Great Tribulation Archives - The New Antisemitism

September 12, 2023 By Olivier Melnick 23 Comments

The Feast of Trumpets and The Rapture: Connections and Assumptions

Each year, the end of summer means the Jewish High Holy Days are just around the corner. Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year), Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) and Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) are upon us. These Fall feasts are very meaningful to the Jewish people and have great significance, prophetically speaking. When we look at Leviticus 23, we can see all the feasts of the Lord given to the children of Israel in a particular order. All six feasts (or seven feasts, since some people separate Passover and Unleavened bread) are called yearly convocations and are divided into two distinct categories:

Spring Festivals
• Pesach – Passover: Leviticus 23:4-8
• First Fruits: Leviticus 23:9-14
• Shavuot – Pentecost: Leviticus 23:15-21

Fall Feasts
• Rosh Hashanah: Leviticus 23:23-25
• Yom Kippur: Leviticus 23:26-32
• Sukkot: Leviticus 23:33-44

We can also derive a prophetic significance from these festivals, as they pertain to the redemptive career of Yeshua the Messiah. This can be both a blessing AND a curse depending on how we establish the prophetic connection and how much we assume. The study of biblical prophecy can suffer from friends and foes, and yet, it is critical that as modern-day disciples of Yeshua, we study the prophetic words of the Bible. The connections exist, and they are strong.

The Spring Festivals have been fulfilled by the First Coming of Yeshua the Messiah:
• Passover: Leviticus 23:4-8 – Death of the Messiah (Isaiah 53:5-8; 1 corinthians 5:7-8)
• First Fruits: Leviticus 23:9-14 – Resurrection of the Messiah (1 Corinthians 15:14, 17, 20-24)
• Pentecost: Leviticus 23:15-21 – Birth of the Body of Messiah (Exodus 19:1, 3-8, Acts 2:1-4)
Prophetically speaking, these festivals are behind us, and there are three more to look forward to. They are known as the Fall Feasts and,

The Fall Feasts will be fulfilled at the Second Coming of Yeshua the Messiah:
• Rosh Hashanah: Leviticus 23:23-25 – The Regathering of the Saints (Isaiah 27:12-13 – 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians. 15:15-58)
• Yom Kippur: Leviticus 23:26-32 – The Great Tribulation (Ezekiel 36:24-25; Zechariah 13:8-9, 12:10, 2 Corinthians 5:10)
• Sukkot: Leviticus 23:33-44 – The Ingathering of the Messiah and the Believers (John 7:38-39, 8:12; Zechariah 14:16-19; Matthew 17:4)

Based on several biblical reasons–the Levitical Feasts of the Lord not being the least of them–I adhere to a pre-tribulational, pre-millennial view of the end times. In other words, Rosh Hashanah comes before Yom Kippur, which comes before Sukkot, so logically and biblically, we can look at the Regathering of the Believers, the Great Tribulation and the Millennial Kingdom in that order. These connections can be made on a biblical foundation, but how does that help us with the timing of the Rapture, or does it?

More books, articles and videos have been produced to prove that the Rapture will take place on Rosh Hashanah that I can count. There is no doubt that people are very interested in the Rapture, and they should, but can a date be set? The extent to which people go to calculate the date of the Rapture is mind-boggling. Let’s try to connect some dots.

• Connection between Rosh Hashanah and the Rapture:
The Blowing of the Trumpet in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Paul’s Jewish audience couldn’t have known about the trumpets of Revelation since the book had not been written when he addressed the Corinthians. They would know about the last trumpet of Rosh Hashanah, known as the “Tekiah Gedolah.” When God brings an end to the Church age–which is the fulfillment of the interval of several months between Shavuot and Rosh Hashanah (Leviticus 23:22)–He will send Yeshua to gather the saints (dead and alive.) Shofars were used to call to battle, announce a new moon or call a gathering of people. So, there is a thematic connection between the Last Trump and the Rapture since it will be the time chosen by God to regather the Saints to Himself.

