TWO PILLARS, TWO RAPTURES,
NEITHER AT THE SECOND ADVENT
By Marilyn Agee
In Rev. 3:12,13, Jesus said to the Philadelphian church, "Him that overcometh will I make a PILLAR IN THE TEMPLE of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is NEW JERUSALEM, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches".
In the Bibleīs wonderful symbolism, believers are to be made "a pillar in the temple of my God". Each of the pillars in front of the temple, BOAZ and JACHIN, representing the saints of the two Raptures, was crowned with an oil basin, i.e., a lamp. They looked like huge torches. This reminds me of the wise virgins that have enough oil in their vessels with their lamps. I Ki. 7:41 mentions "The two pillars, and the TWO BOWLS OF THE CHAPITERS (capitals) THAT WERE ON THE TOP OF THE TWO PILLARS."
The capitals were shaped like LILIES. I Kings 7:19,21 says, "the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were OF LILY WORK...And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin (he establishes, he sets up): and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz" (meaning LOVELY, FLEETNESS AND STRENGTH).
I think these two pillars represent the two Raptures. Israel was to grow "as the lily." Hosea 14:5 says, "I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily". It seems that the pillar Jachin represents the Rapture of the 144,000 Israelites, which, along with the great multitude that cannot be numbered, take part in the 2nd Rapture, the "last trump." The Pre-Wrath Rapture will be when Christ sets up his millennial kingdom. If the pillar Jachin represents the "last trump" (I Cor. 15:51-53), the pillar Boaz represents the first "trump of God" (I Thess. 4:16). This is the Pre-Trib Rapture, and the Bride is lovely. She is dressed in white, like a white lily.
The Bride is called a lily in Song of Solomon 2:2,10. It says, "As the LILY among thorns, so is MY LOVE among the daughters....My beloeved spake, and said unto me, RISE UP, MY LOVE, MY FAIR ONE, AND COME AWAY". Song 6:2,3 says, "My beloved (Christ) IS GONE DOWN into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to GATHER LILIES. I am my belovedīs, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the LILIES." Song 7:2 says, Thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with LILIES." Abundant lilies grow wild in the wheat fields. Boaz, a type of Christ, the kinsman redeemer, chose Ruth (meaning friendship, filled, satisfied), type of the Bride of Christ, for his wife during the time of winnowing barley. The marriage followed soon afterward. At the present time, we are like Ruth at the feet of Boaz, remaining faithful and waiting patiently to be chosen. We know that those with Christ at the first Rapture are "called, and chosen, and faithful" (Rev. 17:14). Even after being chosen, Ruth had to wait awhile to be married.
There are saved people in earthly bodies still living on Earth immediately after the Second Advent. If a Rapture had just taken place, only "goats" would be left on Earth. Therefore, I donīt see how there could possibly be a Rapture at the Second Advent.
"When the Son of man shall come in his GLORY (i.e., the Second Advent), and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his GLORY: And before him shall be gathered all nations (the Judgment of the Nations): and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd DIVIDETH HIS SHEEP FROM THE GOATS: And he shall set the sheep (the saved that will live on into the Millennium on Earth) on his right hand, but the goats (the lost) on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Mt. 25:31-34). Verse 41 says, "Then (tote, at the same time) shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels".
Thatīs why we find no resurrection or catching up of saints at the Second Advent in Rev. 19:11-14. It says, "I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he (Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach) that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge (at the Judgment of the Nations) and make war (Armageddon). 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 (John 1:1-3). And THE ARMIES WHICH WERE (i.e., already) IN HEAVEN FOLLOWED HIM upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean." These are no longer in earthly bodies.
Working backward, what period of time can we identify that immediately precedes the Second Advent? Eze 39:11-13 says, "it shall come to pass in that day (the Day of Godīs Wrath, Eze. 38:18-20), that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea (a ravine east of the Sea of Galilee): and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog. And SEVEN MONTHS shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be GLORIFIED, saith the Lord GOD."
