 1850]: 457) — grouping the post-tribulation gathering of Matthew 24 with the “meeting the Lord in the air” of 1 Thessalonians 4 and the “last trumpet” transformation of 1 Corinthians 15 as one event. A century and a half later David Aune’s Word Biblical Commentary on Revelation makes the same identification: “The sounding of the trumpet is occasionally part of the imagery used in early Christian apocalyptic to designate the point at which final events begin to unfold, particularly the Parousia (Matt 24:31; 1 Thess 4:16; 1 Cor 15:52; Did. 16:6…)” (Aune, Revelation 6-16, WBC 52B, 1998, p. 186). Two independent mainstream academic voices, 148 years apart, group Matthew 24:31, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, and 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 as the same trumpet-Parousia complex of texts. (This is a thematic grouping, not itself an assertion that the trumpet-events must be the same numeric event — the grouping is compatible both with the natural post-trib reading of one event and, in principle, with a two-stage reading that would separate them.)

Key Terms:

The end — to telos — the consummation, conclusion of the age
Coming — parousia — presence, arrival, often used for Christ’s return
Sorrows — ōdīnes — birth pangs, indicating increasing intensity

What Is Clear:

False christs will arise before the end
Wars, famines, earthquakes are “beginning of sorrows” (not the end itself)
The gospel must be preached to all nations before the end
Endurance to the end is required for salvation

What Is Debated:

Whether “the end” refers to the rapture, the tribulation, or the final judgment
The relationship between the destruction of Jerusalem (70 AD) and final eschatology

Revelation 4-19 — The Apocalyptic Narrative

The book of Revelation presents the most complex eschatological narrative in Scripture. The relationship between the rapture and these events is heavily debated among interpreters.

The Seven Seals (Revelation 6-8):

The first six seals unfold a series of judgments: conquest, war, famine, death, martyrdom, and cosmic upheaval. The sixth seal (Revelation 6:12-17) describes:

“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.”

This cosmic upheaval prompts the response: “Hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:16-17)

Key interpretive question: Does the sixth seal describe the rapture, or is it subsequent to it?

The Seven Trumpets (Revelation 8-11):

The seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15-19) announces:

“And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.”

This marks the transition to God’s kingdom being established.

The Beast/Antichrist (Revelation 13):

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.”

The beast (antichrist) receives authority from the dragon (Satan) and makes war against the saints.

Key interpretive question: Is the beast the same person as the “man of sin” in 2 Thessalonians 2?

The Three Angels’ Messages (Revelation 14:6-13):

“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”

Christ’s Return (Revelation 19:11-21):

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.”

Key Passages:

Revelation 6:12-17 — The sixth seal: cosmic upheaval
Revelation 11:15-19 — The seventh trumpet: kingdoms become Christ’s
Revelation 13 — The beast (antichrist) rises from the sea
Revelation 14:6-13 — The three angels’ messages
Revelation 19:11-21 — Christ returns on the white horse

Word Study: Key Greek Terms

ἁρπάζω (harpazō) — To Catch Up, Seize

Definition: To seize, take by force, catch up suddenly

Semantic range:

Seize with force (John 6:15 — “would come to take him by force to make him a king”)
Catch away, remove (Acts 8:39 — Philip “caught away” by the Spirit)
Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:17 — “shall be caught up”)

Usage in key passages:

Matthew 13:19 — “then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away”
John 10:29 — “and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand”
Acts 8:39 — “the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip”
2 Corinthians 12:2 — “caught up to the third heaven”
2 Corinthians 12:4 — “caught up into paradise”
1 Thessalonians 4:17 — “shall be caught up”
Revelation 12:5 — “her child was caught up unto God”

Significance for the study: The term indicates sudden, powerful removal. Whether this describes believers being taken to heaven or Christ coming to gather His people is debated. In 1 Thessalonians 4:17, the compound syn (“together with”) emphasizes that believers are caught up together with one another to meet the Lord, while the broader context of harpazō indicates the forceful, upward snatching into Christ’s presence in the air/clouds.

ἀντίχριστος (antichristos) — Antichrist

Definition: Against (anti) Christ; instead of Christ; in place of Christ

Semantic range:

One who opposes Christ (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3)
False Christ, deceiver (Matthew 24:5, 24)
The ultimate antichrist/beast of Revelation

Usage in key passages:

1 John 2:18 — “little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time”
1 John 2:22 — “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? The same is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son”
1 John 4:3 — “and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist”

Significance for the study: The term appears only in 1 and 2 John in the New Testament. John uses it both singularly (the end-time antichrist) and plurally (many antichrists in his day). The “spirit of antichrist” is active already; the “man of antichrist” is yet to come.