• Assumption between Rosh Hashanah and the Rapture:
Because of the Last Trumpet connection, many have come to place the Rapture on Rosh Hashanah, using other “proofs” from numerology, Talmudic writings and other sources. Could the Rapture happen on Rosh Hashanah? ABSOLUTELY! But, if it does, it will not be BECAUSE it is Rosh Hashanah, but because that will be the day God has picked in His infinite wisdom.

If we seek passages about Yeshua’s return to get us, we cannot find a specific date, so the Rapture is signless. Nothing needs to happen before the Rapture takes place…NOTHING! We know that Yeshua is preparing a home for us and that He will return to get us all as we read in Yet, the Bible doesn’t tell us when by date, but it tells us that it will be before Yom Kippur since Rosh Hashanah always comes ten days before the Day of Atonement.

Rabbis teach that the fate of all Jews is decided on Yom T’ruah (The Day of Trumpets), but it isn’t sealed until Yom Kippur. This is a time of introspection and repentance when Jewish people go out of their way to seek forgiveness from anyone they might have hurt throughout the year. The sabbath that falls within these ten days is known as Shabbat Shuvah (the Sabbath of repentance.)

An event in Yeshua’s redemptive ministry doesn’t have to happen on the exact day of a feast to fulfill that feast, but the event’s meaning and symbolism suffice to fulfill one of the Levitical feasts. That will be true for the Rapture, the Tribulation and the Millennial Kingdom. If Rosh Hashanah, the Great Tribulation and the Millennial Kingdom are the fulfillment of the last three Fall feasts, while they do not require to happen on the exact day of each feast–but they could–they still will occur in the immutable order of the feasts found in Leviticus 23: Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot…That we know!

So, the real question is not “When will the Rapture take place?” but, “When the Rapture takes place, am I going to be taken up or left behind?”

If you have placed your trust in the death and resurrection of Yeshua the Messiah for your sins, you have eternal life in God’s presence and YOU WILL BE RAPTURED. Don’t speculate on dates that cannot be calculated, but invest your time in boldly sharing our hope in Yeshua with the lost. You never know… The Rapture could happen before, during, or after Rosh Hashanah, but after it happens, our influence on those who don’t know Yeshua will be gone. Let’s use the time we have left wisely.

August 21, 2023 By Olivier Melnick 10 Comments

The Kosher Red Heifer Is The Missing Piece in the Prophetic Puzzle, And It Could Already Be Here!

Almost a year after five red heifers were found in Rockwall, Texas, and flown to Eretz Yisrael, how close are we to the animals being qualified for the critical sacrifice required to generate the ashes of a red heifer needed for purification at the time of the third Temple (Revelation 11:1)? It could be closer than we think!

Israel currently doesn’t have a Temple in Jerusalem. The remains of Herod’s Temple are all that’s left, and the foundation of that building is what is known as the Kotel or Western Wall. Are things about to change? The Bible speaks of a third and a fourth Temple or Millennial Temple (Ezekiel 40-48). The third Temple is a project that has been at the heart of the Temple Institute in Jerusalem for decades. A section of religious Jews is convinced that they will be rebuilding their Temple and once again resume the sacrificial system in Israel, and they are absolutely correct. Towards that end, they have painstakingly recreated all the implements necessary for the resumption of Temple life. Everything has been ready for a while now, even the priests from the tribe of Levi (remember that the tribe of Levi is the only one that can be identified since its identity was preserved in the name of its members such as Levy and Cohen and other derivatives). So, what remains to be done before the Temple is rebuilt? Well, not a whole lot.

Obviously, the location of the Temple remains a very controversial topic since the current Temple Mount is more of a Muslim site than anything. The Al-Aqsa Mosque is built on top of the Temple Mount, and that is currently the biggest hurdle to rebuilding a Temple at that location. I do believe that part of the peace treaty that the Antichrist will sign with Israel will include the possibility of rebuilding and that the Antichrist will be successful at making Arabs and Jews get along. The Temple could even be rebuilt through a collaboration of the two groups and including Gentile assistance (Zechariah 6:12-13). This would be a great example of world peace brought by the Antichrist, especially during the first half of the Great Tribulation. A false world peace that is!

