What is the Rapture?

Understanding what the Rapture is can be a confusing task. This post is designed to clarify by explaining from the Bible what the Rapture is and demonstrating from the Scripture that the Rapture is not only a real event that will occur someday, but fits the pattern of God removing the righteous from danger when He judges the ungodly.  Because the subject matter has the potential to be very broad, these posts will not deal with every passage of Scripture that supports the Rapture. 

What Does The Word Rapture Actually Mean And Where Did It Come From?

What does the English word Rapture mean?  The word Rapture means in a nut shell "caught up."  Now if you have tried to look up the word rapture in the English Bible, I am sure you have discovered to your alarm that the word rapture is not found there.  Does this mean that the idea of a rapture is not a biblical idea?  The answer is no.  This is because the word rapture as used today by Evangelical Christians comes from the Latin word "rapturo."  Rapturo was used in the Latin translation of the key passage for the teaching of the Rapture: 1 Thessalonians 4:17.  

So why is the word rapture not found in the English Bible?  It is because good English translations base their translation off of the Greek New Testament (which is what the New Testament was originally written in).  The Greek did not use the Latin word "rapturo."  The Greek word is the word "harpazō."   The idea from the Greek is "to seize or carry away by force; to snatch out of the way" (Thayer). Therefore, based off this Greek word, many popular good English translations use the translation "caught up"  such as the English Standard Version, 1901 American Standard, and the King James Version.


Where Is The Teaching Of The Rapture Found In The Bible?

There are two main places in the Scriptures where the teaching of the Rapture is found: 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 and 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11.  Both of these passages together teach us several important truths:

1. The Rapture event occurs to only those (whether dead or still alive at that time) who are born again (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).  To understand what being born again means, please read John 3:1-21.  The Rapture is possible because Jesus Christ Himself rose from the dead and is alive (1 Thessalonians 4:14).
2. The Rapture will occur when three things happen:  "Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God" (1Thessalonians 4: 16).
3. The Rapture will first occur to those who are "dead in Christ," then to those who are alive who are Christians (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).
4. Everyone will meet the Lord in the air and forever be with Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:17).  
   
5. The Rapture is an immanent event before world wide judgment (1 Thessalonians 5:1-4).
6. The Rapture is the fulfillment of God's promise that God's people are not appointed to receive the wrath of God (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10). 

What About Those Who Are Not A Christian At The Time Of The Rapture?

Those who are not Christians at the time of the Rapture will be left on the earth to face the immanent judgment of Almighty God (Rev. 6:1ff).  During this Tribulation, there will be many people turning from their sin to Christ for salvation (Rev. 7: 9-17).  Unfortunately,  the majority of the world will be duped and believe the Anti-Christ (The Man of Lawlessness), rejecting salvation from sin ( 2 Thessalonians 2: 9-12), resulting with God's just judgment on them (2 Thessalonians 1: 5-12).

Why Did The Lord Give Us The Teaching On The Rapture Since The Event Is Taking Place At Least 2000 Years After His Resurrection?

The main purpose of the teaching of the Rapture is to encourage Christians who have lost love ones who also were Christian (1 Thessalonians 4:18; 5:11).  The point is since the Rapture is a real event that will occur, the Christian doesn't have to sorrow like the rest of the world.  Death for the Christian is just a temporary event that one day will be reversed when Christ comes and calls the dead in Christ to rise.  This is a certain hope.  I will deal more with this resurrection hope in a future post.

I hope this has been helpful.  On the next post I will deal with how the Rapture fits the pattern found in Scripture of God removing the Righteous from judgment.  

Rev. Steve
Psalms 119:89