The term rapture refers to a phenomenon described in the Bible, in which individual persons are lifted up (raptured) alive by God from this physical world and brought into the spiritual dimension of God or to another place on earth. A sudden and unexpected pick-up or taking-away takes place with a simultaneous liberation from this unjust world over to the love and security of the divine Father. In common parlance, the term "taken up into heaven" is simply used. We do not know when the Rapture will take place, which is why we do not give any dates. But our task is to point out the signs of the times to wake up Christians so that they are awake and ready. There is nothing worse than realizing that you have been left behind by the Lord in this world. It is also about enlightening the Christians who have been left behind and giving them hope and a warning so that they do not accept the sign of the Antichrist. 

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one“ (John 10:27-30).

The Greek word harpazo has the Strong-number 726 and appears 14 times in the New Testament (NT) (Mat 11:12; 12:29; 13:19; John 6:15; 10:12,28,29; Acts 8:39; 23:10; 2Cor 12:2,4; 1Thess 4:17; Jude 1:23 and Rev 12:5). The English word "rapture" is derived from the Latin translation of the Greek harpazo (=to seize, catch up, snatch away, rapture; e.g. in 1Thess 4:17). The Vulgate uses the word "rapiemur" for "we are being raptured", which is derived from the Latin verb rapio (I seize, I snatch away,I remove, I kidnap, I save, obtain by robbery) and rapto (participle of seize, kidnap). The Latin verb raptare or rapere means to rob, snatch away, seize, snatch, capture, drag away and raptura is the participle of to seize, to kidnap. In Acts 8:39 rapuit (= robbed, seized, raptured) is used accordingly and in Revelation 12:5 raptus (rapture, abduction) is used. So the corresponding Greek and Latin word for "The Rapture" has been in the Bible for 2,000 years, and is not a modern invention, as some theologians wrongly assert. The word therefore means nothing other than being taken hastily or with haste, as if a child were hastily taken away (raptured, protected) from an approaching car, or quickly snatched or torn out of a flowing river. The chosen ones are also suddenly torn out of this world (raptured), just before the danger arises and can cause damage. 

The number 7 is the number of perfection and it is also a symbol of the church (the Bride of Christ), but the number 26 not only represents the numerical value of Yahweh, but is also the Strong number for "agape" (G26), the perfected divine love. Consequently, the 7 and the 26 form a perfect combination. This means that the church of God that is raptured is characterized by agape love. This agape love is the light that distinguishes the Bride of Christ from the other people in the world. This is the reason why the others are left behind, because they lack this love and live in darkness.

The doctrine of the Rapture is not a modern Christian invention. It does not come from theologians (that is, not from Darby or others), as some churches and sects today claim, but from Jesus and the apostles themselves. Jesus and Paul are the ones on whom the doctrine of the Rapture of the church of Christ (the so-called "Bride of Christ") is based. The disciples could not have come up with such an adventurous idea at all, but it was Jesus who thought up and promised the sudden taking away of his followers just before the time of tribulation. This is not new knowledge, but the ancient hope of the Christian faith. This even emerges from various historical sources from the first centuries after Christ, which testify to this faith even then.

Paul speaks of a mystery or secret (1Cor 15:51) which the world cannot understand, although there were already several references to it in the Old Testament (see below). It is only a mystery for the Jews (because they reject the New Testament and Jesus and so are not taken away by him) and for the world (because it is not interested in God's word). However, it is not a secret and a well-known biblical knowledge for the worldwide people of God. The knowledge about the Rapture is NOT revealed to the majority of the normal Christians (although even Hollywood movies point to it; see below), but only to the true followers of Jesus. Most Christians are not interested in the Bible at all, so they cannot say anything about this subject. It is only about a small group of people who follow Jesus in everything and are already following the way of love and forgiveness (Matthew 7:13-14; 7:19-21; Luke 12:32; John 1:11-12; Romans 8:9; 1Cor 1:26-29; 15:23). These are not the Christians by name, but the converted Christians whose names are written in the Book of Life.

The Rapture must not be confused with the second (visible) coming of Jesus Christ with power and glory. These are two different events, which are 7 years apart in time. At the Rapture, the faithful are snatched up to the high, where they meet Jesus in the clouds and remain in the kingdom of heaven. However, at the return, it goes down, back to earth and Jesus will even put his feet on the earth in Jerusalem. There is a sudden evacuation (Rapture) and then a sudden comeback (Second Coming) after a certain period of time (not immediately, it is not ping pong). First there is a sudden invisible disappearance, a "caught up...in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1Th 4:17), then there is a sudden visible appearance, a "coming [back] with the clouds of heaven" (Mk 14:62), when Jesus returns to earth together with His church. In between is the 7-year period of tribulation, the worst time ever on earth (Dan 12:1; Mt 24:21). All this is explained in numerous biblical passages, so the following text cannot be brief. The followers of Jesus expect deliverance and salvation from this world before the greatest time of tribulation. They expect Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and not the Antichrist (the false Messiah). Even Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri experienced in his last years that Jesus is the Messiah and wrote a text that reminds of the Rapture (more info). The teachings of Jesus and Paul are a great comfort to all Christians worldwide. There are numerous biblical passages about the Rapture. Yes, there is much more detailed information than most Christians are even aware of:

• Mt 25:1-13: The Parable of the Ten Virgins: „Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.“
  Note: Throughout the 24th and 25th chapters of the gospel of Matthew, the end times are described, up to the time after the 7-year tribulation, when at the end of that tribulation Jesus will visibly return to earth with power and glory. However, between Mt 24:32 and Mt 25:31 there is a content-related insertion in the sequence of events. In this passage, Jesus admonished his disciples to be vigilant and explained his coming in 3 parables. It deals [1.] with the faithful and evil servant, [2.] with the wise and foolish virgins, and [3.] the Parable of the Talents. It is always about the Lord staying away for a long time and then suddenly returning and then settling accounts by rewarding some and bringing them to Himself. This insertion does not concern the people of Israel, but Christians from all nations of the earth. Why? Because most Jews reject Jesus to this day and do not wait at all for His coming. They hope for another Messiah. So it is not the people of Israel that is at issue, but the Bride of Christ (the firstfruits, the called Christians from all nations), who is symbolically described in the parable of the 10 virgins. In addition, it is interesting, because this is not about the collection of the dead, but about the followers of Jesus who are still alive and await his coming.
  All 10 virgins have fallen asleep because of the long wait, but are still alive; but only 5 of them are picked up. Verse 10 makes it very clear "and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast". Those who were not ready, they were left behind. In the English language, it is often spoken of the "Left Behind Generation". Many Christians today do not believe in a Rapture at all, or they think that it will only be after the time of the 7-year tribulation. However, there would be almost no Christians left alive, because they would already be dead as a result of wars, persecution and natural disasters and judgments of wrath. Then the "watch and be ready" mentioned in verse 13 does not make any sense at all, because if Jesus would only come after the tribulation, then first many of prophecies have to be fulfilled and nobody has to watch. This is a tempting lukewarm theory of the Laodicean church, and many Christians say, "my master is delayed" (Mt 24:48) and mock others and make fun of this subject (2Pt 3:3). Only the wise Christians have prepared themselves for the Rapture and await the collection (taking away) by the bridegroom JESUS. It must be emphasized that the words of Mt 24 come from Jesus himself. Therefore, he was already teaching the Rapture when there was not yet a single New Testament book. How then can some Christians claim that this teaching is a modern invention and not to be found in the Bible?
  The loud shouting at midnight is comparable to the sound of the trumpet mentioned by Paul (1Thess 4:16). Very important in this context is the mention of oil and light, which is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus raptures his bride, the light (the Holy Spirit) will disappear from this world and the dark powers can unfold unhindered. Jesus did not say that the 5 wise virgins will leave their lamps with the oil and the light (=Holy Spirit) in this world, but they will take it up with them. The bride of Christ will be raptured before the tribulation. The 5 foolish virgins who are left behind, on the other hand, must go through the Tribulation, for they had no oil and no light (Holy Spirit). Many Christians have heard this parable many times before, and do not even know that it is about the Rapture. Jesus is not talking about the fact that the foolish virgins have already been judged and died, but that they are left behind, that is to say, still living and also wanting to go where the five wise virgins already are. The Final Judgment cannot be meant, for that will only take place after the 1,000-year kingdom (Rev 20:11-15). So until then there is still a very long period of time with many events in between. The parable of the 10 virgins alone says a lot about the Rapture. 
• Mt 24:32-44: The Lesson of the Fig Tree: „From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 36 But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.“
  Note: Jesus is speaking here of a completely unexpected coming for the world and only of some whom he will take away. The others will be exposed to the time of suffering, as the context of the whole chapter proves. The dead cannot be awake. Only the Christians who are still alive are vigilant and ready. They await Jesus and deliverance from this world. The Fig Tree Generation (born from 1948) lives in our time (see below). One of the most important characteristics of the last generation before the Rapture is the loveless and godless change of people on earth. It will be "like in the days of Noah", when God had to remove the evil. The righteous (Noah and his family) were saved. The Rapture of Enoch (see below) and Noah's Ark are a symbolic reference to our rapture or salvation of the few righteous. If Jesus had meant the time after the seven-year tribulation, not a single Christian would have to be awake now, seeing that a great many prophetic events have to be fulfilled before then. However, as far as the Rapture is concerned, nothing more needs to happen - that can happen at any time. God makes it very clear that some will be taken out of the field and the others will be left behind. As far as the time of day is concerned, it should be noted that God will rapture his elect from the entire globe: When there should be night and a full moon in Israel, it will be light in other parts of the world.
• Lk 17:34-35: „I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.“
  Note: Luke also speaks of the still living followers of Jesus. They will be raptured (taken away), while the others will have to stay behind.
• Lk 21:29-36: The Lesson of the Fig Tree: „And he [Jesus] told them a parable: Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. 31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 34 “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.“
  Note: How can it be that there are people who think that the righteous will only be caught up in the Rapture after the Tribulation? Jesus himself promised that He Himself would give those who watch and pray the opportunity "to escape all these things". Jesus did not say that He would expose the New Testament Church to the same plagues as the godless world, but rather he promised an escape, or rather the Rapture and preservation, which is also clearly mentioned in Rev 3:10 (see below). What day is Jesus talking about here? Of course before the "Day of the Lord", which was already mentioned often in the Old Testament and describes the last terrible time of judgment on earth, which will take place before the visible return of Jesus. And He warned again and again that we should be awake, because a life of "eating and drinking and daily worries" could otherwise keep us from waking.
• Mt 26:26-29. The Lord's Supper and the Jewish wedding: „Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup [with wine], and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.“
  Note: What does the Lord's Supper have to do with the Rapture? Very much, because it is a symbol of the Jewish wedding and the rapture. Jesus chose the bride (Jn 15:16), which the Father gave him (Jn 10:27-29); he is the one who called us, he determined who belongs to the spiritual bride and who does not. But the bride must agree; if she refuses, there will be no wedding. We too must agree to the call of Jesus and accept Him as our Lord and spiritual husband. At the engagement (symbolised by the Lord's Supper) man and woman break bread and wine is drunk from the same chalice. The Lord's Supper therefore has a much greater significance than most Christians realise. Many Christians use the expression "I have accepted the Lord", by which they mean the spiritual connection with Jesus. This spiritual bond is also symbolised by the Lord's Supper. But it also means that the bride follows Jesus on the path of purity, helpfulness, non-violence and true love (agape). The bride is to be an assistant to the husband, to love him, and must submit to her husband in everything and not sit over him (Eph 5:22-24; Gen 3:16; Titus 2:5; 1Peter 3:1-6; Gen 18:12). Nor must we ever place ourselves above our Lord Jesus and accept his decisions. Conversely, the man must love his wife as Jesus loved the church (Eph 5:23-33; 1Peter 3:7). This means that the man must live a life without sin according to the Sermon on the Mount and 1Cor 13, and that he must also serve his wife (and not just be served) as Jesus tirelessly served his church, and did so until the last breath, until the last drop of blood. A woman must be able to see Jesus in the eyes of the man and feel safe and secure. If a man cannot reflect the way of Jesus as an example in his life, then he has failed and is on the path of darkness. We, as the Bride of Christ, can enter the Kingdom of God completely relaxed and with joy through the Rapture, because we know that our Lord Jesus is the perfect love (agape) in person and will always treat us well. His life has made every doubt and fear disappear for all eternity.
  Through the betrothal, the bride also had the security of being economically secure, because the man must not let her fall, but must take care of her as long as she lives. After paying the bride price, the bride belonged to the man. Jesus paid the highest bride price with his blood (1 Cors 6:20; 7:23; 1 Peter 1:18-19), which would be possible at all. Thus we belong to Him, we are his property and nobody can snatch us from the hand of Jesus. Jesus promised this personally: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me,[a] is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand" (John 10:27-29).
  The bridegroom also gave bridal gifts. Our spiritual gift is the Holy Spirit (Jn 14:15-21), the greatest gift that a person can have, because with it we have access to Jesus and to His Father and also a share in eternal life.
  After the betrothal, the man went out to prepare the flat (Jn 14:1-3) and the woman took a bath, which is a symbol of baptism and the passing away of all past sins and a new way of life in purity and holiness. This is also represented by the white wedding dress, because we are washed clean in the blood of Christ. Only when the place of residence was prepared and the Father agreed to it, only then did the bridegroom go out to fetch his bride and take her to him. This is reminiscent of the words "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour" (Mt 25:13) and "Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming" (Mt 24:42). With a shofar's horn (cf. "the last trumpet") the bridegroom announced himself and took his bride, which is a reminder of the Rapture.
  The wedding celebration lasted 7 days in the house of the father. This reminds us of the 7 years we will spend in the Kingdom of God, while here on earth the 7 years of tribulation will be. It should be noted that only invited guests were allowed to attend the wedding, no others were allowed to enter, which reminds us of the virgins left behind (see text below), who would also like to be there but were not allowed to because they had not accepted their Lord Jesus before and had only followed Him half-heartedly (religiously).
• Jn 14:1-3: „Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God;[a] believe also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.“
  Note: Yes, we know exactly where our Lord has gone to prepare the flat for us, as already described in the above point about the Jewish wedding. And from there He will come again and take us (RAPUTURE) to Himself so that we may be where He is now, in the spiritual Kingdom of Heaven.
• 1Thess 4:13-18: „But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming [presence] of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the 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. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up [gr. harpazo; Strong No 726, will be caught away] together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.“
  Note: Paul emphasizes that the teaching of the Rapture does not come from him, but from God or Jesus himself. And he mentions the words "will be caught up" together with "in the clouds... in the air". Jesus did not only speak of the parable of the 10 virgins, but also gave other indications. So Paul writes to all Christians: "For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord". Thus he puts the authority of the word of Jesus on this subject first. By using the word "we" he wants to make it clear that he is not the only one who believes it, but also the other believers. And he emphasizes that first the converted Christians who have died will be resurrected, and then at the same time with them the still living children of God. We are talking here about fractions of a second. It is logical that this must be before the seven-year period of tribulation, seeing that after the Great Tribulation hardly any Christians (and people in general) will be alive any more. Other Bible verses prove that God wants to protect us from the plagues of the judgments, and not that he delivers us up to these plagues. Paul writes that we will be in the heavenly place of the Lord's safety, but other passages indicate that at the end of the Tribulation we will return to earth with Christ (Rev 19:11-16) to establish the Millennial Kingdom. So the Rapture (1Thess 4:13-18) must not be confused with the second return of Jesus (Rev 19:11-16). These are two different events. At the Rapture, first of all go up to the meeting with Jesus in the clouds (in heaven). But then, 7 years later, there is the return of Jesus, who returns down to earth from heaven together with his saints. Then Jesus will even put His feet on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem (Zech 14:4).
  The Greek word parousia (coming, Strong No. 3952) mentioned in verse 15 also means the presence of Jesus and occurs 24 times in the NT, especially often in Matthew 24: Mt 24:3,27,37,39; 1Cor 15:23; 16:17; 2Cor 7:6,7; 10:10; Phil 1:26; 2:12; 1Thess 2:19; 3:13; 4:15; 5:23; 2Thess 2:1:8,9; James 5:7,8; 2Peter 1:16; 3:4,12; 1John 2:28. This sensational and in the history of mankind never before seen withdrawal of a group of people is made known by loud trumpet sound.
• Hebr 11:39-40: „And all these [the persecuted Christians; the wise virgins with the light], though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.“
  Note: This text is in perfect harmony with 1Thess 4:16-17: Those who have died in Christ are still dead and will be caught up into the Rapture at the same time as those who are still alive.
• 1Thess 5:1-5: „Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.“
  Note: With the "Day of the Lord", which is very often mentioned in the Bible, the last 7 years of tribulation is meant (especially the last 3.5 years), which reaches its climax with the visible return of Jesus Christ. Jesus will appear visible to the world, and this will happen shortly before people would destroy themselves and destroy all life in this world. A preceding characteristic BEFORE the "Day of the Lord" and BEFORE the Great Tribulation is that "peace and security" will be proclaimed. Mankind will be in a false sense of security for a short time, before suddenly great wars will break out. Paul admonishes us to watch and to recognize the signs of the times. The so-called "peace plan" that some politicians will draw up (including the division of Israel) will not bring peace, but war, chaos and death. This is written in many verses in the books of the prophets of the Old Testament.
• 1Cor 15:20-24: „But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.“
  Note: [1] Christ is the first to rise from the dead, [2] followed by the Rapture, when Christ comes to take away only those who belong to him. [3] Then comes the end, that is, the time of tribulation and the Last Judgment after the 1,000-year kingdom, when God will reign and there will be no more violence.
• 1Cor 15:50-54: „I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written...“
  Note: This makes it clear that the Christians who have already died and those who have been raptured alive will be transformed and receive a spiritual body. The life here on earth serves the purpose to learn for eternity, to form character and to learn love, in order to finally be written in the Book of Life. It is a preparation and selection for eternity, because not everyone will receive eternal life as a gift from God, but only the righteous who walk the path of love and reject violence, injustice, selfishness and lies. Why does Paul speak of a mystery? Simply because the Old Testament has not yet revealed the Rapture of the converted Christians from all the countries of the world. At that time, it was not yet known that God will also take care of all Gentile nations, because the Old Testament concentrates mainly on Israel. The Rapture was only hinted at in the Old Testament (see biblical passages below). As Paul also makes clear here, the Rapture will not be a slow process, but will take place completely unexpectedly and in a fraction of a second: "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" (1Cor 15:52). For "the last trumpet", see text below. Paul makes it clear that there will indeed be people who will never die (fall asleep), but who will immediately be transferred from the physical (bodily) condition into the spiritual condition (see also 1Thess 4:13-18). All the righteous will be transformed together, both those who have already died and the Christians who are still alive, when the Rapture takes place. Together they will go up. This happens extremely quickly and in a completely new spiritual body, as the verses before it in the 15th chapter prove:
• 1Cor 15:35-49: The Resurrection Body: „But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” 36 You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. 38 But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. 39 For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. 40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. 42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being” [Gen 2:7]; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.“
  Note: These words could not be clearer. The raptured will not be in alleged spaceships as human beings, but they will be changed or transformed into spirit beings and will be with Jesus forever. This will not be in the physical (worldly), but in the spiritual dimension of God. This is exactly what most Christians have been calling "being in heaven" for centuries. 
• 1Thess 1:8-10: „For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come."
  Note: We are waiting for the Son of Heaven to take us to Himself in heaven. Paul does not write that we have to go through the worst time of wrath that has ever occurred (the Day of the Lord), but that we will be saved from it, as Rev 3:10 also clearly confirms.
• Phil 3:17-21: „Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.“
  Note: We are not waiting for the aliens, but for Jesus who will transform us. Here we are not talking about the dead, whose bodies have already decayed into all chemical elements, decayed and are untraceable, but about the transformation of the bodies of Christians who are still alive. Our citizenship is in heaven, and it is here that those Christians who have died in Christ and those who are still alive at the time of the Rapture will come, whose physical body will be transformed into spirit. How can there still be any questions about this? This was described so clearly in the Bible.
• 2Thess 2:1-12: The Man of Lawlessness: "Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion [Greek: ἀποστασία, apostasia] comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.“
  Note: Before the Rapture, there will be a global apostasy from the Word of God (Bible), as we can see clearly today. At the latest when the Antichrist (the man of wickedness; the false Messiah) is revealed, we will have no further business in the world. Now the Holy Spirit still keeps the Antichrist and the fallen angels (demons) from publicly acting with all their power and with all seductive miracles. Why? Because Christians can cast out demons in the name of Jesus Christ and hinder their effectiveness. This is clearly proven in the NT when the disciples cast out demons.
  The word "rebellion" (ESV, NIV) or "falling away" (KJV, ASV; YLT) mentioned in 2Thess 2:3 is based on the Greek "apostasia" (Strong-Nr. 646), which also occurs in Acts 21:21. It means removal, separation, apostasy, or generally a "removal from a previous standpoint/viewpoint/faith", which usually means abandonment of faith. Paul did not use the related word "aphistémi" (Strong No. 868), which means "to lead away, remove, depart" and appears in 14 Bible passages (Luke 2:37; 4:13; 8:13; 13:27; Acts 5:37-38; 12:10; 15:38; 19:9; 22:29; 2Cor 12:8; 1Tim 4:1; 2Tim 2:19; Hebr 3:12). In Lk 2:37 it says "the widow did not depart [aphistato] from the temple" and in Acts 12:10 "and immediately the angel left [apeste] him". But there is another meaning in Lk 8:13 "in time of testing fall away [apeste]" and Hebr 3:12: "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away [apostenai] from the living God". So it is a matter of falling away or apostasy from the living God.
  According to the opinion of some pastors (especially from the USA) this word also means: "to move away, to depart, to leave, to set out, to go away, to fall away, defection." Often the English Geneva Bible 1587/1599 is quoted by these pastors: "for that day shall not come, except there come a departing first, and that that man of sinne be disclosed". But be careful, there is also a departure into lawlessness and sin, for even the marginal note to 2Thess 2:3 in the Geneva Bible explains that this does NOT refer to the Rapture, but to a turning away from faith. Literally: "A wonderful departing of the most part from the faith". This important fact is usually hidden by the pastors who wish to see a "departure" in this verse. Other earlier Bibles (Wycliffe 1384, Tyndale 1526, Coverdale 1535, Cranmer 1539, Breeches Bible 1576, Beza 1583, Geneva Bible) also speak of "departure" and the World English Bible (WEB) writes: "For it will not be, unless the departure comes first, and the man of sin is revealed. This "departure" was mainly mentioned in English Bibles, which copied from each other until the KJV 1611, while in Bibles in many other languages there is talk of a spiritual-moral apostasy from God's way of life. The KJV 1611 spoke of "falling away", and most modern Bibles have adopted this view (NKJV, Webster, KJV2000, AKJV, ERV, Young's Literal Translation). The Rheims Bible 1576 and God's Word Translation mention "revolt" and many speak more precisely of "rebellion" (ESV, NIV, NLT, BSB, GNT, ISV, NET Bible, NHEB). Other English Bibles use the English word "apostasy" (Darby, Berean Literal Bible, NASB, Christian Standard Bible, Holman, Faithful Version, NAS, Weymouth).  The word "apostasy" used today in the English language means falling away from faith or disobedience, but not a travel. It is a very negative term and means a spiritual-moral apostasy from God's way of life.
  The Latin Vulgate, which served many old Bibles as a basis for translation, uses the word "discessio", which means "to go apart, separation, division, apostasy, departure, divorce" and even "voting", because through this a division takes place or a grouping (who stands by whom/what) is revealed or shown.
  The German Bibles stick more closely to the Greek text and do not speak of "departure" but of "falling away from God" (Luther, Elberfelder, Menge, Einheitsübersetzung, Schlachter), "revocation" (Zürcher), "rebellion/revolt against God" (Neues Leben; NeÜ; NGÜ), "becoming unfaithful to their faith" (GNB) or "turning their backs on God" (HfA). The German Elberfelder Study Bible has here the interesting explanation: "Normally it [apostasia] has the meaning that someone leaves from a previous position to go somewhere else." However, this word does not mean the Rapture at all, as some Christians wish, for the New Testament has other words for this (e.g. "harpazo" and others), but the word apostasia rather describes a falling away, withdrawing, going away or leaving a religion (leaving the church). By the way, even the Catholic canon law distinguishes between three cases:
  - "Apostasia a fide", the complete abandonment of the Christian faith,
  - "Apostasia ab ordine", the resignation from the priesthood and
  - "Apostasia a religione", the definitive leaving of a religious community (monk, nun).
  In the Septuagint (LXX), this word appears in several places and is always used in a very negative context. Examples: Joshua 22:22 (apostasia; apostasy, defection, falling away from God), 2Chr 29:19 (apostasia; apostasy, defection, sin), 1Macc 2:15 (apostasian; falling away from the law). Therefore, in Acts 21:21 it means "apostasy [apostasia] or falling away from Moses, to forsake Moses". The Bible interprets itself here, because in Acts 21:21 (apostasia) 100% the same word is used as in 2Thess 2:3. The use of this word in Acts 21:21, in the Septuagint and in the Greek Apocrypha and even in the marginal note of the Geneva Bible proves that it does NOT mean the Rapture (departure to heaven), but an apostasy from the true faith (falling down, into darkness and sin) as in the time of Noah and Lot. In the context of the NT and 2Thess 2 it is about the apostasy from faith and the status of sin, as in the time of Noah and Lot and the revelation of the evil, which is also pointed out by other biblical passages. Therefore, this word "apostasy" does not have a positive, but a very negative meaning (falling away from God, apostasy from faith, moral degradation, sin...) in the English language and is sometimes even associated with turning to Satanism. The "apostasia" (=apostasy, falling away) should never be the hope of Christians, but on the contrary, it is a great danger, a red flag. Only the rapture (harpazo; snatch away up into the sky) is our hope. Unfortunately some US pastors do not distinguish between the Greek words "apostasia" and "harpazo", which mean something completely different. Moreover, a "departure" is an active process, the timing of which a person can determine at will, but the Rapture (harpazo) is a completely passive process in which a Christian is suddenly snatched out by the hand of God. These are great differences. 
  The important thing is: Because of this question the church of God or better to say "the Bride of Christ" must not be divided, because we ALL believe in the physical rapture away from this earth, regardless of how 2Thess 2:3 is interpreted. So apostasia can be generally seen as "a departure, from an earlier standpoint", both spiritually and physically. In love we accept the different opinions. We can also agree on a double fulfillment (the principle of duality), namely a spiritual apostasy of the Laodicean Christians together with the world and a physical departure of the Bride of Christ. 
  At the first Christian feast of Pentecost (Acts 2), the Holy Spirit came down from heaven to earth to be present in people. But when, as a consequence of the Rapture of the converted Christians, the Holy Spirit goes up and is taken from the world (cf. the light of the 5 wise virgins), then evil can spread unbridled and with full power and seduction. Jesus himself promised that the Holy Spirit would come upon the disciples after Jesus' resurrection and teach them everything (John 14:16-17:26). This also includes the knowledge of the Rapture, for the Spirit of God reveals all mysteries and even what God thinks (1Cor 2:9-12): "these things God has revealed to us [Christians] through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God." In the New Testament, a great deal of knowledge about the work of the Holy Spirit has been handed down. But if Christians do not read it, they cannot know what the Spirit is actually doing, nor can they understand how bad it will be when the Spirit is no longer on earth. There is a "mystery of the rapture" (1Cor 15:51) and there is "mystery of lawlessness" (2Thess 2:7). There are two mysteries (secrets), but not for us. For the Jews, for the Christians by name, and for the world, it is a mystery, but for the elect (the bride of Christ) it is an old familiar knowledge.
• John 6:16-21: Jesus Walks on Water: „When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.“ 
  Note: This too is a wonderful reference to the Rapture of the church. Just as the storm begins at night and the masses of water are in flush (symbolically: the problems of the world's nations), Jesus comes to his disciples and provides for salvation. It is not certain whether Jesus raptured the whole boat to the saving shore or whether it came ashore quickly after the storm had calmed down. The corresponding Greek word for "immediately" [gr. eutheós, Strong No. 2112; immediately, soon, at once] offers both possibilities. But in any case, it is a symbol that we are with Jesus in a safe harbour and do not have to go through the wild and stormy waters (violence of nations). Jesus will rescue us from the storm before it gets worse.
• Acts 16:25-26: „About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened.“
  Note: At midnight the gates to liberation were opened, but the others were frightened and wanted to kill themselves out of fear. But Paul and Silas told them to believe in Jesus, who is the forgiveness and deliverance. Acts 16 reminds us of the opening of the gates by Samson (see below) and his going up the hill. And it also reminds of the parable of the 10 virgins who were saved at midnight.
• Heb 9:27-28: „And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.“
  Note: This verse is consistent with the above passages and the parable of the 10 virgins. Here we are speaking of the Christians who are still alive, of those "who are eagerly waiting for him". Those who do not expect to be taken out of this world by Jesus cannot hope to be taken along and to attain salvation.
• Mt 24:29-31: „Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.“
  Note: Jesus speaks here of his visible return of Jesus AFTER the 7-year Great Tribulation. But what many Christians overlook, he is not talking here about the fact that only then the righteous will rise from the earth and go to heaven together with those who are still alive, but he says that they will be gathered from all the ends of heaven. So they must already be distributed in heaven, if they are to be gathered from there. After all, the Bride of Christ has been in heaven since the Rapture, so she must be gathered in heaven and not from the tombs from all the ends of the earth. The Bride of Christ has already seen Jesus before the Tribulation, but the wicked world will only see Jesus at his visible return (after the Tribulation). He comes together with the saints to prevent the man-made end of the world. The second return of Jesus Christ will again be accompanied by the sound of trumpets. But this trumpet is not to be confused with the trumpet that describes the Rapture. These are two different trumpets, which are 7 years apart. Nor are they to be confused with the 7 judgment trumpets of Revelation (see below). 
• Mk 13:26-27: „And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.“
  Note: Mark also speaks of the huge area between the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. He does not say that only then the dead will rise from the graves, but he speaks of the area between the ends of the earth and the ends of heaven. Therefore, the elect must already be there. But Jesus will again only gather the elect. What happens when Jesus visibly returns to earth? Then he will save the world from destruction and establish the Millennial Kingdom of Peace. But then the time of the Last Judgment has not yet arrived, because that will only be after the 1,000 years (Rev 20:7-15). So when Jesus returns to earth visibly, He will eliminate evil in the shortest possible time, it will not be a year-long battle of suffering for the Church, because the Church is already with Jesus. Then there will be no "hour of trial" (Rev 3:10), from which God wanted to save the church, because the appearance of Jesus will put an end to the temptation and reveal the truth. Therefore, the preservation and taking away of the bride of Christ, which is mentioned many times in the New Testament, cannot possibly refer to the period of time at or after Jesus' visible second coming. No, Jesus wants to save his bride from the worst time in world history, the 7-year tribulation. He doesn't want to punish the bride. When Jesus returns with power and glory, then the most beautiful time in the world history of mankind begins. Then there will be no persecution of Christians, because the Christians themselves will reign over the earth together with Jesus and will remove all evil and environmental destruction (Rev 2:26-28; Dan 7:18,22,27; 1Cor 6:2-3). There will be a state comparable to the former paradise.
• Rev 3:10: „Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep [guard, save, protect] you from [gr ek or ex; Strong No 1537; out of, from out of, out from] the hour [literally: time or period] of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.“
  Note: The evangelist John also speaks of a protection from the worst time in the history of mankind. It is not a matter of accompanying the church "in" or "during" the hour of trial, but of keeping it "out of" the hour of trial. It is a matter of bringing it out or taking it away, not of bringing it through the difficult time. Example: If a child falls into the water, then the father pulls him "out of" the water and saves him from drowning and does not keep him alive in the water. There are many examples in the Bible where the "ex" or "ek" appears: "out of Egypt I called my son" (Mt 2:15); "a voice out of the heavens said" (Mt 3:17); "a voice out of the cloud" (Mt 17:5); "they came out of the tombs" (Mt 8:28); "not to take anything out of the house" (Mt 24:17); "even the dust having clung to us out of the city" (Lk 10:11); "she [Queen] came from [out of] the end of the world" (Lk 11:31); "out of his mouth" (Lk 11:54); "he shall return from [out of] the wedding feasts" (Lk 12:36); "if they do not hear Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced if anyone rises out from the dead" (Lk 16:31); "when he comes home from [out of] the field" (Lk 17:7); "He drove out of the temple" (Jn 2:15); "Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee" (Jn 4:47); "He has passed out of death into life" (Jn 5:24).
  The church of Philadelphia describes those Christians who are faithful to Jesus. In contrast to this is the lukewarm and religious church of Laodicea, which however lacks love and obedience (Rev 3:14-22). If the Rapture were to take place only after the 7-year tribulation, as some theologians claim, then there would be no point in keeping it, because almost all Christians (and the majority of people worldwide) would already be dead. What many overlook: Even after the Rapture of the elect there will be persecution of Christians. The righteous will be raptured, but the lukewarm Christians who remain behind will have to go through the time of temptation, trial and probation. Many will realize and repent of their errors and turn to God. All those who do NOT accept the mark of the Beast will be persecuted and killed. The Antichrist will not tolerate any contradiction, but he demands unconditional obedience in everything. Therefore, he wants to control all people. But all those who turn to Jesus during the Tribulation will also receive eternal life, regardless of the way in which they will die. From this, God wants to save his elect through the Rapture; he does make a difference: "For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Thess 5:9). And Jesus Himself said: "But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:36). Jesus never said: "There is no escape, all must go through the tribulation", but he has always distinguished between the two groups of people: those whom he accepts (the bride of Christ) and those whom he abandons to the tribulation and leaves behind.
• Rev 1:4-3:22: Where is the church during the tribulation? The book of Revelation gives a chronological order of events. The church (Greek ekklesias; Strong No. 1577) is mentioned 20 times (Rev 1:4,11; Rev 1:20a.20b; Rev 2:1.7.8.11.12; Rev 2:17.18.23.29; Rev 3:1.6.7.13.14.22; Rev 22:16). The word appears only at the beginning of the book 19 times, until Rev 3:22. After that there is a long pause and the "church" appears again in Rev 22:16, after the judgments of punishment are long over. Already in chapter 19 Jesus' visible return is mentioned together with the army of heaven. This will be after the Tribulation and before the beginning of the 1,000-year kingdom. What happened during this long (7-year) gap? Why is the church (or the Bride of Christ) no longer mentioned here? The Bible answers the question itself: it was "saved out of the hour of trial" (Rev 3:10), as Jesus himself promised. This happened when John heard "Come up here" (Rev 4:1) and was already before the throne of God together with the 24 elders (symbol for the whole church). Jesus promised that His disciples would sit on 12 thrones (Mt 19:28), it symbolizes the New Testament church, but the other 12 thrones represent the Old Testament church and men like Job, Israel, Moses, Enoch and David. The heads of the two churches make up the priest number 24. The persecuted believers mentioned during the Tribulation refer only to the Christians of the Laodicean church who have been left behind, who have to go through the Tribulation. They are not allowed to accept the mark of the beast (666) (information on the calculation of 666). It will be a time of temptation and testing where people will have to show in public to whom they belong. As the parable of the 10 virgins makes clear, Jesus has always made a distinction between those who walk in His light and those who do not take all this seriously and have little light (or oil) or are lukewarm, like the Laodicean Christians. Both groups are treated differently in terms of protection, because they also stood differently to Jesus and His Word.
• Rev 4:1-4: „After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. 4 Around the throne were 24 thrones, and seated on the thrones were 24 elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.“
  Note: These verses say very much. In many Bibles, there is the heading "Before the throne of God" or "The Throne in Heaven". And who is here? Answer: John with the 24 elders. And when will there be the opening of the door to heaven and an ascension to the top? We already know this very well from the above biblical passages, of course at the Rapture, just before the terrible judgments of wrath begin. The trumpet in Rev 4:1 is a reference to "the last trumpet" (1Cor 15:52) and to "the voice of the archangel" (1Thess 4:16), which Paul mentions. The words "come up" were pronounced even before the judgement were even mentioned in detail. It is only from chapter 5 of Revelation that "the book with the 7 seals" is opened, and not before. And the angel said: "I will show you what must take place after this.”
  Who are the 24 elders? Since the Bible interprets itself, only the 24 priests, the leaders of the Christian congregations, which includes the entire people of God (the converted Christians), can be symbolically meant by this. It is the entire people of priests already in heaven. There was a foreshadow for this in Israel, because there were 24 elders (priests) who took turns in ministering in the temple. But at the 3 year festivals all 24 elders had to be together. Also the whole people had to go to Jerusalem at these 3 feast times. So these 24 elders are symbolic for all converted Christians worldwide. The Bible also shows that the 24 elders possess exactly the blessings promised to the 7 churches: they have eternal life (2:7; 3:5), they sit on thrones (3:21), they have white robes (3:5) and crowns (2:11; 3:11). The Jews cannot be meant with it, because in Rev 5:8 it says that the 24 elders fall down before the Lamb (Jesus) and in verse 9 it says that they refer to His blood shed on the cross. But most of the Israelites reject Jesus to this day, and do not fall down before him at all. Only the converted Christians from all peoples and nations do so.
  The 24 elders had white robes and golden crowns (Rev 4:4). And they praise Jesus: "by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth" (cf. Rev 5:8-10). We are therefore talking about a great multitude from all peoples and not just the 24 elders. Only a few verses earlier, in the Letters to the 7 Christian communities, the reward has already been discussed: "Crown of Life" (Rev 2:10), "authority over the nations and rule them with a rod of iron" (Rev 2:26-27), "clothed in white garments, and I [Jesus] will never blot his name out of the Book of Life" (Rev 3:5), "Tree of Life" (Rev 2:7), and of course the protection (Rapture) "from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world" (Rev 3:10) and even "to sit with Jesus on His throne" (Rev 3:21). This reward concerns all the elect, but there will be a different order of precedence in the Kingdom of God, depending on how man has lived and served others in love.
  Peter said to the entire congregation: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1Peter 2:9). And the very beginning of the Book of Revelation makes clear what our relationship with Jesus is like: "... Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen" (Rev 1:5-6). So it is clear who the 24 elders must be, they stand symbolically for the entire called people of God after the Rapture. They do not stand for those who call themselves Christians, but deny Jesus through their sinful way of life.