Let’s assume that the Temple could be rebuilt today. That doesn’t automatically mean that Temple duties and the sacrificial system could resume because to resume Temple duties, a red heifer is needed. It is also important to note that the third Temple, while simply called the third Temple by its Jewish proponents, is also known by Yeshua’s followers as the Tribulation Temple. It is a building that never was and never will be condoned by God. It is needed for the end times agenda to unravel, but it is not the Temple that God wants. Sometimes God allows for events to take place for his plan for mankind to be possible. The Tribulation Temple is such an edifice, and yet, there is a critical aspect of Temple purification that remains unfulfilled, and it pertains to the ashes of the red heifer.

The reason why a red heifer is needed is that Jewish people at the Temple must present themselves in a state of ritual purity before they perform their duties. We get this from the Passover celebration in the wilderness in Numbers 9:5-7, “They observed the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did. But there were some men who were unclean because of the dead person, so that they could not observe Passover on that day.” The 113th commandment of the 613 found in the Torah stipulates that “the ashes of a red heifer are to be used in the process of ritual purification.” (Numbers 19:1-22.)

Only nine red heifers were ever found in the entire history of Israel, so it goes without saying that they are extremely rare and valuable. So, the possibility of five new red heifers in existence today is extremely important. Much mystery surrounds the reason for using the ashes of a red heifer. It is even mentioned in the New Testament in Hebrews 9:13-14 as an example of Yeshua’s spotless, sinless sacrifice being greater than the ashes of the animal.

Recently, on the biblical site of Shiloh, where the Tabernacle once was (Joshua 18:1), a group of Levites went through a practice run. One of the five red heifers brought from Texas in 2022 was presented at that ceremony. The animal is just months away from being of age for the sacrifice, and if it continues to grow and not show more than two white hairs, IT WILL QUALIFY FOR SACRIFICE very soon. This means that Israel will have everything needed to rebuild a temple and resume the sacrificial system interrupted in A.D. 70. This is both exciting and terrifying. Let me explain.

This is exciting both for Jews and Christians. The idea that the Third Temple could be erected and functioning in this generation is very exciting to some of the Jewish people around the world, but especially in Israel. This being said, only about 15% of all Jewish people are religious and even less within that percentage long for a Temple to be rebuilt. Those who await that day, like the people from the Temple Institute in the Old City of Jerusalem, are very excited. To them, this announces the coming of the Mashiach, the messianic age, and peace on earth, so who wouldn’t want that?

To the Christians who study eschatology (the study of the end times), this coming temple is also very real. It is known as the Tribulation Temple and is required to be built and functioning during the seven-year Tribulation (Daniel 9:24-27). This is the Temple that the Antichrist will desecrate (2 Thessalonians 2:4) after the first 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation, so it has to be rebuilt soon. To Bible-believing followers of Yeshua, this confirms the veracity of the Bible and its flawless prophetic word. We know that the Third Temple will be rebuilt because God’s word says so, and God cannot lie (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18.) From the perspective of end times events and their biblical accuracy, this is very exciting, unfortunately, for Christians, there is another side to that coin.

As soon as the Tribulation starts and the Temple is fully functioning, the clock is ticking, and it is a short span of time in comparison to world history. The proverbial rubber will be meeting the road in a very bad way for all people on earth at that time. It is understandable when Christians get excited about the rebuilding of the Temple because it means that we are that much closer to the return of Yeshua the Messiah. The sad reality for many people is that around the time of the resumption of the sacrificial system in Jerusalem at the Third Temple, things will start going south very rapidly.

What first will appear as a beautiful Jewish Temple reminiscent of Herod’s Temple about 2,000 years ago, will become a place desecrated by the Antichrist (Daniel 9:26-27; 2 Thessalonians 2:4.) This coincides with the time when people will “willingly” take the Mark of the Beast and seal their fate as followers of the Antichrist. This will be an unprecedented time of great turmoil, as prophesied in Jeremiah 30:7 and Daniel 12:1.

The red heifers are getting really close to being kosher and ready for the sacrifice producing the ashes to be mixed with water for purification. All the Temple implements are ready to go and the Levites have been trained. It is 11:59 PM on the prophetic clock, and yet, so much can still be accomplished in the last minute before the prophetic midnite call. Our desire to share the message of hope with the lost should be boiling inside us.

