Is the Rapture around the Corner?

The following cursory analysis is not submitted as a definitive conclusion regarding the Rapture or the 2nd Coming of Christ.  It is, rather, offered to provoke thought regarding the possible eminent occurrence of key prophetic events (see Titus 2:13; Revelation 1:3).  Consider how close we could be to the threshold of the end.

1. The Days of Creation to Millenniums Comparison. The Apostle Peter, in 2 Peter 3:8, says "but do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day." Contextually, this verse is situated within a chapter regarding the "last days" (see also Isaiah 2:2; Jeremiah 23:20; Acts 2:17; 2 Timothy 3:1; 2 Peter 3:3 for cross references to "last days"). And the verse is significant for a variety of reasons, including the strong possibility that it hints at the paradigm of God with regard to His plan for the ages. God created everything in 6 days, and He rested on the 7th day--the Sabbath day; He blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:11.)  Many Jewish and evangelical scholars have opined that the 6 days of creation equate (some even say "day for day" to "millennium to millennium") to the 6,000 year period of the existence of the world. (See, e.g., Tim McHyde. "God’s 6000 Year Plan: Dating Jesus’ Latest Return?" Escape All These Things. n.d. 15 October 2014. http://www.escapeallthesethings.com/6000-year-timeline.htm.)  In the "day for day" analysis, for instance, it is noteworthy that the sun and moon were created to provide light to the earth on the 4th day. (Genesis 1:16-19.)  Similarly, Christ came to the earth as the "light of the world" (John 8:12) at the end of the first 4,000 years of the world's existence. If this day-of-creation-to-millennium paradigm holds true, then, as many scholars further opine, at the end of the 6,000 year period of the world's existence, it will be time for the world's Sabbath--the final 1,000 year period of rest through the millennial reign of the Messiah (see Revelation 20:2-7). Assuming that this is, in fact, the paradigm of God, then the question becomes, if we want to know when Jesus will return to reign, where are we on the time line?

2. Years Until the Messiah Returns. According to the Jewish calendar, the current year is 5775, and it began (cross referencing to the Gregorian calendar) on September 25, 2014. If the Jewish calendar year is correct, and if the above described paradigm of God holds true, then we'd have approximately 225 years before the 2nd Coming of Christ (or as the Jews would say, the arrival of the Messiah). However, consider the calculations noted below, which suggest that perhaps we are closer than 225 years from the end of the first 6,000 years of the world's existence. The discrepancies are curious, and the reasons for the discrepancies perhaps even more curious (some say that rabbis are endeavoring to hide the true date set for the arrival of the Messiah--perhaps to avoid encouraging imposters to announce that they are the Messiah). Nevertheless, the considerations below are interesting.

3. Calculations of the Age of the World. In approximately 160 AD, Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta, in his work, Seder Olam Rabbah (which is the basis for the Jewish calendar), calculated the age of the world using available Hebrew chronologies, from creation to the year of Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia. "Seder Olam Rabbah." n.d. 14 October 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seder_Olam_Rabbah. There are a few items in his calculations that some challenge (and, again, some assert that years were deleted purposefully to mask the true current year), but the challenges can be largely side-stepped as follows. According to Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta's chronology, the Babylonians destroyed the first temple in year 3338 (i.e., 3,338 years after the creation of the world). "Hebrew/Jewish History - Timeline - Chronology - Important Dates." n.d. 14 October 2014. http://www.angelfire.com/pa2/passover/jewish-history-timeline.html. This is a useful marker for purposes of comparison to the Gregorian calendar, because (a) this marker pre-dates most of the challenges that historians have with Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta's calculations, and (b) historians document the year of the destruction of the first temple by the Babylonians to be June/July of 586 or 587 BC on the Gregorian calendar. "Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)." n.d. 4 December 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_%28587_BC%29.  The year 587 BC was exactly 2600 years ago--from the current calendar year of 2014 (i.e., 2014+587=2601; from the total 2601, we must subtract 1 year, because the Gregorian calendar omits a year "0"--jumping from 1 BC to 1 AD).  If we add 2600 years to Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta's calendar year 3338, we'd actually be (in June/July of year 2014 on the Gregorian calendar) in year 5938 on the Jewish calendar--just 62 years from the year 6000.  [If the temple were actually destroyed in year 586 BC, we'd be in year 5937 on the Jewish calendar--just 63 years from the year 6000].  Note, too, that this year, June/July of 5938, would become year 5939 on the Jewish calendar in September of 2014.

