Continued from Part 2
Question: What are the most prominent objections to the sixth seal rapture and why are those objections incorrect?
The first thing people usually mention in this regard is
that God will not allow a Christian to be subject to His wrath and since they
believe that God’s wrath begins with Seal one, they reason that the rapture
must occur before Seal one is opened—at the beginning of the last 7 years.
In examining what the first 5 seals entail we can easily
see that they are not part of God’s wrath.
Rev 6:1-11
And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I
heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and
see.
And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on
him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering,
and to conquer.
And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the
second beast say, Come and see.
And there went out another horse that was red: and power
was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they
should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third
beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on
him had a pair of balances in his hand.
And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say,
A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and
see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice
of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that
sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them
over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and
with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the
altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the
testimony which they held:
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O
Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that
dwell on the earth?
And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it
was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their
fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were,
should be fulfilled.
As we just read the first 5 seals are a conquering world
power, a world war, famine, the death of 25% of the world population, and the persecution
of Jews and Christians. All of these things have happened before in our world,
they are not God’s wrath; they are actions of men, allowed by God. If we pay
close attention to Seal 5—the persecution of Jews and Christians—we know that
is not part of God’s wrath and thus God’s wrath cannot have begun yet, because
God would not persecute Jews and Christians. And further God’s wrath is clearly
stated as beginning after the opening of the sixth seal.
Rev 6:17
For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be
able to stand?
Another objection to a sixth seal rapture is how some
interpret Revelation 3:10.
Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also
will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the
world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
However,
a careful examination of the Greek used in this passage actually shows that the
passage supports the view that the rapture will occur at the sixth seal. Robert
Van Kampen, in The Rapture Question
Answered Plain & Simple, has made a thorough analysis of this verse.
Let us examine a few excerpts from that section.
When
the underlying Greek text is studied carefully, comparing Scripture with
Scripture, we will discover that the “hour of testing” refers specifically to
that time associated with antichrist’s persecution. . .. More importantly we
will see that the Greek words underlying our English translations argue that
this terrible time of testing cannot be the wrath of God, but must be the wrath
of satan. . .. If the Greek word peirasmos,
as used in the Revelation 3:10 passage, is compared to its use in other New Testament
passages, we will see that the “hour of testing” cannot refer to the wrath of
God but, quite the opposite, to the wrath of satan. . . . They all say the same
thing: satan is the source of all peirazo,
not God. Like the logical argument, the biblical argument from scripture
demonstrates that the “hour of testing” in Rev. 3:10 cannot refer to the wrath
of God but, by definition, must be the wrath of satan.[1]
Another
phrase in Revelation 3:10 that we need to consider is “will keep thee from.”
The Greek phrase used here is tereo ek. Van
Kampen has this to say about that phrase:
Tereo ek, is used in conjunction, can only
refer to guarding or protecting those who persevere while they are within the
sphere of danger, and then bringing them safely out from the midst of that
danger. Thus, the meaning of the text is clear. Tereo ek should be translated, “a watchful protection within the
sphere of danger, with a safe deliverance out from the midst of it.[2]
Combining
the analysis of the Greek into a translation of Revelation 3:10 yields a
rendering that shows that the Christian will not be spared from the great
tribulation, but will be rescued out of it:
Because
thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will rescue you out of the midst of
the hour of satan’s temptation, the great tribulation, which shall come
upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
So,
the analysis of the Greek in Revelation 3:10 supports a 6th seal
rapture.
Those
are the two most prominent objections to a sixth seal rapture. For a full
analysis of all the objections, I refer you to The
Coming Epiphany: Your Guide to End Times Prophecy.
Question: What are the most
prominent objections to the sixth seal rapture and why are those objections
incorrect?
Answer: One prominent objection
states that God’s wrath begins at Seal 1 and thus the rapture must occur before
Seal 1 is opened. This is incorrect because Seals 1 to 5 are tribulations, scripture
succinctly tells us that God’s wrath begins after the opening of Seal 6.
Another prominent objection states
that Rev 3:10 infers the rapture occurs before the last 7 years begin. This is
incorrect because an examination of the Greek words in the passage tells us
that the rapture removes Christians out of the midst of tribulation.