I don’t know if I will witness the making of the purifying water in my lifetime, but I know without a doubt that it is coming and that once that part of God’s program is in motion, there is no looking back. I have been on God’s side for the last 40 years. I hope you are too, and I pray that you will be bold about the hope that you have in Yeshua. NOW IS THE TIME!

July 20, 2023 By Olivier Melnick 44 Comments

Have I been Wrong about the Rapture All Along?

I have been a believer for 40 years, and for that entire season, I have always believed that there would be a future event in human history when Yeshua would come into the sky and snatch believers away before the terrible time of the Great Tribulation started. In fact, it is through the reading of The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey that I first learned about the Rapture. It impressed me enough that it led me to invite Yeshua into my life as my Messiah and Savior. That was the Summer of 1983, exactly forty years ago. Back then, I knew nothing about the Bible or the end times; however, what I was learning about a just, loving and compassionate God seemed to make a lot of sense.

Fast forward to 2023, almost two decades of published daily devotionals, six books, and two degrees later, and the Rapture of the Believers is still on my mind. Frankly, it is probably on my mind more today than it was twenty years ago – likely due to all the world events occurring at a rapid pace in front of our eyes almost every single day.

The more I read my Bible, the stronger I feel about a premillennial, pre-tribulation Rapture (PPR). This has a lot to do with the approach to the word of God I have been taking for the last four decades. Early on, as I was told that God left me a love letter (the Bible) with a lot of instructions and direction about how to live with Him and for Him, I could never look at that book and not take its message literally. Otherwise, how many interpretations do we really end up with? This, of course, doesn’t eliminate the use of figures of speech in the Bible, but we need to take God’s counsel at face value and then, if necessary, seek a symbolic or allegorical meaning.

What happens if I have been wrong about the Rapture for the last forty years? So, I want to consider the possibility of the Rapture not happening.

One of the first things those who adhere to a premillennial, pre-tribulation Rapture (PPR) are often accused of is escapism. We are accused of trying to bail out before God’s wrath when we should go through it. I guess it would be escapism if there were a sense of selfishness in those who believe in a PPR. The opposite is often the case. Those of us who believe in a PPR have a great sense of urgency, and the imminency of the Rapture is encouraging us to share the Good News even more so. Incidentally, the Bible never speaks of believers not going through difficulties, challenges and/or turmoil prior to the Tribulation. The days we live in seem to validate the idea that persecution is coming to believers as well as to Jews, and we have not even started the Great Tribulation yet.

Frankly, instead of a no-Rapture view, a lot of people believe in a post-tribulation Rapture that will happen simultaneously with the physical return of Yeshua the Messiah to the earth at the end of the seven-year Tribulation. Basically, the Rapture and Second Coming are separated by a few brief moments, making the Rapture less of an important milestone in God’s program than it ought to be. One of the questions I have, is, “How could a Rapture happening at the end of a specific period of seven years be unknown and imminent?” How can the Rapture and the Second Coming be one and the same event when in John 14:1-3, Yeshua promised, “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

Additionally, when we look at Revelation 19:11-21, which is the New Testament passage about the Second Coming of Messiah, there is no mention of the Rapture whatsoever. Why would that be if both events are linked or one and the same?

Do we have solid, biblical reasons to believe that the Rapture and the Second Coming are two separate events? I think we do, and let me offer just a few:
• Signs that are given before the event:
Before the Rapture: None – 1 Thessalonians 1:10
Before the Second Coming: Many – Matthew 24:4-28

• Location for the event:
Location for the Rapture: In the air – 1 Thessalonians 4:17
Location for the Second Coming: The Mount of Olives in Jerusalem – Zechariah 14:2-4; Revelation 19:14

• People taken at the event:
At the Rapture: Believers (the Bride of Messiah) are taken from earth and unbelievers are left behind – 1 Thessalonians 4:17
At the Second Coming: Living believers (the Bride of Messiah) enter the Messianic Millennial Kingdom and unbelievers are judged – Matthew 13:41-42; 49-50

• Changes on earth at the event:
At the Rapture: No topographical change.
At the Second Coming: Many changes on planet earth – Zechariah 14:1-11

There is no doubt that both the Rapture and the Second Coming of Yeshua describe His actual physical return. At the very least, what believers should focus on is the fact that Yeshua is coming back. In other words, the story isn’t finished yet; far from it! Many will claim that there will be no Rapture as a single event, but that Yeshua will indeed return to Earth.