The day that Jesus Christ, the Lord GOD, the LORD of hosts, the Redeemer (Isa. 44:6), will be glorified is the Second Advent. Thatīs "When the Son of man shall come in his GLORY" (Mt. 25:31). The 7 months for cleansing the land will be between the Day of Godīs Wrath and the Second Advent.
On the Day of Godīs Wrath, every saint will be in Heaven. Only nonbelievers will be left on Earth to receive the wrath of God. Every believer will be in Heaven receiving his REWARDS at the Judgment Seat of Christ. IThess 5:9 says, "GOD HATH NOT APPOINTED US (believers) TO WRATH, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ".
Rev. 11:15-19 describes that day. It says, "the seventh angel sounded (the 7th trumpet); and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become (i.e., on this day 7 months BEFORE the Second Advent) the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign (from this day forward) for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders (which were caught up to Heaven in the Pre-Trib Rapture, Rev. 4:1-4), which sat before God on their seats (thrones), fell upon their faces, and worshipped God (Jesus Christ), Saying, We give thee thanks, O LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, which art (on Coronation Day, Tishri 1), and wast (at the First Advent), and ART TO COME (7 months later at the Second Advent); because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast REIGNED. And the nations were angry (Gogīs army is attacking Israel), and THY WRATH IS COME (on the Feast of Trumpets), and the time of the dead, that they should be JUDGED (at the Judgment Seat of Christ in Heaven), and that thou shouldest GIVE REWARD UNTO THY SERVANTS THE PROPHETS, AND TO THE SAINTS and them that fear thy name, SMALL AND GREAT; AND SHOULDEST DESTROY THEM (the unbelievers) WHICH DESTROY THE EARTH. And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail" (when two stone tablets, i.e., the asteroids of Rev. 8:8,10, are dumped out on the unbelievers on Earth).
At that time, not one saint is on Earth to receive Godīs Wrath. They are all in Heaven receiving their rewards. Therefore, both Raptures, the Pre-Trib Rapture for most of the Bride of Christ and the Pre-Wrath Rapture for the Tribulation saints (the 144,000 are added to the Bride group), take place prior to the pouring out of Godīs Wrath at noon on the great and terrible DAY OF THE LORD. Zeph. 2:3-5 says, "Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORDīS anger come upon you. Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be HID (sathar, be hid, be absent, i.e., be raptured before noon) in the day of the LORDīS anger. For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the NOON DAY, and Ekron shall be rooted up. Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast" (at noon, a mountain-sized asteroid will impact the Mediterranean Sea, Rev. 8:8).
In Mark 13:23-27, Jesus said of that day, "take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things. 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 (the asteroids of Rev. 8:8,10), 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 (it is the Sign of the Son of Man, Mt. 24:30, not the Second Advent). And then (tote, at the same time) shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the EARTH (the Pre-Wrath Rapture) to the uttermost part of heaven" (the Bride saints that were previously caught up to Heaven in the Pre-Trib Rapture).
We see those gathered from one end of Heaven to the other on the same day that the Pre-Wrath Rapture takes place. None of the saints come to Earth at that time. Mt. 24:31 says, "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."
The Bride saints that were previously caught up to Heaven in the Pre-Trib Rapture are gathered to THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN HEAVEN on the same day that the Tribulation saints are caught up to Heaven. In Heaven, it is Coronation Day, the day of the Marriage of the Lamb and the Judgment Seat of Christ. Heb. 12:22-24 says, "ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect (changed, made immortal, I Cor. 15:51-53), And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel."
Since the Bride saints have been caught up to Heaven previously, the only time that makes sense is that they are caught up to Heaven before, or as the Tribulation starts. Rev. 1:10, 4:1.2 and 3:10,11 show that this is so. In the Preview of the Rapture in Rev. 1:10,11, John said, "I was (lit., became) in the Spirit on the Lordīs day (first Day of the two Days of the Son of Man, Luke 17:22), and heard behind me a great voice (Christīs), as of a trumpet (the first trump of God), Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last". Rev. 4:1,2 says, " After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was (lit., became) in the spirit".