Question: If the rapture does not
begin the last 7 years, then what does begin the end times?
It
is a peace treaty made with “the many” that begins the last 7 years. This is
told to us in Daniel 9:27.
And he shall
confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he
shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading
of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and
that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
A “week” in this passage is referring to a period of 7
years of 360 days for a total of 2520 days. This is confirmed by the fact that the
last half of the last 7 years is referred to as “times, time and half a time” which
is also equated to 42 months, 1260 days, or 3.5 years as evidenced in these
passages.
Daniel 12:7
And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the
waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto
heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he
shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these
things shall be finished.
Revelation 12:14
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle,
that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished
for a time, and times, and half a time,
from the face of the serpent.
Revelation 12:6
And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a
place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.
Revelation 13:5
And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great
things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
Question:
If the rapture does not begin the last 7 years, then what does begin the end
times?
Answer:
A peace treaty made with the many.
Question:
Will the antichrist be involved in the signing of the peace treaty?
Looking again to Daniel 9:27;
after a careful analysis, we see that the verse does not necessitate that the antichrist
be involved in the initial signing of the peace treaty. When you examine the
Hebrew, the true meaning becomes clearly evident. Roy Reinhold, author of The Day of the Lord and an expert in
Hebrew, has this to say about the verse:
The “he” is the same person throughout the verse. Higbir
is a hifil 3ms perfect verb, and the Qal root verb is gavar meaning “to be
strong, to conquer.” A Hifil is “causative,” and so in this case the usage is
“and he caused to be made strong” a covenant for the many for one period of
seven. In no way does this imply that the “he” the antichrist originates the
peace treaty. What it clearly shows is that the antichrist comes along after
the peace treaty is in effect and he agrees with it and enforces its
provisions.
So, an analysis of the Hebrew brings out the fact that,
when the antichrist is revealed and comes to power in the midst of the 70th
Week, the peace treaty will already be in effect and “he,” the antichrist, will
merely confirm and or strengthen it. Thus, a more accurate translation of the
verse would read:
“And he will strengthen the covenant that was made with
many for a week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and
the oblation to cease.”
So, it is possible that the
antichrist will be involved in the initial signing of the peace treaty, but he
does not have to be. Because the Hebrew rendering of this verse tells us the
peace treaty will be made with “the many,” and the antichrist only has to
strengthen the treaty.
Question:
Will the antichrist be involved in the signing of the peace treaty?
Answer:
He may be involved in the initial signing of the peace treaty with the many,
but does not have to be.
Question:
Are we in the last 7 years now?
On October 13, 2025, a peace
treaty was signed with Israel and many other nations. The date it was signed
happens to be exactly 2520 days before Rosh Hashanah in 2032. Realizing that
the end of the last 7 years—Armageddon—must align with a fall feast speaks
loudly that the prophetic peace treaty with the many was signed and the last 7
years has begun.
A confirmation to this would
be that we see evidence of the seals; WW3, widespread famine and
hyperinflation, and 25% of the world dying.
Question:
Are we in the last 7 years now?
Answer:
If the Dan 9:27 treaty with the many was signed on October 13, 2025, then yes,
we are in the last 7 years now.
Question:
What will a Christian be faced with during the end times?
Realizing that the rapture
will not occur until after the sixth seal is opened; a Christian will be faced
with living through the tribulations of the first 5 seals, all of which have
been discussed above. Let me also mention that the seal 5 persecution of Jews
and Christians—great tribulation—will include martyrdom for some, and the mark
of the beast, where no one will be able to buy or sell without it.
Question:
What will a Christian be faced with during the end times?
Answer:
The tribulations of Seals 1 to 5 including not being able to buy or sell
without the mark.
(Note: All who take the mark
of the beast are damned to hell. Rev 14:11 And the smoke of their torment
ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who
worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.)
[1] Robert Van Kampen, The Rapture Question Answered Plain & Simple, (Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Revell, 2002), 173–174.
[2] Ibid., 177.
"Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." — Luke 21:36
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