I hold to a premillennial, pre-tribulation Rapture view. There is always a possibility that I am wrong, although forty years of Bible study have only reinforced my position from several vantage points in the Bible. The prophetic significance of the Feasts of the Lord found in Leviticus 23 have helped to strengthen my view and so has the understanding of the Jewish wedding system and the Bride of Messiah.

Yet, if I am wrong, I am very encouraged by the wise words of Charles Ryrie in Come Quickly Lord Jesus, “If His coming should be pretribulational, then we will praise Him because we missed that terrible time. If it is postribulational, then we will gladly suffer for His sake. Either way, we still have the blessed hope of His coming.”

September 28, 2022 By Olivier Melnick 15 Comments

Yom Kippur, The Great Tribulation and the Antichrist…How Soon?

The Jewish civil new year 5783 has come and gone, and to many, it was a bit of a disappointment that the Rapture didn’t take place on Rosh Hashanah (Yom T’ruah or the Day of Trumpets) this year. I am of those who expect the Rapture imminently, but I also understand that we cannot know the day or the hour of that event when Yeshua will come in the sky and call the believers up before the Tribulation. But after Rosh Hashanah comes Yom Kippur, and we should continue to pay close attention. So, how does that relate to Yom Kippur, the Great Tribulation and the Antichrist?

As I have explained before, I see a connection between Rosh Hashanah and the Rapture, Yom Kippur and the Great Tribulation and Sukkot (Tabernacles) and the Millennial Kingdom. The Fall Feasts have a thematic connection to the end times not necessitating an exact day fulfillment. In fact, all the Levitical Feasts of the Lord found in Leviticus 23 have a prophetic significance as it pertains to the redemptive career of the Messiah. It is quite beautiful to behold when we connect all the dots. But again, Rosh Hashanah is behind us, and we are now in the ten days of awe in preparation for the most solemn day of Yom Kippur known as the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16).
Rabbis teach that the fate of all Jews is decided on Yom T’ruah (The Day of Trumpets), but it isn’t sealed until Yom Kippur. This is a time of introspection and repentance when Jewish people go out of their way to seek forgiveness from anyone they might have hurt throughout the year. The sabbath that falls within these ten days is known as Shabbat Shuvah (the Sabbath of repentance).

Leviticus 23:26-32 tells us that the Day of Atonement is all about repentance, humility and affliction: 26 “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 27 “On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the Lord. 28 You shall not do any work on this same day, for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement on your behalf before the Lord your God. 29 If there is any person who will not humble himself on this same day, he shall be cut off from his people. 30 As for any person who does any work on this same day, that person I will destroy from among his people. 31 You shall do no work at all. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. 32 It is to be a sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall humble your souls; on the ninth of the month at evening, from evening until evening you shall keep your sabbath.”
Yom Kippur is a very serious and solemn day on the Jewish calendar, possibly the most important of the year for Jewish people. It is never referred to as a feast but rather, as a fast. It is known by several names, including Yom Kippur: The Day of Atonement, Shabbat Shabbaton: The Sabbath of Sabbaths (Leviticus 16:31), and Yom Hakippurim: The Day of Atonements (Leviticus 23:27). It is the holiest day on the Jewish calendar and is the only time that a day other than the Sabbath is also called a sabbath.

