In my Feb. 5, 2008 posting, I mentioned some things in passing that suggested a Pentecost Rapture. In this posting, I would like to add some commentary and documentation on four things mentioned in the previous posting:           

1. Pentecost pictures resurrection harvest.
2. The Church was born on Pentecost and will most likely be raptured on Pentecost.
3. Testimony exists that King David was born and died on Pentecost.
4. Testimony exists that Enoch was born and raptured on Pentecost.

 

The 23^rd chapter of Leviticus lists what are called the “Feasts of the Lord” (Lev.23:4). Mention of some of these feasts also occurs in Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Though these seven feasts were given to Israel to observe, they do not pertain exclusively to Israel . Rather, they portray in chronological order the major events in redemptive history. Each feast then has to be fulfilled in the order in which it occurs. To date, THREE of the seven feasts have been fulfilled. Many prophecy teachers claim fulfillment for FOUR of the feasts. But I believe that they are dead wrong. That is because the Feast of Pentecost has NOT been fulfilled! Though the Church was born on Pentecost (Acts 2:1), the Feast of Pentecost does not portray birth, but rather resurrection harvest. It may well be that the Church was born on Pentecost to give us a clue that it will be the Church that is raptured on Pentecost.

 

To better understand this, we need to look at feast number three, which is the Feast of Firstfruits. Like Pentecost, Firstfruits was a grain harvest feast. The initial part of the barley harvest was brought to the priest and dedicated to the Lord. A sheaf of grain was also waved before the Lord by the priest, picturing Christ’s triumphant resurrection. Also of significance was a grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil and lacking any leaven. In the Bible, leaven pictures sin. This grain offering pointed to the sinless, risen Savior whose payment for sin was accepted by the Father (Lev.23:9-14).

 

Feast number four, the Feast of Pentecost, though somewhat similar to the Feast of Firstfruits, has a major difference (Lev. 23:15-21). Pentecost was a grain harvest feast taking place fifty days after Firstfruits. At Pentecost, the early wheat crop was harvested. The grain offering required for this feast was radically different from the one at Firstfruits. Two loaves of bread were to be baked with fine flour and LEAVEN and waved before the Lord by the priest. Again, in the Bible leaven pictures sin. The two loaves containing leaven represent two distinct categories of redeemed sinners: the resurrected dead in Christ and those who will be raptured without ever experiencing death (1 Thess. 4:16,17).  The symbolism of the Feast of Pentecost clearly points to and depicts the Rapture, and this feast has not been fulfilled! We would do well to remember that Christ is THE Firstfruits ( 1 Cor. 15:23 ) and we are “a kind of Firstfruits” ( James 1:18 ). Christ is in Heaven; we are still waiting for the trumpet to sound. Feast three has been fulfilled; Feast four awaits fulfillment. I should add here that the feast of Pentecost is also called the Feast of Weeks and Shavuot.

 

Since it appears that the Church will be born and raptured on Pentecost, can any extra-Biblical evidence be found that lends support to this thesis?  Many people believe that King David of Israel was born on Pentecost and died on Pentecost. There is some impressive testimony that this is indeed the case. However, anyone looking for chapter and verse will be disappointed, because the Bible does not address this issue. Unfortunately, all truth does not come wrapped in a chapter and verse format. There are a great many things that are true, though they are not in the Bible. If everything that was true was put in the Bible, its pages would reach halfway to Heaven. Genuine historical truth can be used in conjunction with the Bible because God is not the enemy of truth. Christ is the Truth! So I can give three sources that support David’s birth and death occurring on Pentecost:

1. Michael Strassfeld, author of THE JEWISH HOLIDAYS, A GUIDE AND COMMENTARY
2. Rabbi Josef Becker Shor, a very prominent 12^th century French rabbi, author of TORAH COMMENTARY
3. The JERUSALEM TALMUD, CHAGIGAH 2:3 states that David died on Shavuot, which is Pentecost.
4. Another reason people believe David was born and died on Pentecost is that the Jews read the book of Ruth during Shavuot. The last four verses of Ruth record the genealogy of David. The Jews seem to identify or link Pentecost with David.

None of the above endorsements are the equivalent of a clear Biblical statement. So each person has to decide whether to accept the existing testimony or to seek stronger evidence.

 

The Bible does tell us a number of things about Enoch. Jude 1:14-15 tells us that Enoch was the seventh from Adam, and that the Lord will come with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment on all that are ungodly. Genesis 5:21-24 reveals that all the days of Enoch were 365 years and that Enoch walked with God and he was not; for God took him. And Hebrews 11:5 states that by faith Enoch was translated (removed) that he should not see death, for before his removal he had this testimony, that he pleased God. What the Bible does not tell us is the day of Enoch’s birth or rapture. It is well to remember that there was no written Scripture in Enoch’s day. It would be many centuries before Moses would begin writing Genesis. What did exist were many oral traditions that were faithfully passed on from generation to generation. Chuck Missler tells of a later rabbinical tradition that said that Enoch was born on the sixth of Sivan (the date on which Pentecost is now celebrated). Missler says there is also another tradition about Enoch that says he was translated (“raptured?”) on his birthday, the sixth of Sivan. A first century writing called THE BOOK OF THE SECRETS OF ENOCH says that Enoch was “taken up to heaven on the sixth day of the month of Tsivan, on the very day and hour when he was born.” So in the case of Enoch, there is not much written evidence regarding his birth and departure dates. But this should be balanced against the fact that in Enoch’s day, not much of anything was written down.

 

The sum total of all that has been written in this posting persuades me that very soon there will be two leavened loaves of bread being waved before the Lord. Even so, come Lord Jesus!