Rapture and Appearing Chart

Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Some New Testament Passages Every Member of the Body & Bride of Christ (Heavenly Saints) HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** 2 Thess. 2:1 2 Thess. 2:8; 1:7-10 John 14:1-3 Col. 3:4 1 Thess. 4:15-18; 1:10; 5:4-11, 23; 2:19-20 1 Thess. 3:13 Jude 14-15 Rev. 3:10-11 Acts 3:19-21 Acts 1:11 Matt. 24:3,27-51; 25:31-32; 19:28; 13:41,49 1 Cor. 15:48-55; 4:5; 11:26; 16:22 Mark 13:26-27,32-37; 14:62 Phil. 3:20-21 Luke 17:24,30; 21:25-28 James 5:7-9 1 Tim. 6:14-15 Rom. 13:11-12 2 Tim. 4:1, 8 Jude 21 2 Pet. 1:16; 3:3-4; 1 Pet. 1:7,11b,13; 4:13 Heb. 9:28 Rev. 1:7; 19:11-16; 3:3; 3:21; 11:15; 16:15 Rev. 22:17,12-13,20-21; 2:25,28 1 Cor. 1:7 (“revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ”) 1 Cor. 1:8 (“day of our Lord Jesus Christ”) 1 John 2:28a (“manifested”) 1 John 2:28b (“coming”) 1 John 3:2a (“manifested”) 1 John 3:2b (“we shall see Him as He is”) Tit. 2:13b (“appearing of the glory”) Tit. 2:13a (“blessed hope”) Note that both stages of His “Coming” (or ‘Presence’) are encompassed in the one phrase in , e.g., 1 Cor. 15:23: “For since by man came death, by man also resurrection of those that are dead. For as in [in virtue of] the Adam all die, thus also in [in virtue of] the Christ all shall be made alive. But each in his own rank: the first-fruits, Christ; then those that are the Christ's at [or in] His coming [which covers both Rapture and Manifestation phases of His “coming”].” (1 Cor. 15:21-23) His coming FOR us all His coming WITH us all All who have died are resurrected, and All of us who are living are transformed—and All are Translated/Caught Up together into the air to be ever with the Lord When He appears, we all appear WITH HIM in glory (Col. 3:4) [Note that in the Rapture, in His coming FOR us, there is no “manifestation (or appearing) of His coming” (2 Thess. 2:8), as when He does so come with respect to the world] [Note that He does NOT Appear (is not Manifested) WITHOUT us or BEFORE us or TO us while we are yet on earth (as is true of other subsequent groups, e.g., Matt. 24:30-31); rather, when He Appears, He Appears TOGETHER WITH us. For His heavenly saints, the scenario is NOT: He appears in glory alone, without us, and then He catches us up from the earth to be with Him, and then we too appear in glory. It is altogether the contrary: at the “manifestation of His coming,” “when Christ appears,” we are ALREADY WITH Him, for we all APPEAR WITH Him in glory (Col. 3:4). Thus the Rapture and the Appearing must be separate and distinct phases of His coming, with the former necessarily preceding and facilitating the latter.] Page 1 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Those Affected who are Alive on This Earth at the Time HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** All Heavenly Saints (In Christ, neither Jew nor Gentile in their standing before God) THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** (1) All Earthly Saints who survive through the entire Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70th Week (Jew and Gentile believers in their standing before God)  Jewish Saints (Godly Jewish Remnant): Those living In the Land of Israel and those living in the dispersion, among the nations, who are Regathered by the sovereign grace and power of Jehovah-Messiah to the Land in their natural bodies (unglorified state)  Gentile Saints: The great crowd of Rev. 7:917 which no one can number, those who come out of the great tribulation in their natural bodies (unglorified state), from among every nation and tribes and peoples and tongues, who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb—i.e., those composing the Sheep in the Judgment of the Sheep and the Goats of Matt. 25 (2) All Unbelieving Jews and Gentiles who survive through the entire Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70 th Week Timing and Signs Pre-Tribulational/Pre-70th Week and Imminent: To be looked for with expectant hearts as possible at any moment Post-Tribulational/Post-70th Week, which is at least, roughly, 7 years away—and potentially longer, if God sees fit to allow for a brief transition period between the Rapture and the onset of the 7-year Tribulation/70th Week. Nonetheless, neither the specific day nor the specific hour is known No signs or prophetic events must be fulfilled, awaited, or looked for by the heavenly Body & Bride of Christ before He thus comes Signs and prophetic events must be fulfilled and ought to be looked and prepared for by the elect, godly Jewish remnant of the Tribulation Period before the Son of Man thus comes “The Spirit and the Bride [currently waiting on earth] say: Come [Come NOW, Lord Jesus, our Bridegroom]!” (Rev. 22:17) Page 2 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Daniel’s 70 Week th HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** Will precede the onset of the 70th Week of Daniel (with God possibly allowing for a brief transition period between the Rapture and the beginning of the 70th Week, just as there was a transition period between the death and resurrection of Christ and the beginning of the mystery period of the formation of the heavenly Body & Bride of Christ on the Day of Pentecost by the special arrival of the Holy Spirit on earth) THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Will occur at the end of the 70th Week of Daniel (not on the exact day or hour of its termination, but in connection with it), when the Church will appear, out of heaven, with Christ in glory The Church was not part of the first 69 of the 70 Weeks of years, and will not be part of the last, i.e., 70th Week/7-year Tribulation Period (See also the sections on “Times and Seasons” and “Day of the LORD”) Daniel 9:24-27—“Seventy weeks [or, “Seventy sevens” of years] are apportioned out upon thy people [Daniel’s people, Israel] and upon thy holy city [Jerusalem], to close the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make expiation for [or, to purge, forgive] iniquity, and to bring in the righteousness of the ages, and to seal the vision and prophet, and to anoint the holy of holies. Know therefore and understand: From the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem unto Messiah, the Prince, are seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks [for a total of 69 weeks of years]. The street and the moat shall be built again, even in troublous times. And after the sixty-two weeks [which follow the first 7 weeks, for a total of 69 weeks of years; thus, not after 69 ½ weeks . . . not during the 70th week, but after 69 weeks] shall Messiah be cut off [in the death of the cross], and shall have nothing [of His earthly kingdom glories]; and [again, sometime “after” the 69 weeks of years have expired, and as a consequence of the Messiah being cut off, thereby implying His rejection unto death by His own people Israel] the city and the sanctuary shall be destroyed by the people of the prince that shall come [not by the coming prince himself, but by “the people” of this prince that shall come; and not by the people of the Messiah-Prince who was cut off, but by the people of this prince that is yet to come (the prophetic figure spoken of earlier in 7:8, 20-21, 24-26, the prince of the fourth beast, the Roman Empire), as seen in the next verse (v. 27); it is this “people” that “shall destroy the city and the sanctuary”—as was fulfilled in the 70AD destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Roman “people” (the Roman Empire-people), after an almost 40-year gap between the expiration of the 69 weeks of years and the “cutting off” of the Messiah]; and the end thereof shall be with an overflow, and unto the end, war, -- the desolations determined. And he [“the (Roman) prince that shall come,” just mentioned in the latter half of the preceding verse] shall confirm a covenant with the many for one week [for the seven years of the final/70th week, at some unrevealed time subsequent to the (70AD) destruction of “the city and the sanctuary”; and, of course, Christ, the MessiahPrince, has never confirmed any covenant with anyone for a seven-year period after 70AD (or at any other time for that matter); nor did Titus Vespasianus]; and in the midst of the week [at the mid-point of the 70th week, 3 ½ years into this final seven-year period] he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease [having thus previously been restored], and because of the protection of abominations there shall be a desolator, even until that the consumption and what is determined shall be poured out upon the desolate.” [The final 3 ½ years (of the 70th week) are also spoken of in 7:25 (in connection with the coming Roman prince), and again in 12:7.] Page 3 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Destination ‘Removing’ and ‘Leaving’ Procedure Followed HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** The Father’s House with Christ, the Heaven of heavens (in our glorified state), whence is our citizenship THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** (1) With respect to all Earthly Saints alive at the time: Entrance into “eternal life,” i.e., the earthly sphere of the Messiah’s Kingdom in power and glory at its establishment on the Millennial Earth— Israel being the Head and Gentiles the Tail (commencing in the Regeneration of the present Earth in their natural bodies so as to populate and propagate therein, and consummated ultimately on the New Earth in the glorified state) “Simon Peter says to Him, Lord, where goest thou? Jesus answered him, Where I go thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow Me after. . . Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe on God, believe also on Me. In My Father's house [in Heaven] there are many abodes; were it not so, I had told you: for I go to prepare you a place; and if I go and shall prepare you a place, I am coming again and shall receive you to Myself, that where I am [in My Father’s house, in Heaven] ye also may be.” (John 13:36, 14:1-3) (2) With respect to all Unbelieving Jews and Gentiles alive at the time: Eternal Fire/ Eternal Punishment (commencing with Sheol/Hades in the disembodied state, and consummated ultimately and everlastingly with the Lake of Fire/the Second Death in the resurrection state) All believers are removed from earth through translation to Heaven (in their glorified state) while all unsaved ones are left on earth to enter the forthcoming 70th Week/Tribulation Period [In the exact reverse of the Rapture procedure:] All unsaved are removed from the earth through judgment while all saved ones are left on earth in blessing to populate and propagate within the Millennial Period in their natural bodies Cf. Zeph. 3:11-12 as to the Jews: “In that day thou shalt not be ashamed for all thy doings wherein thou hast transgressed against me; for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that exult in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. And I will leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of Jehovah.” (Cp. also Matt. 24:37-42 with Luke 17:26-37, as well as Matt. 13:40-43, 49-50; Isa. 4:3-4) Ground and Association Entirely of sovereign grace and in absolute blessing, purely a matter of salvation (consummation of the Church’s salvation), wholly apart from and unconnected with judgment of sins or wrath of God Includes subjection to God’s judgments and wrath or experience of His sovereign grace and entering further into the blessings of individual and national salvation, according to one’s grouping (believing or unbelieving, Jew or Gentile) (Heavenly Saints in Christ are not subject to God’s wrath in any way, shape or form; cf. 1 Thess. 1:10; 5:9; Rom. 5:9) (Earthly saints will be exposed to God’s judgments and wrath during the preceding Tribulation Period) Page 4 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To “Times and Seasons” OT Prophecy Audio-Visual Effect HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** N/A: A hope which is unearthly and thus An anticipation which is intimately connected with wholly unconnected with “times and seasons” the earthly “times and seasons” “Times and seasons have to do with ‘the day of the Lord,’ when execution of divine judgment, comes on the world, not on the dead yet but the quick. . . [But] the hope of the heavenly saints, is altogether independent of the revelation of earthly events, as it is before their accomplishment; and therefore is that hope precisely the same for us now as for those in apostolic times, allowing time for its full revelation by the apostle Paul.” (WK) “It is not yours to know [Gr. ginosko, know by experience] times or seasons.” (Acts 1:7) “But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that ye should be written to, for ye know [Gr. oida, know by inward conscious knowledge] perfectly well yourselves, that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief by night.” (1 Thess. 5:1-2) The Spirit Author of these two Scriptures does not and cannot contradict Himself. Observing the difference in the Greek word for “know” in each passage clears away the apparent difficulty and discloses a blessed truth: Acts 1:7 means that times and seasons (of the Day of the LORD) were not to be the earthly portion of the disciples (or of any of us heavenly saints) to “know” by experiencing them. For the times and seasons are not connected with the Rapture. As such, we do not “know” them in the sense of becoming objectively acquainted with them by entering into/by experiencing them. Nonetheless, as a subject matter, we heavenly saints are by no means ignorant of the times and seasons; we “know” them thus perfectly well from heeding God’s prophetic Word (1 Thess. 5:1-2), which is all for us though not all about us. Note: “times” (Gr. chronos) refer to the prophetic periods in relation to the earth (in connection with the Day of the LORD, including Daniel’s 70th Week and Millennial times in the restoring of the kingdom to Israel, Acts 1:6) while “seasons” (Gr. kairos) refer to the characteristics of those prophetic periods. (Cf. the Millennial “seasons of refreshing” and the Millennial “times of restoration” in Acts 3:19, 21) None: A “Mystery,” a “Secret,” Unrevealed in OT Prophecy (1 Cor. 15:51-55) Grand Subject of OT Prophecy (Note: The type, e.g., of Enoch’s translation out of this world before the world-wide Flood Judgment is NOT prophecy) (For a sampling, see: Gen. 49:10; Num. 24:17-19; Deut. 30:3-6; 1 Sam. 2:10; Ps. 2:6-12; Ps. 45; 72; 89:27-37; 96:9-13; 98:3-9; 99:1-5; Ps. 102:12-22; 110:1-6; Isa. 60; 26:20-21; 30:27-28; 32:1-4,13-18; 33:17-24; 35:1-10; 40:10-11; 59:17-21; 62:11-12; 63:1-6; Ezek. 43:2-9; Dan. 2:34-35, 44-45; 7:13-14; Hos. 5:15-6:3; Zeph. 3:8-20; Hag. 2:5-9; Zech. 2:1013; 8:2-8; 9:10,14-17; 14:3-5,9; Mal. 4:2,5; Joel 2:31; 3:1-2,12-21; Amos 9:11-15 w/Acts 15:15-16; and cf. Jude 14-15) Takes place in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, effected sooner than the mind can compute or the eye can discern what has transpired. It is thus not witnessed by the world as it occurs. As the lightning goes forth from the east and shines to the west, from one end of heaven to the other, so shall be the coming of the Son of Man in His day. Every eye on earth will see Him when He so comes. Page 5 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To OT Types The Four Gospels HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** Pictured by Enoch (Gen. 5:21-24; Heb. 11:5), who, as a singular entity, is translated, caught up and removed from this world altogether before the world-wide judgment of the Flood—the outpouring of God's wrath— arrived THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Pictured by Noah and his family (Gen. 6-9; 1 Pet. 3:20; Heb. 11:7), who are a type of that part of the godly Jewish remnant which is preserved through the world-wide judgment, and delivered at the conclusion thereof to enter and reside on the renewed earth in their natural/unglorified state In the Gospel of John only In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) John 14:1-3 Matt. 10:23; 13:41,49; 16:27-17:1-5 [cp. 2 Pet. 1:16-19]; 19:28; 23:39; 24:3-25:31; 26:64 Mark 8:38-9:8; 13:3-37; 14:62 Luke 12:35-48; 13:35; 17:24-37; 18:8; 19:11-27; 21:8-11, 24b-36; 23:42; 24:26 Cf. also John 7:4 The Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit departs out of the world with the Church, solely with respect to the special manner in which He arrived and commenced His unique ministry and residency on the Day of Pentecost, after the Lord Jesus ascended in heavenly glory at the right hand of God, to form the heavenly people—Christ’s Body & Bride, in which the Spirit of God dwells corporately and individually The Holy Spirit is poured out on all redeemed flesh (cf. Joel 2:28-31), whether earthly Jewish or Gentile saints, who survive through the entire Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70th Week to enter the Millennial Kingdom in their natural (unglorified) bodies (See 2 Thess. 