Biblically, Yom Kippur is never connected to a fast, but based on Leviticus 23:27-29, the rabbis decided that the “affliction” of the soul must refer to abstinence from food. According to Judaism on this day of judgment, all deeds–good or bad– are weighed in heaven and God inscribes one’s name in one of three books (Wicked, In-Between or Righteous), sealing their fate for the next year until the next Yom Kippur. The basic rabbinic principle of Yom Kippur is that man can atone for his own sins through works. It relies heavily on the affliction of the body. Yom Kippur is a time when Jewish people experience affliction of the body more than the traditional affliction of the soul. It includes no eating or drinking. No washing or bathing. No anointing (creams, ointments, perfume). No leather shoes (luxury items). No sexual relations with spouse.
Yom Kippur is a day of repentance and expiation of sins by God, also based on Ezekiel 33:19: But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and practices justice and righteousness, he will live by them. The book of Jonah is also read to teach that you cannot run from God and that God will forgive whoever repents like the Ninevites. It is found in three passages of the Torah: Leviticus 16:1- 34; Leviticus 23:26-32 and Numbers 29:7-11. In the Torah, it served three purposes: To cleanse the people and the Tabernacle, to remind Israel of her national standing before God, and to call for individual repentance.

Leviticus 16:1-34 details the duties of the High Priest and serves as the foundation for 16:11, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.”

Yom Kippur will be fulfilled by the Great Tribulation also known as The Time of Jacob’s Trouble and will culminate with Israel’s national Atonement in the Tribulation.

Ezekiel 20:33-38 sets the stage, “33 As I live,” declares the Lord God, “surely with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be king over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; 35 and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. 36 As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” declares the Lord God. 37 “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 and I will purge from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they will not enter the land of Israel. Thus you will know that I am the Lord.

God will purge rebels and regenerate willing unbelievers who seek the righteousness of God through Yeshua the Messiah. This will bring about Israel’s national regeneration. The key word biblically and rabbinically is “affliction,” both of the soul and the body. On Yom Kippur, atonement was made for the nation, not the individual through the sacrifice of the two goats. But national atonement was not achieved unless there was an affliction of the soul at the individual level. Two other key passages to be considered for Yom Kippur’s fulfillment are Hosea 5:15-6:3 and Zechariah 12:10-13:1.

During the seven-year Great Tribulation, “left behind Israel” will suffer the affliction of the body as two-thirds of all Jewish people alive at that time will perish (Zechariah 13:8-9; Hosea 5:15). Additionally, Zechariah 12:10 and Hosea 6:1-3, speak of the spiritual affliction of Israel that will lead to a corporate acceptance of Yeshua as the Messiah of Israel and will usher the physical Second Coming of Yeshua.

There is a beautiful prophetic connection between all the feasts of the Lord and the end times. Believers should really be excited about what is to come and how God has perfectly linked it to His “yearly convocations” but when it comes to Yom Kippur, we all need to reflect. What is so exciting about billions left behind to suffer and die, including half of the world population and within those numbers, two-thirds of the Jewish people alive at that time?

We look forward to the Rapture and rightfully so, and we look forward to the 1,000-year Messianic kingdom on earth when we will tabernacle with God in the flesh. Accordingly, none of us look forward to the Tribulation since we will be taken out before it starts. Yet, we need to think of all those left behind at the mercy of the Antichrist. Things will start with a promising peace treaty (Daniel 9:26-27), but soon the Antichrist will turn on people and demand to be worshipped as god. People will either take the Mark of the Beast and survive the Tribulation, only to be doomed to eternal torment in the Lake of Fire for rejecting Yeshua, or they will reject the Mark and become Tribulation martyrs.

The Tribulation is as certain to happen as the Rapture will. We are still here on earth, and people who don’t know Yeshua are also around us. Now is the time to be bold with the Gospel because the clock is really ticking. If any of the five red heifers turn out to be kosher, we could see the ashes of that animal come to Jerusalem within one year (a plot of land on the Mount of Olives has already been purchased for the sacrifice of the animal). Then, all we need is for the Temple to be rebuilt, and I believe that the Antichrist and his peace treaty with Israel will be instrumental in that part.

Be encouraged to know that any Jewish man you share the Gospel with now could potentially become one of the 144,000 Jewish men used by God to change the world during the Great Tribulation. Now is not the time to be quiet. We know the whole story; we know the players and we know the end. The victory is ours, so, let’s share the Gospel with those who need to become members of the blessed Body of Messiah!

