Q: I noticed on your Web site that you are interested in Bible prophecy. Have you ever considered interpreting Revelation as consisting of seven parallel accounts (rather than a single sequential account) of the End Times? If so, then you may enjoy visiting my web site [Web site listed], which shows the result of harmonizing the seven accounts of Revelation into a single, consistent, and detailed picture of the Last Days unlike anything previously proposed. The [Web site] also uncovers many Biblical mysteries that have remained hidden from mankind until the present time. Take a look and see for yourself.

A: No, I haven't considered this because there is overwhelming internal evidence that the seals, trumpets, and bowls are chronological. The language, order, organization, and structure of Revelation demand it. I am familiar with the overlap theory in its various forms, and I've examined it — in fact, I have several discussions about it in Before God's Wrath — and it creates too many scriptural contradictions.

I have an entire chapter in Before God's Wrath devoted to Revelation's internal evidence supporting a chronological reading of the seals, trumpets, and bowls. It's available as a free, downloadable PDF from the PrewrathOnly discussion group on Yahoo in the files section.


Q: Hello. I went to your website and did not find the answers to some of my questions. I have just a few questions for you.

First, during a recent church service, I heard the pastor talk about how the Holy Spirit will be taken out of the way when the Antichrist arises. My question is this: It was my impression that the Church would be active  during the seven-year (Tribulation) period and actually suffer a great  persecution at the hands of the Antichrist during that time (and especially the Great Tribulation)? I feel that the Angel Michael (the restrainer) will rise up, and this allows the introduction of the AC to the world. Will the Holy Spirit be on earth at this time?

Second, what is your impression of the current pope?

Third, the Antichrist will attempt to destroy Israel. Will Israel be without (walls) barriers or, will they be enclosed within walls like they are now? The Israelis' have left the Gaza strip which means right now, they have  basically enclosed themselves, have they not?

A: Will the Holy Spirit be on the earth during Daniel’s 70th Week? Of course. Jesus promised us that a comforter, the Holy Spirit, would come, and throughout the New Testament scriptures, we are given many promises regarding His help, comfort, encouragement, teaching, and the like. These promises are open-ended and for all believers. There is no indication that this changes during the end times. In fact, believers will need Him then, more than ever.

Also, scripture tells us that none comes to the Father unless the Holy Spirit draws him. Since we know that, at the very least, the faithful remnant of Israel is saved by the end of the 70th Week, the Holy Spirit must remain on earth. No salvation occurs apart from the Spirit, so if they are saved, the Holy Spirit must be very much active.

As for my impression of the current pope, he seems pleasant enough. I like that he is perceived as wanting to maintain the tradition of religious conservatism. Beyond that, I have no opinion.

On your last question, whether Israel will be a country literally “without walls” when the Antichrist arises, I don't try to interpret end-times prophecy by current events. It's so easy to say, "Is this the fulfillment? What about that?" So many times, it has seemed that we were on the brink, or that we were seeing certain events come to fruition, but then new events reversed the trend and things went back into remission. I believe that, when the end times events are in the process of being fulfilled, we’ll know. It will be as obvious as the nose on our faces, and until then, I don't try to guess.

There are others who will disagree with me, and who feel that this type of speculation is of great importance, and I respect that opinion. As for me, I believe that it is most important to focus on sound doctrine and spiritual readiness, so whenever the pieces do start to fall into place, we are ready.


Q: I have not studied this issue for about 12 years, but I was convinced by Marv Rosenthal at the time, and dumped the pre-trib view, without examining the accusations against his view. Do you hold the same view as Marv Rosenthal regarding the details of the pre-wrath view?

It seems like Mr. Zeller's Internet article has some pretty strong arguments against Marv's books. Have these been answered by scholars holding the pre-wrath view? If so, I'd like to get a hold on the rebuttal, because I'm expecting some attacks soon on this issue.

A: I haven't read Mr. Zeller's article, so I can't comment on it. I don't know if this is the case with Mr. Zeller's article, but often I find that critiques of prewrath are not critiques of prewrath at all. Rather, they are critiques of the details of an individual's larger prewrath belief system, attacking details that really are irrelevant to the prewrath view. For example, how one interprets the symbolism in the seals, where one places the War of Gog and Magog, and things like this, have no bearing on the timing of the rapture.

Prewrath simply holds that the seals, trumpets, and bowls are consecutive; that the triple signs in Matt. 24:29 are the same as in the sixth seal; that the coming of the Lord brings the Day of the Lord's judgment and wrath against the ungodly, and that the rapture is pictured in Matt. 24:30-31, 1 Cor. 15:51-52, and 1 Thess. 4:16-17. Therefore, the rapture occurs with the Second Coming of Christ after the sixth seal.

That's the prewrath view. Anything else is really a tangential detail, and details are often the subject of the critique. Thus, what appear to be critiques of the prewrath view, as a whole, are really critiques of tangential issues that do not determine the consistency or accuracy of the view itself.

Being that I haven't read the article you are citing, I don't know if this answers your question. But as for my belief in Marv's book, I hold to the same timing of the rapture as Marvin does. We may differ on some of the tangential details (I haven't read his book in a long time, so I don't remember the details), but I hold to the same basic structure, as outlined above.

After sending this response, I did look up the article the reader mentioned. Here is my follow-up:

I just did a search for the article you mentioned and located it. I scanned it and it's the same old pretrib arguments that I've heard for years.

Responding to all of his arguments requires too much detail to go into in an email, but I have three suggestions for you.

1. My book, Before God's Wrath, addresses all of these issues directly. The book is intended, not just as an introduction to prewrath as Marvin's was, but as a defense of prewrath in light of the critiques levied by pretrib. In it, I tried to anticipate the major criticisms that could possibly be thrown at me, and each one is dealt with, in detail, in its pages. All of George's critiques are easily answered and are, in fact, major fallacies of pretrib — not the other way around! You can order the book on the website (www.strongtowerpublishing.com).

2. Another excellent book is a short, 60-page book by Ralph Woodrow called The Secret Rapture: Is It Scriptural? It provides very powerful scriptural evidence that the coming of the Lord and the rapture cannot legitimately be separated. The evidence is overwhelming. You can order it from Amazon.com or do a search for Ralph Woodrow Ministries on the Internet and buy it directly from his ministry's site.

3. You are welcome to join our Prewrath Only discussion group on Yahoo!. The group is about 200 members and we have very detailed, high-level discussions on prophecy from the prewrath view. Several of our members are pastors. This is a Christ-centered group with excellent discussions. Any members would be happy to field your questions and provide feedback, encouragement, and support.
 

Recommended reading on the rapture debate