4. Fixing a Calculation Error. There appears to be one error, though, that we should take into account for purposes of calculating the true current year on the Jewish calendar.  In calculating the genealogies found in the Torah, Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta, in the Seder Olam Rabbah, included only 70 years for the period between the time of birth of Terah (Abraham's father) and the birth of Abraham. (See e.g., R .P. BenDedek. "Topic 2. Seder Olam Chronological Chart : Adam to Abraham." 7 January 2006.  King's Calendar.Com. 15 October 2014. http://www.kingscalendar.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?action=viewnews&id=320.)  He likely did this based on the passage found in Genesis 11:26, which states, "Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran." The Rabbi's calculation basis isn't bad; it's just that the calculation assumes that Abraham was the first born of the 3 sons named. (See [Author alias:]defiant1203. "The Hebrew Calendar - Missing Years." Bible Prophecy Discussion / Joel's Trumpet. n.d. 14 October 2014. http://joelstrumpet.freeforums.org/the-hebrew-calendar-missing-years-t1876.html.)  A combination of 3 additional passages in Scripture provides a different perspective: Genesis 11:32 indicates that "[t]he days of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran." Further, Genesis 12:4 provides that "Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran." Finally, in Acts 7:4, the martyr Stephen affirms that Abraham waited until the death of his father, Terah, before leaving Haran.  If Abraham were age 75, when his father Terah died at age 205, then Terah had to be 130 years old when Abraham was born--not 70 years old.  Thus, Rabbi Yose Ben Halafta should have included 130 years, and not 70 years, between the birth of Terah and the birth of Abraham.  To fix his error, we must add 60 years to the year noted above, 5939, making this Gregorian calendar year, as of September 24, 2014, equate to the start of the year 5999 on the Jewish calendar--calculating from the beginning of the world.

5. At the Threshold of Year 6000. The above adjustments would mean that on the first day of the Jewish new year in 2015, September 13, the world would have completed 6,000 years, and that could mark the beginning of a new period. [If the temple were actually destroyed in year 586 BC, then the marker on the Gregorian calendar for the completion of the 6,000 year period would be October 2, 2016.]

6. How the Periods May Sync. The Jews believe that the Messiah will begin His reign after the completion of the 6,000 year period. They do not believe in the Book of Revelation. They certainly do not believe in the Rapture. If the Jews were right, it would, indeed, be possible for the Millennial reign of the Messiah to begin at the conclusion of the 6,000 year period. However, such a conclusion fails to account for numerous passages of Scripture in both the Old and New Testaments that detail the existence of a period of significant tribulation prior to the arrival of the Messiah and His Millennial reign. And our world has experienced nothing of the sort to date (see, for example, Matthew 24). To reconcile a number of Scriptures, taking into consideration the period of tribulation and the possibility of a Rapture event, consider this possible scenario: 