February 14, 2022 By Olivier Melnick Leave a Comment

The Rapture and the Second Coming: EXPLAINED!

The topic of the Rapture of the Church has been a controversial one for quite a while now. The pendulum swings from the Rapture being an invention or a myth all the way to being an imminent event to take place before the Great Tribulation, with a lot of adjusted theological positions in between. Additionally, many have come to look at the Rapture and the Second Coming as being one and the same event. The Bible does give us plenty of information regarding the timing of both the Rapture and the Second Coming to know how and when they will take place and who will be included. The differences will be looked at from a pre-tribulation/premillennial viewpoint, which means that the sequence of events is as follows: Rapture, Seven Year Great Tribulation (seven actual years), Second Coming of Messiah, Millennial Kingdom (1,000 actual years) and Eternal Order. Let’s look at the timing, purpose and people for both events.

The Timing of the Rapture: As to the Rapture, the timing is clearly unknown to all people, except that most believers hold to what is known as “imminency”. This means that the Rapture is as certain as it is signless Nobody knows when it will happen, but it will happen and there is nothing that needs to happen prior to the Rapture for the event to take place. The Bible is replete with verses telling us that the Rapture could happen at any moment:

1 Corinthians 1:7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Yeshua the Messiah,

Titus 2:13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Yeshua the Messiah,

Hebrews 9:28 so Messiah, 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.

We must also keep in mind that imminency means certainty as it is inevitable, but uncertainty as to when it will take place. Its imminency should motivate us to share the Good News with the lost and give us hope for the future.

The Timing of the Second Coming: Some people see the Second Coming as a separate event from the Rapture while others will see the Second Coming taking place in two steps: The Rapture and the Return. Regardless of how one looks at the Second Coming (one or two events), it takes place at the end of the Great Tribulation, at the climax of the Campaign of Armageddon, so in that sense, it can be timed with a certain degree of precision. From the signing of the covenant between the Antichrist and Israel, there will be seven years, and then the Second Coming. Over three hundred references about the Second Coming can be found in the Bible (Zechariah 14:1-11; Revelation 19:11-19).

An often ignored, but key component of the timing of the Second Coming, is Israel’s involvement. Yeshua promised at the end of Matthew 23 that Israel will not see Him again until they corporately say Baruch Haba Bashem Adonai, meaning “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord”. This is based on the prophecy of Zechariah 12:10, “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn,” that will take place at the end of the seven-year Tribulation, after two-thirds of all Jewish people living during the Tribulation will have been decimated

Zechariah 13:8-9 In the whole land, declares the LORD, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive. 9 And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people; and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’”

If this was to happen today, two-thirds of all Jewish people alive would be 10 million which is almost double the casualties of the Holocaust. God didn’t give us numbers here but a percentage of 2/3 and 1/3. The percentage will never change, and any casualty is a tragedy, but the final number of Jewish people dying during the Great Tribulation can be drastically reduced if Christians share the Gospel with their Jewish friends and more come to the Lord before the Rapture. Truly, today more than ever, time is of the essence.

Honestly, we should boldly proclaim the Gospel to our Jewish friends if we believe that their acceptance would secure them a place during the Rapture and would prevent them from the carnage of the Tribulation.

The reason why this is very important is that by the time Yeshua returns at the Second Coming the clock starts ticking for Satan’s demise and the time is very short. Outside of a short time when he is released at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:7-10), Satan’s fate is sealed and he is bound for eternal torment in the Lake of fire without relief. Satan is never the “boss” of Hell, but rather one of the first ones thrown in; and this is because of Israel’s recognition of her Messiah, missed and rejected at His First Coming. The very Jewish people that are the apple of God’s eye according to Zechariah 2:8b, are the people Satan hates the most, and are also the people that will become the catalyst for Yeshua’s Second Coming. If the Jews don’t call on Him, He simply will not return and Satan’s job is secure. Pushing the Jewish people away from Yeshua has been Satan’s entire career. He’s managed to work with antisemitism – by placing that hatred in the hearts of men – and done much damage to the Jewish people over the centuries.

