In my study of prophecy, I have learned how the
feasts of Israel actually represent the fulfillment of prophecy on God’s
calendar. My general understanding is as
follows.
Passover = Death of Jesus on the cross as our
Passover lamb
Unleavened Bread = Sinless sacrifice of Jesus to
destroy sin
First Fruits = Resurrection
Pentecost = Birth of church and possibly rapture
Rosh HaShana/Feast of Trumpets = Rapture and/or
regathering of Israel
Day of Atonement = Second Coming of Jesus as King
of kings
Feast of Tabernacles = The Millennial Kingdom
Every year around the time of Pentecost and Rosh
Hashanah I get a little more excited about the possibility of the rapture of
the body of Christ. Both celebrate the
harvest, and it makes sense to me that the rapture could be associated with
either one. I tend to lean towards Rosh
Hashanah since it follows in sequence from Pentecost and allows for the months
in between to represent the church age.
It is also interesting that it is associated with the blowing of trumpets.
1 Corinthians 15:51–52 “Behold, I
shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a
moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall
sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 “For the
Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and
remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in
the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
Commentators note that on this day that the Jews
celebrate as their new year with one hundred blasts on the trumpet. The last blast is a much longer blast called
the Tekiah Gedolah and could represent the reference to “the last trump” in the
passage from Corinthians quoted above.
This feast is also associated with the thought of
not knowing the day or the hour because it is based on the sighting of the new
moon. This year the Jews celebrate this
feast over two days beginning the evening of September 24th-the
evening of September 26th. Jesus
said that we would not know the day or the hour of His return.
Matthew 24:36–37 “But of that day
and hour knoweth no man, no,
not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of
the Son of man be.”
All this
being said, I know that the rapture could occur at any time and will occur at a
time when most “think not.”
Matthew 24:37–44 “But as the days of
Noe were, so shall also the
coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they
were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that
Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all
away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the
field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken,
and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth
come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch
the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his
house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye
think not the Son of man cometh.”
Following is an excerpt from my study of this
section of Matthew.
I continue to struggle with this section.
Though the context throughout has been the return of Jesus as King and the
tribulation period, I believe after reading through this again, that the plain
meaning has to apply to the rapture. Jesus is using an example of life
going on as usual when He comes. That just won’t be the case in the
tribulation—especially as it gets closer to the end and people on earth are
suffering the effects of the vial judgments. Just as with the other
prophets, this prophecy is not necessarily revealed in chronological format.
Again, the Lord is painting a word picture. I
think the main point of these verses is that life will be going on as normal,
just as it did until the very day that Noah entered the ark. Only then
did the people recognize the truth of Noah’s preaching. Only then did
they realize the truth that they would die in the flood.
I think it is interesting to note that Noah knew
all along that God was going to destroy “all flesh wherein is the breath of
life” under heaven.
Genesis 6:13 & 17 “And God said unto Noah, The
end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence
through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. And,
behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all
flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that
is in the earth shall die.”
Scripture also tells us that Noah was a preacher of
righteousness.
2Peter 2:5 “And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the
eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the
world of the ungodly….”
“taken”
= to receive near, i.e. associate with oneself (in any familiar or intimate act
or relation)
“left” = to send forth, in various applications (as
follow):—cry, forgive, forsake, lay aside, leave, let (alone, be, go, have),
omit, put (send) away, remit, suffer, yield up.
“know not what hour” – This emphasizes the need to
be expectant daily.
I think the most natural reading of these verses
fits the rapture. It is describing when some will be “taken” (Greek:
“received near” – to be with Jesus) and others left behind to go through the
coming time of judgment.
The emphasis of these verses is on being
prepared—watching. The root word in Greek for watch is a
reference to mental awareness. Men and women of faith should be ever
vigilant and expectant regarding the Lord’s return. The Lord will
continue to emphasize the importance of being prepared by presenting that truth
in several different ways in the coming verses.
This tells me that Noah’s situation was much like
that of Christians who share the truth of God’s coming today. He knew the
truth and was faithful to preach it, but the people ignored his message because
they didn’t believe it. We who have been redeemed by Jesus know the truth
and are faithfully declaring it to those around us, but they choose to ignore
it because they don’t believe it.
Noah entering and sealed in the ark = Israel
fleeing to and protected in the wilderness
I also don’t deny that there is a secondary truth
in making a comparison between how things were in the days of Noah and how
things will be in the tribulation that will coincide with God’s wrath and
destruction of the heathen when He returns as King of Kings.
Genesis 6:5 & 12-13 “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was
great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was
only evil continually….And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was
corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said
unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with
violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
Again, this is not the first time that Jesus had
taught the disciples this truth.
Luke 17:26-30 “And as it was in the days of Noe, so
shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank,
they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered
into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also
as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold,
they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it
rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus
shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.”
Jesus also included the example of Lot in His
earlier teaching to emphasize His point.
I think the important truth to note is that God is
going to deliver His own before exacting judgment on the
wicked.
“and knew not until” – This indicates many will not
recognize the truth until the time of judgment comes—at which point it is too
late. It would also tie in with the truth of 2Thessalonians.
2Thessalonians 2:10-12 “And with all deceivableness
of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of
the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send
them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might
be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”
Could this be the turning point regarding the
people of Israel and their faith in the Messiah? The teaching of the
rapture is widely known today, and I think it will serve to cause many Jews to
realize that Jesus was who He claimed to be and the teachings of the New
Testament are to be taken as scripture.
Jesus
now uses a different word picture. He tells us that the master of the
house would be able to protect his house from thieves if he knew when they were
coming.
In other words, the Son of man is going to come
like a thief—without warning.
Revelation 3:3 “Remember therefore how thou hast
received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not
watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will
come upon thee.”
Revelation 16:15 “Behold, I come as a thief.
Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and
they see his shame.”
These verses from Revelation tie directly to the
truth the Lord is presenting here in Matthew. He will come as a thief to
those who are not watching. The one who is truly watching will be
prepared—will not be in a position of shame to meet the Savior. This is a
truth that has become much more important and real to me as I have grown older
and more absorbed in His Word. I am so much more aware of what I am doing
each minute. I so want the Spirit to be at home in my being. This
makes it much easier to make choices in entertainment and in how I prioritize
my time.
Come Lord Jesus!