It is important to pay close attention to what Jesus said and what he did not say. He did not say that he would kill, judge or throw the foolish virgins into hell, but that he would leave them where they are. The Bridegroom comes personally and takes only those who had the Light, whose way of life was therefore different and corresponded to the action of the Holy Spirit. A bride knows that she is getting married, she waits in her wedding dress and the signs of the times are now clearly there. But the others must live on in darkness without light. The parable is about bringing the wise virgins to a wedding celebration in a certain safe place, not about a return to earth (together with the virgins). But this does not mean that the wedding will take place immediately, because Rev 19:1-9 states that the final wedding will not be celebrated until after the fall of Babylon. But the 24 elders (symbolic of the raptured church, that is, the wise virgins) have been in heaven since before the sound of the 7 trumpets (Rev 4:1,4; 5:11; 19:4). The 7 years of tribulation, in which the bride is spared, could therefore symbolically correspond to a 7-day period of preparation for the feast. Since Jesus has already closed the door (v. 10), those who remain behind are not allowed to enter, even though they " afterwards" ask for it (v. 11). It is too late, they have not been found worthy to be taken alive (raptured) to the secure place where the others are already. This means in concrete terms: the foolish virgins are in the terrible and dangerous darkness, where they will not only live in fear, but also die. Other passages in the Bible indicate that those left behind must prove themselves in the tribulation by rejecting the mark of the beast, which for many means certain death (Rev 13:10-18). Therefore, they receive eternal life only after the end of the tribulation (Rev 20:4-6). So the parable of the 10 virgins cannot be about the short period of the visible return of Jesus, because that is when the Lord returns to earth together with His virgins (the saints, or rather with His Church) (Matthew 24:29-31; 26:64; Rev 17:14; 19:14; 20:1-3). The Antichrist will resist and fight against Jesus and His elect: 

Rev 17:14: "They [Kings + Antichrist] will make war on the Lamb [Jesus], and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful."

This cannot be a reference to the angels, but rather to the wise virgins (the church) who have been raptured before. It must be observed: When Jesus returns, there will be no darkness at all, for He will quickly remove it and finally bring light (the Holy Spirit, His Word and Love) over the earth. The parable cannot be about the Last Judgment either, because this will only take place after the Millennial Kingdom (Rev 20:11-15). The parable of the 10 virgins can therefore only refer to the time of the Rapture. So the last sentence reads: "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour" (Mt 25:13). Only in this context does the "be awake and be ready" make sense. This also corresponds to the opinion of Paul:

1Thess 5:1-11: "Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing."

There is no contradiction between the words of Jesus and those of Paul and John. All verses of the Bible complement each other in a harmonious way. Why is it important to mention this? Because, unfortunately, there are some Christians who want to erase Paul's letters completely from the Bible (see the Structure of the Bible). They do not agree with some of Paul's statements and want a shortened Bible. They also make jokes about the Rapture mentioned by Paul, overlooking the fact that there are many biblical passages in both the New and Old Testaments which confirm Jesus' words of Matthew 25:1-13. 

JESUS IS THE INVENTOR OF THE RAPTURE, because he wants to take his bride (the church) and save her from the Tribulation. This will be completely unexpected for many lukewarm Christians, but his servants have been expecting him. For the parable of the 10 virgins alone, many pages could be written. Jesus has brought a deep spiritual meaning into this parable, which emphasizes the light in a symbolic way. He said: 

• "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12).
• "I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness" (John 12:46).
• "The true light [Jesus], which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him" (John 1:9-10).
• "The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. 20 Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended" (Isaiah 60:19-20).
• "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:105).
• "And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts" (2Peter 1:19).
• "But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world [gr. an age = Lucifer, Satan is the God of this age or period of time] has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2Cor 4:2-4).
• "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1Peter 2:9).
• "I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations" (Isaiah 42:6).
• "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven" (Mt 5:15-16).
  Note: Why is the church a light? Because it listens to the light of Jesus (His Word) and follows Him.
• "Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness" (1Thess 5:1-5).

So here is clearly answered what was the light of the 5 wise virgins. Wise is only the one who seeks nearness to the Lord: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction" (Proverbs 1:7) and "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding" (Job 28:28). Jesus is the Light of Life, and whoever keeps to him will also have the Light of Life and will be taken away from him. Quite simply. The Lord will not rapture the darkness upwards, but only those people who are different from this world. The five foolish women had too little light, they were part of the darkness and only recognized this when it was already too late. After the Rapture there will not be much time left to study in the Word of God. The events will come thick and fast. There will hardly be any peace, but chaos, war, confusion and seduction. That is why it is all the more important to orientate oneself already now to the word of Jesus (the light) and to seek Him and his word with all one's heart. 

In the end times, many abuse the grace of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to sin. They simply say, "Jesus died for me and saved me no matter what I do." This bad attitude will certainly not be raptured into the Kingdom of God, but only those who really follow Jesus and are a light (not darkness) for the world:

• Jude 1:4-21: "For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ ... 12 These are hidden reefs ... 13 ... wandering stars [these stars have too little light, they do not shine], for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever ... 16 These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” 19 It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."
  
• Mt 7:19-23: "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"
• Mt 25:10-12: "the bridegroom came, and those [virgins] who were ready went in with Him [Jesus] to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you."
  Note: For comparison, the Last Judgment after the Millennial Kingdom (Rev 20:11-15) and what God pays attention to, what makes the difference (the light), namely how we have practiced God's Word (light, love) and treated others; Mt 25:40-46: "And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me [Jesus].’ ... 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me [Jesus].’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’"  In the Book of Life are written only the names of those who lived differently, namely those who were a Light (Love) in this world. They made the difference and were not a part of the darkness.

As can be clearly seen, all 10 virgins call the Lord, all want to be with Him. But only those who are a light in this world and put the word (the light) of their Lord Jesus into practice, only these will be taken along by the bridegroom, for He does not want darkness with Him. Love is the light and the strongest power in the universe and it does not tolerate evil (darkness, sin). In other words: Jesus, the Bible, the Holy Spirit and Love belong inseparably together: This is the Light in this world. Therefore the people who follow Jesus and have love are also a light, they are from God and only they will be raptured. 

The above illustrations (source see quite below) show the two different groups, namely the happy virgins on the one hand and the frustrated and begging virgins on the other. The foolish women were jealous and wanted to have this light too, but the wise women could not give it, because not they, but Jesus is the source of oil and light, which symbolizes the Holy Spirit. It is something terrible to be left behind by Jesus. Life here on earth is hard enough, but without the personal protection of the Lord, the left-over Christians are at the mercy of the brutal world. After the Rapture many will cry out "I wanted to be there too, why without me?", but then it will already be too late. And some will even shout at God and reproach God. If Jesus is the light, then his words must also be the light in this world. The wise virgins sought wisdom after their conversion, they often searched the Scriptures and knew the Word of their Lord Jesus Christ very well. They were therefore a light in this world. They were different because they wanted to be like Jesus, to live justly, to serve, to love and to forgive. The other Christians were only religious, but without wisdom and without love and did not know the will of their Lord. For them, tradition thought up by people was more important. They went to church on Sunday, but lived as they wanted and were not interested in following Jesus and his word, the Bible. In the book of Acts there is a comparison of two different churches, namely Thessalonica and Berea: 

"Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so" (Acts 17:11). - Note: This word "Jews" is not found in the basic Greek text, but rather refers to the converted Christians from Judaism who listened to Paul and adopted the faith.

And also the two churches mentioned last in the book of Revelation are completely different and therefore also have different rewards:

1 Philadelphia: "You have kept my word and have not denied my name [Jesus]" (Rev 3:8).

2 Laodicea: "you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked...." (Rev 3:16-18).

The Philadelphia church followed the Bible and Jesus, the Laodicea church was not interested in all this. These Christians thought they were good enough and did not realize that they lacked the light. So the promise of the Rapture only applies to those who believe in the light (Jesus) and his Word (Bible = light) and are themselves a light in this world. They keep to the word of God (the light) and only these Christians will be raptured: 

"Because you [Philadelphia church] have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth" (Rev 3:10).

Paul's explanations regarding the Rapture are in perfect harmony with the parable of the 10 virgins and the protection of the elect: 1Cor 15:20-24; 15:35-49; 15:50-53; 1Thess 1:8-10; 4:13-18; 5:1-5; 2Thess 2:1-12; Phil 3:17-21. The words of Jesus and Paul complement each other.

