The Rapture in the Old Testament
The prophecy publication I have enjoyed the most over the years is J. R. Church's "Prophecy in the News." His and Gary Stearman's articles are always insightful and outstanding. If you are not already a subscriber, I urge you to be one. See Web site at www.prophecyinthenews.com, or call 1-800-475-1111. I have met J.R. and found him a most gracious and humble man, as well as one of the top eschatology scholars of our day.
In a most recent article, "Is this '...the end of the world'"? J.R. shares some interesting insights about two Old Testament passages that speak of the rapture. Many people do not know that the rapture/resurrection is mentioned in these passages, and also in Isaiah 2619-21. I do not believe J.R. would mind me excerpting part of that article, below (from page 4, October issue).
Be blessed.
Jim
Excerpt, from J.R. Church
I have long felt that the rapture could occur under the cover of a nuclear war, so that when the smoke clears away, the world will think that we are simply among the millions of casualties. Isaiah gives us a verse that concurs with this scenario
"The righteous PERISHETH, and no one layeth it to heart and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is TAKEN AWAY from the evil to come" (Isaiah 571).
Those two highlighted terms are important to note. First, the term for "perish" is the Hebrew ovad meaning simply "to cause to disappear." Out of 15 Hebrew words translated "perish," ovad is the only one that does not have a bloody connotation.
Second, the term "taken away" is from the Hebrew asaph meaning "gathered up into a place of safety." It is a harvest word. Note that righteous people disappear and no one lays it to heart. No one understands what has really happened. The world will simply believe we have perished!
Note that merciful men are taken away from the evil to come! We are taken out of this world before the judgment of God falls upon an unbelieving world.
The prophet Micah agrees
"The GOOD MAN is PERISHED OUT OF THE EARTH and there is none upright among men they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net" (Micah 72).
Again, the term ovad, here translated "perish." Note, however, that "the good man," a term used for saints, has disappeared "out of the earth." We have left the planet! The Commentary on the Old Testament by Keil and Deleitch describes it as "... to have disappeared ... not out of the land, but, as the parallel shows, from the earth, out of the world."
It may be that when we step through gates of pearl onto streets of gold, we will say, "Whew! That was close!"
Oh, my friend, our departure may be very near. Prepare your soul by trusting Christ today. Then win as many others as you can while there is time.
(End of excerpt.)