2:6-7; and cf. John 7:39 and Acts 19:2) (The Holy Spirit will, of course, be at work during the Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70th Week, in much the same way He was in OT times, working faith and divine life in the souls of elect Jews and Gentiles, and enabling, equipping, authenticating ministry in speaking forth the Word of God, etc) In 2 Thess. 2:6-7 we see that He who restrains the ‘mystery of lawlessness’ (now for the past 2,000 years), thereby preventing the manifestation of the ‘lawless one’ (man of sin, Antichrist), must be "gone out of the way" (2:7) before the manifestation of the lawless one can occur. That Restrainer must be none other than God, and specifically the Holy Spirit who is the Person of the Triune Godhead who is dwelling in the Church on earth. And when He is "gone out of the way," the Church, necessarily, must go with Him (for He has been given to be with us forever, John 14:16). The fact is, the dwelling of the Holy Spirit on earth (in the unique capacity in which He arrived on the Day of Pentecost, cf. John 7:39 and Acts 19:2) makes it impossible for the mystery of lawlessness to culminate in the manifestation of the lawless one. Until the Holy Spirit “goes out of the way” (as no longer on earth in the distinctive sense in which He came at Pentecost, and thus requiring the Rapture of the Church), there will be no Antichrist and thus no 70 th Week. Page 6 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To The Holy Spirit [Continued] “Son of Man” Symbolic Astronomical Representation HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** “Lawlessness is the very essence of sin. It is the refusal of all controlling authority and restraint, and therefore in deadly opposition to God. The lawlessness, which has long been at work in Christendom in a mysterious or hidden way like a suppressed fire, is going to blaze forth in the lawless one. But this will only be when the [heavenly] saints of God are removed from the scene of conflict by the coming of the Lord for them. At present the forces of evil are under restraint . . . There is 'He who restrains' [masculine pronoun, v.7] and also 'what restrains' [neuter pronoun, v.6]. The former doubtless refers to the Holy Spirit of God, who is at this time personally upon earth as He never was before and will not be again. The latter, we believe, refers to the presence of the church on earth; the church being the house of God wherein the Holy Ghost is dwelling." (FBH) N/A: The Lord Jesus is NEVER said to so come in the character of “Son of Man” The Lord Jesus is INDEED said to so come in the character of “Son of Man” For the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him has absolutely no association with judgment of sin “In His quality of Son of man,” the Lord’s coming “notoriously attaches to Him as executor of judgment (see John 5)” (WK) Morning Star Sun of Righteousness Mal. 4:2 2 Pet. 1:19; Rev. 2:28; 22:16 The “Morning Star”’ and the “Sun of Righteousness” are most fitting symbols, respectively, of the two phases of the coming of the Lord Jesus. For the morning star is seen by relatively few when the night is far spent and rises in the heavens before the sun appears to announce the dawn of the new day. The “Morning Star” speaks of Himself in His Pre-70 th Week coming for His heavenly saints to catch us up to the Father’s house before the great day of His manifestation, before the “Sun of Righteousness” arises to introduce His radiant Millennial Reign in power and great glory. “The morning star as such precedes the sunrise; does not enlighten the earth . . . In Scripture it is the seal upon the closing page of the New Testament, as the Sun of righteousness is the seal upon the last page of the Old. It is connected with heaven alone; while the Sun in its rising brings heaven and earth together.” (FWG) “For those who watch during the night of man's day before the Lord appears in His glory, for those who watch with bridal affections, not sleeping as do others — how does He speak to such? How is He made known to them? ‘I am the bright, the morning star.’ Blessed star of morn before the day comes! We watch not for the day, but for Him during the night, and He will give us the morning star, the harbinger of the dawn.” “This [Sun of Righteousness] is not the morning star, which is rather the way in which we [heavenly saints] know Jesus, and look for Him. The morning star is as decidedly for those who during the night look up into the heavens, as the Sun of righteousness causes His force to be felt in calling man to be occupied with his work here below. It is the sun that rules the day. Be it that the day of Jehovah is come; the Sun of righteousness rules it. You cannot avoid seeing sunlight unless you shut your eyes, and even then may have an instinctive sense of it. But with the morning star it is not so: you must look for it when others sleep. This is the way therefore in which the Spirit of God shows us our watching for Jesus. It is exclusively heavenly.” (WK) Page 7 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Trumpet(s) HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** The time of the sounding of the “last trumpet,” the “trump of God” (1 Thess. 4:16 and 1 Cor. 15:52) is at the Rapture WHEN Christ descends into the air **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The time of the sounding of the trumpet of Matt. 24:31 and Isa. 27:13 is sometime after the Appearing—which itself occurs sometime after the sounding of the 7th trumpet of Rev. 11:15-18 The sounding of this trumpet has its application in connection with something entirely for Heaven—NOT in connection with any prophetic earthly events: It means simply the final summons when we heavenly saints leave our earthly sojourn to join the Lord The sounding of the trumpet of Matt. 24:31 and Isa. 27:13 (for the gathering of the elect Jewish remnant to their Land), along with the preceding sounding of the 7th trumpet of Rev. 11:15-18 (especially for judgment on Gentiles), have their application entirely in connection with prophetic earthly events “For this we say to you in the word of the Lord, that we, the living, who remain to the coming of the Lord, are in no way to precede those who have fallen asleep; for the Lord himself, with an assembling shout, with archangel's voice and with trump of God, shall descend from heaven; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we, the living who remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we shall be always with the Lord. So encourage one another with these words.” (1 Thess. 4:13-18) “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed, in an instant, in [the] twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (1 Cor. 15:51-52) First: “The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe comes quickly. And the seventh angel sounded his trumpet: and there were great voices in the heaven, saying, The world-kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ is come, and he shall reign to the ages of ages. . . And the nations have been full of wrath, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead to be judged, and to give the recompense to thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to those who fear thy name, small and great; and to destroy those that destroy the earth. . . And I saw another sign in the heaven, great and wonderful: seven angels having seven plagues, the last ones; for in them the fury of God is completed.” (Rev. 11:14-15, 18; 15:1) Page 8 THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING Then: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days . . . shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the land lament, and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect [godly Jewish elect] from the four winds, from the one extremity of the heavens to the other extremity of them.” (Matt. 24:29-31) “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown; and they shall come that were perishing in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and they shall worship Jehovah in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.” (Isa. 27:13) Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Trumpet(s) [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The "7th trumpet" of Rev. 11:15-18 is no more identical to the “last trumpet" or ”trump of God” of 1 Cor. 15:52 and 1 Thess. 4:16, nor even to the "great sound of a trumpet" in Matt. 24:31, than the “ark” that Noah was in is to be identified with the “ark” that Moses was in. There is not the least basis to link or confuse these trumpets one with the other. In fact:  “the last trumpet” is a “trump of God,” sounded directly by God, not the trump of an angel, sounded by angels as seen in the Book of Revelation—where the series of trumpets, moreover, open up judgments!  