If the Christians left behind now say, "this is unjust, why do we have to suffer and the others do not"? Then this only shows that they do not know what the Bible says. The world could never bear the light. It was the righteous Christians (the wise virgins) who were persecuted, robbed, lied to, raped, tortured and killed over the centuries. Even in their own families they were cast out because of their faith in Jesus (Mt 10:35-38). In contrast, the lukewarm Christians (the foolish virgins) lived as they wished and in some cases even despised, criticized and mocked the righteous. They were hardly different from the world. "Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2Tim 3:12-13). The Epistle to the Hebrews shows the suffering of the elect in a dramatic way (Hebr 11:33-40; cf. 1Thess 3:3-4; Eph 3:13). The wise virgins did not deny their Lord Jesus and remained steadfast: "And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved" (Mk 13:13). So God is not unjust. He will "save" those who are faithful and a light in the world, that is, he will take (rapture) them up to himself and protect them from tribulation. 

Love is the light in this world. It is poured out through the Holy Spirit. The true followers of Jesus have something that the world does not know, namely true love (Greek: agape). It is the selfless love, in which the well-being of the other person is the center of attention. This special love is precisely defined in 1 Corinthians 13 and Paul says something very important: "Love [agape] NEVER ends" (1Cor 13:8). Never means never, no matter what happens, it is eternal. Whoever has this love does not need a law, because he automatically does good and avoids evil. The one who has this true love cannot cause suffering to the other at all (this is impossible), because love does everything so that the other may be well, both spiritually and physically. It thinks along with the other how it can make the other good and a joy, and it protects him from spiritual and physical dangers. Love is pure and sacrifices itself for the other. Where there is true love, there can be no problems in family, society and marriage. This love is defined in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5-7) and in 1Cor 13. Jesus was the perfect example, He was love (agape) in person and all who have this love are children of God. Love is the only distinguishing feature of a true Christian. Do you see what is the real difference between the wise and the foolish virgins? It is the agape love, the light in this world. Therefore, the wise virgins (the true Christians) are the light, because they follow the true light Jesus and are guided by the Holy Spirit (Light): 

1John 4:7-21: "Beloved [agapetoi], let us love [agapomen] one another, for love [agape] is from God, and whoever loves [agapon] has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love [agapon] does not know God, because God is love [agape]. 9 In this the love [agape] of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love [agape], not that we have loved [egapekamen] God but that he loved [egapesen] us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved [agapetoi], if God so loved [egapesen] us, we also ought to love [agapan] one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love [agapomen] one another, God abides in us and his love [agape] is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love [agapen] that God has for us. God is love [agape], and whoever abides in love [agape] abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love [agape] perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love [agape], but perfect love [agape] casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love [agape]. 19 We love [agapomen] because he first loved [egapesen] us. 20 If anyone says, “I love [agapo] God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love [agapon] his brother whom he has seen cannot love [agapan] God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves [apapon] God must also love [agapa] his brother."

Through the Rapture, God brings the Holy Spirit and the love (the Bride of Christ) to Himself. But the loveless and selfish Christians remain on earth. Or should they take the same loveless attitude with them into the Kingdom of God? Certainly not. Their way of life has hardly differed from that of the world and they still have to learn how important the following of Jesus and how important the way of life in agape-love is for the whole world. This is a lesson for eternity that the Bride of Christ has already learned. Again, the Love makes the difference. 

Paul writes that the Rapture is indeed a mystery, but this mainly concerns the Jews (as they can find little about it in the Old Testament) and the unsuspecting world, because they do not want to know anything about the New Testament (NT). To the children of God, on the other hand, this knowledge was transmitted in the New Testament through the words of Jesus and through the Holy Spirit. There are nevertheless several symbolic references to the Rapture in the Old Testament (OT):

• Gen 29:21-30: "Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” 22 So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. 23 But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her. 24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) 25 And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Complete the week [this refers to the wedding week, which lasts seven days] of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” 28 Jacob did so, and completed her week [=seven days]. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years."
  Note: We are talking about the two symbolic wives (Bride of Christ and Israel). In the NT the church is referred to several times as the "Bride of Christ" (2Cor 11:2; Eph 5:25-32; Rev 19:7-9; 21:9). This refers to the called Christians from the Gentiles. But the Bible also reports about another woman, namely the people of Israel. There are several passages about this in the Old Testament. They describe the virgin Israel, who became unfaithful and went after other men (symbolically: gods) and thus became a harlot, which is why she had to be punished by God. It is about two symbolic women. So there are two brides and two weddings which are exactly 7 years apart. The life story of Jacob, who was later renamed Israel (because he became the progenitor of Israel) gives a hint at the rapture and the 7 years that lie between the rapture and the second return of Jesus. Jacob had two wives who were sisters. He was in love with Rachel (the younger daughter of Laban) and wanted to marry her. But Laban first gave him Leah (the older, or first-born daughter) as his wife. In Israel, a marriage was considered consummated when the man went to the woman at night. This is an indication of a rapture at night. For the younger daughter he should wait until after the 7-day wedding week and serve for another 7 years. Some Christians cannot understand the symbolic meaning of this story, because they think that the "Bride of Christ" should symbolically be the younger sister, so she should marry first. But this is not correct because Leah (the first-born) symbolizes the saints called from the Gentiles and these existed before the people of Israel (the younger bride) even existed. Of course, the Christian church was founded from the lifetime of Jesus Christ. But it also symbolizes the saints called from the Gentiles and there were already BEFORE Jesus, there were people who were called from the nations and had the Holy Spirit (e.g. Job, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac...). The people of Israel came into being through the progenitor Israel (Jacob) and his 12 sons. 
  There is another interesting fact: Leah gave birth to 7 children (6 sons and a daughter; Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dinah), which are symbolic of the 7 churches of the Revelation. The name of the last child "Dina" means translated: "judgment, court, judged, vindicated". This means: Only after Leah had given birth to the 7 children (whereby the last child symbolizes the beginning of the Judgment or Great Tribulation), only after that the younger Rachel became pregnant and gave birth to Joseph and Benjamin. Jacob had a total of 12 sons, but the other 4 children came from the two maids of Lea (Silpa: Gad, Ascher) and Rachel (Bilha: Dan, Naphtali). This means concretely: before the judgment begins the bride will be raptured (the 7 churches of the revelation). So, there is about the first wedding (marriage) before the Tribulation (first-born wife Leah) and about the second wedding after the Tribulation with the second wife (the later-born wife Rachel), that is to say exactly 7 years later. The example between the two brides (wives) and the 7 years in between clearly speaks against the theory of the Rapture in the middle of the tribulation (Mid-Tribulation Theory), that is to say 3.5 years after the beginning of the tribulation.
• Ex 12:29-31: "At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. 30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. 31 Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said.
  Note: The Exodus was the deliverance from sin and from persecution by the heathen nations (Egypt). This is a foretaste of the Rapture: only those who were obedient and believed in the blood of the Lamb (symbolically in the blood of Christ) were delivered and did not have to die. It was again at midnight on a full moon (15th Nisan). These are prophetic words to the bride of Christ: "Up, go out... go, serve the Lord" (v. 31). God spared the first birth of Israel and who are we? Of course the first fruits of God, as many biblical passages testify; Jesus will also spare them from the tribulation. Not a single one of the faithful Hebrews has been punished, but they have all been spared the suffering of the angel of death, the plagues of judgment.
• Ex 13:17 to chapter 16: Flight and crossing of the Red Sea: "Thus the Lord saved Israel that day [Nisan 21] from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses" (Ex 14:30-31).
  Note: Is this a reference to our rapture on the 7th day and thus the last day of the Passover (21st Nisan)? According to tradition, the deliverance from the mighty Egyptian military and the passage through the Red Sea took place on the seventh day of the Passover feast, that is to say on the 21st Nisan in the Hebrew year 2448 or 2449 (1313 BC, we cannot guarantee this date, it comes from Israeli sources). The Wikipedia page writes: "Shvi'i shel Pesach (שביעי של פסח) ("seventh [day] of Passover") is another full Jewish holiday, with special prayer services and festive meals. Outside the Land of Israel, in the Jewish diaspora, Shvi'i shel Pesach is celebrated on both the seventh and eighth days of Passover. This holiday commemorates the day the Children of Israel reached the Red Sea and witnessed both the miraculous "Splitting of the Sea" (Passage of the Red Sea), the drowning of all the Egyptian chariots, horses and soldiers that pursued them."
• Ex 19:1-19: "On the third new moon [3rd month] after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai... 3 while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation’... 16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. 20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up."
  Note: The Lord comes down in a cloud with a loud trumpet sound. The "Moses went up" in the 2nd book of Moses reminds us of the "Come up" in Rev 4:1, when the church appears symbolically in the form of John and the 24 elders before the throne of God. As in the time of Moses, so also now, only a few may go up, most of them remain on earth. One fact is still important, which most Christians overlook, namely that the time of the events was in the area of the feast of Pentecost. Verse 1 emphasizes that it was the beginning of the 3rd month when the people arrived before Mount Sinai. The feast of the weeks (Shavuot, Pentecost) is always at the beginning of the third month. It is the time when God reveals His nearness to His people and proclaims His law. Verse 16 speaks of the sound of the trumpet. After the people of Israel have so often rejected God and Jesus, verse 4 is an excellent foreshadowing for the bride of Christ and what will happen: "I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself". At the Rapture of the Church (the international Bride of Christ) that which was already fulfilled on the physical level with the people of Israel 3,500 years ago will be fulfilled spiritually. On spiritual eagle wings we will fly towards Jesus in the clouds, suddenly, at the time of the last trumpet (see the verses above). 
• Ex 20:18-21: The proclamation of the 10 commandments. "Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was."
  Note: At the proclamation of the 10 Commandments, the coming of the Lord in the cloud was evident to all Israelites. But only Moses was allowed to approach God, the others had to stay away. This is a reference to the two groups, namely to the righteous Moses, who was allowed to come near God, and to the people of Israel, who were not allowed to come near God because of their sins. God's coming was accompanied by the sound of the trumpet. And Moses approached the dark clouds, in which was the bright light (God). It is like in this dark world, where the light of Jesus is our only hope. It is another indirect indication that the Rapture will take place in darkness. This refers mainly to the time zone of Israel, because it is the center of most actions in the Bible. As in the parable of the 10 virgins, God's coming and presence will be when it is dark, completely unexpected from the world.
• Lev 23:15-17: Pentecost: "You shall count seven full weeks [literally: seven full Sabbaths]  from the day after the Sabbath [15th Nisan], from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering. 16 You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the Lord. 17 You shall bring from your dwelling places two loaves of bread to be waved, made of two tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour, and they shall be baked with leaven, as firstfruits to the Lord."
  Note: We are talking about two wave offerings here. The first of course symbolized Jesus and his resurrection at the Passover. The second wave offering at Pentecost could symbolize the Bride of Christ (the church of God), who is taken away (raptured) by Jesus. This would be the end of the age of the church, which began at Pentecost and ended there again. Many Christians know something about the first wave offering, but unfortunately they overlook the second, which is symbolically meant for the Christians (that is, for themselves). At Pentecost the Holy Spirit was poured out (Acts 2), which makes us children of God. It is also interesting that the loaves of bread were to be taken out of the homes. Could the two loaves of bread symbolize the Christians of the Old and New Testament (or Israel and the Church)? For the Bible, which consists of two parts, is our spiritual bread and describes the people of God during the Old and New Covenant. Jesus also said: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Mt 4:4). The "taking out of the homes" is comparable to the current quarantine, because Christians are forced by the state to stay in their homes while they eagerly await their collection (rapture) by Jesus. This is comparable to the time of Moses when the first Passover was established and all Israelites were in their homes until they were freed at night from the land of sin (Egypt). Jesus rose from the dead on the night of a Sabbath (proofs), and so would the firstfruits (Bride of Christ) rise on a Sabbath night (Pentecost). The number 50 has a special significance, because it does not only mean completeness (7x7=49+1=50), but also the liberation and the remission of debts, as was made clear in all Jubilee years (every 50 years). See also the information below on Ruth 3:8-9. 
• Joshua 6:3-21, The Fall of Jericho: "You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up [lit.: to go up, ascend, arise, climb], everyone straight before him.” 6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord.” ...12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. And the armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets blew continually. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days. 15 On the seventh day they rose early, at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times. 16 And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city. 17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.” 20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city. 21 Then they devoted all in the city to destructicon..."
  Note: The loud shouting and the trumpets remind of the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God in 1Thess 4:13-18. After 6 days (symbolic of the 6,000 years of man's rule) the godless city fell on the 7th day, the day (time) of redemption. For the people of God "shall go up" (verse 5) and "the people went up into the city" (verse 20). At the Rapture we will ascend to the Holy City described in Revelation, to the places that God has prepared for us. But for the others, it meant fear, tribulation and death, a reminder of the seven years of great tribulation. Excluded was the prostitute Rahab, who is symbolic of those who did not belong to the people of God, but were against the godless walk of the city and support the people of God. The 7 priests are symbolic of the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3, who have warned the world (trumpets) and the treasures came to God on the seventh day, which is an indication of our reward, because here on earth Christians were often disadvantaged and robbed, even in their own families (inheritance, divorce ...). So, in the book of Joshua there are symbolically clear references to God's plan with his people (rapture, to go up) and the fate of the rest of the godless people (tribulation).
• Jes 26:9-21: "My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. 10 If favor is shown to the wicked, he does not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness he deals corruptly and does not see the majesty of the Lord. 11 O Lord, your hand is lifted up, but they do not see it. Let them see your zeal for your people, and be ashamed. Let the fire for your adversaries consume them. 12 O Lord, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done for us all our works. 13 O Lord our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone we bring to remembrance. 14 They are dead, they will not live; they are shades, they will not arise; to that end you have visited them with destruction and wiped out all remembrance of them. 15 But you have increased the nation, O Lord, you have increased the nation; you are glorified; you have enlarged all the borders of the land. 16 O Lord, in distress they sought you; they poured out a whispered prayer when your discipline was upon them. 17 Like a pregnant woman  who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she is near to giving birth, so were we because of you, O Lord; 18 we were pregnant, we writhed, but we have given birth to wind. We have accomplished no deliverance in the earth, and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen. 19 Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead. 20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until the fury has passed by. 21 For behold, the Lord is coming out from his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it, and will no more cover its slain."
• Note: Here we are speaking of a resurrection that is to take place before the time of tribulation or before a time of judgment. But those who are still alive are locked up in their rooms of the apartments and wait for the Lord. This is reminiscent of the politically forced isolation of the saints, which was caused by the vi-rus crisis. When the Lord will come, He will reveal who were those who belonged to Him (verse 21). 
• Jer 30:4-7: These are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah: 5 “Thus says the Lord: We have heard a cry of panic, of terror, and no peace. 6 Ask now, and see, can a man bear a child? Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor? Why has every face turned pale? 7 Alas! That day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress [trouble, tribulation] for Jacob [=Israel]; yet he shall be saved out of it."
  Note: The prophets of the OT often spoke of the terrible Great Tribulation in the last days. Only Jacob is spoken of, who is also called Israel and is the progenitor of the Israelites. His descendants (the Jews) must indeed go through the time of tribulation, but they will then be "saved out of it". The exact time is not mentioned here. This can be in connection with the woman from Rev 12, which means the last 3.5 years (1,260 days) of the Tribulation. It must be emphasized that we are not speaking here about the time of tribulation for the church, but only for Israel and Judah. We do not find a single indication in the Bible that God will deliver his church (the firstfruits, the Bride of Christ, the converted Christians, the light) to the dreadful tribulation and the plagues of judgment, because He wants to save them from it. But the lukewarm Christians left behind must prove themselves in the tribulation and show to whom they belong. The Jews will experience the help of God and Jesus when all the armies of the world will gather against Israel. 
• Job 34:20: "In a moment they die; at midnight the people are shaken and pass away, and the mighty are taken away by no human hand."
  Note: Even in the Book of Job, there is a reference to the disappearance of certain people at midnight. It is stressed that this is not done by human hands. Of course, they are not aliens either, but Jesus will bring his own to him. According to the Hebrew text, the "mighty" are those who are strong, brave or important; it could therefore be a reference to Christians, "the priests and kings before God" (1Pt 2:9; cf. Rev 1:6). And behind the translated "taken away", there is the word "sur" in the basic Hebrew text, which means to leave, to take off, to go away or to travel. Yes, we want to leave; we can no longer bear the injustice and the lack of love of the people of this world, but we long for the love and security of God, in the spiritual dimension (not as humans in an alien spaceship, as some seducers teach).
• Judges 16:2-3: "The Gazites were told, “Samson has come here.” And they surrounded the place and set an ambush for him all night at the gate of the city. They kept quiet all night, saying, “Let us wait till the light of the morning; then we will kill him. 3 But Samson lay till midnight, and at midnight he arose and took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and pulled them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that is in front of Hebron.” 
  Note: Then, as now, many people seek to kill the Christians. Samson got up at midnight; the gates of the city were opened and he went up to the high place with the gates. Another indirect indication, because the gates to God and to the heavenly city (cf. Rev 22:14) are opened to the world unexpectedly at night.
• Kings 3:16-21: "Then two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. 17 The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house, and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house. 18 Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were alone. There was no one else with us in the house; only we two were in the house. 19 And this woman's son died in the night, because she lay on him. 20 And she arose at midnight [literally: "in the middle of the night"] and took my son from beside me, while your servant slept, and laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast. 21 When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, he was dead. But when I looked at him closely in the morning, behold, he was not the child that I had borne.”
  Note: The living baby was born after 3 days, just as Jesus was born again after 3 days through the resurrection. At midnight, the living baby was taken away (symbol for the children of God who follow Jesus and are taken away or raptured). But the child did not go to Satan, but to its true owner. Satan could not take it away. Instead, the child came to its true family, symbolically to God the Father.
• Mi 7:1-3: „Woe is me! For I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been gleaned: there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig that my soul desires. 2 The godly has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among mankind; they all lie in wait for blood, and each hunts the other with a net. 3 Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well...“
  Note: The prophet Micah speaks of the time of the first ripe figs (i.e. at the end of the wheat harvest around Tu B'Aw), when the saints have disappeared and are no longer there. The ones left behind, on the other hand, are lurking for blood, which points to the great tribulation.
• Psalm 119:61-62: "Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me, I do not forget your law. 62 At midnight I rise to praise you, because of your righteous rules."
  Note: Again, there is a reference to the persecution of the righteous and a gratitude at midnight, as God creates justice and keeps order. "I rise at midnight" is a reference to the resurrection according to 1Thess 4:13-18.
• Psalm 90:10: "The years of our life are 70, or even by reason of strength 80; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away." Literally: "The days of of our lives in [are] 70 years and if by reason of strength 80 years and yet their pride [boast] [is] only labor and sorrow for it is cut off fast/soon and we fly away."
  Note: Most Christians know this sensational verse only in connection with the Fig tree generation (the last generation in since 1948; see below). It is about their lifetime between 70-80 years. But many do not read the whole sentence to the end, because there is actually a connection to "flying away". The context is about the age of life with the worries in this time and then the Hebrew text literally says "work and worries, then quickly [soon] is over [cut off] and we fly away." The point here is not to come down to the grave after our lifetime, but the exact opposite, to fly away. Yes, the basic Hebrew text is about "to fly" (Hebrew: oof; Strong No. 5774), as already stated at the time of creation: "and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens" (Gen 1:20) or "the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air" (Dt 4:17). A wonderful connection of Psalm 90 with the period between 70-80 years of the fig tree generation and our Rapture, which was already hinted at in the Old Testament. We are not going on holiday, but to the sky, where our bodies are transformed.
• Proverbs 7:18-20: A woman in a whore's dress spoke: "Come, let us take our fill of love till morning; let us delight ourselves with love. 19 For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; 20 he took a bag of money with him; at full moon he will come home."
  Note: The seductive woman (symbolic of Satan and the false church) wants to draw people to her. In this world, a large part of people follow her temptations and only a few stay away from sin. The man (symbolic of Jesus) went on a long (i.e. long time) journey (to the kingdom of heaven). He returns during the night at the time of the full moon and brings with him his reward (eternal life). Here is a comparison with the last words of Revelation:
  Rev 22:12-15: "Behold, I am coming soon [literally: quickly, swift, see below], bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood."
• Ruth 3:8-9 "At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! 9 He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer."
  Note: When Boas awoke from his sleep (symbol of death) at midnight, there was again a shock or wonder, but in a positive way. Bride and bridegroom are getting closer, love has become stronger and the man is the Redeemer (symbol of the Savior Jesus). This is another symbol of the Bride of Christ (the Church) and the Bridegroom (Jesus). It is time for the wedding. Christians should keep themselves pure (v. 3:3: "wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak") and watchful. The book of Ruth is a wonderful reference to the church of God. Ruth did not come from the Hebrews, but from the Gentile nations. She converted and married a man from the people of God who became her redeemer (just as Jesus is our Savior). The church of God also comes from all peoples and nations, it is the bride of Christ. The book of Ruth was always read at Pentecost, because the marriage took place during the summer harvest. This could be directly connected with the Rapture of the church, because the church was founded at Pentecost and could also be taken from this world at Pentecost. So the age of the church would be over. See also the Bible passage above to Lev 23:15-17. For many Jews and some Christians who know God's calendar, the last day of the wheat harvest, that is, Tu B'Av (15th day of the 5th month), is the presumed day when Ruth and Boaz were married. 
• The Book of Esther is read each year during the last feast of the biblical year (Purim, in the 12th month). It is at the time of the full moon and has references to the Rapture. It symbolizes the salvation of the people on a single day. The Queen Esther stands for the Bride of Christ. See the information about the Purim Feast.
• Dan 12:1-4: "At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase."
  Note: Daniel describes here the beginning of the end times. Only then will the angel of God intercede for the righteous with all his might (cf. the call of the archangel in 1Thess 4:16), to protect them and not to see them destroyed one by one in the Great Tribulation. Daniel does not say that Christians will be saved only after the seven-year tribulation, but he speaks of the time when everything is just beginning and of salvation at that time, that is, at the beginning. Later salvation makes no sense at all, seeing that otherwise the congregation will have to go through the whole Tribulation. It is very interesting that Daniel here mentions the two groups of the children of God, which were described just as later by Paul (1Thess 4:13-18), namely the Rapture of the Christians who died first, and then (and at the same time with them) of the Christians who are still alive, "those who turn many to righteousness" (Dan 12:3). All this is not a coincidence, but complements each other in complete harmony. The dead come out of their graves in the earth and are then raptured to Jesus together with the Christians who are still alive. This means in concrete terms that there will indeed be some people who never die in their lives, but who will immediately pass over from the physical (bodily) to the spiritual phase. This is also the clear statement of Paul: "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality" (1Cor 15:51-53). All this concerns only those Christians whose name is written in the Book of Life. Most of the Christians with names remain on earth. Therefore Daniel explicitly mentions this Book of Life in verse 12:1 (for more info see Link). The Book of Life, invisible to human beings, is the 50th and last scroll of the Bible, which consists of 49 (=7x7) visible scrolls in total. More about this in the structure of the Bible. Some people will never die, they will be transformed alive from the physical to the spiritual dimension".
  And another very important point: Many converted Christians are full of fear, because they are not sure whether God has really forgiven them their past sins and whether they will be present at the Rapture. But Daniel reassures us, because he says that ALL those who are called will be saved, that is, ALL whose names are written in the Book of Life. God does not change his mind all the time, even if we sin and repent of it...
• Mal 3:16-18; 4:1-3: "Then those who feared the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name. 17 They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. 18 Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him." Mal 4:1-3: "For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. 3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts."
  Note: This passage is intended for those who claim that God makes no distinction between Christians and that everyone has to go through the Tribulation. No, God has always made a difference, and this will be dramatically demonstrated at the Rapture. It is rewarding to follow God's way and be different. This is also shown in the parable of the 10 virgins. Verse 20 is particularly encouraging, literally: "and healing is in its wings and you go out." That means the righteous will get wings and go out. Wings are only needed by Christians who are supposed to go up to God, while the others stay behind and have to go through the Day of the Lord."
• Dan 9:24-27: "70 weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. 25 Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be 7 weeks. Then for 62 weeks [literally: "until the Messiah, the prince, there are 7 sevens and there are 62 sevens"] it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. 26 And after the 62 weeks [lit.: 62 sevens, see definition week], an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. 27 And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”
  Note: The temporal coming of the Messiah. Here it is clearly a matter of calculating the year in which the Anointed One (Messiah) should publicly appear. There were several decrees. The decrees of Kyros (539/538 B.C.) and Darius (519/518 B.C.) were mainly concerned with the building of the temple. But Daniel does not speak of temple, but of "building the city". Ahasuerus [gr. Xerxes] still prohibited the building of the city (Ezra 4:6,21). Only Artaxerxes was the one who determined that all of Jerusalem should be built. Therefore he is mentioned several times in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, which report about the retreat to Judah and the rebuilding of Jerusalem. His decrees of 458/457 and 445/444 B.C. are therefore of particular importance. The division into 7 prophetic weeks (7x7=49 years) plus 62 weeks (62x7=434 years) makes sense, because the first 49 years refer to the rebuilding of Jerusalem in difficult times (war and hunger). After that another 434 years should follow until the Messiah should appear. The calculation is now exciting, because if we add the 69x7=483 years to the year 458/7 B.C., we come to the year 26/27 A.D. So Jesus would have started his ministry in the fall of 26 A.D. and would have had to celebrate the first Passover in 27 A.D. and would have died after 3.5 years at the Passover in 30 or at the latest in 31 A.D. (depending on the beginning of the counting) in the middle of the last 70th prophetic week. So the people at the time of Jesus knew exactly to the year when the Messiah would appear. It is important to note this. Here it was about the first coming (or appearance) of Jesus and the subsequent destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD; but there is also an interesting numerical calculation about the renewed appearance of Jesus in the clouds to fetch His bride, because she also knows when the Messiah was to appear to deliver her from the tribulation and to rapture her. There is perhaps an interesting double fulfillment:
  After the expulsion of the Jews, Jerusalem lay abandoned and fallow for several centuries. This only changed when Jerusalem became part of the Ottoman Empire, when Sultan Suleiman I (the Magnificent; *1494/95; †1566; ruled from 1520 to 1566) ordered the reconstruction of the destroyed city walls of Jerusalem in 1532-1535. The current city walls of Jerusalem were built in 1537/1539 and 1541 (expansion) and later extended. Unfortunately, the dates given in the historical sources are not consistent, which is why different calculations are possible. As early as 1864, the Real-Encyklopädie für protestantische Theologie und Kirche stated: "Sultan Suleiman built the present city walls in 1536-1539 (not 1542, as is usually the case according to Robinson; 1 Tobler, Topogr. I. p. 79)." Simon Sebag Montefiore has dated the construction and reinforcement of the city walls to the years 1539 to 1542 ("Jerusalem: The Biography", 2013). Israeli sources and Wikipedia confirm that the Lion's Gate (one of the eight gates in the walls of the Old City) was built in 1538-1539. According to Wikipedia, the Golden Gate of the eastern city wall was not closed until 1541. Ottoman rule lasted around 400 years. Under Suleiman, the condition of the whole of Jerusalem improved significantly, and the waterworks and the Dome of the Rock were also renovated. The number of inhabitants rose from 10,000 to 16,000 in 1540 (see Link1, Link2). It is now interesting that from 1538/39 (start of construction) to 2021 or 2022, exactly 69x7=483 years are counted again, which some Christians see as a double or dual fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy. And if the prophetic years are added again from the last date (the later date), the result is the year 2017, in which the sign from Revelation 12 appeared in the night sky:
             1541 + 483 prophetic years = 2017 (sign from Revelation 12)
             1538/1539 + 483 historical years = 2021/2022 (until the Rapture only a few years later)
  Many have hoped for the Rapture in 2022, but it is still a short time after that, because the Lord is coming at a time when no one is expecting him. Jesus' ministry lasted around 3.5 years on earth, only after which he was not caught up to heaven. We therefore hope that the rapture will take place no later than 3.5 years after 2021/2022. This would be followed by the 70th week of years, i.e. the 7-year tribulation, at the end of which Jesus will appear for all to see:

