Two Raptures? Repeating patterns of the Bible
These people often go on and on about Noah and Lot. While they ignore Enoch and Elijah, whose experiences are the closest thing to a Rapture in the Old Testament. They refer to the group of people that appear in Heaven in Chapter 7 of Revelation that came out of the great tribulation. They ignore the group in Revelation 5, or say it is the same as the group in Revelation 7, despite the differences between the two groups. They also refer to the First Resurrection in Revelation 20.
I truly want to understand God's Word and I truly do not want to be misled nor mislead anyone else. One of the things that is stressed from the Hebrew mind thought is that Biblical events occur in repeating patterns.
Ecclesiastes 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
Even this verse repeats!
If I am correct then there will be a minimum of two raptures. The first one will be like Enoch's.
Genesis 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not for God took him.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
Enoch was a Gentile. The Jewish Nation of Israel had yet to be established. Enoch was translated and by Chapter 7 of Genesis the earth is flooded. In other words before the earth became so totally wicked that God had to destroy it - He removed/translated Enoch from that very wicked time period. That time period included the fallen angels procreating with human women. The intercourse of which produced the giants and those referred to as the mighty men. Enoch was gone before the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually. And Enoch was removed before it grieved God's heart that He had made man. Enoch would be synonymous with the Gentile Church which contains both Jew and Gentile.
Elijah, was of course a Jewish prophet of God to the Nation of Israel. He spent a lot of his time running from Queen Jezebel and King Ahab. Jezebel and Ahab were always trying to kill Elijah. Elijah had the big show down with the prophets of Baal. After which he slew the 450 prophets of Baal. Where Elijah was, fire from Heaven often came down and devoured his enemies.
Elijah's rapture event is a different type of rapture. Where there is no record that anyone actually saw Enoch leave, ergo we can conclude it was a hidden secret event, there was a witness to Elijah's.
II Kings 2:11, 12 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
If we go to Revelation 11 we will find the two witnesses. The difference between Elijah and the two witnesses is; that the two witness have fire that pours from their mouths and consumes their enemies. They are eventually killed, lay in the street for three and a half days and then they are called up into heaven by a loud voice. Their enemies witness this event. We do not know if theses two witnesses are Jewish, however they are referred to as the two olive trees. Israel is often related to an olive tree, so perhaps they are Jewish. It may be that they represent both the Jew and the Gentile.
Obviously, there is certainly the probability of two rapture type events. One unseen, one witnessed.
Now to the first resurrection. When you study that word resurrection in the Greek as found in Revelation 20, it is a resurrection from the dead. I don't think this is a rapture event. Everyone here is resurrected but no where does it say they were caught up to Heaven because at this point in the Tribulation the Rider on the White Horse, Jesus Christ, has made His appearance on earth and He is the resurrection.
Now to the first rapture in the New Testament vs. the first resurrection. I Thessalonians 4: 17 uses the word "caught up" to denote the Saints both dead and alive meeting Christ in the air. The word used there is to seize, carry away, catch up. So in Revelation 20:4 we have those who did not worship the beast nor take his mark coming to life again and this is called the first resurrection. There are no living people included in this group. This group is not taken any where that I can tell. While those in I Thessalonians are comprised of both the dead and the living and those dead are referred to as those who have fallen asleep vs. those who were martyred by the beast of Revelation.
When I study the three groups of redeemed people in Revelation found respectively in Chapters 5, 7 and 20, there are some distinctions. The group from Chapter 5 are referred to as being ransomed by Jesus Christ through His Blood. Jesus has made them a kingdom and priests to our God and they shall reign on earth. The group in Chapter 7 are clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands and it is said that they have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb versus Jesus having ransomed the first group by His Blood. This group is referred to as coming out of great tribulation and if I am understanding that form of the Greek Verb it means they are because of something they did. In other words they are coming out of the tribulation because they washed their robes in Christ Blood. Whereas the body of Christ is covered in His Blood already and have right standing with God. However, this does point one back to the examples in the seven letters to the churches of those who won't repent of various activities. The group in Chapter 7 are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple. It says nothing about this group reigning on earth. Finally, the third group in Chapter 20 had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God and had not worshiped the beast or its image nor taken his mark. It says they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. It is said of this group that they will be priests of both God and Christ.
These distinctions may seem subtle but they are distinct. I think about the first 8 Chapters of Romans describing the salvation experience and wonder if there is a difference between being saved prior to the Tribulation and being saved because of the Tribulation. I wonder if the distinction between being caught up to Christ first the dead and then the living has to do with the fact that right now we are dead in Christ, so on some level we are technically already resurrected with Him. But those who get saved during the tribulation, is it the same process as it currently is?
If there is a pre-tribulation rapture; there are going to be a multitude of "Christians" who are part of the apostate church left behind. Maybe they are the group in Chapter 7. After they are taken off the earth whomever is left will finally realize there is a God in Heaven that rules the Universe and all that is in it and there is a fallen angel, Lucifer, who would like to take God's place. After living under Satan's sadistic beast empire there will be those who finally wake up and refuse his mark and die the death of the martyr. I guess they could be the very last group to receive salvation.
The question then is there a third rapture that accounts for those who appear before the throne in Revelation 7:9-13? Honestly, I cannot answer that but how else can they get there? I can only say that when you carefully study the nuances things are not always as they seem to be. I hope you will be a good Berean and study to see if what I am saying holds true to God's Word. We are so much closer to these events than when we first began our Christian Journey.
Look Up Our Redemption is almost HERE!
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