Rev. 3:10-12 says, "Because thou hast kept the word of my patience (lit., patient endurance), I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation (trial), which shall (after this) come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth (i.e., during the Tribulation). Behold, I come quickly (1st Rapture, Rev. 2:5; 22:20): hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. Him that overcometh will I make a PILLAR in the temple of my God (the pillar named Boaz, the other one, called Jachin, stands for the 2nd Rapture), and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is NEW JERUSALEM, which cometh down out of HEAVEN from my God: and I will write upon him my new name."
THE FIRST "TRUMP OF GOD"
The first trump of God is found in I Thess. 4:14-17. It says, "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 (Old English for precede) 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". The Pre-Trib Rapture is the first "trump of God."
"THE LAST TRUMP" OF GOD
Since there is a" last trump," there is a first trump. The first and last trumps stand for the two Raptures. The last trump of God is the Pre-Wrath Rapture. Found in I Cor. 15:51-53, it says, "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed (made immortal), 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 (made immortal). For this corruptible must put on incorruption (accomplished at either Rapture, I Cor. 15:42), and this mortal must put on immortality" (all together at the last Rapture). The last trump calls up the Tribulation saints on the Day of Godīs Wrath, but before the wrath hits Earth at noon.
In Mark 13:35, Jesus said, Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, OR IN THE MORNING".
THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE IN II THESS. 2:3
II Thess. 2:1-9 (KJV) says, "Now we (Paul, Silvanus and Timotheus, 1:1) beseech you, brethren (believers), by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our (believers, including Paul, Silvanus and Timotheusī) gathering together unto him (AT THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE), 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 (major MSS have īday of the Lordī, i.e., the Day of Godīs Wrath) is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day (Day of the Lord, Day of Godīs Wrath) shall not come, except there come a FALLING AWAY (he apostacia, THE DEPARTING, i.e., THE Pre-Trib Rapture) 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 (the False Prophet) 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 (in I Thess. 4:13-18; 5:1-11)? And now ye know what withholdeth (THE BODY OF CHRIST, THE CHURCH that he might be revealed in HIS TIME (the Tribulation). For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let (Old English for hindereth will hinder), until he (THE BODY OF CHRIST, THE CHURCH) BE TAKEN OUT OF THE WAY (i.e., at the Pre-Trib Rapture). And then (after the Rapture, as the Tribulation begins) 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". The False Prophet will be revealed when he strengthens the covenant of Dan. 9:27.
"DEPARTING" IN II THESSALONIANS 2:3
The root word for "apostacia" means a physical departure in almost every case.
In "The Rapture in II Thess. 2:3" ( [
link to www.pre-trib.org] Dr. Thomas Ice said, "The first seven English translations of apostasia all rendered the noun as either "departure" or "departing." They are as follows: Wycliffe Bible (1384); Tyndale Bible (1526); Coverdale Bible (1535); Cranmer Bible (1539); Breeches Bible (1576); Beza Bible (1583); Geneva Bible (1608).[5] This supports the notion that the word truly means "departure." In fact, Jeromeīs Latin translation known as THE VULGATE..., RENDERED APOSTASIA WITH THE "WORD DISCESSIO MEANING īDEPARTUREī" (emphasis mine).
Why was the King James Version the first to depart from the established translation of "departure ? The root of "apostacia" is "apo." It means a distance of separation.
In II Thess. 2,3, we are not told from what or whom there is a departing, only that there is THE DEPARTURE. In the Bible, when the article is used, it refers to something that we should understand, because of a previous reference to it. In this case, our previous reference is in I Thess. 4:13-18. THE CATCHING UP IS THE DEPARTURE, THE RAPTURE. Liddell and Scott give the second meaning of apostasia as a DEPARTURE OR DISAPPEARANCE.
Some have departed from the faith all along, but this is "HE APOSTASIA," THE DEPARTURE, a specific departure, some special sign that had to come first before the Day of the Lord comes. Isaiah 57:1 says that the righteous are taken away from the evil to come.