God is a God of diversity, this is shown not only in nature, but also in terms of prophetically important phenomena that we can even see on TV. To all the many information that we find in the Bible, there are also special political events that are related to biblical feast days, especially also in terms of numerical statements. And there are extraordinary star constellations in the sky (solar eclipses, blood moons, star constellations in the night sky), which are of great significance. Of course, this has nothing at all to do with astrology, but with astronomy (there is a big difference), because it is God who created the sun, the moon and the stars, who thereby gave us His calendar and He is the only one who has the right and the power to structure the constellations in such a way that they have a clear biblical and prophetic reference. Also to be noted are the events related to the state of Israel (founding of the state, wars...), which will be described in detail later in the text. Especially the information about the fig tree generation (70-80 years after the foundation of the state of Israel) is of greatest prophetic importance, because Jesus personally gave us a time frame when we have to expect the rapture, the 7-year tribulation, the visible return of Jesus and the 1,000-year kingdom (Millennium).  

On the Day of Trumpets 2017 (Yom Teruah; 1st day of the 7th month; Tishrei 1; September 22, 2017) there was a special astronomical constellation with the constellations Virgo and Leo, the Sun, the Moon and the planets Mercury, Mars, Venus and Jupiter, which reminds of the description in Revelation 12 (the woman with the 12 stars, who is threatened by the dragon, but is brought to safety by God). The special part was: Jupiter (symbol of Jesus) left the lower part of the "womb" of the Virgin 42 weeks later, which is the approximate length of a human pregnancy. Furthermore, on September 22, 2017, it was the equinox.

And now comes the exciting part, which has already been mentioned: From the Day of Trumpets (Yom Teruah, Sept. 22, 2017) to the Feast of Pentecost (May 18, 2021) there are 1,335 days. We must always keep in mind that the Gregorian calendar always starts a day at the greatest darkness (midnight) and has parts of 2 nights. But a biblical day always begins after sunset and always ends after sunset, so it has parts of only one night. We must always keep this in mind when doing biblical calendar calculations:

09/22/2017 CE to 05/18/2021 CE = 1,335 days, including 1st date (3 years, 7 months, 26 days).

09/23/2017 CE to 05/19/2021 CE = 1,335 days, including 1st date (3 years, 7 months, 26 days).

That are 3 years, 7 months and 26 days. And now the question that every Christian should know who knows the inspired Greek basic text of the NT (and not only the man-made translations with errors): What is the Strong number for the Rapture? Correct, it is 726 (see text at the very top). To avoid misunderstandings, we are not saying that the Rapture should have taken place at Pentecost 2021 (which many in the USA actually thought), but as responsible Christians we must pay attention and watch for the signs of the times, because we know that the Rapture must take place in just a few years after that. Everything else is in God's hands and we have not been spiritually asleep. To avoid misunderstandings: The prophecy of Revelation 12 will be fulfilled in time during the seven-year Tribulation (not before). But this sign in the starry sky of 2017 is a foreshadow and a sign from God to prepare us for the fact that the Rapture and the Tribulation are already closer than most Christians realize. 

By the way, we published this calculation with the 1,335 days in the comment function under the You Tube videos of some well-known pastors from the USA. The result was that almost all of them blocked us. And why? Because if these pastors realised that God arranges His time calculation according to His own calendar (which God has declared in the Bible) and not according to the pope's calendar, then these pastors would all have to admit that they have always celebrated the resurrection of Jesus on the wrong holidays. So too in 2021, where Easter Sunday fell on the 21st/22nd of Nisan (see Church Opinions). This is an absolute NO GO and shows the poor Bible knowledge of these pastors and also their motivation to keep the church of God away from the calendar of God and the true biblical resurrection Sabbath and instead only orientate themselves to the calendar of the pope (the Gregorian calendar with the catholic feasts). All these pastors cannot refute us on a single point, so blocking is the easiest way not to engage in discussion and to hide ignorance. Soon these pastors will stand before God and then James 3:1 will apply: "Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness."

(Note: unfortunately we do not know who created this illustration (Revelation 12 sign) because it is used on so many websites. Therefore, we cannot link either and would be grateful for this information to give credit to the owner of this illustration).

There is still so much information that God is still providing us. Example: from the last blood moon of the blood moon tetrad (2014/15), that is, from September 28, 2015 (Sukkot) to Yom Teruach 2017 (with the sign of Revelation 12 in star constellation), there are exactly 726 days, the number of the Rapture:

28.09.2015 to 22.09.2017 = 726 days, including 1st date (1 year, 11 months, 25 days)

That is why some Christians at that time thought that the Rapture will take place on Yom Teruah 2017 (September 22/23). But this was not the case, because there is another sign which should follow, because until the following Pentecost 2021 there are exactly 1,335 days with 3 years, 7 months and 26 days. This 726, as the number of the rapture, becomes visible again.

There are more interesting facts: From the exact beginning of the 14th of Nisan (April 13, 2014 according to God's calendar) to the Revelation 12 sign in the sky is exactly 1,260 days:

13.04.2014 to 23.09.2017 = 1,260 days, including 1st date (3 years, 5 months, 10 days)

The 1,260 is in connection with the number seven: 7 x 180 days = 1,260 days and the cross sum of 3+5+10 is 28, so 4x7=28. The number 180 is the half of 360, which describes a complete circle (360°). 360 x 7 = 2,520. In connection with the book of Revelation, the following is important: The number 1,260 also means 42 prophetic months with 30 prophetic days each (42x30 days = 1,260 days), i.e. a prophetic period of 3.5 years. Seven prophetic years therefore mean 2x42 months = 84 months (84x30=2,520). This is of interest because God Himself has divided the period of the seven-year tribulation accordingly. 1,260 days + 1,260 days = 2,520 days (3,5 years + 3,5 years = 7 years). 

At the Passover, the firstfruits sheaf of grain had to be waved. This was a reference to the imminent resurrection and ascension of Jesus. And the two leavened breads that had to be offered again at Pentecost as a wave offering could signify the resurrection and ascension (rapture) of the Bride of Christ (the OT and NT saints). Thus, the Church would have been founded at Pentecost and a Rapture at Pentecost would signify the completion of the harvest of the firstfruits, thus ending the Age of Grace (see above).

The blood moons are a visible sign to the world and the bride of Christ that dramatic scenes will soon take place in the world. But the Revelation 12 sign in the night sky is a sign only for the Bride of Christ (not for the world, because it has no interest in it). It means that the coming of the Lord is very near and that He will soon rapture us from here to His love and under His protection. We are not saying that the Rapture will occur at Pentecost 2021, but we are pointing out the numerical symbolism revealed in God's calendar for the 726 days and the 1,335 days (3 years, 7 months and 26 days) that are between these feast days, which no man can deny. They are scientific facts. It can also be a warning or preparation for a rapture in 2024 or 2025. 

Pentecost is the symbolic first day of the spiritual harvest of the first fruits, but this is not the last day of the spiritual harvest, because this could be the "Feast of Great Joy" (Tu B'Av) on the 15th day of the 5th month. Some sources prove that from this day the grape harvest began, which could mean at the same time the end of the harvest of the first fruits (summer). It is very likely that the Rapture will take place in the summer of 2021 before the Fall Feasts (Yom Teruach, Yom Kippur...). If not, then Passover 2022 is a very high watch day.

Once again, to avoid misunderstanding the numbers 1,260 and 1,335 will be significant at the time of the of the seven year Tribulation, as described in the Book of Revelation. But it is obvious that there is a foreshadowing for the Bride of Christ, but only those who know God's calendar can recognize this and correctly place the timing of the Rapture. In the Bible, there is often the principle of duality; that is, one great event is preceded by another, which serves as a preparation. Also, the last blood moons on the biblical feast days reveal information that is hidden from Christians who reject God's calendar.

The Jubilee symbolism with the number 50 (50 years; or 50 days until Pentecost) is also significant. If the Rapture were to take place on a Pentecost day, it would be the exact period from the first Jubilee (Nisan 15, Passover) to our Jubilee, on the exact 50th day (Pentecost) after the salvation of the Israelites from Egypt and our salvation from eternal death through the blood of Jesus was to be celebrated. Can there be a better time for this, especially since Yom Teruach (Day of Trumpets) rather symbolises the feast of Jesus' return? Pentecost (harvest of the firstfruits) is for the Church, Day of Trumpets for Jesus and our return to earth together with him.

In the Old (OT) and the New Testament (NT) there were some foreshadows of the Rapture of the church. Some people have already been raptured before us, so that we may understand what God exactly means and so that we do not fall for the temptations of theologians. The Bible mentions not just one, but several raptures, and all of them must not be equated to one point in time. After the Rapture of the church (Bride of Christ), years later, "the two witnesses" (see below) and the woman (symbolic of Israel) from Rev 12, who is brought to the place of safety, will be taken. Some examples of different raptures:

1. Enoch: "Enoch walked with God... 23 Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him" (Gen 5:22-24). "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him" (Hebrews 11:5-6). Here the word harpazo (Strong No. 726) is not used, but twice metatithemi (No. 3346; to go over, transfer, change, transform) and once metathesis (No. 3331; change, transformation, removal). It is similar in meaning. It describes the Rapture very well.
   Note: The righteous Enoch was raptured before the Flood, while the other unrighteous people were judged or punished in the waters. Enoch did not have to swim in the water and was not kept alive by God, but was raptured BEFORE the rain (punishment time). This is an indication of the time of our Rapture. His name translated means follower or servant. And it gets even more interesting: The Hebrew name Enoch has the numerical value 84, which is 12x7=84. The number 12 stands for the people of Israel (12 tribes) and the number 7 stands for the Christian churches (see the 7 churches in Rev 2:1-3:22). Thus the number 84 means the totality of all those ever called, both from Israel and from all nations of the earth. Enoch was the 7th generation after Adam, which symbolizes conclusion and completion. He became 365 years old (Gen 5:21). The number corresponds to the number of days in a solar year. Symbolically it means the conclusion of an overall plan for the church of God up to the Rapture. The biblical mention of Enoch thus has a profound symbolic meaning for the Bride of Christ. It is an indication for us that it is worthwhile to live like Enoch and to follow God until our resurrection or Rapture. Just as Enoch was no longer found, so the elect who were raptured will also be no longer found. Enoch is an image for the church (the bride of Christ), but Noah is an image for Israel, which has to go through the tribulation, but is also protected here.
2. Elijah and Moses: "And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more" (2Kings 2:11-12).
   Note: Elijah's name means "My God is JHWH"; he stands symbolically for the church of God:
   Mk 9:1-8: The Transfiguration. "And he [Jesus] said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.” 2 And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 3 and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them. 4 And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. 5 And Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 For he did not know what to say, for they were terrified. 7 And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, “This is my beloved Son; listen to him.” 8 And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only."
   Mt 17:6-8: "When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 8 And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only."
   Note: Why did Jesus speak of six days and not of more or less days? Quite simply, this is a prophetic indication of the Rapture after 6,000 years of human history. This is clearly confirmed in Ps 90:4 (OT), and 2Peter 3:8 (NT): "But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."
   The disciples had a brief insight into the situation after the Rapture. They saw "the kingdom of God coming", the transfiguration into spirit and Elijah and Moses talking to Jesus. Again a voice spoke from the cloud and Jesus said "Rise, and have no fear". These are clear symbolic references to the Rapture of the church, in which only the righteous will participate, who will also receive a transfigured body. Jesus did NOT show this vision to the religious leaders and NOT to the normal people, but only to those who are different. The "radiant clothes" (verse 3) are reminiscent of the "white garments" of the church promised by Jesus in Rev 3:5: "The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I [Jesus] will never blot his name out of the Book of Life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels."
3. Philip: "And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away [Strong No. 726, harpazo], and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing" (Acts 8:39).
   Note: Philip was not caught up to Jesus in heaven (that would be almost 2,000 years too early), but to another place on earth so that he could continue his ministry. It was just an example for us, because at the Rapture all the elect will be transformed together and not one after the other.
4. Paul: "I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up [Strong No. 726, harpazo] to the third heaven - whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up [Strong No. 726, harpazo] into paradise - whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows - 4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter" (2Cor 12:2-4).
   Note: Paul was only allowed a brief vision of the Kingdom of Heaven, after which he returned to earth to finish his ministry for the church. It was still too early for a final rapture, because he will be transformed together with us (1Thess 4:13-18).
5. John: "After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. 4 Around the throne were 24 thrones, and seated on the thrones were 24 elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads" (Rev 4:1-4).
   Note: When was John taken by the Spirit and raptured? That was BEFORE the 7 judgement trumpets were heard. Until then he had not even heard anything about the "book with the 7 seals" and "the 7 trumpets". And the 24 elders (symbolic of the complete church of God) were already there. It literally means "I was in the Spirit" (Rev 2:4), because John was not yet raptured, but saw his Rapture in a vision. John then wrote the book of Revelation in prison here on earth and died. He will be raptured together with those who are still alive when Jesus will take the elect before the tribulation (1Tess 4:13-17).
6. The Two Witnesses: "But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them" (Rev 11:11-12).
   Note: Again, we hear the command "Come up", as in Moses (Ex 19:20) and John (Rev 4:1). This is reminiscent of the command of the archangel in 1Thess 4:16-17: "For the 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. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord." 
7. Jesus: "She [the woman] gave birth to a male child [=Jesus], one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up [Strong No 726, harpazo] to God and to his throne" (Rev 12:5).
   Note: Jesus himself was also raptured as a foreshadow for his church: The Bible explicitly uses the same word as in 1Thess 4:17 (Rapture of the church), which is derived from the Greek harpazo and means "was taken up" (raptured). Jesus, as a symbol of the church, was raptured, but the woman (symbolic of Israel) was taken to a place of safety during the last 3.5 years of tribulation. Jesus can be mentioned three times in connection with the Rapture: At the Transfiguration (Mt 17:1-8; Lk 9:28-36), at the Ascension (Acts 1) and at the event mentioned in Rev 12. The Acts of the Apostles describes the Ascension of Jesus very precisely. It will be similar at the Rapture of the congregation, but much faster. Even in the Catholic Church, there is talk of the "Ascension of Jesus" or "Ascension of Christ". But who is aware that this is actually a Rapture? Only the fewest, because most people prefer to drink on this holiday and "Father's Day" rather than reading the Bible. The Ascension of Jesus is a precursor to the Rapture or Ascension of the elect. It then goes into the clouds, towards the Lord; for comparison:
   Acts 1:9-11: "And when he [Jesus] had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men [=angels} stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven." Jesus is currently the only one who has been raptured to the throne of God, and he himself will rapture his bride (the church) to himself and then return to earth with her after 7 years. Here, however, there is an important difference to the rapture of the bride to be noted, because Jesus himself determined the speed of the ascension (it was not sudden) and it was His own decision when He wanted to ascend, namely after He had shown Himself to His disciples for 40 days (Acts 1). But the bride determines neither the time nor the speed, but her bridegroom, i.e. Jesus, will take her to Himself when He wants and how fast He wants. We know that deliverance from this evil world will be "sudden, in a moment" (1 Cor 15:52), as if someone were "to beam us up". 

8. the rapture of the church: After these 7 examples mentioned above, it should now be clear how the church will be raptured and where to. It will be the first time that a larger group of people (dead and living) will be raptured together. This will be at the end of the 6,000 years of human history and will herald the conclusion of God's plan over the earth. In the Old and New Testament the Rapture of the church is mentioned several times (Dan 12:1; 1Cor 15:20-26; 50-58; 1Thess 4:13-18; Rev 3:10; 4:1). This happens just before the time of tribulation over the whole earth breaks in. By this, we mean the 7 last years before the visible return of Jesus to the earth. It will be the worst and most brutal time in the history of mankind, in which also nuclear bombs will be used. In comparison, the First and Second World Wars were nothing. Whole nations will be completely or almost completely wiped out; billions of people will die (Rev 9).

Both the prophets of the Old Testament and Jesus and the evangelists have spoken of this time. Daniel wrote: "And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book" (Dan 12:1). The salvation (Rapture) concerns all those whose names are already written in the Book of Life. It is necessary to follow Jesus in love, because he made a promise: "Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour [literally: time] of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth" (Rev 3:10). Many Christians believe that chapter 4 of Revelation corresponds to the raptured Christians. Therefore, it says, "Come up here, and... 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne... 4 and seated on the thrones were 24 elders" (Rev 4:1-4). The 24 elders are symbolic of the whole church of God: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). "Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen" (Rev 1:4-6).  

As has been clearly shown, there are very many biblical passages which clearly describe the Rapture directly and indirectly. The parable of the wise and foolish virgins is only one of many indications. How then can some Christians say that there is nothing about it in the Bible? Apparently they have not read the entire Bible, and have not asked God for understanding. So it is no wonder if they cannot find anything about it in the Bible. 

In the book of Revelation, the time of the 7-year tribulation occupies a large space (Revelation chapters 6-19). All these prophecies have yet to be fulfilled. They are closely connected with numerous statements of the prophets of the Old Testament (OT). The situation is desperate, but there is hope: after these 7 years Jesus Christ will visibly return to earth together with the deceased saints in all power and glory (Mt 24:29-31; Rev 19:11-16). This happens just before humanity would destroy itself (Mt 24:22). Therefore, there is no end of the world from a biblical point of view, because Jesus will not allow people to completely destroy life on this planet. God is the creator of all life. Life is the greatest miracle of all. God wants to share his life with us and live with us in a familiar and loving way. He is our Father, who is in charge of everything. All the problems and our existence here on earth are only a very short spiritual training period (or a school) for eternity (Rom 8:18-39; 2 Cor 4:17-18). Paul makes it clear that the whole of nature (the whole of creation) longs for the appearance of the elect. The animals and the plants do not want to suffer, not to live in constant fear and be exterminated. They long for the appearance of the saints, so that there will be security. Therefore, the gospel is meant for all creation, not only for human beings: 

Rom 8:18-19:28,31-32: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation [gr. ktisis; Strong No. 2937 = Creation; e.g.: Mk 10:6; 13:19] waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God [literally: For the earnest expectation of the creation the revelation of the Sons of God awaits] ...  28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose... 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" 
Mk 13:19: "For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation [gr. ktisis; Strong No. 2937] that God created until now, and never will be."

Mk 16:15: "And he [Jesus] said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

Various false prophets, seers and occultists speak of an alleged end of the world, but the Bible speaks of the salvation of the earth (Mt 24:29-31; 25:31-46; Dan 12; Rev 19-21). This is a big difference. Jesus will come again and make peace on earth together with His saints. He will establish the thousand-year kingdom (Millennium), where there will be only peace and harmony, and even the beasts of the field will be at peace (Isa 65:17-25; Rev 20:4-6). There will be a paradise state on the planet, just as before the fall of Adam and Eve. The difference will now be that the raptured descendants of the first humans (Adam and Eve) will themselves ensure peace and harmony over the earth. Through the first two people death came into the world, but through their descendants life comes into the world again.

Even the Catholic Creed (Apostles' Creed) literally says about Jesus: "On the 3rd day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead." However, what Catholic Christian knows the Bible and earnestly awaits the return of Jesus Christ, who will end all sins, make the Word of the Bible great, and bring the commandment of love upon the earth? Who believes, watches and prays that Jesus will come to rapture His righteous ones and will come visibly after the tribulation to save the world from destruction? This information is not available on television and in the pubs, but only in the Bible. And this even in many Bible passages.

