But, is what they say about being "caught up" really what "caught up" means? If the scene painted by "Rapture"
teachings were true, then there is much difficulty because we find in scripture that other people who were "caught up"
remained on earth after the event. The Greek word for "caught up" is harpazo, and it is found 18 times in the New
Testament. From these we should get a good picture of what the word means.
The KJV translates the word, as
follows:
Catch....... ……1 time. Catch away.....2 times. Catcheth......3 times.
Catch Up…… 3 times. luck...............2 times. Pull...............1 time.
Take by force...3 times. Take................1 time. Pulling...........1 time.
From these words we can see that there is some sort of forceful or sudden transition from one state or place to another.
Of all of these verses where the word harpazo occurs, there are only four which could possibly be construed as having
anything to do with God's people leaving the earth. Although fourteen verses all agree that the word has nothing to do
with leaving the earth, we will look at the four verses, so the matter can be totally cleared up and that there are no
lingering doubts.
These verses are as follows:
1. Acts 8:39........................ About the Spirit of the Lord catching away Phillip after his speaking with
the Ethopian eunuch..
2. Cor. 12:2-4................... About Paul being caught up to the Third Heaven.
3. Rev. 12:5......................... About the 'child of the woman' being caught up unto God and His Throne.
4. Thess. 4:17.................. About the so-called "rapture" verses.
Acts 8:39. "The Spirit caught away Phillip, that the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way
rejoicing. But, Phillip was found at Azotus....."
Some seem to think that Phillip was zapped from one country to another after speaking with the Ethopian Eunuch. But,
it must be pointed out that Phillip started at Gaza in Palestine and was "found" at Azotus, also in Palestine, and really,
the two are so very close together! One thing for sure, he was not "caught away" from the earth because he was still
preaching on earth afterwards.
2 Cor. 12:2-4 "...such a one caught up to the third heaven".. ..... ..How that he was caught up into
paradise".
Before anything more is said, Paul was still on earth after this event; Yes, He was on earth telling the tale. But, where
was Paul "caught up" to? What is "the Third Heaven"? In scripture there are at least six heavens which may be
examined.
Heaven. Singular..without definite article.
Heavens. Plural....without definite article.
The Heaven. Singular..with the definite article.
The Heavens. Plural....with the definite article.
The Third Heaven. When Jesus returns.
The New Heaven. The fourth and last.
We have a popular conception that there are different
'heavens' which are stacked up vertically, like the air belt, the stratosphere, and above that, and that is all. "Third" in
'Third Heaven' is tritos in Greek which means the third in order in time sequence. In time sequence we have:
FIRST HEAVENS. Man sinned......God ceased to walk with man......ended with the flood.
SECOND HEAVEN. Present age.....sin continues.....Jesus redeems Israel......ends with fire.
THIRD HEAVEN. Jesus returns.....millenium.....sin and death continue until everything and the last enemy,
death, is placed under Jesus' feet. Then Jesus hands the Kingdom over to the Father.
FOURTH HEAVEN. God again tabernacles with man.........no more sin...........eternity.
If we consider 2 Peter 3:5-6, Peter talks about the 'heaven' which was before the flood as perishing. Since that 'heaven'
passed away, we have the present 'heaven', or sky above us. Prophecy tells us that the present 'heaven' will pass away
also, and that this will be replaced by a new heaven and a new earth-[Is.65:17, Is.66:22, 2 Peter 3:13]. In these verses,
the situation in the new heavens is very much on earth. The time is "the day when the Lord binds up the breach of His
people, and heals the stroke of their wounds"-[Isaiah 30:26]. When Jesus returns the earth will be renewed and will be
under the 'Third Heaven'.
The prophets tell us about the new "heaven" where the moon will shine as brightly as the sun, and that the light of the
sun will be seven-fold what it is now. This is the Third Heaven that Paul was caught up into. It is an event in time,
rather than in geography. Paul had a vision, or "an earnest" of his inheritance"-[Eph.1:14] He had a glimpse or a preview of what is to come in the next age when Jesus comes to take His Kingdom, on earth.
Paul was caught up into paradise; the Third Heaven will be paradise for all of us who are looking for His appearing. This is "our blessed
hope"! The "Rapture" is presented by Dispensationalists as being the "hope", but in scripture it is "His appearing".
Paul is not the only one recorded in scripture to have had such an experience. Peter, for instance tells of the similar
experience on the Mount of Transfiguration-[Matt. 17:1-9 and 2 Peter 1:17-18]. The resurrected Moses and Elijah were
present in this pre-view. The three disciples concerned did not depart from earth at this time, either!
In Revelation 4:1, the Apostle John records, "The first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me,
which said, 'Come up hither' and I will show you things that must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the Spirit, and
behold, a throne was set in heaven......". The point here is the the apostle was in the pneuma = "current of air", which is
translated as Spirit here. Although "come up" = "ascend" in this verse is not harpazo, the apostle was physically on
earth after the experience, because he too, also told the tale. Paul said he did not know whether his experience was in
the body or not, we do not know this either.....and neither will we try to guess.
{But, those with some understanding of the relationship between, energy, time and matter might have a clue because we read,
"there should be time no longer"-[Rev.10:6]-.}.
Rev 12:5 And she brought forth a man child who was to rule the nations with a rod of iron. And her
child was CAUGHT UP God and unto His throne”.
Few would find any problem in this verse about the ascension of Jesus after His resurrection, and this does not include
the "woman" [Israel] being also "caught up".
1 Thess 4:17 “Then we which are alive and remain, shall be CAUGHT UP together with them in the
clouds to meet the Lord in the air”..
