Peace before Rapture
There has been much discussion about when the rapture will take place. Many people believe it will happen during a time of wars and unrest, but I believe the church will be raptured during a time of worldwide peace! 1 Thess 5:3 talks about sudden destruction while they are saying peace and safety. This happens right before the rapture of the church. This sudden destruction cannot be a result of war since there is peace and safety in the land. I want to show from scripture this peace before the rapture of the church. First it says in Matt 24:6 “and ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet… All these are the beginning of sorrows”, and Mark 13:7 says the same thing ”And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet”. Here Jesus is saying that “The End” will only come when there are no wars or even rumors of wars. This indicates that Israel will be at peace with her neighbors before the end, which is the rapture. I believe this is where we are right now, close to the end of “wars and rumors of wars”. Before the end comes, Israel will be living in peace and safety. There will be no wars or even rumors of wars, just as Jesus said. I believe we are going to see a time of divine peace in Israel until the rapture happens since there are no wars or rumors of wars.
Second, I would like to point out Matt 24:37-41 “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be”. It will be business as usual. “Then shall two be in the fields; the one shall be taken and the other left. Two women grinding at the mill; one will be taken and the other left”. This indicates that peace will be in the land just as it was before the flood.
Third, I want to point out Ezekiel 38:11 where it says: “And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates”. This passage indicates that Israel will be dwelling in peace before this invasion happens. It is understood that this invasion is either right before or right after the rapture. This indicates that Israel will be dwelling in peace, not just saying “peace and safety”. Whichever it is, before or after the rapture, Israel must be dwelling in peace and safety, for this to happen as God has said!
Fourth, I want to refer to 1 Thess 5:3 “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”. This also indicates that right before the rapture that they will be saying “peace and safety”, and aligns with other scriptures talking about peace before the rapture. Now that Israel is living in peace with their neighbors, it does not make sense that this sudden destruction is a result of war, like most people say “when the bombs come down we go up”. I do not agree that this is a result of war. I would like to consider an alternative to the “bombs” theory, since there is peace in Israel. I want to take a closer look at Ezekiel 38. The first 7 verses are showing who will be joined together to come against Israel. Verse 8 is who they are going to come against. Verses 9-13 show why they are coming against Israel, to take a spoil. Verses 14-15 a great army is going to invade Israel to take a spoil. Verse 16 shows that God is bringing this great army against His people so that He will be sanctified (set apart for a special purpose) and the heathen will know Him. Now comes the interesting part, verses 19-23. This is going to be the Lord fighting for His people. There will be a great shaking at the presence of the Lord. I want to point out that the Lord will be present for this shaking. This is important because in 1 Thess 4:16,17 it says “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”. Here it shows that there are two events, first the resurrection of the dead and the second “the caught up” or rapture of the church. This great shaking will be to all men on the face of the earth. This will be a worldwide earthquake! Also He will make them fight against one another.
I want to point out that 1 Thess 5:3 is referring to this sudden destruction as travail upon a woman with child. I am going to suggest that this labor pain is the resurrection of the dead in Christ! I consider this last birth pain as the one hour of testing in Rev 3:10 “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation (testing), which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth”, to be the resurrection of the dead in Christ before the rapture. The key in this verse is ”come upon all the world”. I know people want to use this scripture as a pre-tribulation rapture verse, but it is not, it is for one hour and is written to the church! I would like to be very clear about this one hour of testing, it is NOT the seven year tribulation. It is talking to the church and the church is not here for the tribulation. It is hard to cram seven years into one hour, but with God nothing is impossible, not even peace in Israel! ;)
I want to explain how I understand that this last birth pain is the resurrection of the dead in Christ. In Matt 28:2 is the account of Jesus’s resurrection. “And behold there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it”. Jesus is the first fruit of the resurrection of the dead, with a great earthquake. How much more when a worldwide earthquake happens at the resurrection of the dead in Christ. This would be a worldwide earthquake of one hour of testing of Rev 3:10, the key “come upon all the world” and in Ezekiel 38:20 “all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence“. I am saying that this shaking of Ezekiel 38:20 is the resurrection of the dead in Christ. We know that the dead in Christ rise first and then we who are alive will be transformed into incorruptible and then we will meet the Lord in air. So then in 1 Thess 5:3 “then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” is talking about this sudden destruction as it relates to the resurrection of the dead in Christ. It would seem to fit nicely.
I know that peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors looks impossible, but it must happen. I would suggest that we pray for the descendants of Isaac and Ishmael to be at peace with each other.
David Blackman,