John writes: "God is spirit" (John 4:24). So it is also clear that there must be a spiritual world to which we will go after death. Many pray to God, a spirit being; but they are not really aware that he is actually consisting of spirit and living in another dimension. The Bible reveals that there is not only a physical world, but also a spiritual world. When people pray, they always pray to spirit beings, either to God or to the many other gods of the Gentile nations. If we want to go to Jesus, then we also have to receive another body of spirit, otherwise our lungs would burst and freeze to death at the Rapture. The life here on earth was a training time (a school) for eternity, so that we can learn in love and therefore receive a spiritual body. The violent, thieves, rapists, egoists and liars will not receive a body made of spirit, but they will be dead for eternity. Otherwise, life in the kingdom of heaven would be just as brutal as here on earth. Only those whose name is written in the Book of Life will receive eternal life, the others will keep death. Only the chosen ones come to God, into his spiritual dimension.

In several verses the Bible points to the sudden, unexpected and for the world completely surprising Rapture of the Bride of Christ (the church) to Jesus (the Bridegroom). The parable of the 10 virgins and the unexpected coming of the Lord at midnight (Mt 25:1ff; Lk 12:35-48) serve as a comparison. But despite this great miracle of the Rapture, most people will not convert to Jesus. For they do not know the Bible, and will believe the lie that those who have disappeared have supposedly been abducted by aliens. Just as there are angels, so there are also the fallen angels (demons) who rebelled against God and who, under the leadership of Lucifer (the former Light-Bringer), continue to seduce people to this day. This is not secret knowledge, but Christian basic knowledge, because the Bible is full of information on this subject.

These extra-terrestrial spirits will appear in the Last Days with visible miracles and want to persuade the world that the Bible is supposedly an evil book, which man should not pay attention to, but should now listen to a new God. It will be the greatest "time of temptation" (Rev 3:10) ever. But on the other hand, many of the Christians left behind will recognize their faults and turn to Jesus. These will then be persecuted and killed, because the Antichrist (the false Messiah) does not want to bear any opposition. He himself has a great interest in the converted Christians disappearing or being raptured from this world, because their way of life does not correspond to his immoral ideas. For Christians recognize the signs of the times, warn others and stand in the way of his demonic plan. So he will be glad that there will be a rapture. But he will not give the responsibility and the honour for it to God, but to the "extra-terrestrials", the alleged beings from other planets in the universe.

The truth is: there are no extra-terrestrials from other planets, but in reality they are demons (fallen angels) who pretend to be the good and the saviours of the world (2Cor 11:14-15). Instead, they bring suffering, war and death, as is precisely described in the Book of Revelation. The entire New Testament shows in many verses how the evil spirit world works and what its goals are. They want a world-unity system, a world-religion and unconditional obedience. Otherwise, no one will be allowed to buy or sell anything (Rev 13:17-18). But those who convert to God and do not accept "the mark of the beast" (cf. 666; see calculation) will be killed in the tribulation. They will then also receive eternal life, for salvation comes only through the most powerful name in the entire universe: "JESUS CHRIST": 

"Let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead - by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:10-12).

On November 21, 2019, the Foot Locker company released a video on You Tube with the title 'No Matter What' (see Link1; Link2). It is about an apocalyptic scenario in which a man is raptured to a spaceship. The message is: No matter how bad and brutal the world is, as long as you're wearing the right shoes. When after the Rapture the converted Christians will no longer be there, the news will report about an alleged kidnapping of the "incorrigible" by the aliens. The reason: the Christians stood in the way of the New World Order and the World Unity Religion. Of course, the biblical word is twisted on this subject, otherwise people would believe in the New Testament and convert to Jesus. But then nobody wants that. Many would rather forbid the Bible because they have nothing to do with a God of love and do not want to listen to regulations and moral sermons (e.g. about sex outside marriage; renunciation of violence...). They prefer to do what they want and to make their own experiences.

The media has been reporting a lot about alleged UFOs and aliens for years, in a way as if the governments wanted to hide something. This arouses the interest and anger of the people even more. In the TV reports and modern cinema films there are so many reports and repetitions on this topic that in the end everyone will believe in aliens even before they appear publicly and visibly. No one will then be surprised to see a UFO anymore. And many people will want to listen to the so-called extraterrestrials who will present themselves as the good guys and as the saviours of the world. Then all those who refer to the Bible and to the work of the evil spirits (Satan and demons) will be presented as fools or even persecuted. There is an extremely large amount of information about this in the New Testament. Hardly a question remains unanswered. And the major Christian churches know nothing about it?

The aliens are not a new phenomenon, but contact with "aliens" has been going on for thousands of years. Mural paintings of ancient peoples and testimonies of Indians speak of the so-called star people, who appear either from the sky or from the underworld and come into contact with humans. This usually takes place in an occult form, under the influence of drugs (mushrooms) or during occult dances and ceremonies (magic) with which these extra-terrestrials are called. Shamans from different parts of the earth still claim to be in direct contact with the aliens. This can also be confirmed by people who seek this contact with the dead world in "Black Masses" (cf. 1Sam 28). The Greeks and Romans had a direct relationship with the god Apollo, of whom John warns (see below). For God the matter is very serious, he has forbidden any contact with these extra-terrestrial spirits and all fortunetellers, clairvoyants, media and necromancers had to be condemned and executed in Israel (Ex 22:17; Lev 19:26,31; Lev 20:6,27; Dt 18:10; 1Sam 28; Mal 3:5).

The Sumerians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Mayans, Greeks and Romans claimed to communicate with these extra-terrestrial gods, from whom they received knowledge of astronomy and whose huge buildings (the holy places) were aligned exactly according to the solar and lunar cycles. It was about the worship of the sun-god and his holidays, especially at the winter solstice, all over the world. There is also literature dealing with the occultism of the Nazis, their contact with the extra-terrestrials and the technological information given to them. There are even documentaries on TV about this. It is never about good, but always about favouring one people in order to be able to destroy other people better. That is why the Bible warns in so many places that contact with these spirits should never take place, because it involves a great danger. Even Goethe wrote about it in his ballad "The Sorcerer's Apprentice". There is an interesting sentence on Wikipedia: "Goethe's lines ("The ones I called, the spirits I can't get rid of now"), which is often used to describe someone who summons help or allies that that the individual cannot control, especially in politics" (source). These alien spirits offer information, money and power, but in return, they demand the souls of men and unconditional obedience in a way of life against God. Christians need never fear, because they have Jesus. James said, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7). These spirits can be expelled in the name of Jesus Christ.

For thousands of years, people have not sought contact with the God of the Bible, but have longed to come into direct contact with the extra-terrestrials. Some even teach that life was not brought to this earth by God but by aliens, because they have recognized that the evolution doctrine (=life arises from dead matter), which has been taught over a long period of time, cannot be true. None of this can shake the faith of the Church of Jesus Christ, because it can accurately classify the signs and wonders. But the rest of the world will fall for the deception, as explained in 2Thess 2:5-11 (see below).

The Pope and the Vatican also believe in the existence of extra-terrestrials (aliens). This was announced by the Jesuit and astrophysicist Jose Funés on June 14th 2000 in Rome in front of 250 scientists from all over the world: "The Alien is my Brother... To say it with St. Francis, if we can consider some earthly creatures as 'brothers' or 'sisters', why could we not speak of a 'brother alien'? ... God became man in Jesus to save us. In that way, assuming that there would be other intelligent beings, we could not say that they need redemption. They could have remained in full friendship with the Creator" (source). It has even been said that we should be prepared when they appear. That's why there are so many movies on TV and in the movies about this topic, the world should be prepared for contact with the aliens. The Bible does not teach this, but they are created spirit beings, a part of which has fallen away from God under the leadership of Lucifer (Satan). This exerts a fascination on mankind. On Mount Graham in Arizona (USA), there is a huge optical telescope, whose name at first was Lucifer, and only later, after complaints, was renamed to the short form Luci (Wikipedia). 

So once again the clear question: Are there aliens? The answer is: yes and no. The answer depends on the definition. It's no secret, Wikipedia defines: "Extra-terrestrial life is hypothetical life which may occur outside of Earth and which did not originate on Earth." That's correct, because the angels were created by God when there was no Earth. Also the angels are spirit beings and are not made of flesh and blood. There are the angels of God and there are the angels who have fallen away from God, the so-called demons. A third of them fell away from God and wanted to place themselves above God (Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezek 28:13-17; Luke 10:18; Rev 12:3-9). The rebellion was instigated by Lucifer (=bringer of light), their leader. He is the adversary (=Satan) of God. So there have been extra-terrestrial life forms for millions of years. But these are not Mars people, but spirit beings, namely the fallen angels, who pretend to be the extra-terrestrials (aliens). They rebelled against God and also today they want to incite the people to rebel against God's commandments. Therefore, there are good spirit beings who are for God and whose way of life is love; and there are bad spirit beings who are against God and whose way of life is hatred. Even Wikipedia reports in detail about Lucifer (Satan) and the demons. This is basic Christian knowledge, why do so few know about it? According to the above definition, contact with extra-terrestrials (aliens) has existed since the first humans, because Adam and Eve were the first to be seduced by Satan (the serpent). But this was not a living being from another planet, but the fallen angel made of spirit, the seducer and liar. He can manifest himself in many visible forms, not only in the form of a visible snake.

So there are indeed extra-terrestrials (aliens), but they are not living beings from other planets, but these are the fallen angels, of whom the Bible expressly and extensively warns. Spirit beings can move from one place to another in a flash, suddenly (cf. UFO sightings) in a very short time, and even walls are no obstacle, because they live in a spiritual dimension. And it gets even more dramatic, because the Bible reveals that some of these aliens even had sexual intercourse with women and fathered children (Ex 6:1-4). This was one of the reasons why God brought the Flood upon the earth. The "sons of God" mentioned in Ex 6:2 do not refer to human beings, but to rebellious angels (Job 1:6; 38:7; Dan 3:25; 2Peter 2:4). They have deliberately left their heavenly (spiritual) form in order to have sexual contact with the beautiful women. They can also present themselves in human bodies for a short time or in the form of alien bodies in order to deceive the godless people.

• Gen 6:1-4: "When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, ‘My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.’ 4 The Nephilim [or giants, Strong No. 5303] were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown."
• Num 13:33: "And there we saw the Nephilim [Strong No. 5303; Giants], the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim [Strong No. 5303; Giants], and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
• 2Peter 2:4: "For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment."
• Jude 1:6: "And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day."
• Job 1:6-8: "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” 8 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?”
• Job 38:4-7: "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who determined its measurements - surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? 6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, 7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"
• Dan 3:25: "He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods [lit.: the Son of Elohim = God].”

Daniel 3:25 and Job (Job 1:6; 38:7) clearly define that the "sons of God" are spirit beings, either the angels of God or the fallen angels, the demons. Some theologians claim that the "sons of God" are the descendants of ordinary people from a certain tribe, but then such huge beings would be impossible. And the Bible always uses this terminology (and "Nephilim") in connection with the spirit world. Therefore it is pointed out that they went to the "daughters of men". No man uses such illogical phrases. This only makes sense if a mixture between spirit beings and human daughters is meant. These born hybrid beings between humans and aliens (demons) are called Nephilim. They were the giants who were worshipped as gods by pagan peoples. Until today, skeletons of them can be found all over the world. Because of their enormous shape, they attracted the attention and worship of the people. They were also involved in the construction of gigantic buildings. From apocryphal writings it can be seen that the Nephilim were very evil beings who even ate people because of their great need for food (see Wikipedia). If you type "giant human skeleton" into a search engine, you will find many pictures and countless literature. Unfortunately, there are also many computer-edited fakes, so that this serious topic is ridiculed by some, although the scientific facts cannot be denied. Many people are not interested in publishing these skeletons because the influence of the extraterrestrials (the fallen angels) would then become clear and consequently everyone would have to agree with the Bible. Instead, these skeletons are often removed so as not to scare people.

After the Flood the genes were contained in the bloodlines of some descendants of a woman of Noah's sons (e.g. in the Philistines), so that regionally also large people were born. Because of their wickedness and idolatry, these giants and all their descendants were to be killed by the Israelites. Everyone knows about the fight between David and Goliath (1 Sam 17), but only a few know that David also killed other giants (2 Sam 21:15-22; 1Chron 20:4-8).

The Nephilim did not only live in Canaan. The Greeks and Slavic peoples also handed down tales of extraordinary creatures. The Sumerians have depicted in their buildings some images of these horrible giants, who were worshipped as god-beings (people from heaven). Some had 6 fingers and 6 toes, as the Bible also describes (2Sam 21:20; 1Chron 20:6). And it was said that one day they might come to earth again. Amazing images of so-called "aliens" can also be found on murals throughout America. There was often talk of bloody ceremonies and of mutilations of people and animals. The Native Americans had no Bible and consciously called these extraterrestrial beings (demons). Thus they could not classify these phenomena correctly and let themselves be blinded and seduced. We know that even if all the skeletons of the giants, Noah's Ark and the original Ark of the Covenant were found, people would still not convert to God and continue to find excuses to justify their sinful way of life.

These aliens or demons are still rebelling against God today and can appear in many different forms and bodies, even as human beings, because they can take over people (who allow it) completely and be or live in them. This can be in a form that is difficult to see through at first sight. An example: When Satan entered Judas, only Jesus could see this, his disciples did not notice it (John 13:27): "Then after he [Judas] had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, ‘What you are going to do, do quickly’". After that, Judas betrayed his Lord Jesus. Satan used Judas to lead Jesus to crucifixion. The danger is that Satan himself does not repent of his guilt, but on the contrary, he pretends to be the good one, as the angel of light, who at the same time makes God's way of love bad. He presents himself as the poor victim and God as a being who wants to take away the fun in life and limit individual freedom through commandments. This is a lie, because the laws of God serve to avoid problems and suffering so that all people can receive eternal life. No, Satan is not a victim, he is the perpetrator / seducer and main cause of all suffering (war, hatred, lie, violence, selfishness). However, only the way of love brings freedom, happiness and peace. Therefore, it is not the people from Mars who are in contact with the religious (priests) and political leaders and presidents of the Earth, but it is the extra-terrestrial spirits (demons) who disguise themselves as the good aliens and call for the fight against God's order:

2Cor 11:14-15: "And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds."

Rev 16:14: "For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings [presidents] of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty."

Eph 5:11: "Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them."

Jesus and the apostles healed many who were possessed, and Mary Magdalene was one of them. Jesus "appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons" (Mk 16:9). For thousands of years, fortunetellers and occultists have been contacting these extra-terrestrial spirits (aliens). This is nothing new. They cannot only receive various messages from them, but even power and wealth. This is shown by the encounter with Jesus and Satan (Mt 4:8-9) and this is also shown by the music industry, because various artists are professed followers of Lucifer and like to show the sign of Satan. In the Acts of the Apostles a woman is reported who had contact with the alien spirits and became rich (Acts 16:16-22). But Paul commanded the spirit to go out in the name of Jesus Christ. After that, Paul was expelled because an important source of income disappeared. These alien spirits are invisible so that the world does not believe in them, although God is also a spirit being and many pray to him. They have come to earth here to rebel against God, for they know very well that the righteous will one day stand above the fallen angels and even judge them (1Cor 6:3; Rom 16:20). But after the Rapture the alien spirits will show themselves visibly to men, in order to deceive the whole world (Rev 3:10) in a unified direction. The beginning of the Bible tells us of one of these extraterrestrial spirits, who as the serpentine seduced the first human beings (Adam and Eve) and is unmasked in the Book of Revelation as Satan the devil:

Gen 3:1-5: "Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ 4 But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.‘"

Rev 12:9: "And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world - he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels [demons, aliens] were thrown down with him."

Satan's plan is to destroy the earth created by God and to seduce the whole world into rebellion against God, because he knows God's plan and is envious because he knows that the elect will one day stand far above him and even judge him when they "will sit on their thrones" (Mt 19:28): "Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? ... 3 Do you not know that we are to judge angels?" (1Cor 6:2-3) and "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet" (Rom 16:20). And the Bible even shows us exactly when it will be (Rev 20:1-10), namely once shortly before the Millennial Kingdom and then again shortly afterwards, immediately before the Last Judgment (Rev 20:11-15). This is why Satan hates Christians so much. They are all a great danger to him. Therefore he also wants the elect to be raptured from this world, because otherwise they could cast out demons in the name of Jesus Christ and inform the world about the true identity of those of his alleged aliens. (they don't want to save, they want to destroy). When the Holy Spirit is taken from this world "who restrains it" (2Thess 2:6-7), then evil can only really unfold. However, God's power is much stronger and no one can bring us suffering again after the rapture, because we will be protected by God and will be much more powerful. Love is the strongest power in the universe and will no longer allow hatred and suffering, but will preserve the whole of creation with all living beings. But God allows evil to appear for a short time, so that people learn for all eternity what a life without God leads to:

2Thess 2:5-12: "Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

The legitimate question is: Why should the aliens want to rapture and remove the followers of Jesus Christ of all people, as some media report? What is the problem with the people who do no evil, do not lie, do not cheat, who love Jesus and their and their neighbors and even pray for their enemies? Why aren't the terrorists, murderers, liars, environmental destroyers and rapists picked up to save the world? Why should the good people be taken from the earth, who are a light for the world (Mt 5:13-16) and not the bad people? Do the aliens want the children of God to explain the Bible and love to them in the spaceships? No, certainly not. Lucifer (Satan) and his extraterrestrial spirits know the Bible better than any man. They saw the crucifixion of Jesus, the foundation of the first Christian church at Pentecost (Acts 2) and how the entire Bible was written down. They have known every single letter for 2,000 years and have seen every Bible ever produced worldwide.

So why of all people should the elect of God be taken away from the earth and why should the wicked stay here? Why should the Holy Spirit disappear, what should happen afterwards? The answer is simple: The righteous should disappear, because only the converted Christians can unmask the "aliens" as the fallen angels (demons) before the world and even limit their effectiveness. The Holy Spirit is stronger than the demonic spirit. The followers of Jesus are not afraid of demons (aliens), but the aliens are afraid of the true Christians, because they can drive out these spirits in the name of Jesus Christ. In the NT there are many biblical passages in which the disciples were able to cast out rebellious demons in the name of Jesus Christ and block their effectiveness. Therefore, these fallen spirits do not want people to read the Bible, they want to hide this information. Why should the aliens not eliminate the serious criminals, but of all things "the light of the world" (Mt 5:12)? Answer: So that they can spread their darkness.

Only when the Holy Spirit is taken away from this world ("who now restrains it", 2Thess 2:1-12) can evil and deception spread and develop without restraint. Therefore, many people, together with the evil spirits, will rejoice greatly when the converted Christians are raptured from this world and disappear forever. But then they will not say that the Bible was right and that these people are now with Jesus. No, but they will put the blame on the "aliens", who allegedly "cleaned up" the world in front of these unloved and uncomfortable people. All this has a plan: the fallen angels want to tempt people to follow them, so that all together (spirits and people) will rebel against God and destroy the whole earth (plants, animals and people). But this will not come to pass, because before that Jesus will return to earth and the once raptured people will return to earth with him after the tribulation, to save the world from destruction: 

Rev 11:18: "The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth."

There will be reward for some, namely resurrection and rapture to eternal life, but punishment (wrath) for others. Converted Christians all over the world have known this for almost 2,000 years, and Paul has explained the Rapture mentioned by Jesus in more detail for the Christian church. The so-called or sham Christians are not a danger to the "aliens" (demons), because they know nothing about it from the Bible, and so they allow themselves to be deceived to the full extent. They will even support these aliens. In order to exclude precisely all these discussions from the outset, God has expressly made it clear that the Lord Jesus will come personally (and not aliens) to fetch the elect, irrespective of whether they have already died or are just barely alive. It could not be said more clearly:

1Thess 4:16-18: "For the Lord [=Jesus Christ] 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. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words."

Joh 10:27-30: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one."

The Bible is so clear: We will hear the voice of the archangel and not the voice of aliens. We shall hear the trumpet of God and not the trumpet of aliens. The dead in Christ will be raptured together with those who are still alive, and this will be done by Jesus and not by the aliens. We know Jesus and follow Him and not the aliens. We will meet the Lord [Jesus] in the clouds and not the aliens. We will be with the Lord and not with aliens. We will receive eternal life from God and not from aliens. No aliens can snatch us from the hand of God. Therefore, we will not be in the spaceships with the aliens, but we will be in spiritual heaven "always be with the Lord" (1Thess 4:17), together with Jesus Christ. We will receive eternal life in the spiritual dimension and not a short life as humans in ugly and destructible spaceships. The aliens are not above us, but we are above the aliens and will judge them later, when we will sit on the thrones together with Jesus. In other words, we will reign over the earth in the millennial empire, while the aliens will be in prison (Mt 19:28; 1Cor 6:2-3; Rom 16:20; Rev 2:26-28; 3:21; 20:1-3.10). It is impossible to say this more clearly. But people watch too much television and read too little in the Bible, so they believe all nonsense and let themselves be seduced. They will wake up when it will be too late.

At the feast of Pentecost (Acts 2) the Holy Spirit came down to earth and dwelt in the Christians. But at the Rapture the Holy Spirit who is in the converted Christians is taken out of the earth and goes up into heaven. This has dramatic consequences for the earth, because now evil can spread unhindered. But after the Tribulation, at the visible return of Jesus, the Holy Spirit will come down again, reach the entire earth and establish the Millennial Kingdom of Peace.

Jesus will come completely unexpectedly for the world, "like a thief in the night":

• 1Thess 5:1-5: "Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness."
• Mt 24:42-44: "Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."
• Lk 12:39-40: "But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."
• Mt 25:6-13: "But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour."
• 2Peter 3:9-10: "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed."
• Rev 3:3: "Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you."
• Rev 16:15: "Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!"

But there is a big difference: Jesus may come to the world unexpectedly like a thief, but he is not a thief, because a thief takes what does not belong to him. But Jesus will only take those who belong to him and want to be with him:

John 10:7-10: "So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I [Jesus] came that they may have life and have it abundantly." 

Jesus will take His church (the bride of Christ) away from this world (rapture, liberate) and in doing so will not take something, but will give, namely eternal life in another dimension with all the beauties that belong to it. No one knows exactly in what year and on what day it will be, but those who take the Word of God seriously will not be surprised. The followers of Jesus eagerly await him, all year round, especially on the biblical feast days. This could be in a month Nisan (Passover) or even a month later at the second Passover of the year, at Pentecost or even in the 7th month on Trumpet Day (Yom Teruach), Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) or at the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). No one knows for sure, but true Christians are vigilant and eagerly await Jesus:

Phil 3:20-21: "But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself."

1Thess 1:9-10: "For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come."

Jesus and the apostles never spoke of the fact that the Rapture would already take place at the time of the first Christian congregation. This would be completely impossible, as the Bible reveals a 7,000 year plan, and at the time of Jesus only 4,000 years have passed. In 1Thess 4:15 Paul means, of course, with the "we who are alive, who are left until the coming [gr. parousia; =  presence, a coming, an arrival; Strong No. 3952] of the Lord" the entire church. That is to say those who are still alive when Jesus goes to fetch his elect. We are one family, hence the "we". The prophets of the Old Testament have revealed that Israel will first be completely destroyed and only be rebuilt after about 2,000 years (2 prophetic days). In 70 AD Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed, the Jewish people were expelled to all parts of the world. Since 1948 the state of Israel began to exist again. Only from this time on the prophesied fig tree generation began to live. So the Rapture could never have taken place at the time of the apostles. This does not exclude the possibility that all Christians should be vigilant even then, for at the time of the Rapture all should have the same attitude and expect the coming of the Lord, that is to say be ready and not to resist the Rapture. That because of the long wait some Christians will make jokes, this was already predicted by Peter 2,000 years ago:

2Peter 3:3: "knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4 They will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.’"