This is the key verse of the "Rapture" doctrine. We do not find any other verses like it in the Bible and so the popular
interpretation lacks the two or three scriptural witnesses as required to "be established" and to back it up. 'Types' cannot
do this. Before we look at the order of the whole passage in context, it would be helpful to look at some individual
words in this verse.
DESCEND.
Katabaino is found 138 times and is a common expression with the common meaning. It comes from basis which
means to walk on foot!
“SHOUT”.
A lot is made out about this word, but keleuma is found only here. It comes from keleuo [27 occurrences] which are
translated as “commanded” 25 times in the KJV.
“THE ARCHANGEL”.
Archaggelos simply means “the Chief Messenger”., and is used referring to Michael in Jude 1:9.
"ALIVE".
The word translated "alive" is zao in Greek. It is used both figuratively [e.g "man shall not live by bread alone"], and
literally [e.g. "To whom He showed Himself alive after his passion"]. The literal usage most commonly contains a
supernatural element such as being brought back to life after death. It is often used relating to lifestyle or manner of
life, such as enjoying God's blessing. Out of the 144 occurrences, there are very few verses that could be taken as
"alive" just meaning normal everyday life on earth -[i.e. it is not just not being physically dead].
The popular teachings are that "we" are caught away from normal physical life on earth to be forever with the Lord in
another place than earth. That place is said to be 'heaven' and we have already looked into that word and that the Third 5
Heaven is on earth. Paul tell us in 1 Cor. 15:51-52 that we shall all be changed at the last trump. [Note that the "trump"
is also part of the "rapture" verses]. "Changed" is allasso and is used in Heb.1:12 about the heaven and the earth also
being changed. The time of being changed is the same time as when the heavens and the earth are changed; that is, the
time of Jesus' return. It is the time of the Third Heaven. As the timing is given as "the last trump", the time of being
changed must follow the earlier six woes of tribulation when each of the angels have sounded their trumpets! -[Rev.8].
So, there could be no pre-tribulation "rapture" in the way it is most commonly presented.
“REMAIN".
"Perileipomai" is not the common word used for 'remain', [meno is the common word which has the meaning of staying
in a given place or state]. It means to be "left all about" or "to survive" or "to be left over". To survive, someone else
other than those who "remain" must have been taken already! We will be seeing that it is the "wicked" that are taken
out first.
"CLOUDS".
"Caught up together with them in the clouds" in our original text as translated, does not show in English that these
clouds [nephele] are different from the normal clouds [nephos]. The difference parallels the use of "anan" and "'ab" in
Hebrew. [There is no definite article with nephele]. "Nephele" according to lexicons refers to a specially shaped cloud
like that seen on the mount of transfiguration or the cloudy pillar that Israel had at the Red Sea. The following verses
show this.
Matt. 24:20 "...Son of Man coming in the CLOUDS of heaven".
Matt. 17:5 "...A bright CLOUD overshadowed them".
Acts 1:9 "...A CLOUD received Him out of their sight".
Rev. 11:12 "...And they ascended into heaven in a CLOUD".
Rev. 14:14-16 "...Sat on a CLOUD".
1 Cor 10:1 "Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye be ignorant, how that OUR FATHERS were under
THE CLOUD, and that all passed throught the sea, and were baptised unto Moses in
THE CLOUD, and in the sea, and did all drink of that spiritual drink which was christ
[anointed].
It is not the scope here to talk about being baptised both in the cloud and in the sea. "Baptizo" means "to make fully
wet" or "to cover fully with a fluid". The cloud is fluid and the Children of Israel were baptized in the nephele. This
pillar of cloud gave light, and fire to God's people [Israel], but it gave darkness to their enemies. It is also associated
with "air", so we must look at "air" because it is mentioned in our text phrase, "meet the Lord in the air".
"AIR".
This word is "ruach" in Hebrew and in Greek it is "aer", and they are translated as "breath", "air", "wind" "spirit", etc.,
including "to blow", "to breathe [unconsciously]", and "to respire". It comes from a root meaning "to cover or
encompass"]. Now, the moving "air" makes "wind" [pnoe or pressure]. We read, "the wind bloweth where it listeth"-
[John 3:8]. When we consider all these elements, we can see a similarity with Pentecost -[Acts 2:1-3], where those
present were "baptised" in those elements. There was the sound [voice] of the wind and there was the fire [cloven
tougues of fire]. Then we read about them seeing visions. Although the cloud is not specifically mentioned at Pentecost,
there are elements of the Third Heaven experience that were present. They met the Lord in the "air" with the air in the
form of a rushing mighty wind. Yet, they remained on earth after it!
And whom did they "meet"? The "Lord" here [and in the "rapture" passage] is Kurios which is the word used as in "the
Lord Jesus". It is not Theos, the word used for "God". After the meeting the Lord "in the air" at Pentecost they were
changed people. "And they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus"-[Acts 4:13]. To be "ever with the
Lord" will make people changed people!
"MEET".
One popular idea is that Christians will ascend into "the sky" to meet Jesus, and then later return to earth with Him.
The word "apantesis" means "meet" just like it means today. But, what is the time when those who are "alive and
remain" have this meeting? What happens first? Let us look at the sequence as given in 1 Thess 4:13-18..
1.The Lord himself shall descend. -[First, and once only].
2.The shout. -[Keleuma, a unique word].
3.The voice of the archangel. -[Voice is 'sound'].
4.The trump of God. -[The last trump].
5.The dead in Christ arise. -[Resurrection].
The 'then' of verse 17 comes inbetween here, so next we have in sequence:
6. The 'catching up' together. -[The living plus the resurrected].
7. The meeting in the air and then being forever with the Lord. -[It does not say where..."in the air" is not a
place]. Even if any were to use "air" as "atmosphere", this is not outside of the air belt of earth.