The Beast, the Antichrist, and the Man of Lawlessness: One Figure or Many?

A critical question for the ordering debate is whether these three terms describe the same end-time figure or distinct entities. The answer affects how we read the sequence of events.

The Terms Mapped

Term	Greek	Primary Passages	Key Descriptor
Man of Sin / Lawlessness	ho anthrōpos tēs hamartias / tēs anomias	2 Thessalonians 2:3-12	”Sitteth in the temple of God”
Antichrist	antichristos	1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7	”Denieth the Father and the Son”
The Beast	to thērion	Revelation 13:1-10; 17:8-14	”Rose from the sea” with 7 heads, 10 horns
The Wicked / Lawless One	ho anomos	2 Thessalonians 2:8	Destroyed “with the breath of His mouth”

The Same-Figure View

The most common interpretation holds that all these terms describe a single end-time figure:

The beast of Revelation 13 is the antichrist of John’s epistles
The man of sin of 2 Thessalonians 2 is this same individual
Different terms emphasize different aspects: his religious deception (antichrist), his rebellious nature (man of sin/lawlessness), or his political power (the beast)

Key argument for identification: The descriptions complement rather than contradict. The antichrist “sits in the temple of God” (religious claim), makes war against the saints (political persecution), and is destroyed by Christ’s return (judgment).

The Different-Figures View

Some interpreters distinguish between these entities:

The antichrist could be a false teacher/preacher within the church (1 John 2:18-19)
The beast could be a political system or empire (the Roman Empire revived)
The man of sin could be a religious figure

Key argument for distinction: John uses “antichrist” both singularly (the end-time figure) and plurally (many false teachers in his day). The beasts of Daniel and Revelation are kingdoms, not individuals. The man of sin “opposes” God in a way that could describe a movement rather than a person.

The Biblical Data

For identification as the same figure:

2 Thessalonians 2:8: “then shall that Wicked be revealed” --- ho anomos, “the lawless one,” cognate of the anomia (“lawlessness”) in the critical text of verse 3
Revelation 19:20: the beast and false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire before the final judgment
Both antichrist and beast claim divine attributes and persecute believers

For potential distinction:

Daniel 7’s four beasts are explicitly kingdoms, not individuals
1 John 2:18: “many antichrists” --- plural usage suggests the term has broader application
The “beast from the sea” (Revelation 13:1) has “blasphemous names” on its heads --- a collective symbol

Why This Matters for the Ordering Question

The identification question has direct implications:

If antichrist = beast = man of sin, then all three appear at the same point in the sequence
If they are distinct, the sequence could be: false teacher (antichrist spirit) → political leader (beast) → supernatural man of sin
Most views agree: antichrist appears before Christ’s return destroys him

See Appendix G for a detailed analysis of the evidence across Daniel, 2 Thessalonians, 1-2 John, and Revelation.

Additional Key Passages

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 --- The Resurrection and Transformation

“Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” --- 1 Corinthians 15:50-58 (KJV)

Key Terms:

Last trump --- eschatē salpinx (ἐσχάτη σάλπιγξ; in the verse, ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῃ σάλπιγγι) --- the final trumpet. Pre-tribulationists identify this as a different trumpet from the seventh trumpet in Revelation; post-tribulationists argue it is the same.
Changed --- allassō (ἀλλάσσω) --- to alter, transform. The transformation is instantaneous (“in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye”).
Mystery --- mystērion (μυστήριον) --- something previously hidden now revealed. Paul reveals that not all believers will die; some will be transformed alive.

What Is Clear:

Bodily transformation is instantaneous
Both dead and living believers are transformed
This accompanies a trumpet blast
The result is immortal, incorruptible bodies

What Is Debated:

Whether the “last trump” here is the same as the seventh trumpet of Revelation 11:15
Whether this event is simultaneous with or separate from 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

Mark 13:24-27 --- The Synoptic Parallel

“But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.” --- Mark 13:24-27 (KJV)

Note: Mark’s version explicitly says “after that tribulation” the Son of Man comes and gathers the elect. This parallels Matthew 24:29-31: Mark likewise places the gathering “after that tribulation.” How pre-tribulation readers handle this sequence (an Israel-focused discourse; a separate gathering) is presented in Chapters 2 and 4. The phrase “from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven” suggests a universal gathering of both living and dead saints.

Luke 21:25-28 --- The Redemption Draws Near

“And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” --- Luke 21:25-28 (KJV)

Significance: Luke adds the phrase “your redemption draweth nigh” --- believers are told that the cosmic signs and the Son of Man’s coming signal their deliverance, not their destruction. On its face the address places its hearers on earth when these signs occur; pre-tribulation readers take the discourse as addressed to Israel and tribulation-era disciples (see Chapters 2 and 4).