It is clearly recognizable today, only few Christians expect the coming of the Lord, most of them simply go to church services and are not at all interested in Jesus' words that have been saved in the Bible. They also overlook the fact that there is not just one but several raptures (see the examples above), and that the raptures of the two witnesses (Rev 11:11-12) and the wife of Rev 12 (Israel) are not identical with the rapture of the bride of Christ. And many make jokes about the Christians who are watchful and await the coming of the Lord with all their heart. 

After Jesus' death came the 2,000-year age of grace, or the age of the Christian church, in which people from all peoples and nations were called. Jesus himself said in the parable of the 10 virgins: "As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept" (Mt 25:5). A few verses later, Jesus said in the parable of the entrusted talents: "Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them" (Mt 25:19). Indeed, 2,000 years is a long time. The misunderstanding of the alleged rapture at the time of the first church is based on the inaccurate translation of some verses. For example, Rev 22:12 does not say, "Behold, I [Jesus] am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me," but rather, "I am coming quickly or suddenly," as the Greek word tachu (Strong No. 5035: quickly, swift, suddenly, without unnecessary delay) says (cf. Mt 5:25; 28:7-8; Lk 15:22; John 11:29; Rev 2:16; 3:11; 11:14; 22:7-12-20). It is therefore about a sudden and rapid appearance of the Lord, which is in harmony with many biblical passages in the NT. 

2,000 years is certainly not "soon" and has created a false expectation among some Christians, because the Rapture could not have taken place before the end of these 2,000 years, because the 6,000 years (4000+2000) of man's reign must first be completed so that the seventh Sabbath millennium can begin. It should also be noted that in the parable of the wise and foolish virgins ALL fell asleep (became sleepy), i.e. were surprised by the timing (if they had known the timing they would have been full of adrenaline and awake with joy), but only 5 were ready. So the "I am coming soon" actually means "I am coming suddenly and unexpectedly", which is also in harmony with other biblical passages. 

Jesus was speaking not only in the parable of the 10 virgins of two groups of people (those who were raptured and left behind), but also in other contexts. Already some verses before that he spoke of those who are accepted by him and of the others who are abandoned, that is, left behind:

Mt 24:32-44: "From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."
Note: As is made clear here, we are again talking about an hour in the night (V. 43) and about sudden salvation. 

Psalm 90:10: "The years of our life are 70, or even by reason of strength 80; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away." 
Literally: "The days of of our lives in [are] 70 years and if by reason of strength 80 years and yet their pride [boast] [is] only labor and sorrow for it is cut off fast/soon and we fly away."

Jesus spoke in Mt 24 of the Great Tribulation and the last terrible events in the history of mankind that precede his immediate visible coming. But he also made it very clear that he does make a difference between people. He said that there will be only one group that he will take care of and not leave them to the terrible events. Who are they? They are of course his followers who know Jesus and are a light in this world (Matthew 5:13-16). So that we can put all this into a better chronological order, Jesus gave us a sensational parable of the fig tree, which enables us to determine exactly which generation will be affected by the Rapture. Anyone who knows the Bible and its symbolic language knows immediately that the fig tree mentioned in Mt 24:32 refers to the state of Israel (Mt 24:32-34 and Lk 21:29-31).

After the people of Israel rejected Jesus the Messiah and had him killed by the Romans, God withdrew his protection over the Hebrew land. It was destroyed by the Romans 40 years after Jesus' crucifixion, that was in the year 70 AD. Even the temple was torn down and the menorah (symbol of the light of God and Jesus) was stolen. Almost all Jews were expelled to all parts of the world and the state of Israel (fig tree) simply ceased to exist. Distributed in all parts of the world, the Jews literally had to live in the darkness of the world and endure terrible persecutions. In the symbolic language of the Bible, the fig tree was cut down, as the prophets of the Old Testament predicted. But they also prophesied that after about 2,000 years (after 2 prophetic days; 2 Peter 3:1) the fig tree (the state of Israel) would come to life again and cast new leaves. This is exactly what happened. According to the biblical calendar, after every 49 years (7x7) a year of jubilee was proclaimed in Israel, in which all debts were forgiven and the old possessions had to be returned to the people. In the Jubilee Year 1917/18 there was the famous Balfour Declaration (of November 2, 1917; see Wikipedia), in which Great Britain agreed to establish a "national home" of the Jewish people in Palestine. After 30 years, the State of Israel was proclaimed or born on May 14, 1948. And it was precisely in the following Jubilee Year 1967 that Jerusalem came back into Jewish possession after the 6-Day War. All this was no coincidence, but here once again the Word of God was fulfilled in a perfect way. 

The year 2022 is over, so Jesus cannot have meant that the 7-year tribulation must be over by Israel's 80th birthday, but we can assume that at least the Rapture will take place by Israel's 80th birthday. 

In Psalm 90:10, the normal lifetime of man is defined as 70 to 80 years. To avoid misunderstandings: Psalm 90:10 describes the normal lifetime of a person in Israel at the time of David. The 120 years (3x40) mentioned in Gen 6:3 refers to the MAXIMUM age of a man, but not the number of the generation, and furthermore it was even before the Flood, because before that people could live to be almost 1,000 years old (Noah was 950 years old; Gen 9:28-29). It was a tremendous change. This must not be confused with the age of a generation named centuries later by David, and only his indication is related to the "we fly away" (are raptured), not the indication at the time of Noah, because at that time only Enoch "flew away" (was raptured) and he was 365 years old, which corresponds to the days of a year and means "completion". God knew exactly why he wrote this prophetic period of 70-80 years (with the "flying away"), so that we can be sure that this year is important for the church and no other.

In concrete terms, this means that, according to Jesus' own words, the generation born from 1948 onwards should not pass away until everything is fulfilled (1948+70 years=2018 and 1948+80 years=2028). But Jesus did not say that all the terrible end-time prophecies mentioned in Mt 24, the book of Daniel and Revelation must be fulfilled by then (2028), because the last generation of Israelites will still be older than 80 years in 2028 (i.e. still alive). In concrete terms, this means that the Rapture should take place at the beginning of this 10-year tolerance period (between 2018 and 2028). But we do not know the exact year of the rapture and therefore do not know in which year the subsequent 7 years of tribulation will begin. Some thought that the Rapture should have taken place in the 73rd year of Israel, because after the following 7 years we would come to the 80th birthday and the year 2028/2029. But be careful, because according to other passages it sounds as if another 3.5 years would be added after that (2022), so that the rapture would not take place until 2024/2025. 

In 2021, according to the Gregorian calendar, Israel turned exactly 73 years old on May 14, 2021, and 80 years will be reached in 2028:  

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2021 = 26,663 days, without the 1st date (73 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14.2022 = 27,028 days, without the 1st date (74 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2023 = 27,393 days, without the 1st date (75 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2024 = 27,759 days, without the 1st date (76 years)

14/05/1948 to 14/05/2025 = 28,124 days, without the 1st date (77 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2026 = 28,489 days, without the 1st date (78 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2027 = 28,854 days, without the 1st date (79 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2028 = 29,220 days, without the 1st date (80 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2029 = 29,585 days, without the 1st date (81 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2030 = 29,950 days, without the 1st date (82 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2031 = 30,315 days, without the 1st date (83 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2032 = 30,681 days, without the 1st date (84 years)

05/14/1948 to 05/14/2033 = 31,046 days, without the 1st date (85 years)

The founding day (birth) of Israel on May 14, 1948 corresponds to the 5th of Iyar 5708 according to the Jewish calendar of Hillel, but the 5th of Iyar 5781 fell on April 17, 2021 (April 18, 2021 according to God's calendar). Since April 17, 2021 was a Sabbath, Independence Day was celebrated two days earlier (on April 15, 2021) to observe the Sabbath rest. 

Psalm 90:10: "The years of our life are 70, or even by reason of strength 80; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away." 

1Cor 15:51-55: "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written [Isa 25:8; Hos 13:14]: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

Let us look back in history: On Monday 14 May 2018 was the 70th birthday and on Tuesday 14 May 2019 the 71st year of Israel began. But according to the Jewish calendar the foundation day was the 5th Iyar 5708 (=Day of Independence, Jom haAtzma'ut). So the true 70th birthday of Israel was already before that, namely on the 5th Iyar 5778, which corresponds to the 20th April 2018. So the true 71st birthday of Israel was already exactly 4 days before May 14th, namely on May 10th 2019 (=5th Iyar 5779). The 72nd birthday was on April 29, 2020 (5th Iyar 5780). Many Christians have expected the Rapture exactly in the 70th year of Israel. But Jesus already hinted in another parable about the fig tree that it will not be exactly in this year, but about 3.5 years after that (which again suggests 2021, after the 73rd birthday:

Lk 13:6-9: "And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for 3 years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ 8 And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. 9 Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down."

Many Christians around the world expected the Rapture to take place as early as 2021/2022, but the passage in Luke 13:9-10 shows that God has apparently added a final period of 3 to 4 years, which would indicate a Rapture in 2024 to 2026 at the latest. We must always remember that in the parable of the 10 virgins, all 10 virgins fell asleep. In concrete terms, this means that they were all not expecting the Lord's arrival at that exact time. But only 5 were spiritually prepared and ready to fly, which made all the difference. 

The 4th year does not have to be completely finished because, of course, it is only about the time until the possible appearance of the fruit on the symbolic fig tree. This biblical passage is interesting in two respects, because on the one hand it indicates that Israel had enough time in the years after the crucifixion of Jesus to repent of its sins and accept Jesus. Even years after Jesus' death, the religious leaders and the people of Israel were able to recognize the work of Jesus through the works of the apostles. Many even saw the resurrected Jesus and His ascension (Acts 1) personally, and many more Jews saw the miracles that God performed through the disciples. Nevertheless, Jesus could not find repentance in the people after 3+1=4 days. Symbolically or prophetically it means after 30+10=40 years after the crucifixion of Jesus, when Jerusalem was completely destroyed in 70 AD and the fig tree (= the state of Israel) no longer existed because of the expulsion of the Jews. On the other hand, it means that there is still a time of patience and testing and that even if the 70 years of the fig tree generation are over, it means for us even more to keep watch. Although we know the period of 10 years until the 80th year of the fig tree generation, we do not know exactly when the last 7 years will begin. This is exactly why Jesus spoke of the urgency of prayer and vigilance not only in the parable of the 10 virgins, but also in other Bible passages. We must use the extra time and recognize the signs of the times. In the Gospel of Luke it is mentioned in chapter 21 that we should not only pay attention to the state of Israel (= fig tree), but also to the other nations (= other trees):

Luke 21:29-32: "And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree [Israel], and all the trees [other nations]. 30 As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. 31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." 

What do we see in the daily news today? It is clearly visible that the other trees (nations) around Israel (fig tree) are forming and getting bigger and stronger. Syria, Iran, Turkey and Russia with their armed forces are directly on the border with Israel. These states have formed alliances and whoever still does not see the signs of the times and the great international tension and nuclear threats now, must be blind. There has never been a time when it has been so obvious that the Rapture must happen very soon. God has given us the time frame; there is no excuse for the lukewarm Christians of the Laodicean church who say "the Lord will not come for a long time" (Mt 24:48; 2Peter 3:4; Rev 3:14-22). They are the 5 foolish virgins who neither know the word of the Lord nor are they enough light in this world. For them the Rapture will come unexpectedly, and then they will be jealous of those who have been faithful to Jesus and his Word, and whose way of life differed markedly from the world, and who are no longer there. 

As has already been shown on the basis of the biblical passages above, there is a special reference to midnight and the full moon. It may therefore be possible that the Rapture takes place on a full moon night. This reminds us of the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt (Exodus at full moon and midnight on the Passover) and of the deliverance of the five wise virgins at midnight (Mt 25:1-13). There are various Christian churches which have a different view of the time of the Rapture and the place where the righteous will be during the seven years of tribulation:

1. PRE Tribulation Theory: Most converted Christians believe that the saints or the righteous will be caught up into heaven immediately before the Great Tribulation and that they will live together with Jesus as spirit beings (as the Bride of Christ). So it means the Rapture of the saints into heaven even BEFORE the Great Tribulation. After the 7 years, the saints will return to earth together with Jesus and establish the Millennial Kingdom. This teaching makes sense, because the Bible reveals that the saints will be taken up into the clouds (into the air) and will meet Jesus there (1Thess 4:13-18). When was John "in the Spirit" and raptured (Rev 4:1-4)? This was before the 7 trumpets of judgment were heard. And the 24 elders (symbolic for the church of God) were already there. Only after this did the chaos and suffering begin.
2. MID Tribulation Theory: Another smaller group thinks that the Rapture will only take place in the mid of the 7-year-tribulation. this means that the Rapture will take place before the last 3.5 years of the tribulation.
3. POST Tribulation Theory: Some churches think that there would be no preservation of Christians at all during the 7-year tribulation, that all Christians must go through the tribulation and will only be raptured after the end of the tribulation and immediately return visibly with Jesus. This would consequently be the "POST-Tribulation Theory" without the protection of God during the Tribulation. As becomes clear from the biblical passages shown above, this teaching makes no sense at all. For at the second coming of Jesus there will be no or (almost) no Christians left on earth, as (almost) all have already been killed. Many cannot distinguish between the two groups: the elect (who are raptured, the Bride of Christ) and the Christians who are left behind (who have to go through the Tribulation). These are 2 different groups, as the parable of the 10 virgins shows. The elect are saved, the others have to go through the Tribulation. There will be a great persecution of the left behind Christians, and many will have to die because they have not accepted the mark of the beast (666). This means in concrete terms: in the end, most Christians have already been starving to death for a long time, because without the mark of the beast no one can buy or sell anything (Rev 13:16-17). Who then should still be awake and ready for a Rapture? This protection of the very few Christians who are still alive (?) after the Tribulation would moreover only last a few seconds, which is not logical. In the Tribulation, many left behind Christians will repent of their sins and call for Jesus. They will be killed by the Antichrist, but they will also receive the resurrection to life through Jesus, after the Tribulation.

The doctrine of the Rapture of the church in the middle or only after the time of tribulation has a danger and a temptation, because so the "wake" and "be prepared" mentioned several times makes no sense at all. For until the end of the Tribulation comes, many prophecies of the Old and New Testaments would still have to be fulfilled, and the world would first have to go through all the plagues of the trumpets. This is the typical characteristic of the lukewarm Laodicea congregation (Rev 3:14-21), which simply lives into the day and says "The Lord will not come so soon" (Mt 24:48). This corresponds symbolically to the 5 foolish virgins (Mt 25) who are surprised and left behind. And it makes no sense why God so often promises to save us from the evil times (see the biblical passages above), when he nevertheless abandons the entire church to the whole tribulation and there is no saving grace?

There have always been persecutions of Christians, not only in the Roman Empire, in the Middle Ages, but also today, where especially in Islamic countries Christians are extremely persecuted and suffer. And every Christian must suffer at present, no matter where he lives, many even in their own families. However, such a global and brutal tribulation with all the plagues of the trumpets of God has never existed before and will never exist again. Daniel (OT) and Jesus (NT) spoke of exactly the same time:

Dan 12:1: "And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book"

Mt 24:21: And Jesus himself said: "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be."

God wants to protect his spiritual bride from this. He does not want to expose her to the judgments of punishment, but to protect her from them. There is a great difference. Therefore Daniel says that the angel will set out at the beginning of the tribulation: "your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book" (Dan 12:1). When Jesus returns to earth visibly after the 7 years of tribulation, then he will immediately remove all evil and all temptation, and will not create a new tribulation after the tribulation, from which the church should be protected, because the church is already with Jesus. So the protection from the worst time in the history of mankind, which is often mentioned in the Bible, can only mean the time BEFORE Jesus' visible return. When Jesus returns, then the most beautiful time in the history of mankind begins and no new suffering for the church from which it should have been saved, because Jesus' protection is there. 

There are also some churches in the USA who think that the protection during the 7-year tribulation would not be in the Kingdom of Heaven, but here on earth. This is to be in a safe place in the desert (Rev 12:6,14), where Jesus will bring the righteous. According to this, they are to live as human beings for seven years, and only AFTER the tribulation will they be caught up into heaven and then immediately return to earth with Jesus in power and glory. This is also the "Post-Tribulation Theory", but on the assumption that human beings will spend their life in a safe place on earth and not in the kingdom of heaven. his doctrine has a problem, however, because Rev 12:6 does not speak of a 7-year preservation, but only of 3.5 years. So most people rightly think that this does not have to be a matter of Christians, but of a group of Israelites who are protected and provided for by God in the wilderness, just as they were at the time of Moses. The woman with the 12 stars from Revelation 12 would therefore stand symbolically for the people of Israel.

All groups cite the promise to the Philadelphia congregation, which is symbolic of the faithful followers of Jesus (in contrast to the tepid Laodicea congregation), as a common ground for the preservation of suffering:  

Rev 3:10: "Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth."

However, this is very interesting, because even those who think that the Rapture will take place only after the Great Tribulation (post-tribulation) are nevertheless certain that the righteous will be kept in a safe place in the wilderness even BEFORE the Tribulation. So it is only a question of a different place of residence and a way of life either as a human being or as a spiritual being. But here the question arises: how are the righteous who are scattered all over the world supposed to get to the place in the desert that has been chosen by God? This will certainly not be through a travel agency, especially as many do not have the money to do so, are ill and old or are in prison because of the persecution of Christians. Either way, therefore, they must be raptured by God and brought to this unknown and secret place of safety (Rev 12:6,14). Moreover, none of the Christians scattered around the world will be able to say goodbye to family and friends beforehand and say: "I will now go into the desert for 7 (or 3,5) years, be taken care of by God, and afterwards come back with Jesus in power and glory. No, all these true Christians will be raptured in any case, no matter whether it is to the safe spiritual kingdom of heaven or to a safe physical place on earth (desert?). The main thing is that we do not have to go through the tribulation and are saved from the great suffering, the worldwide chaos and the Anti-Christ. There is nothing more beautiful than being under the personal protection of Jesus. But for the Bride of Christ, God has not designated an area on earth, but the same place in the spiritual dimension where Jesus is now: 

John 1:1-4: "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. 4 And you know the way to where I am going."

Yes, we know exactly where Jesus went. That was not into the desert, but into heaven, where we are also supposed to go, as many other Bible verses above prove. According to the Bible, there is much more evidence to suggest that the saints will be with Christ in the kingdom of heaven, and that the symbolic woman with the 12 stars mentioned in Rev 12 refers the chosen Jews, who will be saved as human beings in a safe place in the wilderness from the final stage of the Tribulation (that is to say, 3.5 years), after all the nations of the earth unite against Israel. So the Jews would not yet have professed their faith in Christ, but would nevertheless follow the teachings of the Bible and would now have the opportunity to accept Jesus. The protection reminds us of the Exodus from Egypt, when the Hebrew people in the desert were provided for by God. But the people were disobedient and in many ways rejected the way of God, unlike the Christians who were called. There is a clear difference between the people of Israel (ho rejected Jesus and had Him crucified by the Romans) and the Bride of Christ (who accepted Jesus and followed Him). There is NO reference in the whole Bible to the fact that a bridegroom kidnaps his bride, then feeds her in isolation for 7 or 3.5 years, and only then will he marry her. No, the bride of Christ (the church) is taken (raptured) by the bridegroom personally, so that she may be with him immediately, in the spiritual dimension:

As can be clearly seen, there is indeed a Bible, but there are different opinions about the time of the Rapture and about the whereabouts afterwards. But there are far more arguments in favor of the Rapture before the Great Tribulation, because in the view of many Christian churches the Antichrist can only reveal himself after the Holy Spirit has been taken from the world through the Rapture. For the Holy Spirit is the one who is still holding up the Antichrist and his demonic followers, for in the name of Jesus Christ demons are driven out. This also applies to the so-called extraterrestrials (aliens), who are actually fallen angels (demons). They present themselves in this form so that the world is seduced and all people turn away from the way of God and the Bible. If they would tell the truth and present themselves as the fallen angels, they would scare people and lead them to the Bible. Instead, they present themselves as gods and intelligent creatures from other planets so that people would listen to them and follow them. People do not believe God, but only what they see. Therefore they will fall for these deceptions. The "Day of the Lord" is a well known and frequently mentioned term in the Old and New Testaments for the last terrible years of tribulation, which reach their climax with the coming of Jesus Christ and his saints. The hope of Christians is to be spared from the "Day of the Lord" and not to be punished by God together with the enemies of Jesus. This makes no sense. This is why the elect of God (the Bride of Christ) are hardly ever mentioned during the plagues described in the Book of Revelation, but rather the people left behind, who then convert to God. Paul writes about this: 

2Thess 2:1-12: "Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

There is a mystery of the rapture (1Cor 15:51) and there is a mystery of lawlessness (2Thess 2:7). Only after the rapture of the saints into heaven (verse 8: "and then..."), the evil spirits come down to earth and the Antichrist can appear. If the Holy Spirit is absent, then the evil spirits can spread unchecked to the full extent. After the Rapture many left behind Christians will remember the words of the brethren who have already been raptured. The many name Christians who did not (yet) have the Holy Spirit and were left behind can see during the Tribulation how terrible a life without God is, when everyone does what he wants and there is a lack of love. They will long for God's protection and for His Word, and now have the opportunity to repent of their sins and give their lives to Jesus. Even if many of them are killed, no one can take eternal life from them. The persecution of Christians in the Last Days reminds us of the suffering of the many Christians already today. They are rejected by their families and the possession of a Bible alone can mean prison and death in some Islamic countries. Jesus will free these converted Christians from the tribulation and bring them to Himself. The parable of the 10 virgins is very meaningful, because when Jesus fetches his bride, the light (the Holy Spirit) also goes to him, but the others remain on this earth without light.

It is also not logical why the promise in Rev 3:10 should only refer to the last 3.5 years of the tribulation (Rev 12:6)? When God promises that he will save his people from the Great Tribulation (time of temptation), then he means the whole time, and not a 3.5-year great torment, and only then a saving from a 3.5-year even worse torment. So most converted Christians think that the righteous will be caught up in the Rapture before the 7-year tribulation. This is the hope of those who already now follow Jesus in everything.

Many Christians confuse the second visible coming of Jesus with the Rapture of the church (the bride of Christ). These are two completely different events that are 7 years apart. Before the second visible coming of Jesus Christ there is a Rapture of the church, which is invisible to the world, and this takes place BEFORE the great tribulation of 7 years. Only the elect will see Jesus at the time of the Rapture. But at the second coming of Jesus "every eye" will see him (Rev 1:7; Mt 24:30-31), that is to say all people. In other words: between the Rapture (the meeting of Jesus in the air) and the second visible coming of Jesus to earth there is a period of time of 7 years. At the Rapture Jesus comes only to save his followers and meets them in the clouds. He does not come to earth. But at the second coming he will appear to save the whole world. Only then will he put his feet on the ground of Jerusalem. God will rapture (snatch, rob) from this world those Christians who have accepted Jesus as their Redeemer and have followed his way of love and whose names are written in the Book of Life. But when the Rapture will take place exactly, nobody knows. The fig tree generation (see above) gives a good indication, but the exact date of the Rapture cannot be determined with certainty, that is why we should always be awake and ready. Before the visible return of Jesus Christ, many prophecies of the Old and New Testament must still be fulfilled. These include the plagues of the trumpets (wars and natural disasters) in the book of Revelation, which must come before the second coming of Jesus. But in relation to the rapture, nothing more has to happen first. It could be any time. 