the 7th trumpet of Revelation is not even the "last” trumpet; it is only last in a specified series of seven in the Book of Revelation (a series which was revealed long after 1 Thessalonians and 1 Corinthians were written; and thus the apostle Paul could not have been alluding to it). In actuality, it is not the absolute last trumpet ever to be blown! Christ will come in glory (the manifestation of His coming), AFTER the sounding of the 7th trumpet of Rev. 11:15-18; and sometime AFTER He comes in glory ANOTHER trumpet will sound for the regathering of the elect godly Jewish remnant to their Land (Matt. 24:31 and Isa. 27:13)—that “great sound of the trumpet” which sounds "AFTER the Tribulation of those days" (Matt. 24:29, and thus after the sounding of the 7th trumpet of Rev. 11:15-18, and after the pouring out of the seven last plagues of the seven bowls completing the wrath of God on earth, Rev. 15-16). “The ‘last trump’ of 1 Cor. 15 is an allusion to the final signal of the break up of a Roman camp for its march. It has nothing whatever to do with the loud sound of trumpet in Matt. 24 (with which cp. Isa. 27:13), any more than with the seven trumpets of Rev. 7-11. . . 1 Cor. 15 presents (and so I may add 1 Thess. 4) our last trump, because the question is of the risen saints; Matt. 24: 31, presents, if you will, the last trump of the Jewish saints then scattered over the earth. How does this identify the two, even if the trumpet in Matt. 24 had been styled the last trump, or "his elect," were called "all the elect," neither of which is the fact? Is it a contradiction if the historian speaks of the last trump sounding for the tenth legion in Gaul, and of the trumpet gathering the twelfth legion in Syria?”(WK) " 'The last trump' of 1 Corinthians 15 means simply the final summons when the heavenly saints leave their earthly sojourn to join the Lord – a figure, like others in the chapter, taken from familiar military matters. The trumpet in the gospel [of Matthew, Ch. 24] is rather connected with the divine call to gather Israel from all lands according to the prophets." [With respect to the significance of “the last trump” of 1 Cor. 15:] “In the Roman army, when it was about to move, the trumpet sounded three times: at the first trumpet they pulled down their tents; at the second trumpet they put themselves in order; and when the last sounded they started.”(JND) "In the military signals, the last trumpet was the one that actually set them in motion. Josephus says, in the breaking up of the Roman camp, at the first trumpet the tents were struck and all made ready for moving. At the second trumpet, the beasts were laden, and fire was set to the abandoned camp. With the last trumpet to start them, it was demanded if all were ready, and the shout arose, 'we are ready,' and with uplifted hands they marched. (Wars iii. 5, 4.) Cf. 1 Thess. iv. 16, where there are three signals: the Lord with a shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God." (WS) Page 9 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Enjoyment of “Rest” by those composing the Body & Bride of Christ (the Church) HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** There is God’s “rest” into which all of us collectively and privately enter at the coming of the Lord Jesus for His heavenly people, at the Rapture, in our glorified state (in connection with our future deliverance from the presence of sin in perfected heavenly glory, all of us together entering into and sharing God’s everlasting rest in what satisfies His love and holiness according to His purpose fully realized in Christ Jesus, Heb. 4:1 and 4:3, Gr. katapausis; Heb. 4:9, Gr. sabbatismos; Heb. 4:10 (twice), Gr. katapausis and katapauo; Heb. 4:11, Gr. katapausis) THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** There is a “rest” which all glorified saints will collectively and publicly enjoy in the Revelation of the Lord Jesus (in connection with the execution of judgment on all unbelievers living at that time on this earth, 2 Thess. 1:7, Gr. anesis) There is also present positional and practical “rest” that we believers individually both possess once-for-all now (in connection with our past deliverance from the penalty of sin, with full relief in conscience from the toil of law and the burden of sin, Matt. 11:28, Gr. anapauo) and experience progressively now (in connection with our present deliverance from the power of sin, with daily rest of heart in the submissive acceptance of God's will, Matt. 11:29, Gr. anapausis). There is a further “rest” into which believers individually enter at death, in the intermediate state (in connection with deliverance from the presence of sin—see, e.g., the Tribulation martyrs who die during the first half of the future 70th week of Daniel, who are told to “rest” while waiting on the sovereign Lord to judge and avenge their blood, Rev. 6:11, Gr. anapauo; and the Tribulation martyrs who die during the second half of Daniel’s 70 th week, who are told to “rest” from the labors through which they passed, Rev. 14:13, Gr. anapauo). [This contrasts with the everlasting lack of “rest” in eternal torment for the lost immediately upon death, as illustrated with those upon whom the wrath of God is poured out for worshipping the beast and its image and receiving the mark of its name during the second half of the 70th week, Rev. 14:11, Gr. anapausis.] Now 2 Thess. 1:7-10 speaks of our Lord's public manifestation to the world in judgment on this earth, not the blessed hope of His coming to Rapture His own to heaven. Thus the "rest" spoken of in 2 Thess. 1:7, which we, His heavenly Body & Bride, will be enjoying at His public manifestation, is public rest. In the Manifestation of His Coming, the Lord Jesus will recompense judgment to all living unbelievers, whereas, at that very time, He will be recompensing (publicly awarding) "rest" to us who are returning WITH Him! The passage says not one whit to contravene the blessed truth that we will have been enjoying rest (private rest, if you will) ever since the Rapture prior to the 70th Week. The passage speaks only to the fact that we will be enjoying said rest (publicly) while the world of the ungodly is being meted out its just judgment (publicly) by the Lord in great power and glory. Said another way, 2 Thess. 1:7 in no way implies that the public manifestation of the Lord in judgment at His revelation will be the first time ever that we, who compose His Body & Bride, will experience any "rest." For have not those among us who have died prior to the coming of the Lord been experiencing rest in His presence in heaven (absent from the body, present with the Lord)? Page 10 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Enjoyment of “Rest” by those composing the Body & Bride of Christ (the Church) [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The apostles, e.g., have been enjoying that kind of rest for the past 2,000 years! Does that conflict with the “rest” spoken of in 2 Thess. 1:7? In no way! Likewise, neither does the private rest we will be enjoying in our glorified state upon the Pre-70th Week Rapture clash with the experience of the public rest about 7 years later when we return with Him in judgment upon the world! "2 Thessalonians 1 speaks solely of publicly awarded rest and tribulation when Jesus is revealed. . . A previous translation is no more a difficulty for the saints caught up to heaven than a previous tribulation for Jews and Gentiles on earth." (WK) "The revelation and the day of the Lord are, as is manifest, associated with judgment, and hence there is the public award of God then for the first time manifested to the world; 'seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; and to you who are troubled rest with us; when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed.' Doubtless there is a tribulation, and even the great tribulation in the time of Anti-Christ, previous to the revelation of Jesus; as obviously there is rest to those who sleep in Jesus now; and there will be rest in a fuller sense when our bodies are changed, and we are caught up to be with Him. But both are wholly distinct from the public or retributive tribulation and rest here spoken of. It is the day of punishment with everlasting destruction to the adversaries, as it is the day when Christ comes, not to present the Church to Himself, nor to take them to mansions in the Father's house, but to be glorified in His saints, and to be marvelled at in all them that believed. For 'when Christ, our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.' It is the open judicial dealing (not the hidden joy or blessedness, before, then, or afterwards,) which here enters into the scene." (WK) “Thief in the Night” Figure N/A: The Lord Jesus does NOT so come, i.e., as an object associated in anyway with dread and apprehension, but exclusively as a blessed hope, solely as an object and occasion of indescribable joy, comfort and blessing Christ does INDEED so come (Matt. 24:43; Luke 12:39; Rev. 3:3; 16:15), in order inculcate dread and apprehension in the fear of sure judgment at His hands where there is a lack of reality/spiritual preparedness amongst Jewish and Gentile professors and on the world at large (The Day of the LORD—in its initiating phase with the opening of the Tribulation/Daniel’s 70th Week (see next section)—itself arrives as a ‘thief in the night,’ 1 Thess. 