The Purpose for the Rapture: As to the purpose for the Rapture, that should be clear. Messiah is going to come back at some point and call His children to join Him before the start of the Tribulation. Yeshua wants to save His children from the upcoming wrath

1 Thessalonians 1:10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Yeshua who delivers us from the wrath to come.

1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Yeshua the Messiah

Revelation 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.

Now, this is not a view shared by all believers, but for those who agree with the event, we can say that the Rapture is the first phase of the Second Coming of Messiah. This is the phase when He doesn’t land on earth but calls us up. At such a time, two things will happen, as seen in

1 Thessalonians 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 Messiah 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.

So, the dead in Messiah (deceased believers from the birth of the Church to that time) will rise first, closely followed by all other believers alive at the time. This can also be called the resurrection of the righteous. The book of Revelation does not make any reference to the Church after chapter 3. This seems to indicate that the Church will not be part of the Tribulation, since all the damage inflicted by the Antichrist from the middle of the Tribulation forward never mentions the Church once.

The Tribulation seems to coincide with the 70th week of Daniel 9:27 starting after the Antichrist signs a peace treaty with Israel. Simply put, as the first step of the Second Coming, the Rapture will take place because God wants to protect His people from His wrath on earth.

Daniel 9:27 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.”

The Purpose for the Second Coming: No one knows how much time will transpire between the Rapture and the Start of the Tribulation, but common sense would dictate that the Antichrist will have to show up quickly and establish his hegemony with authority. At least seven years after the Rapture, at the end of the Great Tribulation, Yeshua will return to earth with those He had raptured. This will take place at the end of the Campaign of Armageddon when He comes to defeat the Antichrist

Revelation19:19-21 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. 21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Messiah will come to fulfill His promise of return spoken of in the Old and New Testament (Zechariah 14:4; Matthew 25:31; Acts 1:9-11). Probably the most mentioned in the Tanach, is the fact that Messiah also comes to regather and restore the nation of Israel (Isaiah 43:5-6; Jeremiah 30:10; Ezekiel 36:24-38). It will be both a physical and spiritual regathering. He is also coming to judge the living Gentiles (Matthew 25:31-46) and Jews (Ezekiel 20:33-38) who survived the Tribulation.

It is also after the Second Coming that Yeshua will resurrect the Old Testament saints Revelation 20:4-6 and

Daniel 12:1-2 “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.

Yeshua will also bind Satan (Revelation 20:1-3) and reign as the Davidic King in Jerusalem for 1,000 years (Revelation 19:6; Daniel 2:44) so, this coming is literal, physical and future.

The People of the Rapture: For those of us who believe in a literal Rapture, it is actually quite simple to understand. Only those “in Messiah” will be included in the event, requiring them to be in Messiah by the baptism of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13.) That includes all believers who died from the birth of the Church at Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) and all who are still alive, as we learned in Acts 2. The dead in Messiah first and then those alive, not long after. Nobody else will be included at that time.

The People of the Second Coming: Yeshua’s Second Coming will deal with a different group of people. First, He will return with the believers (saints) in their glorified bodies that were raptured seven years prior. Our role in His return will simply be to accompany Him and be observers of the final chapters of history. The Campaign of Armageddon is between Yeshua and His enemies led by the Antichrist. We will be there, but uninvolved. It will be a literal, personal, sudden, visible and glorious return. The Second Coming includes a judgment of all people known as the Great White throne judgment (Revelation 20:12-13). It is for all those who died without trusting Yeshua. Many will be surprised as they thought that religion was the answer, but they truly didn’t have a personal relationship with Yeshua, “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. 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?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” (Matthew 7:21-23). It is different from the Bema Seat Judgment that believers will undergo after the Rapture (2 Corinthians 5:9-10). That judgment of the believers is connected to service to the Lord and rewards for service, but salvation is never in question.

The Rapture is very different from the Second Coming or is at the very least the first part of the Second Coming. The second part is the physical future return of Yeshua on the Mount of Olives to judge the world. Regardless of where one stands on the Rapture, most people will agree that Yeshua is coming back at some point in the future, and when that occurs, a lot of people will not make the cut. The question is: Will you?

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