It is a custom that from the 1st of Elul on every morning (except the Sabbath) throughout the month until Yom Kippur, the shofar is blown to awaken people to repentance. The total of 40 days between Rosh Khodesh Elul [=1st Elul] and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) is to commemorate those 40 days when Moses climbed Mount Sinai to receive the tablets with the Ten Commandments for the second time, after he had broken the first ones out of anger, while the people worshipped the Golden Calf in his absence. On the 40th day the atonement was realized. So there was a "last trumpet" until the Day of Trumpets, but there was also a "last trumpet" on Yom Teruah itself, as the shofar was blown 100 times on it". 

There are several kinds of sounds on the Day of the Trumpets (Yom Teruah) (info see link):

• The Tekiah – is a long, single blast. It was straight, plain, smooth, continuous note and it is to symbolize the expression of joy and contentment.
• The Shevarim – is three short blasts. A combination of three broken notes to symbolize weeping.
• The Truah – Extremely short blasts which are a combination of nine staccato notes in a very quick succession of short trill.  This symbolizes trepidation, sorrow and sobbing.
• The Tekiah Gedolah – Means "the last trump."  This one symbolizes the hope of redemption.  It is a very  long, final note.

"In these one hundred blasts, the first of three categories are combined back and forth until there is a total of 99 sounds. Then comes the 100th, the Tekiah Gedolah, a very long-sustained note – as long as the trumpeter had breath to hold it, and this is known as "the last trump."  That will become very significant when the Messianic Implications of this particular festival are discussed."

The key question now is: Now the crucial question is: Did Paul mean this "last trumpet" in 1Cor 15:52? If it were so, then the rapture would have to take place on Yom Teruah, the 1st Tishrei 5782, thus on September 6-7, 2021.

It must be considered: Paul did not speak of the "seventh trumpet" mentioned by John in Revelation 11, because Revelation was written decades after the Epistle to the Corinthians. Unfortunately there are Christians who equate the "trumpet of the Rapture or deliverance" with the "last [seventh] trumpet of judgment." This is completely wrong. "For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Thess 5:9). There are many more biblical passages about this, which have already been described above in the text.

These are the so-called "ten days of repentance" or "the days of awe" (see Wikipedia). So whoever repents in time for the Day of Atonement will be given the opportunity to be entered into the Book of Life (the Sefer Chajjim). There are the names of all those who have done good. This is why Jews wish to have "ktiwa wa chatima towa" before Yom Kippur - that means a good entry and sealing. On the Day of the Trumpet (Yom Teruach) the registration takes place and on the day of reconciliation (Yom Kippur) the sealing takes place. The greeting to Yom Kippur is therefore "gmar chatima tova", which means "may your inscription (in the Book of Life) be well completed".

Yom Kippur was a fasting day. Whoever did not fast in Israel at the time of the Old Testament (the Old Covenant) had to die (Lev 23:29-32). On the day of fasting, people should remember their sins and their consequences for the family and the world. For many Jews, the Day of Atonement is the most important day of the year because it symbolizes access to God, since only on this one day in the year was the high priest allowed to enter the holy of holies of the temple before God. Wikipedia describes the great importance of this feast day:

"According to Jewish tradition, God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to "seal" the verdict. During the Days of Awe, a Jew tries to amend their behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God (bein adam leMakom) and against other human beings (bein adam lechavero). The evening and day of Yom Kippur are set aside for public and private petitions and confessions of guilt (Vidui). At the end of Yom Kippur, one hopes that they have been forgiven by God" (Wikipedia).

"While the Temple in Jerusalem was standing (from Biblical times through 70 CE), the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) was mandated by the Torah to perform a complex set of special services and sacrifices for Yom Kippur to attain Divine atonement, the word "kippur" meaning "atone" in Hebrew. These services were considered to be the most important parts of Yom Kippur because through them the Kohen Gadol made atonement for all Jews and the world. During the service, the Kohen Gadol entered the Holy of Holies in the center of the Temple, the only time of the year that anyone went inside" (Wikipedia).

Symbolic meaning of the feast: The high priest stands symbolically for the spiritual Bride of Christ. The bride may stand before God the Father under the loud trumpet on this day, because her sins have been forgiven and she is atoned with God on this day. This is the Day of Atonement of God with the Bride! If the bride (the priest stands for this) were to appear before God on the Feast of Trumpets (1st Tishrei), she would have to die because she had not yet atoned. Only from the Day of Atonement is the way to Jesus/God open and the bride can step directly before Him. For the Jews, Yom Kippur prophetically means the return of Yahweh to Jerusalem, for on that very day he will be near them. But we have to distinguish between the plan for the bride on the one hand and the plan for the whole world on the other hand. The bride may be going ahead, but the other people will follow later: After the great tribulation, the rest of the Christians and Jews will also atoned with God. After the tribulation and after the visible return of Christ, all sins are brought to the sin-goat, Satan, and laid on his head. The scapegoat (Satan), "the deceiver of the whole world" (Rev 12:9), is taken to the wilderness (spiritual prison), where he can no longer lead anyone away from the way of God. It is a day of remembrance and deep repentance, for sins have brought much suffering and death into the world and they must not be played down. This capture of Satan, prophesied long in advance, takes place right at the beginning of the millennial kingdom (Rev 20:1-3). The world is reconciled, sins are forgiven and Satan (the causer of sin, destruction of the environment, suffering and death) is eliminated. It is a day of remembrance, but also a day of joy, because it symbolizes forgiveness, salvation and atonement, so that we may come before the Father as the pure bride of Jesus. Nothing more stands in the way of the wedding. The high priest was only allowed to step before God on the Day of Atonement, that is, only once a year. When Jesus was crucified, the curtain of the Most Holy was torn in two (Mt 27:51; Lk 23:45), so that we could speak (pray) with God personally from that moment on, but as spirit beings we will shortly and forever live together with Jesus and the Father, and always be in the protective presence of God. The Jews believe that the gates of heaven are open until the end of the Day of Atonement and are closed afterwards. This day also symbolizes the separation of the righteous from the wicked. The Yom Kippur falls in 2021 on September 15-16 (10th Tishrei 5782). On the Day of Atonement "the last trumpet" of the most important trumpets of the calendar year sounds. If the Rapture were on the Day of Atonement, of all days, it would be a great shock to the Jews, because they think that Yahweh should come on that day only for the people of Israel. So it would be clear who really belongs to God and who is the Messiah, namely Jesus, who picks up his bride.

Also at Jubilee Years (every 49+1=50 years) the shofar horn sounded and meant a great liberation, restoration and remission of all debts. This "last trumpet" would therefore be the last of the 120 Jubilee years (120 x 50 = 6,000 years). After this follows the Millennial Kingdom. To avoid misunderstandings: The biblical year begins with the month Nisan. But the Sabbatical year in Israel begins on the 1st Tishri (Israel beginning of the civil year) and the Jubilee year should always begin on the 10th Tishri, the fifth High Sabbath of the year, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), and be proclaimed with trumpets throughout the land (Lev 25:8-34). Wikipedia also reports on this in several articles ("The Jubilee year was announced by a blast on a shofar, an instrument made from a ram's horn, during that year's Yom Kippur"; Link). The Jubilee year is the year after seven times seven (7x7=49+1) Sabbatical years. In some Bible translations "Sabbatical year" (every seven years) and "Jubilee year" (every 7x7=49+1 years) are equated and generally translated as "years of remission/release". The Sabbatical years are also years of remission/release, in which debts were forgiven; but a Jubilee year is much more important and occurs only every 49 +1 years. The word "Jubilee" refers to the great rejoicing and the great joy of the Israelites, because on this day the transgressions and injustices were atoned for and the slaves were freed and received their possessions back. The Jubilee year is mentioned in the Old Testament only in 3 chapters (Lev 25:8ff; Lev 27:17ff; Num 36:4). The 50th year is special and holy (Lev 25:10) and also in this year agricultural activity should be avoided. The name "Hall Year" (sound, rverb year; Jubelee) comes from the fact that at the beginning of the Jubilee Year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur, 10th Tishri) the ram horn (Hebrew: jobel) was blown and the echo of the shofar could be heard from afar. Since many Bible translations mention the word "trumpet", many Christians think of the trumpet or a long straight trombone. But the biblical shofar is not a long and straight trumpet as we know it today, but a ram's horn. So the trumpet (or shofar) should sound not only on the day of the trumpet, but also on the day of atonement. 

God's goal in the Jubilee Year was to create equality and social balance, to reconcile the individual financial groups after 49 years (7x7). The pledged property of the rich returned to its original owners or the actual heirs. God himself is the owner of the land (Lev 25:23), therefore all the rich had to follow his instruction and return the land (the actual source of income) to the impoverished actual heir. Although every Sabbatical year the debts were cancelled and slaves were set free, in the Jubilee Year the right went even further, because the land, i.e. the family inheritance, also went back to the original owner. Families who lost the land of their ancestors received it back. Thus, life could begin again from scratch and impoverishment of individual families could be avoided. There was a great redistribution of land (land reform) and capital. But the Jews in their selfishness often did not keep God's commandments (Jer 34:8-17, Is. 5:8) and allowed their fellow countrymen to become impoverished while individuals became richer and richer. This brought God's punishment, and He took away the possessions of the rich and made them poor as well, so that they might learn compassion (Amos 5:11-12; Zeph 1:13). For the Bride of Christ, it symbolically means that after the many injustices in the world, she finally comes to her eternal possessions determined by God, which no one can take away from her. During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said: "And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well" (Mt 5:40). But in the world we often did not get a replacement for it, but had need and despair. With the symbolic Jubilee, suffering and injustice will come to an end, for all eternity. From the time of the Rapture we receive in the kingdom of God a much better possession than that which was robbed from us in this world.

Also on the 12 new moons (beginning of the month) the trumpet sound could be heard, so that people had a temporal orientation. So this "last trumpet" was the last trumpet of the year in its 12th month.

In the Old Testament, the trumpet is mentioned in many places. Its sound was heard at special events so that everyone was accurately informed. This was not only at the 12 new moons, but also at the full moon at the time of a festival:

Psalm 81:3-7: "Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the full moon, on our feast day. 4 For it is a statute for Israel, a rule of the God of Jacob. 5 He made it a decree in Joseph when he went out over[c] the land of Egypt. I hear a language I had not known: 6 “I relieved your[d] shoulder of the burden; your hands were freed from the basket. 7 In distress you called, and I delivered you."

The Church was founded 2,000 years ago on a day of Pentecost with a loud noise from heaven (Acts 2:2), so if the Rapture were again on a day of Pentecost, the trumpet of God would indeed be "the last trumpet," because from that day on, the harvest of the first fruits (the Bride of Christ) would be finished forever. We must  differentiate between the "last trumpet," which is only for the Bride of Christ and signifies salvation (Acts 2; Rev 4), and the "last trumpet" for the ungodly world (Rev 11) which signifies punishment (as the other 6 penal trumpets), but at the same time salvation, for Christ's return will end all suffering. Passover is "the feast of the one firstfruits" (Jesus) who freed us from the penalty of death; but Pentecost is "the feast of the firstfruits" (the Bride of Christ), the people who follow Him in His agape love. The sound at the founding of the Church was heard only by the Bride of Christ, not by the world. But the sound of the trumpet at the return of Jesus (after the tribulation), the world will obviously hear it.

The Church was founded 2,000 years ago on a day of Pentecost with a loud noise from heaven (Acts 2:2). Therefore, if the Rapture were to take place again on a day of Pentecost, the trumpet of God would indeed be the "last trumpet" because from that day on, the harvest of the firstfruits (the Bride of Christ) would be finished forever. We must distinguish between the "last trumpet," which is only for the Bride of Christ and signifies salvation (Acts 2; Rev 4), and the "last trumpet" for the ungodly world (Rev 11), which signifies punishment because the other 6 punitive trumpets preceded it; but at the same time, the 7th trumpet also signifies salvation because Christ's return will end all suffering. 

On Independence Day (Yom Ha'atzmaut; holiday of the birth or founding of the state of Israel), according to several sources, the shofar horn is also blown. This means that in the year in which the Rapture will be, the "last trumpet" was heard on Independence Day. After that, it goes up, at the time that God decides.

Consequently, there were trumpets which served [1.] for information and [2.] for temporal orientation (feast days). But there were also trumpets [3.] to warn of dangers, [4.] to announce penal courts (war, destruction) or [5.] to free/liberate/redeem. Which one is meant now? But a trumpet can also have several meanings at the same time, e.g. proclaiming liberation and victory for one group and announcing punishment for the others:

• 1Cor 15:51-52: "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed."
  Note: This is about something special, namely the trumpet of God (1Thess 4:16). The "first trumpet" was intended for Israel at the time of the Exodus from Egypt and at the preaching of the commandments; after that there were more trumpets; but "the last trumpet" is intended for the Bride of Christ. This is the time when God announces the exodus of Christ's bride from this world and takes her up into heaven and delivers/frees frees her from this evil world.
• 1Thess 4:13-18: "But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the 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. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up [gr: harpazo] together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words."
  Note: This "last trumpet" is a very special and unique trumpet which differs from the others, for it is expressly emphasised that it is the "trumpet of God" (not of Jesus) which serves to deliver the bride of Christ. This trumpet indicates the final conclusion of the harvest of the first fruits (of those first called from all nations, that is, the complete "Bride of Christ") when "the fullness of the Gentiles has come in" (Rom 11:25), as Paul so accurately describes it. It reveals who really belongs to Jesus and who does not (cf. Parable of the 10 virgins). The Father hands over the bride to His Son, who picks her up in the clouds. It is a special and historically unique liberation trumpet (or the "wedding trumpet"). Important: Because this spiritual "trumpet of God" is specifically dedicated to the spiritual "Bride of Christ", it does not necessarily have to sound on one of the biblical (or Jewish) feast days, but can sound at any time and the spiritual Bride of Christ can be raptured at any time. This is why Jesus said that we should be awake and ready at all times and not only on the biblical feast days. Although the biblical feast days give a good orientation, special political, economic, health (dangerous vaccination) or religious events/reasons in the world can also lead to the rapture. The then following "seven trumpets" of the Revelation with their "seventh (or last) trumpet" refer to the penal judgments and do not concern the Bride of Christ anymore, but those left behind on earth. Even after the Rapture and in the Millennium there will be many more trumpets, but "the last trumpet" for the Firstfruits (i.e. for the Bride of Christ) will only occur once in the history of mankind and never again afterwards. 
• Rev 4:1-2: "After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne."
  Note: As already mentioned in the Bible verse above, John (symbolizing the Bride of Christ) was spiritually raptured into heaven and only after that did the judgments follow with the seven trumpets. The verses in Mt 25:1-13, 1Cor 15:51-52, 1Thess 4:13-18 and Rev 4:1-2 harmonise perfectly. 
• Mt 25:6-7: "But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out [the Bride of Christ] to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins [the complete spiritual Bride of Christ] rose and trimmed their lamps."

So whoever knows when "the last trumpet" will sound also knows on which day the Rapture will take place. But it is not that simple. Many Christians make the mistake that they cannot distinguish between the trumpets. For there is not just one, but several "last trumpets" with different meanings. Since the horn sounds several times on some feast days, there is the last trumpet on a particular day, or that in a feast period, or even the last trumpet in the year. Trumpets sound on the 7 biblical feast days, on the new moons (beginning of the month) and on special occasions (e.g. the destruction of Jericho; see Joshua 6).

The proclamation of jubilee years (every 49+1=50 years) is also of special importance, as in the case of the liberation of Jerusalem in 1967, when the shofar horn was blown in Jerusalem for the first time in almost 2,000 years. In 1948 the state of Israel was born. The fig tree began to sprout again. But it took another 19 years until the city of Jerusalem was returned to the Jews (6-day war). 

There are also trumpets that can be heard during the time of grace, that is, during the time of the calling of Christians from all nations. By this we mean Christians who have accepted the sacrifice of Jesus, repent of their sins and have thus been saved through Jesus' sacrifice and grace. It is the 2,000-year age of the Church under the grace of Jesus. There will be trumpets in Israel, which will sound after the time of grace, when the church (Bride of Christ) will no longer be on earth after the Rapture. And there will be the 7 trumpets of the judgments of wrath, which are described in the book of Revelation. The deliverance of the Bride of Christ takes place immediately before the punishment of the ungodly world. There are trumpets for deliverance and salvation. But there are also trumpets for punishment and destruction. In the Old Testament there are many examples of this.

The trumpet of God, which will be heard at the Rapture, is the last trumpet of the 2,000 years of grace. But the seventh trumpet in Revelation 11:15 is the last trumpet of the 7-year period of the wrath. It means the judgments of the so-called "Day of the Lord", which is described in many passages in the Old and New Testament. So, we are speaking of two completely different trumpets, which must not be equated. The last trumpet of the time of grace serves the liberation of the bride of Christ. But the last trumpet of the time of wrath describes the last plagues and the salvation of the whole earth through the visible return of Jesus Christ together with the Bride of Christ (the saints; the Chosen One). One thing is certain: the trumpets described in the Book of Revelation mean the "Day of the Lord". So, it is the time of the great tribulation, of nuclear wars and of the punishment of the ungodly world. So the Bride of Christ cannot be affected by this at all, seeing that there are many biblical passages which state precisely the salvation of converted Christians from the Tribulation (see above). But the Christians of the Name who have been left behind must go through the Tribulation ("Day of the Lord"), and for them the 7th and last trumpet is of importance, seeing that after this the return of Jesus follows. 

There is yet another clear proof that the "last trumpet" mentioned by Paul in 1Cor 15 cannot at all be the one of Revelation 11, because when Paul wrote the letter to the Corinthians, the book of Revelation did not yet exist. At that time not a single Christian (not even Paul) knew anything about a "book [scroll] with the 7 seals" and "the 7 wrath trumpets" with all the plagues and the bowls of wrath. The Christians in Corinth at that time did not know many things that were revealed later through Jesus, because they were not supposed to affect their generation, but our present generation. It was only John who, after decades, wrote the Revelation as the last book of the Bible. It is the 49th scroll and the 66th or 70th book of the Bible (see structure of the Bible: Link). But it is not a summary of already existing old knowledge (like the gospel of John), but it is completely new wisdom, which was even handed down directly from Jesus. It is not yet known, but new and detailed information, especially about the end times, which was revealed by Jesus himself:

Rev 3:1-3: "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near."

And another proof that the last trumpet for the Bride of Christ cannot possibly be equated with the last trumpet of the judgment of the world: It is very important to remember: When was John in a vision "in the Spirit" and raptured before the thorn of God (Rev 4:1-4)? This was not after, but before the 7 trumpets of judgment were heard. And the 24 elders (symbolic of the complete church of God) were also already before the throne of God. It was only after this that John heard something about a book with the 7 seals, and only after this did the opening of the seals and the sound of the trumpets begin, with which the dramatic events of the Last Days and the judgments of punishment began. So when the 7th and last trumpet of Revelation could be heard for the first time at all, John and the 24 elders (symbolically for the entire church) were already years before the throne of God (the door was open). Long before the 7th trumpet, John was told to "come up" into heaven: 

Rev 4:1 "After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this."

In other words, when John stood before the throne and when the entire congregation (symbolically represented in the 24 elders) were with God, only then was the book with the 7 seals opened and the end-time events under the sound of the trumpets took their full course.

The Rapture of Enoch, who is symbolic of the congregation (Gen 5:21-24; Hebr 11:5-6), also stands in this connection. As has already been proved above, the Rapture took place before (and not during) the punishment (the flood). The translation of his name, its numerical value, as well as the age of Job have a clear prophetic reference to the rapture of the Bride of Christ (see above chapter: "The biblical examples of the Rapture"). This is also directly connected with the 5 wise virgins who are taken away by Jesus (Mt 25:1-13).

Not only among the Israelites, but also among many other nations, trumpets were used to warn of danger or to launch an attack. There were also trumpets in the Roman military. Among the Romans, who used the bucina and the tuba, a type of trombone, trumpet or horn, the tones of the individual instruments were of particular importance in addition to war music. They were used to give signals, e.g. when a camp was lifted (see Militär-Conversations-Lexicon 1835). There were three trumpets for this purpose (cf. Polybios: The Histories): the first meant "get ready, tear down the tents", the second "load the animals, line up in the rows and be ready" and the third and last trumpet meant "leave, the army is going". So the first trumpet said, "Stop," the second, "Get ready," and the third, "Let's go." For us this has a symbolic meaning, because we should put aside the worries of the world, be ready and wait for the sound of the last trumpet of our Lord Jesus Christ at any time. Then we will immediately go up and no one can ever harm us any more, because after the Tribulation we will return to this earth together with Jesus and here end and remove the suffering and the destruction of the environment. The Millennial Kingdom has often been mentioned by different cultures (also by the Nazis and Communists), but only Jesus can build it (see below).

But we do not need to concentrate at all on the Roman soldiers, because in Num 10:1-10 the different trumpets were described by God himself for the use in the Hebrew military. Here it becomes clear that there were trumpets to call the congregation together, before assemblies and when the army was about to depart. There were also loud trumpets for the event of war "that you might be saved from your enemies" (verse 9). Not only that, there were even joy (happiness), sacrifice, gratitude and feast trumpets:

Num 10:10: "On the day of your gladness also, and at your appointed feasts and at the beginnings of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings. They shall be a reminder of you before your God: I am the Lord your God."

So the trumpet at the Rapture and the coming of the Lord in the clouds has several meanings. It serves as warning, deliverance and thanksgiving. And Paul explicitly speaks of an order, as in the military:

1Thess 4:15-18: "For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming [presence] of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the 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. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up [gr. harpazo] together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words."

The proclamation of the Ten Commandments at the time of the Feast of Pentecost (beginning of the third month; Ex 19:1-19) is a wonderful example of the coming of the Lord in the clouds with the sound of the trumpet. God was in the clouds, but the Israelites could not see him. They only heard the trumpet of His coming and presence. The trumpet announced the Lord and the Law. Was this the first trumpet that sounded at the time of Pentecost, and will the last trumpet sound again at the time of a Pentecost feast? The New Testament Church was founded at Pentecost and a Rapture at Pentecost would end the age of the Church. The events from Exodus 19 onwards are a foretaste of our time, because the last trumpet will again announce the presence (coming) of God and the realization of the New Testament law of love. It is about 2 different covenants with 2 completely different promises. The trumpet of God's presence at the proclamation of the Ten Commandments:

Ex 19:16-19: "On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder." 

Ex 20:18-21: "Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

This trumpet is also mentioned in the Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb 12:19), emphasizing that we will not come to Mount Sinai, "but you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel" (Heb 12:22-25).

To be honest, we do not know at present exactly which "last trumpet" is meant for the Rapture? If we were to know, then we would not have to keep watch at all, as we would know the exact time in advance. But Jesus wanted us to think about it and to research in His word and always be ready, especially since we could die every day by accident or illness and this readiness and hope for Jesus must be integrated in our character. Therefore, it is worth being alert and ready at all times, especially when, according to the biblical guidelines, the festival trumpet (the shofar horn) or the Jubilee trumpet is to be blown in Israel on the holidays. But a warning trumpet can sound at any time when danger is approaching. This is completely independent of the holidays, because the enemy starts a war when others least expect it and he does not take our wishes into consideration. Like in the Second World War, when the Blitzkrieg broke out suddenly and unexpectedly and put the whole world in fear. That will come again, but this time it will be much worse, as the punishment trumpets in Revelation prove. Since this rapture or deliverance trumpet is intended only for the Bride of Christ (the converted Christians), it could be that it can only be heard from her. It is in any case since the resurrection of Jesus "the last trumpet" before the departure of the righteous into the clouds to heaven and the transformation of bodies into spirit. All this is a mystery to the Jews and to the godless world (Gentiles); but for us it is a biblical hope from the words of Jesus. And only God knows when the archangel will blow into the shofar horn (trumpet) and rapture us out of this evil world. But after the seven years of tribulation, after the punishment trumpets, the return trumpet will sound worldwide when Jesus returns to earth with power and glory. Probably the trumpet will be heard only by the elect at the Rapture. But at the return of Jesus Christ to earth (together with the saints), the whole world will hear the trumpet. 

