Joel Richardson

Why the Rapture Will Not be on September 23rd 2017

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In the following podcast with Pastor Dan Catlin of Messiah’s Branch Radio, I briefly discuss some of the interpretive problems with the so-called “Great Sign of September 23rd, 2017” and why this date will not produce the rapture.

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6 Responses

  1. Could it be that there is more than one catching away? We obviously know that there’s one at the very end when the angels go and gather from one end of heaven to the other. Revelation 12 is definitely a rapture event as well. Weather it’s pre or pre wrath, it’s still a rapture. It’s absolutely a catching away. When the man child is caught away to the throne, the word is actually plural for man child, meaning offspring. Revelation 2-3 tells us that the church will rule with a rod of iron. So we will rule with Jesus with an iron rod. Revelation 12 is a rapture. Revelation 4 Jesus tells John what will happen hereafter. Hereafter what? After His coming quickly. After the things He just talked to John about in Revelation 2-3. And it’s clear the faithful church is spared the time of testing that is to come upon the entire earth. So if the seals are opened after Revelation 2-3 then the faithful church is gone. Not to mention that the antichrist can’t be revealed until the restraining stops restraining. The church is the salt of the earth. Salt is for preservation. We are light. We are preserving the earth from the antichrist coming to power. From the gates of hell prevailing so to speak. I’ve gone back and forth with pre wrath, but as soon as we see a 7 year covenant with many nations, we know who the antichrist is, which means he’s been revealed. And you mentioned how the birth came and then the labor pains, that sounds a lot like the birth of the church and then tribulation which could be pretrib or pre wrath. What are your’ thoughts on there being more than one catching away?.

  2. Hi Andrew,

    There is only one rapture. That which is described in Matthew 24:29 forward is clearly it. Jesus does not describe two raptures. The word for man child in Revelation 12 is not some exclusively plural form. Do not be misled. It is the only form of the word which is used alternatively in a singular or plural sense. Context determines that it is singular. As Jesus’ followers, yes, we will co-rule with Jesus the King, but we are not the King. Yes, the primary subject of Revelation after chapter 3 is the last days, but in no way does this preclude anything historical from even being mentioned for context. The birth and ascension of Jesus is the event that roots the remainder of the prophecy in its proper context. It is no different than for example in both Daniel 8 or 11. There the subject is specified as being the last days, yet they both begin with historical events and flow or bleed into the last days. Again, Revelation 12 is no different. The analogy is simple. Study Isaiah 26 and 66. Also Daniel 12. The resurrection is the birth. The birth pains come before the birth / global resurrection. Only Jesus, “the first fruits,” comes before the birth.

    Blessings!
    Joel

  3. I read so many sites about this event, and i went to Scottie Clark site, to see what he really says. But i was mesmerized with the commentaries, people REALLY believes he is a Prophet sent by God, one woman said the she saw orbs of light on his videos, like the spirits confirming that he is right!

    I really hope 23th September comes fast and put it to bed.

  4. Joel – couldn’t it be true that in Rev 12 that Virgo speaks of not only Mary but also the People of Israel so wouldn’t it also be fair then to suggest that not only does the child represent Our Lord but also the church? Considering that we are His body? In addition the verse in Rev 12 speaks of the child being caught up but Christ was never caught up or seized but rather ascended with great power and glory…just some thoughts.

  5. Saved,

    One could make this argument that the child represents both Christ and the Church but that would still do nothing to establish that tomorrow could be the rapture or that this particular “alignment” has any biblical significance whatsoever. There is simply far too much manipulation of the actual astronomical alignment in trying to pass off the claim that this is some extremely rare event. There is also some brazen twisting of the relevant biblical texts. The very notion that the 23rd could be the rapture is clearly contrary to other clear texts such as Isaiah 26, Daniel 12, and Matthew 24. As an example of the faulty exegesis that is being used to support this, Scottie Clarke, in a recent interview argues that the solar eclipse and lunar eclipses that we have recently seen eclipse both fulfill the prophecies which state that before the Day of the Lord, the moon would turn to blood and the sun would be black. Yet what does Jesus say?

    29 “But immediately AFTER the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. 31 And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

    Efforts to place the rapture before the tribulation, i.e.., the birth pains, is Scripture twisting, plain and simple. Jesus came before the birth pains (cf., Isaiah 66). But the resurrection of the dead comes after the great tribulation / the time of Jacob’s trouble/the birth pains.

    Second, the claim that Jesus was not “caught up” is simply false. Words in Greek, as in English, frequently have multiple meanings. The very same word used to described Jesus being gathered to heaven is the same word Paul used to describe the rapture.

    I hope this is helpful.
    Blessings,
    Joel

  6. Thanks Mary for the information. I do not post links to teachings unless I vet them first.Blessings, Joel

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