5:1-4; 2 Pet. 3:10) Note that a thief in the night is unwanted, unlooked for, unexpected. Thus His coming with respect to His heavenly people, who have been placed of God in an ever expectant posture on earth, eagerly desiring and looking for Him at any moment, can have absolutely no connection with such a “thief in the night” character. “The Spirit and the Bride say, Come!” (Rev. 22:17), which expresses what is proper to each Christian as such, and the Church collectively, as indwelt and actuated by the Holy Spirit. Page 11 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** Day of the LORD N/A: The Day of the LORD is earthly and and the Great connected with “times and seasons” (see and Gloriously above), and thus wholly unconnected with Appearing Day of the heavenly Church and its heavenly hope the LORD (Rapture)—which precedes the Day of the (Jehovah) LORD (in its Tribulation/70th Week opening phase, which relates not to “you”/“we”/“us,” but to “they”/“them,” 1 Thess. 5:3) In Relation To THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The coming of the "Great and Dreadful," or "Great and Gloriously Appearing," Day of the LORD (cf. Mal. 4:5; Joel 2:31; Acts 2:20) is the phase thereof which marks the actual point of the personal Appearing of Jehovah-Jesus, the Manifestation of His Coming, in great power and glory to this earth The “Day of the LORD” (Day of Jehovah) is an epoch which commences with the Tribulation/Daniel's 70th Week—and thus prior to the coming of the King of kings to this earth in order to establish His kingdom, but sometime after the Rapture. It is a mistake to tie the beginning of the Day of the LORD with either the Rapture or the Appearing, rather than with the 70th Week. The coming of the "Great and Dreadful," or, "Great and Gloriously Appearing," phase of the Day of the LORD (Mal. 4:5; Joel 2:31; Acts 2:20), however, does indeed mark the actual time of the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven in great power and glory to the world (cf. also “the day drawing near” of Heb. 10:25). The Day of the LORD as an epoch encompasses the Millennium as well—lasting through the destruction of the present heavens and earth, whereupon “the Day of God,” “the Day of Eternity,” commences with the creation of the New Heavens and the New Earth (cf. 2 Pet. 3:7-12, 18; Rev. chaps. 19, 20, 21; and OT passages that speak, at times, of the “Day of the LORD” upon this present earth in terms of its purely Millennial glory phase). It is vital, then, to observe the specific phase of the one epoch of the Day of the LORD dealt with in any given passage of Scripture (i.e., the Tribulation phase, the Appearing phase, the Millennial phase, and the Destruction of the present heavens and earth phase). Moreover, that there is a phase of the “the Day of the LORD” that includes the Tribulation Period/70 th Week accords with prophetic scripture which depicts the “Day of the LORD” (or “that day”), in its Introductory phase, in the day of His wrath, as a unique time of “tribulation,” “trouble,” “distress,” “birth pains” in what is uniquely the worst period of divine judgment in world history—as is the Tribulation Period/70th Week as a whole and progressively so, especially the 2nd half or its last 3 ½ years. And there obviously cannot be two distinct Tribulation Periods characterized as the worst divine judgments in world history! (Cp. Joel 2:1-2; Jer. 30:7; Dan. 12:1; Mark 13:19; Matt. 24:15-16, 19-21; Rev. 7:14; 3:10-11; 16:18; Zeph. 1:14-18; Rev. 6:12-17; Isa. 2:10, 12, 19-21; 13:6-13; Rev. 15:1, 7; 16:1; 1 Thess. 1:10; 5:1-4, 9; along with the sudden/unexpected and then more intensive “birth pains” of divine judgment and wrath executed during the Day of the LORD in Matt. 24:8; 1 Thess. 5:1-4, 9; Isa. 13:6-8; Jer. 30:6-7). All of which accords perfectly with 2 Thess. 2. The Tribulation Period/70th Week is thus identified with the introductory phase of the Day of the LORD. Observe that in 2 Thess. 2, the apostle Paul does not correct the saints by telling them that the Day of the LORD could not be present unless the Son of Man is revealed, but that it could not be present unless the man of lawlessness is revealed! (which he will be when the Restrainer and that which restrains be gone, v. 6-8a, and he is thus revealed when the covenant is confirmed for seven years by the head of the revived Roman empire with the mass of apostate Israel at the onset of the 70 th Week, Dan. 9:27). Nor does the apostle suggest that one of the errors that the Thessalonians imbibed was that of identifying the Tribulation Period/70th Week with the beginning phase of the Day of the LORD—which is precisely and obviously what they believed (in accordance with OT prophecy). They were shaken in mind and troubled because they believed that they were then and there in the Tribulation/70th Week, by being misled into thinking that "the Day of the LORD is present." Which itself proves absolutely that the coming of the Lord and our gathering together unto Him (2:1, the Rapture) can in no way be one and the same as the arrival of “the Day of the LORD” (2:2): for the former (truth) they eagerly and joyfully looked for, while the latter (deception) greatly troubled them. The anti-PreTribulation error of the then presence of the Day of the LORD is what the apostle, by the Spirit, masterfully disproves. Page 12 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Day of the LORD Additionally, if the beginning of the Day of the LORD were simply synonymous with the Lord's Appearing and return to this earth, then how could the Thessalonian saints have possibly ever been misled into and the Great believing that the Day was then present? Who can seriously entertain for a moment that the and Gloriously Appearing Day of Thessalonians thought that the Lord Himself was present, that He had actually returned, or that they were incapable of noticing whether or not such was the case?! the LORD (Jehovah) Finally, in 1 Thess. 4 and 5 the apostle Paul clearly distinguishes between the Rapture and the times [Continued] and seasons of the Day of the LORD. For it is possible to be very “ignorant” of vital details pertaining to the truth of the Rapture on the one hand (as per 1 Thess. 4:13, 15), while “perfectly well” knowing the times and the seasons connected with the Day of the LORD (as per 1 Thess. 5:1-2). “Plainly then they are two different things, quite distinct from each other. Were the rapture an essential part of the times and seasons, then to be wholly ignorant of it [of the details of the Rapture of the saints] would mean partial ignorance as to them [of the times and seasons of the Day of the LORD]. The Thessalonians however were quite ignorant as to it, while being so well instructed as to them that the apostle could say you ‘know perfectly’ and ‘have no need that I write unto you.’ " (FBH) In Relation To “Day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Or, “Day of Christ,” “Day of Jesus Christ,” “Day of the Lord Jesus”) The “Day of our Lord Jesus Christ” is not to be confused with that which was first revealed in the OT as the “Day of the LORD,” the “Day of Jehovah” (see above). Rather, the “Day of Christ” pertains to the heavenly sphere, and has absolutely no association with God’s judgment or wrath toward sin. It is a day of pure, sovereign, infinite, heavenly grace in Christ Jesus. It is the day—His day—when He comes for His heavenly people, His Body and Bride, to snatch them up to be with Him forever in the Father’s house, in which day we will also appear before His Bema or judgment-seat and then His Marriage and Wedding Supper, in the heavens, all for His heavenly glory and joy, as well as our heavenly blessing (see sections below). N/A: The Manifestation of His coming pertains rather to the earth in relation to its prophetic “times and seasons” and “the Day of the LORD” (see above), not the “Day of our Lord Jesus Christ” 1 Cor. 1:8; 5:5; 2 Cor. 1:14; Phil. 1:6, 10; 2:16 (cf. also “the day of redemption” of Eph. 4:30) Judgment-Seat (Bema) of Christ for Members of the Body & Bride of Christ The Rapture facilitates the immediately following presence of each and every member of the Body & Bride of Christ, individually, in their glorified state, before the Bema or Judgment-Seat of Christ in heaven (which in turn prepares and makes “ready” the Bride for the heavenly Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb, see below) Page 13 N/A: The Manifestation of His coming, and the Bride with Him in glory, to establish His Millennial Reign over the earth, occur sometime after the Bema or Judgment-Seat of Christ is held for all who compose her (as well as after the Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb) in heaven Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Judgment-Seat (Bema) of Christ for Members of the Body & Bride of Christ [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** At or pursuant to the Bema, every glorified saint in Christ will receive some praise and rewards: cf. 1 Cor 4:5; 2 Tim. 4:8; James 1:12; 1 Pet. 1:7; Rev. 4-5 (24 Elders all crowned, see below); Rev. 19:7-8 (Wife of the Lamb dressed in her wedding gown of fine linen, which is the ‘righteousnesses’— righteous acts, as an outflow of the divine nature, wrought in the power of the Spirit— of all heavenly saints, see below) 1 John 4:17-18, moreover, makes clear that no believer manifested before the JudgmentSeat of Christ (in our glorified state mind you) will experience any fear or torment, and ought not feel any such thing now in view of that coming day; but each of us should have now, as we will certainly have then, boldness (confidence, peace, rest of heart) because of standing ever in grace in Him, in the very One before whom we will be manifested Note also that our session before the Bema is entirely completed in heaven before the start of the Tribulation with its divine judgments, before the opening of a single seal in Rev. 6, as the glorified Church is seen already crowned with her victor’s reward crowns under the symbolic representation of the 24 Elders in Rev. 4-5 (see below) THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Rev. 22:12; 1 Cor. 4:5; 3:10-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:10-12; 1 John 2:28; 4:17-18; John 5:24 “Herein has [God’s] love been perfected with us [with respect to us believers] that [so that] we may have boldness [confidence, peace, rest of heart (bold assurance indeed!)] in [in view of] the day of judgment, because even as He is [even as the risen, ascended and glorified Christ is in His Life and in His standing before God, in heavenly glories beyond all judgment], we also are [even while yet] in this world [higher blessing there cannot be! For we are now, even in our present unglorified state, characterized before God according to the Life which we have in the Son and the heavenly standing which we have in Him, all on the ground of the infinite value of His atoning death on the Cross (and in the day of judgment itself we will be manifested before Him in a physically and morally glorified state like unto Himself! (1 John 3:2; Phil. 3:20-21; 1 Cor. 15:48-49)). We believers are forever—and are even now—as clear from our sins and the judgment they merit as is Christ Himself in glory, who is our Life, our Standing, and our Righteousness before God. “Verily, Verily, I say unto you, that he that hears My word, and believes Him that sent Me, has life eternal [in the Son], and does not come into judgment [as to the guilt of his sins] Page 14 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Judgment-Seat (Bema) of Christ for Members of the Body & Bride of Christ [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** but has passed out of death into life.” (John 5:24) We are not to look within our own hearts to know or gain assurance as to whether we are clear of judgment (a futile and despairing exercise!); rather, we look up at the Beloved in whom we are accepted and satisfyingly know that He is so clear of all our sins and judgment that He is in the glory! And that “even as He is, we also are in this world”—which the apostle John declares, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, in keeping with his unvarying, ever-present doctrine in 1 John: “which thing is true in him and in you” (2:8)]. (1 John 4:17) JND: “Each act of our lives will be manifested then before the tribunal, according as the grace of God and His ways with us in connection with our own acts will be known then . . . the whole of our acts will be detailed there, before the judgment-seat, not for us however, as if we were in the flesh, and thus to our condemnation, but to make evident to our own eyes the grace that occupied itself with us — [when we were] regenerate or unregenerate . . . my own history will be detailed before the judgment-seat, and, parallel with it, the history of the grace and of the mercy of God toward me. The why and the how we did this or that will be manifested then. For us the scene will be declarative, not judicial. We are not in the flesh before God; in His eyes by His grace we are dead [to the flesh]. But then, if we have walked according to the flesh, we must see how we lost in blessing thereby, and what loss we have incurred; and, on the other hand, the ways of God towards us, all ways of wisdom, of mercy, and of grace, will be perfectly known and understood by us for the first time. The history of each one will come out in perfect transparency; it will be seen how you yielded and how He preserved you, how your foot slipped and how He raised you up again, how you were drawing near danger and shame and how He by His own arm interposed . . . This is the Bride making herself ready, and I consider that moment as a wondrous one. There will be no flesh then to be condemned; but the new nature will enter into the full knowledge of the care and of the love, which, in true holiness and in righteousness and even in grace, have followed us step by step all through the running of the race. Some parts of our life, till then entirely unexplained, will be fully disclosed and become altogether plain; some tendencies of our nature, that perhaps we do not judge to be so pernicious and deadly as they are, and for the mortification of which we are perhaps now subjected to a discipline that we may not have interpreted aright, will be then perfectly explained; and, what is more, the very falls that plunge us now into such bitter anguish will be seen then to be that which God used to preserve us from something more terrible. I do not think that until then we shall ever have had a full knowledge of the badness of our flesh. How blessed for us to know that then it will be not only all over with the flesh in the counsel of God, but that the flesh will no longer be attached to us! On the other side, I doubt not, the manifestation of God's grace toward us individually will be so magnificent that even the sense of the perversity of the flesh that we had, if it could possibly enter there, would be excluded by the greatness of the sense of divine goodness. Why do we not deny and mortify the flesh when we think of that hour? The Lord grant that we may do so more and more to the glory of His grace.” Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb The Rapture and the immediately following Judgment-Seat of Christ (see above) facilitate the presence of the complete and “ready” Bride (Rev. 19:7) at the Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb in heaven, BEFORE the Manifestation of His coming with us in glory at the end of the Tribulation as King of kings and Lord of lords Rev. 19:7-9, 11ff Page 15 N/A: The Manifestation of His coming, and the Bride with Him in glory, to establish His Millennial Reign over the earth, occur sometime AFTER the Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb are celebrated in heaven Rev. 19:7-9, 11ff; cf. also Luke 12:36 where He is likewise pictured as returning from the wedding feast (which particular wedding feast/celebration we know from Rev. 19 takes place in the heavens) Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The heavenly Bride is, indisputably, all who compose the Church which is His Body (cf. Eph. 5:22-33; 2 Cor. 11:2; Rom. 7: 1-4; Rev. 21:9-10, 27; 22:14-15, 17). As the Bride is in heaven, complete and “ready” (Rev. 19:7)—nothing lacking—while the Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70 th Week is transpiring on the earth, a Post-Tribulational Rapture of the Church is an impossible scenario. His coming to Rapture His heavenly people and the Manifestation of His coming to establish the Kingdom must be distinguished and separated in time. The former must precede, so as to facilitate, the latter. Further note that the heavenly Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb take place immediately after the destruction on earth, under God’s judgment, of Mystery Babylon, the Great Harlot (Rev. 17-18; cf. also Rev. 2:22 and 3:16, the culmination of the church of Thyatira and of Laodicea)—the False Church, the False Bride—at the mid-point of the 70th Week (Rev. 19:1-3) [which makes way for the worship of the Beast during the 2nd half of the 70th Week (Rev. 13)] “She [the Church] is both the body of Christ and the bride of Christ, as Eve was of the body of Adam and also his bride. The Church is the nearest and the most beloved object of His loving heart. But how has she made herself ready? And what does it mean, ‘And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white for the linen is the righteousness of the saints’? The grace of God has supplied the robe and the precious blood is her title to glory. In this respect she was ready. But the words here refer us to the judgment seat of Christ, that award seat before which we must appear. Then the hidden things are brought to light and the wood and the hay and stubble are burned (1 Cor. 3:12-15). Then ‘every man shall have praise of God’ (1 Cor. 4:5) and what grace accomplished in each one and through each will be manifested. And the clean white linen ‘is the righteousness of the saints.’ The word ‘righteousness’ is in the plural. It means more than the righteousness which we are in Christ . . . It includes all the blessed results in life and service produced by the Holy Spirit, the practical righteousness of the saints. And yet even these need the washing in that precious blood without which all is unclean and unholy. And so it is grace after all, as indicated by the word ‘given’ [in the phrase ‘given to her’, the Bride, in Rev. 19:8, and also by the exhortation to give God the glory and credit for both the Bride’s preparation and the arrival of the marriage of the Lamb, in Rev. 19:7] . . . He Himself has made her ready and removed every spot, every wrinkle and every blemish. God grant that we His people may daily meditate on this coming glorious event, the marriage of the Lamb, and walk worthy of [walk in a manner consistent with having] such a Lord and such a calling.” (ACG) Population of/ Propagation in the Renewed Earth during the Millennial Reign upon its Establishment N/A: None participating in the Rapture can be among those who will populate and propagate on the renewed earth during His Millennial Reign—for the very simple reason that we heavenly saints, having been transfigured and translated, will be in our glorified state (cf. Luke 20:34-36) Page 16 All Earthly Saints who survive through the entire Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70th Week (Jew and Gentile believers in their standing before God) will enter the Millennial Kingdom in their natural state (unglorified bodies), with they alone able to populate and propagate on the earth during His Millennial Reign Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To Population of/ Propagation in the Renewed Earth during the Millennial Reign upon its Establishment [Continued] The Book of Revelation and Place of the Church HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Time is required after the Rapture of the Church (wherein all receive glorified bodies) to allow for a group of saved Jews and a group of saved Gentiles to be raised up to enter the Millennial Kingdom in their natural bodies. For ONLY the saved will enter the Kingdom at its establishment (cf. 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Matt. 25:11-12, 30, 31-46; 24:13; 13:39-42, 49-50; 7:21-23; 18:3; Isa. 13:9; Ezek. 20:38; Zech. 13:8-9; Rom. 11:26-27); who will reproduce/have children during that 1,000 Year Reign—with many of those children (from among the Gentiles, cf. Rev. 20:7-9) being unbelievers and some from among them experiencing death during that Kingdom Age (cf. Isa. 65:20; 66:24). This is impossible under a Post-Tribulation Rapture scenario, where the Rapture and the Manifestation of His coming occur at the same time, thereby leaving no believers in natural bodies to thus enter the Kingdom. A Post-Tribulation Rapture, in fact, makes the whole premillennial judgment of the Sheep and the Goat Gentiles of Matt. 25:31ff entirely absurd and unnecessary—wherein the Sheep Gentiles are separated from the Goat Gentiles when the Son of Man sits down upon His earthly kingdom throne of glory—for such a separation would have already occurred by virtue of the glorification and rapture of the saints to meet the Lord in the air! After the Church “things that are” now in When the time arrives for the Manifestation of His Revelation Chapters 2 & 3 (cf. Rev. 1:19 and coming as King of kings and Lord of lords at the end its divinely given outline of the Book of of the Tribulation (Rev. 19:11ff), when He comes Revelation), the Church is seen in Heaven victoriously, the Church is seen with Him as His beginning with Rev. 4 and “the things that armies out of Heaven (Rev. 17:14 and 19:14 & 19, must take place after these things” (these “the armies which are in the heaven [who] Church things that are now; cp. Rev. 1:19c followed Him upon white horses, clad in white, with 4:1c)—the Rapture thus implicitly taking pure, fine linen,” even “they that are with Him place between the end of Rev. 3 and the start called, and chosen, and faithful”) of Rev. 4 (the occurrence of the Rapture of the Church being nowhere explicitly recorded in the Book of Revelation, though Rev. 3:1011 of course speaks of the certainty of that heavenly hope which keeps us entirely out of the time of the world-wide trial of the Tribulation Period). As such, the glorified Church is seen in Heaven as a result of the Rapture and prior to the onset of Daniel’s 70th Week, and during the course thereof:  As the 24 Elders  As the Tabernacle in Heaven  As the Bride, the Lamb’s Wife The structure of the Book of Revelation requires the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. The divinely given outline of the Book is given in Rev. 1:19 which is key, with the “things that are” now comprising the present Church period pictured in Rev. 2-3, and the “things that are to be after these things” comprising the heavenly events of Rev. 4-5 and the earthly Tribulation Period/Daniel’s 70 th Week and beyond starting with Rev. 6—where the Church is never again seen on earth (until after the visions close in Rev. 22, and we have the yearning cry of the Spirit and the Bride for the coming of the Lord Jesus in Rev.22:17), but is specifically seen under the symbolic representation of the 24 Page 17 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To The Book of Revelation and Place of the Church [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** Elders in Heaven (Rev. 4:1-4, 10-11; 5:5-11, 14; 7:11-14; 11:16-17; 14:3; 19:4); and of the Tabernacle in Heaven (Rev. 13:6, “His tabernacle, even those who [now] have their tabernacle in the heaven” [cp. Eph. 2:21-22; 1 Cor. 3:16-17; 1 Pet. 2:5]); with the former representation continuing until the glorified Church is seen in Rev. 19 as the Wife of the Lamb in Heaven, complete and ready, at the Marriage and Wedding Supper of the Lamb which take place in Heaven (Rev. 19:7-9) prior to the Manifestation of His coming at the end of the Tribulation as King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:11ff), when He comes victoriously and we with Him in glory as His armies out of Heaven (Rev. 17:14 and 19:14 & 19, “the armies which are in the heaven [who] followed Him upon white horses, clad in white, pure, fine linen,” even “they that are with Him called, and chosen, and faithful”). And observe, too, the conspicuous absence of the oft repeated phrase “he that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” after Rev. 2-3 (cf. 