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NASB | 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one in any way deceive or entrap you, for that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first [that is, the great rebellion, the abandonment of the faith by professed Christians], and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction [the Antichrist, the one who is destined to be destroyed], [Dan 7:25; 8:25; 1 Tim 4:1] |
Subject: Per 2Thes 2:3 isn't the rapture postrib? |
Bible Note: Greetings again Glen! Having said all that in my former post, what are some good arguments in favor of mid-tribulationism and pre-tribulationism? For one thing, Revelation 3:10 indicates that believers will be kept from the actual hour of testing that is coming on the whole world. Christians will be kept from the actual 'time period' of suffering. Now, where post-trib and mid-trib differs is this simple fact: Post-trib holds that Christians will be exempt from both the wrath of Satan and the wrath of God. Mid-trib holds that Christians will not be exempt from the wrath of Satan but will be exempt from the wrath of God. Further, no Old Testament passage on the Tribulation mentions the church, though in some cases the nation of Israel is mentioned (Deut. 4:29,30; Jer. 30:4-11; Dan. 12:1,2). No New Testament passage on the Tribulation mentions the church (Matt. 13:30,39-42,48-50, 24:15-31; 1 Thess. 1:9-10, 5:4-9; 2 Thess. 2:1-11; Rev. 4-18). Now, Scripture does say there will be Christians who live during the Tribulation period. But those who hold to the pre-trib view believe that these people become Christians sometime after the rapture. Perhaps they become Christians as a result of the ministry of the 144,000 Jewish Christians introduced in Revelation 7 (who themselves apparently come to faith in Christ after the rapture). But that is only my "guess" as far as how pre-trib justifies the fact that there are still Christians on earth during the Tribulation period. We are also told that the church is not appointed to wrath (Romans 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:9,10, 5:9). In conclusion, the church cannot go through the Lord's "great day of wrath" in the Tribulation period (Rev. 6:17). Finally, it is highly revealing that throughout Scripture God is seen always as the "protector" of His people before judgment falls (2 Peter 2:5-9). Enoch was taken from the earth before the judgment of the flood. Noah was in the ark before the judgment of the flood. Lot was taken out of Sodom before the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah. The firstborn among the Hebrews in Egypt were sheltered by the blood of the lamb before judgment fell. The spies were safely out of Jericho and Rahab was secured before the judgment of Jericho. So, too, the church will be spared before the judgment of God falls in the Tribulation period. But all of this is my own interpretation, and this is how I justify my view of mid-trib as opposed to post-trib and pre-trib. |