II Thess. 2:1-3 (Geneva) says, "Nowe we beseech you, brethren (believers), by the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ, and by our assembling vnto him (i.e., AT THE RAPTURE), That ye be not suddenly mooued from your minde, nor troubled neither by spirit, nor by worde, nor by letter, as it were from vs, as though the day of Christ (major MSS have īday of the Lordī) were at hand. Let no man deceiue you by any meanes: for that day shall not come, except there come A DEPARTING FIRST (i.e., the Pre-Trib Rapture), and that that man of sinne be disclosed, euen the sonne of perdition" (i.e., as the Tribulation begins).
II Thess. 2:1-3 (HNV) says, " Now, brothers (believers), concerning the coming of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, and our gathering together to him (AT THE RAPTURE), we ask you not to be quickly shaken in your mind, nor yet be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by letter as from us, saying that the day of Messiah (Day of the Lord) had come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For IT WILL NOT BE, UNLESS THE DEPARTURE COMES FIRST, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of destruction" (as the Tribulation begins).
II Thess. 2:1-3 (WEB) says, "Now, brothers (believers), concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to him (AT THE RAPTURE), we ask you not to be quickly shaken in your mind, nor yet be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by letter as from us, saying that the day of Christ (i.e., Day of the Lord) had come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For IT WILL NOT BE, UNLESS THE DEPARTURE COMES FIRST (i.e., before the Tribulation), and the man of sin is revealed, the son of destruction." He will be revealed when he strengthens the covenant of Dan. 9:27 at the beginning of the Tribulation.
II Th 2:15-17 (KJV) says, "So then, brothers (brethren), stand firm, and hold the traditions which you were taught by us (including I Thess. 4:1-18), whether by word, or by letter. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, COMFORT your hearts and establish you in every good work and word."
I Cor. 15:42-44 (KJV) tells us that the dead will be raised in incorruption, but immortality comes later. It says, "So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; IT IS RAISED IN INCORRUPTION. It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; IT IS RAISED A SPIRITUAL BODY. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body." Thatīs why John literally said that he became "in the spirit" on the Lordīs day in Rev. 4:2 (see Rev. 1:10 too).
At the Last Trump, the Pre-Wrath Rapture, those raised in incorruption will also be made immortal. I Cor. 15:51-54 (KJV) says, "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 (Paul and all other believers) 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."
PARALLELS HELP US UNDERSTAND
If we didnīt catch it the first time, we can catch it the second time. Both statements must agree.
FIRST MENTION
2Th 2:3 "...except there come a falling away (DEPARTING) first, and that man of sin be revealed (second), the son of perdition;"
l. First, the Bride of Christ leaves in THE DEPARTURE.
2. Then the man of sin is revealed.
SECOND MENTION
2Th 2:7,8: "only he who now letteth will let (Old English for hindereth will hinder), until he be taken out of the way" (i.e., IN THE DEPARTURE). And then (tote, at the same time) shall that Wicked be revealed".
1. The hinderer, the Bride of Christ, is taken out of the way at THE DEPARTURE.
2. At the same time, the False Prophet is revealed.
PUT THEM TOGETHER, AND WHAT HAVE WE CONFIRMED?
1. At the Rapture, the Body of Christ departs and therefore quits hindering the appearance of the Man of sin.
2. At the same time, the wicked Man of sin is revealed.
1Co 10:13 says, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to ESCAPE, that ye may be able to bear it. " Just as sure as God makes a way for us to escape our trials and tribulations, he WITH THE TRIBULATION, i.e., at itīs beginning, will "ALSO MAKE A WAY TO ESCAPE" (i.e., in the Pre-Trib Rapture).
In Luke 12:34-36, Jesus said, "take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so THAT DAY (THE DAY OF THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE) come upon you unawares. For as a snare (trap) shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be ACCOUNTED WORTHY TO ESCAPE (i.e., in the Rapture) all these things that shall (i.e., after the Rapture) come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man."
Be encouraged. Heb 10:34-37 says, "ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For YET A LITTLE WHILE, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry."
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