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22; and contrast with the expression in 13:9 relating to the Great Tribulation period). With respect to Rev. 3:10-11: We are told in Rev. 3:11 how we will be kept out of the time of the coming world-wide Tribulation judgment of Rev. 3:10, i.e., by way of His imminent coming for us (“I come quickly”)! Now let us consider more precisely how the believers who comprised the Philadelphian church (and the other six churches, “for he that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”) will actually be ‘kept out of’ the time of this world-wide judgment to come: Will they be preserved through it? If such is the case (which is a complete misunderstanding of the text), then these believers, who have been absent from the body and present with the Lord for the last 2,000 years, will have to be brought back to this earth to undergo the Tribulation Period so as to be “preserved through it”! Contra such an absurdity, the true saints of the Philadelphian church (and the other six churches) have clearly been and will continue to be kept entirely out of the 7-year ‘hour of trial to come upon the whole habitable earth.’ Now this promise is not for the Philadelphian saints alone (or the saints of the other six churches). This promise of exclusion and exemption from the time of the Tribulation is for all heavenly saints comprising the Body of Christ from Pentecost to the Rapture—just as all salvation promises and blessings in every NT Epistle apply to all believers, and not merely to the original recipients of those Epistles. Thus we have established that: 1) Rev. 3:10 could not possibly mean ‘preservation through’ the Tribulation Period for the Philadelphian saints; rather, it conveys exclusion and exemption from the time of the Tribulation Period altogether; and 2) the promise of Rev. 3:10 applies to us today in the same exact sense (i.e., it cannot mean exclusion and exemption from the time of the Tribulation for the Philadelphian saints but ‘preservation through’ it for us). How, then, will those of us who are alive when the Tribulation is set to start be kept out of (excluded and exempted from) that Period? How, I ask, other than by a Rapture-Translation removing us from this world before the world-wide Tribulation Period commences? No other explanation is possible or given to us in Scripture. And Rev. 3:11, in fact, explicitly connects that very exclusion and exemption with His blessed coming for us: “I come quickly!” Note: for those who misinterpret Rev. 3:10 as ‘preservation through’ the Tribulation (and thereby confuse the heavenly Church with earthly Jew and Gentile saints passing through the Tribulation Period), what kind of ‘preservation through’ it do the myriads of martyred Tribulation saints actually experience, being put to death during that Period and not preserved through it at all?! (cf. Rev. 6:911; 11:3-9; 13:10, 15; 14:12-13; 18:24; 19:2; 20:4) Page 18 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To The 24 Elders HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** The 24 Elders are seen in heaven in Rev. 4-5 for the first time, after the Church “things that are” now in Rev. 2-3, who collectively represent, as a fixed group, the glorified Church after the Rapture as king-priests, as a royal priesthood (cp. Rev. 5:8, 10 with Rev. 1:6 and 1 Pet. 2:9), seated and enthroned around and in closest connection to the throne of God, acting in their priestly capacity (cf. Rev. 5:8, “having each a harp and golden bowls full of incenses, which are the prayers of the [Jewish and Gentile] saints” on earth). They are all crowned with victor’s crowns (Gr. stephanos, Rev. 4:4, 10—not royal crowns, Gr. diadema, and thus they are not yet reigning), awarded as a result of appearing before the Judgment-Seat (Bema) of Christ (the number of victor’s crowns awarded to each is left unstated). THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** The 24 Elders are no longer seen as such once the glorified Church is shown forth as the armies out of Heaven and as the Wife of the Lamb appearing in glory with Christ in His Manifestation to the earth The 24 Elders in heaven (Rev. 4:1-4, 10-11; 5:5-11, 14; 7:11-14; 11:16-17; 14:3; 19:4) derive their symbolic significance from the 24 courses (shifts or divisions) into which David the king divided the representative heads of the Levitical priesthood in the OT (1 Chron. 24:1-19), which represented the whole priesthood. The term “elder” itself, moreover, conveys the thought of: spiritual maturity (1 Tim. 3:6); intelligence in divine things (Tit. 1:9); government (1 Tim. 3; Tit. 1); and representation rather than solely individual capacity. And observe that the 24 Elders are not and cannot be any form of angelic creatures, from whom they are consistently and carefully distinguished in the Book of Revelation (cf. Rev. 5:11 and 7:11). Consider:   Angels always stand, and are never seated or enthroned, before or in the presence of God (cf., e.g., 1 Kings 22:19; Dan. 7:9-10; Zech. 6:5; Luke 1:19; Rev. 7:11; 8:2; and contrast with John 20:12, where two angels are seen seated in the empty tomb of our risen Saviour!), whereas the 24 Elders are indeed thus seated and enthroned (being perfectly at home in perfect rest and peace in God’s presence, as a result of their so-great heavenly salvation in Christ—in accordance with their position in Him in the heavenlies now, Eph. 2:6) Angels always speak or shout (even in praise), and never sing (cf., e.g., Luke 2:13-14 and the Book of Revelation throughout; Job 38:7 being no exception and better translated as the morning stars ‘cried out’ in praise), whereas the 24 Elders do thus sing (as a result of and in connection with their redemption in Christ) [cf. Rev. 5:8-10, and note that in the Greek it is the 24 Elders alone who are said to be ‘having each a harp’ and to thus ‘sing a new song’]  The fact that the song which the 24 Elders sing in Rev. 5:9-10 speaks of “them” and “they” (in the third person) rather than “us” and “we” (v. 10), in no way implies that they sing not of their own blood-redemption (for they sing as representing the entire glorified Church, not merely of themselves as individuals)—no more than, Page 19 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019 Distinguishing Between The Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and Our Gathering Together unto Him (Rapture) And The Manifestation of His Coming (Appearing with Him in Glory to Establish His Kingdom) In Relation To The 24 Elders [Continued] HIS COMING TO CATCH US UP THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS COMING **RAPTURE-TRANSLATION Phase** **APPEARING-REVELATION Phase** e.g., the Israelites sang not of their own redemption in the first recorded song of Scripture in Ex. 15:1-18, when they were redeemed out of Egypt and sang of themselves in the third person (cf. “the people” and “them,” Ex. 15:13, “your people” and “the people,” Ex. 15:16, and “them” (twice), Ex. 15:17)  Accordingly, the song of the 24 Elders indeed speaks of themselves as redeemed by blood (that of Jehovah-Jesus), of their being made kings and priests (partaking of the offices of Christ Himself, the King-Priest), and of their forthcoming reign over the earth (with the Lord Jesus, beginning with the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom, Rev. 5:10; and cp. Rev. 1:6; 3:21; 2:26-27; 20:4, 6; 22:5; 1 Cor. 6:2-3; Rom. 8:17; Eph. 1:10-14, 21-23 (and cp. 1:21 with 2:6); 2 Tim. 2:12; 1 Pet. 2:9)—none of which, clearly, is true of angelic creatures (see also Heb. 2:5, “for He has not subjected to angels the habitable world [Millennial world] which is to come”)   Angels are known for excelling in strength (2 Pet. 2:11; Ps. 103:20), not wisdom, and never age or grow to maturity and thus are never referred to as “elders,” a term used only of men and particularly in connection with leaders in the local assembly (which itself is a representative office) who were appointed by the apostles or their delegates; whereas the 24 Elders are seen demonstrating their spiritual wisdom, intelligence and intimate familiarity with the mind of Christ and the counsels of God (cf. Rev. 5:5, 9-10; 7:13-14; and cp. John 15:15; 1 Cor. 2:16) Angels are never crowned; whereas members of the Body & Bride of the Son alone are promised victor’s crowns (Gr. stephanos) as rewards (cf. Rev. 4:4, 10; and cp. 1 Cor. 9:25; James 1:12; 2 Tim. 4:8; 1 Pet. 5:4; Rev. 2:10)—thus showing that the Judgment-Seat (Bema) of Christ has already taken place in the heavens before the opening of the Tribulation Period on earth Page 20 Prepared by: James M Ventilato 5/24/2019