There is some evidence to suggest that the Rapture could be on one of the 7 biblical feast days (especially on Passover or Pentecost). Tu B'Av (15th day of the 5th month) and 29th Elul (last day of the 6th month) would also be conceivable (i.e., the day before Day of Trumpets), on which the world economy collapsed several times in history. Possible is also the Day of Trumpet (1st day of the 7th month, Yom Teruah), because especially on this day the shofar horn (the trumpet) has been blown loud several times and the "last trumpet" on this day could be the one mentioned in 1Cor 15:52. It was indeed the last trumpet on this day, but not the last trumpet of the year. The shofar horn was also blown on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Some Christians suspect the Rapture on this day, because it symbolizes atonement, and the priest was only allowed to stand before the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle and temple on this day. But also the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) cannot be excluded as a date for the Rapture. This also applies to the last festival of the year, namely Purim, on the 14th to 15th Adar (12th month), only a few days before the beginning of the New Year and the first trumpet of the year on the 1st Nisan. 

The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) is also symbolically a possible time for the Rapture, because it symbolizes the conclusion of the harvest time and the period under the reign of God with rich rewards. If there were the rapture of the firstfruits on the Feast of Tabernacles, this would also be the end of the spiritual harvest of the firstfruits. It would be a symbolic prefulfillment of the feast, because after that the first great tribulation would come, and only after this would the Millennial Kingdom begin. However, after the atonement with God (Yom Kippur) the spiritual wedding feast is celebrated. A Jewish wedding lasts 7 days and the Feast of Tabernacles symbolizes this wedding celebration. In the year 2021, Sukkot falls on September 20-21 (15th Tishrei 5782). 

It must be underlined once again: It is about the rapture of the spiritual bride of Christ. This is not bound to the laws of the Old Testament, so the rapture need not be tied to certain biblical (Jewish) holidays, but can take place at any time, especially to protect the bride from dramatic political, economic, health (bad vaccination) or religious dangers in the world. It would also be possible to have a day of political danger before a war that absolutely no one expects, because Jesus said: "Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming" (Mt 24:42). So we should always be awake and watchful, not only on the seven annual Sabbaths of the Bible and the beginning of the month and year. 

However, something is interesting: In the years 2020 and 2023 there was exactly the same sequence of days at the Passover feast as in the year Jesus was crucified (more Info) and even in the year when Israel left Egypt (Exodus). Was this an indication of the imminent exodus of the Bride of Christ, that is, of our Rapture? 

Actually, it should be clear from the previous biblical passages who the people are who will be raptured. They are people who are different in their way of life, therefore they are distinct from the other people of the world. What makes them different? They are those who [1.] love Jesus, [2.] believe in Him and follow Him in His agape love, [3.] know His word (Bible), [4.] wait for Him and [5.] are ready. It is not the great mass of nominal or pseudo religious Christians (who live as they wish and do not want to be dictated to by a God). It is a small group of converted Christians from all nations who love Jesus and other people (even their enemies), reject sin and violence and follow Jesus in everything. They are light in this dark world. The distinguishing mark of these Christians is the true love "agape".

1Cor 1:26-31: "For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written [Jeremiah 9:22-23], “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

It becomes clear that God calls precisely the weak and those unloved in the world because he loves them especially. He has appointed them "for sanctification and redemption", that is, for the Rapture. People always choose the most beautiful, the richest and the best. But God chooses the weak to make them strong. Just here God's love is revealed and the weak will be especially thankful to Jesus for this in all eternity and will never forget God's love. The arrogant, selfish and proud people, however, have no place in the Kingdom of God.

But no matter how bad the sins of a person were in the past, it is still time to repent and be among the chosen ones. For Jesus came not only for the weak, but also for sinners, so that they might change and keep His word from now on. Therefore he said: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:31). Even the writers of the Bible were once sinners, but they have changed. Therefore they will be present at the Rapture. The past does not count, what is important is the attitude in the present and in the future, and especially the sinners will appreciate the sacrifice of Christ all the more, because they were dead and came to life through Him. Jesus made it unmistakably clear to whom he will come during the Rapture, namely, to those who love Jesus and keep his word. His word has been preserved to this day and is only found in the Bible: 

John 14:23-24: "Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me."

Faith in God and Jesus Christ is very important, because without faith there is no access to God. We see a wonderful example from the Old Testament. Only the righteous Enoch was raptured, while the rest of the unrighteous crowd perished in the Flood. Enoch was raptured and Noah was saved, because both went the way of God. Whoever does not walk with God cannot expect to be taken away by Jesus:

Hebr 11:5-6: "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him."

Gen 5:22-24: "Enoch walked with God...  24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him."

In the parable of the 10 virgins it has become clear that it is about people who know the word of Jesus (the Bible = light) and who are also a light in this world (Mt 5:13-16). These are only the people who have the Spirit of God, who know Jesus and his Word. How does a person want to follow Jesus if he does not know the Bible at all and does not know what he said and wants? That is impossible, that is why knowledge of the Bible is so important. Another important characteristic of this small group is that they not only know the Scriptures, but also wait for Jesus, that is, they expect His coming. Jesus makes it very clear: "and those who were ready went in with Him [Jesus] to the marriage feast, and the door was shut" (Mt 25:10). The others remain here on earth. The Lord will not come for anyone who does not want to go to Him or say "No, I want to get married first, finish building a house, go on holiday..." Jesus himself said: "Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect" (Mt 24:44). He who loves the Lord is watchful and is ready to be taken out of this world. He who does not wait and is not ready cannot expect to be brought to Jesus against his will. No, "Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him" (Heb 9:28). Jesus will not take away from this world the named or sham Christians, who use Jesus' name but deny Him by their sinful way of life. Conversion means repentance and living differently, namely following the example of Jesus in everything and no longer being a part of this world: 

Rom 8:8-11: "Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you."

It does not matter that a person calls himself a Christian; it only matters whether he has the Spirit of God or not. But the Spirit of God or the Spirit of Christ is only given to the person who repents of his sins, accepts Jesus and follows him in his way of life of the love, as described in the Bible. No matter how bad a person's sins were in the past, it is never too late to repent and take a different path in life. The Christian way of life can mean persecution and suffering (even in one's own family). But the reward is indescribably greater. The one who "does not belong to Him [Jesus]", will not be caught up in the Rapture either. This is shown by the example of the 10 virgins (Mt 25). Otherwise the wicked would take their violence and lies with them into the kingdom of God, with which the suffering would continue there forever. No, certainly not; only the righteous will be saved. This is also written by Daniel, who lived long before Paul: 

Dan 12:1: "At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book."

The archangel of God will NOT stand up for the murderers, liars, rapists and bandits, but only for the people of God whom he will save. "Your people" is what Daniel calls twice. He therefore means those who have the Spirit of God and whose names are written in the Book of Life. The entry is explained in more detail: Link. Jesus made it unmistakably clear that only his followers belong to him. These are those who listen to his Word (the Bible) and follow him (not only listen, but also do):

Joh 10:27-30: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one."

Anyone who does not listen to the words of Jesus, which are only described and found in the Bible, cannot know how to follow Jesus at all. All these above mentioned biblical passages are so clear. How can there then be any more questions about who will be raptured and who will not? Especially in the area of the time of tribulation the thirst for the Word of God will be great, as the Old Testament already shows: "But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase" (Dan 12:4). But many normal and left behind Christians will only realize that the Bible was right after the Rapture of the elect. Jesus mentioned the two groups, namely those who have already died and those who are still alive: 

John 11:25: "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

Paul confirmed this for all eternity in 1Thess 4:16-17 and made it clear who are those who are taken away by Jesus: "And the dead in Christ [yes, in Christ, not the others] will rise first" and then the Christians who are still alive and waiting for Him: "Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up [gr. harpazo] together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord." Paul could not have said it more clearly. This means that only those whose hope is Jesus Christ will be caught up in the Rapture. It will not be those people who have other gods and do not want to know anything about following Jesus. Why should Jesus go to collect someone who does not want to, who is against the Messiah and does not want to know anything about the Bible (which is the only historical source that has kept the words of Jesus until today)? Already in the Old Testament it was said: "But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word" (Is 66:2). And the Old Testament has pointed to Jesus in numerous Bible passages; he alone is the light and the way to eternal life. In contrast, the seducers and the lukewarm and religious Christians without love have no place in the Kingdom of Heaven, otherwise they would take their bad attitude with them into the spiritual dimension. Therefore Jesus made it very clear:

Mt 7:15-23: "Beware of false prophets [=religious seducers], who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"

Mt 25:10-12: The parable of the 10 virgins: "the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’"

Many people from Israel (= fig tree) and the false or sham Christians from all countries (= other trees) have brought too little fruit in their lives. They were not a light in this world, but part of the darkness in their sinful way of life. They resemble the 5 foolish virgins, who were also on the road and had lamps, but the most important thing was missing, namely the light: Jesus (the love in person), the Bible and the Holy Spirit.

There is numerous literature on the Rapture worldwide. You Tube is full of diverse views on this subject with a flood of thousands of contributions of all kinds. There are even several Hollywood movies that deal with the lives of the "Left-behind Generation." The whole world is already being prepared for this sensational event directly or indirectly. Nevertheless, many people do not convert to God and do not seek His will in the Bible. The question is really legitimate, why is the international film industry making such an effort to inform us now about the "Left Behind Generation" and to prepare people for this time? Apparently these people obviously know more than they say? Some examples of the Rapture from TV/movie:

• Left Behind (2000)
• Left Behind: Tribulation Force (2002)
• Finale – Die Welt im Krieg (2005)
• This is the End (2013)
• Left Behind – The End Begins (2014)
• The Leftovers (Serie, 2014)
• The Remaining (2014)
• Advertising film of the company Foot Locker 'No Matter What' on You Tube 

The World After the Rapture means: WAR. Just before the Rapture the world will be in a false peace before a great war breaks out, which has already been described in detail in the Old Testament as the "Day of the Lord." Paul wrote: "For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape" (1Thess 5:2-3). When the Holy Spirit is taken from the world, the age of grace is over. What follows is the terrible time of the "Day of the Lord." After the Rapture the world will be in a chaotic and brutal situation for 7 years (Mt 24:21; Rev 7:14). It is the time of great tribulation, full of violence, selfishness, lies and injustice. It will be the worst time in the history of mankind (Dan 12:1; Mt 24:21; Rom 2:9). Then, in the truest sense of the word, all hell will break loose, for Satan himself will come to earth with great wrath together with his demons: "the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!" (Rev 12:10-13). There will be a global apostasy from God's law, as in the time of Noah, and the Antichrist (the false Messiah) will present himself as God (2Thess 2:3-4). There will be "great signs and wonders" (Matthew 24:24), which many will ascribe to aliens. If Lucifer has managed to deceive a third of the angels, then he will be even more able to deceive those people who do not believe in the Word of God (Bible), but only in what they are seeing:

The Bible is so clear that it is hard to understand how people (even some Christians) can believe in aliens from other planets at all? John writes that in the last days there will not be beings from other planets, but the old well-known spirits that have already been worshiped by the pagan nations. These are the "spirits of devils" ("demonic spirits") who want to ally themselves with the religious and political leaders (Rev 16:4). The God of the Greeks and Romans comes again, but this time with even greater power and many extraordinary signs and wonders:

• 2Thess 2:3-4; 2:9-12 " Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God... 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
• Rev 9:1-11: "And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star [=Satan; cf. Isaiah 14:12-14] fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit [Greek abussos; the abyss, unfathomable depth]. 2 He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit... 11 They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon [Hebrew: doom, destruction, abyss; Wikipedia], and in Greek he is called Apollyon [=Apollon ,roman Apollo]."
  Note: The Bible does not teach the coming of beings from other planets, but the appearance of the well-known fallen angels. There is a big difference. Satan is the angel of death, he cannot bear that he has lost his position and that the righteous people will one day have a much higher position than him and will even judge him. Therefore, he especially hates those who follow God. Satan wants their death, because he knows that God loves the elect and that they will live with God forever and rule over the earth. To develop his power, he especially seduces the religious and political leaders of a country. This was already the case in the times of Babylon, Egypt, Greece, Rome and so it is today:
• Rev 16:14: "For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty."
• Rev 12:7-12: "Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world - he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels [=the Demons, the "Aliens"] were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb [Jesus] and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”
  Note: The devil is not an alien from another planet, but a fallen angel from heaven, who accuses us every single day before God. He in his anger and wants to destroy all divine and all good things. He does not come alone, but together with the other fallen angels, the demons, who are also not aliens from other planets, but perverse spirit beings.

Why does John mention the name Apollyon (= Apollon, Apollo) of all things? What does he want to tell us with this? The answer is simple: He wants to identify the spiritual power of the Last Days (Rev 9:1-11; 16:14). He points to the same well-known and dangerous phenomenon that was already in direct contact with the ancient Greeks. This is not a mythical creature, but an existing living spirit, a fallen angel. Apollo has always presented himself as the good (angel of light, illumination), but he is the evil (the dragon and the serpent). He is often depicted with a bow and arrow, recalling the rider on the white horse and the first seal of Revelation (Rev 6:2). Apollo was not only the Greek god of light (Light Bringer; the enlightened or illuminated one; partly also sun god), but also the god of oracles and prophecy (divination, magic). Yes, people really did receive information from him, as Wikipedia describes in detail in several articles (Oracle of Delphi, Abaddon, Apollo, Temple of Apollo).  

To worship the god Apollo, huge temples were built in many places (see List). His oracle was located in Delphi since the 8th century B.C. According to the opinion at that time, it was the center of the world, because people could be in direct contact with this false god there. Besides there was also the classical sun god Helios. Apollo was the same extraterrestrial spirit ("alien") with which the priests of the Greeks were in direct contact. He was called "the shining" or "the bright", but at the same time he was "the destroyer and annihilator". The Greek Apollyon was adopted by the Romans as Apollo. Thus it is clear with whom the Greeks and Romans were in direct contact and from whom they received information, instructions and orders. And exactly this same being will work in the Last Days with power and great signs and wonders to deceive men. Of course the Greeks and Romans were not in contact with extraterrestrials (aliens) from Mars, but with Satan himself, who had a considerable influence on their doctrines and philosophy and led them into several wars. Sexual excesses (perversion), signs, miracles, lies, selfishness, violence and war are his trademarks. John wanted us not to be seduced, so he clearly called and identified this spirit by name. Why does the Bible not warn of alleged beings from other planets or earths? Simply because it warns of fallen angels, who of course do not want to show themselves as such (otherwise people would believe the Bible), but as the supposedly intelligent creatures from other parts of the universe. Since most people only want to believe what they see and do not want to be guided to by a God of the Bible, they will get the visible signs they want. They will fall for this visual illusion and visible deception and follow these bad spirits.

The world will "not endure" the Word of God and they will turn away from the truth (2Tim 4:3-4). They will rather turn to the old fables, legends and space stories (space tales). They have already been prepared for this in various TV and cinema films, so it will not be a new phenomenon. For this reason, they will not be able to correctly classify world events among the so-called "extra-terrestrials" (aliens) because they have rejected the Bible (even many who call themselves "Christians"). They will certainly not want to hear the Gospel, but will be blinded by the signs of Satan, "the God of this world":

1Tim 4:3-4: "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths [Greek mythos: a fable, a speech, a legend, fanciful story, an idle tale]" (2Tim 4:3-4).
2Cor 4:2-4: "But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world [=Lucifer, Satan] has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

the word used in the basic Greek text for "world" is "aión" (Strong No 165) and means an age, cycle (of time) or period. This does not mean eternity, but a limited period of time during which Satan can work as "God for this world". He is the spiritual power that is currently sought by the godless world, for Satan teaches rebellion against God's laws of love. The effects of this selfish and anti-Jesus way of life are particularly evident in the end times.

The last 3.5 years will be particularly brutal. It will be the worst time in the history of mankind. This is no secret insider knowledge, but the basic knowledge of all Christians and this is described as "great tribulation" even at Wikipedia (see Link). It will be a demonic time, full of seduction, selfishness and violence. People (and also many Christians by name) do not want to be told by a God what they have to do and what they have to stop. They do what they want to do and what they themselves consider good. In many countries the Christian faith is already today restricted or even completely forbidden and the possession of a Bible alone can mean prison or the death sentence. When the Antichrist will reveal himself to the world, whose name results in the numerical value 666 (see calculation), then he will see to it that the Bible is ridiculed or even forbidden. Why? Because the Bible reveals him as the evil one, but he wants to stand before the world as the good one. He will be helped by the demonic spiritual powers of which the New Testament warns in detail. They will pretend to be aliens from other planets, who will supposedly save the world and introduce a whole new religion. Since most people reject the Bible, they will be impressed and believe all the lies. All people who do not follow these new teachings will be hated and persecuted.

It is completely wrong to say that the ones left behind are all lost. During the Tribulation, there will still be a great spiritual harvest, because many of the Christians left behind will recognize and repent of their sins during the Tribulation. So these are the Christians who have not been raptured, the so-called "Left Behind Generation", but they still have the possibility of repentance. Many will turn to Jesus and ask Him for help in times of need. And they will remember the warning words of those who were raptured, of which they did not want to hear anything before. Many therefore have to go through the terrible time. The Antichrist will bring out a sign on hand and forehead. It will be an identification and no man will be able to buy anything or go to the doctor if he does not accept this sign. The Bible warns against accepting this sign because it will lead to the loss of eternal life. Many of the Christians left behind will remember the earlier warnings of the Christians who have already been raptured and will not accept the sign. They will die as martyrs for their faith. All this was already revealed in the Book of Revelation 2,000 years ago. There will be a church and state alliance, symbolized by two animals (Rev 13), which will drive the world into spiritual chaos:

Rev 13:11-13: "Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. 16 Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666." - (see calculation)

God strongly warns against accepting the mark of the beast (it is a pact with the devil), otherwise there will be the loss of eternal life. This is clearly explained in the Bible (Rev 14:9-12; 20:4). The people left behind from all nations and religions who repent and accept Jesus will be raised after the tribulation and receive eternal life:

Rev 20:4-6: "Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years."

After the Rapture many Jews will realize that Jesus, who comes from their own ethnic group, whom they have previously rejected, was right after all. The Rapture can only take place after the last Christian from all the peoples of the earth has been called, that is to say, has come to salvation. Therefore Paul said:

Rom 11:25: „Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written...“

Just after the Rapture "knowledge will increase" (Dan 12:4). The hardening will be lifted and many Jews will repent and turn to Jesus. But not all will be, because most will follow the Antichrist, who will sit down in Jerusalem in the Temple that will soon be built. "Many shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but the wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand" (Dan 12:10). Revelation 12 describes that in the middle of the tribulation (after 3.5 years) a part of Israel will be saved in a secure place, when the nations of the whole earth will gather against Israel. The geographical place Armageddon (Rev 16:16) is not a term from Hollywood, but from the Bible, which was copied and reinterpreted by the Firm industry. Unfortunately, Israel has rejected its Messiah Jesus Christ, but He will still save Israel from total destruction. When will Israel finally wake up and realize that Jesus Christ is the Messiah? "Salvation is from the Jews (John 4:22). And why? Because Jesus died for our sins to save us from eternal death. The New Testament was written by former Jews who accepted Jesus and walked the path of love. But as long as the people of Israel deny the Messiah Jesus Christ and disrespect the New Testament, they cannot find knowledge and security. Wake up, Israel, you chosen people, stop fighting against the Yeshua ha-Mashiach!

The return of Jesus Christ with His saints (seven years after the Rapture) will end the suffering and chaos on this earth (Mt 24:29-31; Rev 19:11-16). "Then the Lord [=YHWH, Jesus] my God will come, and all the holy ones with him" (Zech 14:5). This happens shortly before people would destroy themselves. After that, the Millennial Kingdom (Millennium) will be established, in which God's Law and His love will reign over the earth (Isa 65:17-25; Rev 20:4-6). Even the beasts of prey will be peaceful and eat grass. And Jesus will not reign alone, but he will also transfer power to his disciples from all nations. This is evident from many biblical passages. Those who have served the most will be the greatest and will rule over the most cities. The concept of the Millennial Kingdom is well known. However, it was misused by some rulers and by Nazi propaganda. The human leader Hitler and his successors are dead and their empire has even become much smaller as Prussia, Pomerania, Bohemia and Silesia have been lost. But the empire which Jesus (the Lord of all lords and King of all kings will raise) will have no end, it will cover the whole earth. And it will be a kingdom of peace without hatred, without violence and without destruction of the environment, because the love of God will reign. Love is the strongest power in the universe. Love does all to protect the other, so that he is well. Love is defined in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5-7) and 1Cor 13. The 6,000 years of human history were like a school for eternity. It was an opportunity for people to learn character and love so that they could be inscribed in the Book of Life and live forever. The violent, the liars, the drunkards, the rapists, the thieves, the criminals and the egoists will not exist in the Kingdom of God.

Isaiah 65:17-25: "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. 19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress... 24 Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear. 25 The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord."

When Jesus returns to earth after the 7-year tribulation (seven years after the Rapture), He will establish the Millennial Kingdom of Peace. But this does not mean by any means that there will then also be the final judgment on all human beings who have ever been born. The Bible reports that only the elect have been raised from the dead and raptured, and only "they will reign with him [Jesus] for a thousand years" (Rev 20:4,6). This also includes those who were left behind after the Rapture, but who during the Great Tribulation kept to the biblical word and did not accept the mark of the beast (Rev 20:4). "The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years" (Rev 20:5-6). The Last Judgment of all human beings ever born will only take place after the 1,000-year Kingdom:

Rev 20:11-15: "Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. 14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."

What books are we talking about? The question is very easy to answer, it is about the 66 or 70 books of the Bible, which were written on 49 (7x7) scrolls (see Structure of the Bible: Link). The Book of Life is the 50th scroll (see Link). Only the Bible reveals the Word and the way of life of God. So judgment can only be made on the basis of the contents of these 70 books. It depends on this whether people are written in the Book of Life or not. There is either eternal life or eternal death (the "second death" after the Last Judgment). There is nothing in between. 

The Rapture is our last hope, because as Christians we can expect nothing from this evil world

Photo: The Rapture of the people by Benjamin Haas: Shutterstock.

Photo: Strong No. 726 harpazo: Biblehub.

Photo: Video Foot Locker  'No Matter What' on YouTube: Link 

Photo: Shofar horn at night: Link.

Picture from the parable of the 10 virgins:  Link1,  Link 2,  Link3,  Link4,  Link5  

Photo Rabbi Goran and the trombone: The Jerusalem Post: Link 

Images of Apollyon, Apollo:  Link1,  Link2,  Link3,  Link4,  Link5,  Link6  

Photo Child with Lion and Lamb: A painting by Franz Seraph Hanfstaengl from 1896; Title: "Peace" (Frieden): Link. 

Since we do not know exactly when Jesus is coming,

we must always be ready and connected with Jesus in prayer