Now we are going to look at some objections to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory. First, some would say, “Why should God deliver us out of trouble when he made past generations go through terrible trials?” Second, some would say, “The Scriptures speak of the saints (tzadikim) who the False Messiah makes war against. If we are raptured who are these saints?” Others might say, “If the tares are removed first, aren’t the believers still here?”
Most Christians are not aware of the concept called “The Gathering” but the Rapture. We assume this means they are not aware of a Jewish teaching of this “gathering” and any details concerning it, but we will get into that later. The Church has a belief in the Marriage Supper in heaven during the seven year tribulation. The doctrine of the Rapture says the church is the good guys and won’t be in the tribulation. Only the Jews and unbelievers (non-Christians) will have to suffer. Let’s look at some other objections to the Pre-Trib Rapture.
Some say there will be people here who will meet the Messiah “in the air” on his return. Who are these people if all the believers are “out of here?” Who brought those through? Who originated the “rapture” concept? When Israel was delivered out of Egypt, wasn’t this a rapture? If so, they were not taken out of the earth, God took them through the wilderness and brought them to the land.
What about the “Greater Exodus?” Where does this play out in the latter days? Doesn’t “the last trump” indicate that the rapture will come at the end of the seven years? We will look at this term and where it came from and we are going to find that it comes out of the Jewish Liturgy. Others believe that the believers will be purified during the Tribulation, so they will not be taken out. They say that believers not appointed to wrath are those who flee to the wilderness at the mid-point of the tribulation. When does the in-gathering of Israel from the four corners of the earth occur? Is it during the seven years or after? We will answer all these questions in due time.
We can come to a few conclusions on the Christian Pre-Trib and Mid-Trib position. It is a form of antisemitism to say that Christians will be taken away from the wrath of God while Jews are left behind to go through it. The whole scenario is based upon the concept that the Jewish understandings of prophecy were discarded. Here is an observation about the Post-Trib or No-Trib positions. If there is no Pre-Trib Rapture, then believers are going through either part or all of the tribulation. Therefore, shouldn’t we prepare like a survivalist for the coming tribulation? Let’s continue with more foundation.
The Pre-Trib Rapture in the Christian view has the Rapture before the tribulation, then after the tribulation we have what is called the “Millennium” (a thousand years), the last judgment and then “eternity.” The Mid-Trib position says the Rapture will occur in the middle of the seven years (three and a half year point) and then after the tribulation, the Millennium, last judgment and eternity. The Post-Trib positions says we have the rapture at the end of the seven years, meeting the Lord in the air and returning with him back to earth. Then there is the Millennium, last judgment and eternity. In all three of these positions, the tribulation is before the Millennium.
So, let’s look at some terminology in the Church and see how we got to some of these views in the process. Remember, after we present these views, we are going to take a look at the Natzal (Rapture; gathering) from a Biblical perspective and Jewish eschatological thought. But first, we need some background.
Let’s define the word “Kehilat.” The Greek form of this word is “Ecclesia” and it generally means “an assembly” but most English translations of the New Testament translate it as “church.” The Hebrew word is “kahal” or “kehilat” so keep that in mind. For example, the book “Ecclesiastes” is called “Kohelet” in Hebrew because it was one of the names for Solomon. You can see “ecclesia” in “Ecclesiastes” and the “kahal” in “Kohelet.” The meaning for the book is “assembly or gatherer” of truth.
The word “Kahal” is the assembly “at large” and “Kehilat” is a specific assembly. Deut 4.10 says, “Gather (kahal) the people to me.” 2 Thes 2.1 says in the NASB, “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and are gathering together to him.” It says the same thing as Deut 4.10. The word “Kohelet” alone means “gatherer” but when you say “Ha Kohelet” it means “the gathering.” Solomon is a picture of the Messiah, so Kohelet is a term for Messiah (gatherer).
Deut 9.10 talks about when God gave the Ten Commandments on two tablets of stone on “the day of the assembly” or “Yom Kahal.” At Mount Sinai, God establishes the nation of Israel and the Kahal on what would become the festival of Shavuot (Pentecost-Acts 2). Christianity teaches the concept that several things were “instituted” (new when Christianity came along). For example, they teach that Yeshua “instituted” Baptism. But we know he didn’t institute baptism because it goes all the way back to Sinai at least and before that with Jacob (Gen 35.2). We think it goes all the way back to Eden, but it has always been there.
Another example is the “Lord’s Supper.” Christianity teaches that Yeshua “instituted” it and that it was a brand new concept. However, this is called a “meal consecrated to God” and we can show that it goes all the way back to Sinai (Exo 24), if not before. The concept of a covenantal meal with God is behind some of the korbanot (offerings) in the Mishkan and the Temple (“The Temple” by Joshua Berman, p. 126-145). So, we have all these ideas that have come down in Christianity that something new was going on, when in reality it wasn’t. Even the “new” in “new testament” is the word “chadash” and it means “renewed.”
In Acts 2 we do have something new but it was expected. The congregation was there and the Jewish belief was when Messiah came he would bring in an eschatological (last days) kahal that was empowered by the Ruach Ha Kodesh (Holy Spirit). The manifestations experienced in Acts 2 at Shavuot were also seen at Mount Sinai and the giving of the Torah in Exo 19-20. Deut 18.16 also talks about “the day of the assembly” or Yom Kahal. 1 Chr 28.8 says, “Now, therefore, in the sight of all Israel, the assembly (kahal) of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God, be careful to seek out all the commandments of the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land, and leave it as an inheritance for your children after you forever.” Long story short, the word “church” in the New Testament should be understood as “kahal” (Acts 7.38).
New Testament translations like the NKJV, NASB, NIV disguise the fact that the word “church” was actually “kahal” in the Tanak because they are underscoring the belief that the “church” was new and something separate from Israel. However, the kahal was part of Israel and this “assembly” was in a Jewish context. We must understand that concept (that the kahal/”church” was in a Jewish context) when reading the Gospels and Epistles, not what is presented today. Catholics read it like it was in a Catholic context, Baptists read it like it was in a Baptist context, Pentecostals read it like it was in a Pentecostal context and so on. But, it was in a Jewish context, and that is how we will look at the Natzal (Rapture).
So, the same day God established the nation of Israel and gave them the Torah (their government and constitution) he also established the Kahal. After Acts 2, all the members of the kahal were either Jewish or Jewish proselytes. The believers in Yeshua met in synagogues, ate kosher, observed the Sabbath and the festivals. They spoke Hebrew (Acts 21.40) and lived as Jews. These people knew the idioms, phrases, sub-languages and concepts of the Jewish people at the time and wrote the Gospels and Epistles in that context. They were part of the eschatological (last days) Kahal (assembly) and within the confines of the “Judaisms” of the day, and were accepted as such.
There was another group that was present from about 100 B.C. to about 70 A.D. and they would virtually disappear. They were called the God-fearers. The Jewish belief was that Jews were to take the Torah and the promise of a coming Messiah to the non-Jews. These non-Jews could come into the covenants of God and the promises of Yehovah but only after converting to Judaism. That was the belief at the time, but this will change right after Yeshua was resurrected and the events of Acts 2 as we shall see.
In Part 4 we will pick up here with the God-fearers. All of this background is necessary in our study of the Naztal (Rapture) because it will show us how we got away from the Jewish understandings of the Natzal (which we will present) and how we got to the point we are today, and what we can do about it.
Leave a Reply