Many people think that there is only one rapture. That is not the case as Enoch and Elijah were also raptured in the Old Testament. As Bible believers, we believe in both:
- a pre-tribulation rapture (before the tribulation) for the church
- a post-tribulation rapture (at the end of tribulation) for the tribulation saints.
Things that are different are not the same.
If there was a yellow car in Parking Lot A, and a green car in Parking Lot B, they cannot be the same car. They are different cars at different periods. What makes Bible believers different is that they believe that both these raptures are true, but they are for two different groups of people at different periods.
Post tribulation rapture
Matthew 24:29-31: “ Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
This shows that during the tribulation, heavens will change, and Jesus will be physically seen coming from the clouds, followed by a rapture.
However, in the above, the church is not in it. The following verse shows the rapture, and John was there with the church saints until Revelation 5.
Pre-tribulation rapture
Revelation 4:1-2: “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.”
This voice said “Come up hither,” and the Christians will go up when they get raptured.
Trumpet vs trumpet talking with me
The difference of the trumpet in Revelation 4 (pre-tribulation) and Matthew 24 (post-tribulation) is that the trumpet in Revelation 4 is a voice that sounds like a trumpet. While in Matthew 24, it is a trumpet. To support this,
1 Thessalonians 4:16: “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:”
This trump means a sound that the trumpet makes. This sound is going to be made by God; a voice that sounds like a trumpet. The Lord himself shall descend with a shout, so there is no doubt it is God’s voice.
John 10:2-4,16: “ But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”
Jesus is going to call the Christians’ names and lead them out of this wicked world.
God versus Angels sounding the trumpet
Revelation 8:2 “And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.”
There is a difference between the angels sounding the trumpets (post-tribulation rapture) and God sounding the trumpet Himself (pre-tribulation rapture).
1 Thessalonians 4:16: “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:”
Speed
1 Corinthians 15:52: “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.”
The pre-tribulation rapture is going to be very quick.
Matthew 24:30: “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
Post-tribulation rapture will be slower, since the whole earth can see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven.
Method of rapture (Door and Accompaniment)
Matthew 24:31 : “And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
The angels gather post-tribulation saints.
Revelation 4:1: “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.”
The pre-tribulation rapture enters through a door which is similar to the picture in John 10:2.
Matthew 24:31: “And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
In the post-tribulation rapture, the angels pick the tribulation saints up, not God as in “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:16).”
Environment
In the pre-tribulation rapture (Revelation 4:1), there was nothing bad going on in heaven. A door was opened, and the rapture took place.
In the post-tribulation rapture (Matthew 24:29), heavens were shaken i.e. “the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven.” There was chaos going on in heaven cross-referencing the following verse.
Revelation 6:14: “And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.”
Differences between the pre-tribulation and post-tribulation rapture
They are both true!
| Pre tribulation rapture | Post tribulation rapture |
| For the Christians | For the tribulation saints |
| Before the tribulation | At the end of the tribulation |
| Trumpet & God’s voice | Trumpet |
| God Himself sounds the trumpet | Angels sound the trumpet |
| Immediate, in a twinkling of the eye | All the world shall see |
| Caught up | Angels gather them |
| Door | No door |
| God descends to pick them up | Angels descend to pick them up |
| No change in heaven | Heaven is going to be in chaos |
Things that are different are not the same.
There are two different raptures, and we have to rightly divide to have a clear eschatology.