Will the Saints be Left to Pass Through the Tribulation, or Will they be Taken Away First?
It is evident the Lord did not refer to death, when He gave those assuring promises of His coming again to receive us to Himself in John 14:1, 2, for He marked a clear distinction between death and His coming again. He says, “If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die,” &c. (John 21:19-23.) And further, the disciples saw Jesus ascend up into heaven: “And a cloud received him out of their sight.” This was not death, neither His spirit, but Jesus risen from the dead. And “this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” The coming of the Lord then cannot possibly mean death.
Now mark, there is not a word here about our being in the great tribulation, either in the precious promise of Jesus to come and receive us to Himself, or in the testimony of these two men. And in neither case can it mean death. That He will come to the Jewish nation is also certain, and that immediately after their tribulation (Matt. 24), as we have seen. But is not that altogether different from His coming to receive us to Himself in the heavenly mansions? When speaking about us to the Father He says, “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory.” (John 17:24.) Yes, we are the objects of His delight, and He must have us. with Himself. And if we carefully examine every scripture addressed to us, in reference to the coming of the Lord for us, it is never connected with the tribulation. “Waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:7.) So in chapter 15. The subject of the believers resurrection, and the mystery, “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment,” &c. But not a word in the chapter about our passing through the tribulation.
So in Philippians. “For our conversation is in heaven, from whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body,” &c. (Phil. 3:20.) Still all is bright hope, no terror of tribulation. If we had to pass through it we could not be looking for Jesus as Savior, but we must be looking first for the terrible day of wrath. But for us it is the very opposite, for “when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” (Col. 3:4.) Now is not this most remarkable, that when He shall appear, and all tribes of men wail because of Him, then we shall appear with Him in glory? We cannot then, if we know the scriptures, be waiting for the day of wrath to come, though come it will to this rejecting world. The early Christians were “turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God; and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thess. 1:9, 10.) How then can we be looking for that day of wrath, when we are “waiting for Jesus, who has delivered us from the wrath to come? “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming” (1 Thess. 2:19.) Oh yes, it is not the day of wrath that is our hope, but that day of unclouded brightness and joy in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.
But we now come to scriptures that speak expressly on the subject. “To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.” (1 Thess. 3:13.) Now he certainly will not find us in the tribulation, if we come with Him when He comes, neither can He possibly come to judge us, since we come with Him. When He appears we shall appear with Him, when He comes we shall all come with Him. He comes with all His saints. In chapter iv. the Holy Ghost carefully enforces this. “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” You may say, how can this be? Will not Jesus come to judge us as we have always been told? Indeed He will not, for when He comes in judgment His saints come with Him. “Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment upon all.” (Jude 14, 15.)
Does not this agree with His promise, that He will come and take us to Himself? (John 14:1, 2.) If we, all saints, come with Him when He comes—and this is as certain as that He died and rose again—then He must first have come to take us away to Himself. This is just the revelation or explanation given to Paul. “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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.” (1 Thess. 4:15-17.) Yes, from that moment we are with Him, and therefore when He comes, we come with Him.
Now mark, up to this point, our being taken to be with the Lord, there is not one word about the day of the Lord, or the time of tribulation. Notice carefully there is nothing in this scripture to hinder the Lord from coining in the air at any moment to take us to be with Himself. But now see what immediately comes after: “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief.” (Chap. 5:1-4.) Now taking this scripture just as it is, arc there not two very distinct events here? the blessed hope of the church to be taken to meet the Lord, and to be with Him, and to come with Him; and then after that the day of wrath, to the great surprise of the world. To which does the reader belong? To the church of God about to be taken to meet the Lord? or do you belong to that deceived world about to be judged?
Now mark the earnest prayer of the apostle. Does he pray that the saints may be preserved through the tribulation, or unto the coming of Christ? “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Chap. 5:23.) No; there is not a thought of the saints or the church passing through the tribulation. The Lord is coming to receive us unto Himself; and we need preserving until then. In the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians this question is still more distinctly shown to us. The assembly was evidently passing through much trouble and persecution; and someone tried to alarm them as though the very day of the Lord had come. (See chap. 2:2.) “That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand [or come].”
Bear in mind, he has already told them that when the Lord comes, all His saints come with Him. Now he describes that coming, and shows them that they will then be in rest, not in trouble. The world will then be in trouble, not they. “And to you who are troubled rest with us. when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, taking vengeance.... when he shall come to be glorified in his saints,” &c. (Read chap. 1. 7-11.) Yes, it is rest and glory to the saints in that day. It is flaming fire and everlasting destruction to those who have not obeyed the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. He had told them in his first epistle of the coming of the Lord to take them to Himself, and then he had told them of the day of Christ and the day of wrath after. He says here, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him.” These two things are brought before them to prove they need not be troubled as though the day of Christ had come. Only let us see these two things take place first. Then it is evident we cannot possibly be in the terrible tribulation which follows.
There is not one thing named which has to take place before Christ may come and gather us to Himself; but several things are named which must take place before the coming of Christ in judgment. The falling away, or apostasy—the man of sin must be revealed, &e. (See chap. 2:2-13.) Thus to make the church go through the tribulation, would be to throw all scripture into confusion. No, He comes to receive His own redeemed ones. And afterward will follow that time of tribulation such as never was, and never shall be again. It may be asked then, Who will those saints be that do pass through the tribulation? We have seen unmistakably in Matt. 24, they are the people of Israel.
Jesus says to them who know Him now, as the Holy, and the True, “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.” (Rev. 3:10.) This is not said to the remnant of Israel, it could not, for they will have to pass through the tribulation, as Jesus plainly tells us in Matt. 24; and all the prophets plainly bear testimony to the same fact. No; He will come first and take us to Himself. And oh, how soon! He says, “Surely I come quickly.” C. S.