Daniel 12:1-4 --- Michael Stands Up; Resurrection at the End

“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” --- Daniel 12:1-4 (KJV)

Key Observations:

“A time of trouble, such as never was” parallels Jesus’s “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world” (Matthew 24:21) --- Jesus draws directly on Daniel
Deliverance comes after the time of trouble, not before it
The resurrection (“many of them that sleep in the dust shall awake”) follows the tribulation
“Every one that shall be found written in the book” --- deliverance is for those inscribed in God’s book

Daniel 7:13-14 --- The Son of Man Receives Dominion

“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” --- Daniel 7:13-14 (KJV)

Significance: Jesus’s preferred self-designation “Son of man” comes from this passage. The Son of Man comes “with the clouds of heaven” --- the same language used in Matthew 24:30, Mark 13:26, 1 Thessalonians 4:17, and Revelation 1:7. This is the foundational Old Testament vision of Christ’s coming in glory.

Joel 2:1-2, 30-32 --- The Day of the Lord and the Trumpet

“Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.” --- Joel 2:1-2 (KJV)

“And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” --- Joel 2:30-32 (KJV)

Key Observations:

The trumpet in Zion announces the Day of the LORD --- a day of judgment and deliverance together
The cosmic signs (sun dark, moon blood) match Matthew 24:29, Mark 13:24-25, and Revelation 6:12
Peter quotes Joel 2:28-32 at Pentecost (Acts 2:16-21), applying it to the present age
Deliverance is promised for “whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD”
Whether Joel’s trumpet is the same as 1 Corinthians 15:52’s “last trump” is contested: the pre-wrath view links them, but Cole objects that Joel 2:1’s trumpet “is sounded in Zion; it has a limited area,” while 1 Corinthians 15:52’s is for all who are in Christ --- “The two trumpets are not synonymous” (DBSJ 9 [2004]: 40)

Isaiah 26:19-21 --- The Resurrection and the Hiding

“Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.” --- Isaiah 26:19-21 (KJV)

Key Observations:

This is the earliest Old Testament passage connecting resurrection (“thy dead men shall live”) with protection during divine judgment
“Enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors” --- God’s people are hidden during “the indignation”
Pre-tribulationists see this as a type of the rapture: believers hidden while God’s wrath is poured out
Post-tribulationists see it as divine protection within the tribulation (like Israel in Goshen during the plagues)
Both readings have merit --- the text supports either interpretation

2 Peter 3:10-13 --- The Day of the Lord

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” --- 2 Peter 3:10-13 (KJV)

Key Observations:

“As a thief in the night” matches 1 Thessalonians 5:2 --- the Day of the Lord is unexpected
Peter connects the Day of the Lord with cosmic destruction and new creation
The practical application is holy living, not timeline calculation
Peter asks “what manner of persons ought ye to be” --- the emphasis is ethical, not chronological

Zechariah 14:1-5 --- The Lord’s Feet on the Mount of Olives

“Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.” --- Zechariah 14:1-5 (KJV)

Key Observations:

The LORD comes to fight after Jerusalem is besieged and partially taken --- tribulation precedes deliverance
“His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives” --- compare Acts 1:11-12, where the angels say Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives
“The LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee” --- the saints accompany the LORD at His coming. Pre-tribulationists argue they were previously raptured; post-tribulationists see this as the single return event

Cross-References

Additional passages relevant to the timing question:

Daniel 9:24-27 --- The seventy weeks prophecy; the antichrist’s “abomination of desolation”
Ezekiel 38-39 --- Gog and Magog invasion; final battle before God’s kingdom
Zechariah 12:10 --- “They shall look upon me whom they have pierced” --- a singular return event
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 --- “The day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night” --- believers are “not in darkness” and should “watch and be sober”
Revelation 20:1-6 --- The first resurrection and the millennium; “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection”

Summary

Scripture presents a complex eschatological timeline with multiple overlapping imagery:

Rapture passages (1 Thess 4-5) describe a gathering of believers to meet Christ in the air, with trumpet, shout, and archangel’s voice.
Antichrist passages (2 Thess 2, Revelation 13) describe a man of sin who opposes God, is revealed, and is destroyed at Christ’s coming.
Sequence questions: Does the rapture come before antichrist (pre-trib), at midpoint (mid-trib), or after antichrist’s full work (post-trib)?
Key ambiguities: The identity of “that which letteth,” the nature of the “falling away,” and whether Christ’s “coming” is singular or multiple events.

What Scripture makes clear: Christ will return, the dead will rise, believers will be glorified, and the antichrist will be destroyed. The exact sequence remains debated.

(Christocentrism (Chapter 2) will examine what Jesus specifically taught about these events.)