• At the conclusion of the 6,000 year period, the Rapture event occurs (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).
• The Rapture event marks the conclusion of the Church Age (or perhaps also known as the Age of the Gentiles) (i.e., the period of time from the ascension of Christ to the ascension of believers in Christ) and the 6,000 year period of man.  
• With the Church Age and the 6,000 year period concluded, one more critical period is left to be resolved before the Millennial reign of Christ: The final "week" (i.e., the 7-year period) as prophesied in Daniel.  In Daniel 9:24-27, we read the account of Gabriel's informing Daniel that 70 weeks are decreed "for your people and the holy city" (i.e., for Daniel's people, the nation of Israel and Jerusalem) (verse 24).  We further read that the calculation of the period is as follows: starting from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem, 69 periods of 7 years (i.e., 483 years) will pass before the Messiah comes and is then "cut off" (verses 25-26). There are 2 things to consider about this prophecy: (1) this 483 year period encompasses all of the 70 periods of 7 years, except for 1, and (2) approximately 483 years after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem (and there are a few to reference, but the one that coincides with this analysis is the permission given by Artaxerxes I in 445 BC to Nehemiah), Jesus Christ ascended to heaven (which would coincide with Daniel's prophecy that the Messiah would be "cut off").  Assuming the analysis is correct regarding the time frame and Jesus' ascension, it makes sense that the final 7-year period of the 70 "weeks" has been suspended to allow for the intervention of the Church Age.  Thus, upon the conclusion of the Church Age, the final 7-year period that has been decreed for Israel and Jerusalem can be accomplished.  It would, indeed, be a very special 7-year period and would be the perfect transition to the Millennial reign of Christ.  That final 7-year period is described in Daniel 9:27: "And he [the antichrist] will make a firm covenant with the many for one week [one, final 7 year period], but in the middle of the week [3 1/2 years into the 7-year period] he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate." When the antichrist breaks the covenant (that he made with Israel at the start of the 7-year period) in the middle of the 7-year period, as described in Daniel 9:27, the final 3 1/2 year period, the Great Tribulation, will begin. (See 2 Thessalonians 2; Matthew 24:4-8, 15; Daniel 8:9-14, 23-25; Psalm 10-11; Revelation 13:11-18).
• At the conclusion of the Great Tribulation, the final week decreed for Israel and Jerusalem shall be completed, and Jesus Christ shall return to Earth as the Messiah, with his arrival immediately preceded by the "Day of the Lord." (See Joel 1:15-2:11; Ezekiel 36:33; Amos 5:18-20; Zechariah 13; Zephaniah 1:2-18; Matthew 24:21, 27, 30-31, 36; Revelation 6:1-11) 

7. Other Possible Confirmation Markers. Considering the possibility that this current Jewish year, beginning, September 25, 2014, and ending at sundown on September 13, 2015 (start of Rosh Hashana 2015), could constitute the end of the current age, it becomes intriguingly curious that this current Jewish year is a Sabbath year (every 7 years is a Sabbath year). It is also curious that the 4th blood moon in the current tetrad of 4 consecutive total lunar eclipses (all of which coincide with 4 key Jewish holy days) occurs on September 28, 2015.  See Brumfield, Ben. "Blood moon returns early Wednesday, and this time it's bigger." CNN. October 7, 2014. 5 December 2014. http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/03/tech/innovation/second-blood-moon/.  These intersecting and significant considerations could constitute markers that confirm the end of the current age or a period of transition to the next age.

8. Israel as a Jewish State. In addition, certain current events could constitute the final conditions before the unfolding of the end of times.  For instance, Israel's Knesset, the legislative branch of the Israeli government, is poised to vote on a bill in December of 2014 (and if it doesn't pass then, it could nevertheless be resurrected again later) that would recognize the nation of Israel as a distinctly Jewish state.  (See, for discussion purposes, the many articles posted in the Harretz news at http://www.haaretz.com/misc/tags/Jewish%20nation-state-1.628358.) Such a bill could usher in the final 7 year period that has been decreed for the Jewish people and for Jerusalem. (Daniel 9:24)  In fact, without such a bill, it's difficult to see the clear connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem.  If such a bill is enacted, then it would be clear that an action against Jerusalem is an action against the Jewish people--seemingly a key to the prophecies set forth in Daniel and Revelation with regard to the Tribulation period. In this regard, consider the words of Jesus in Matthew 24:32-33: "Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door."  Other Scriptures, contextually referring to the end times, suggest that the fig tree is a picture of Israel as the nation state of the Jews.  (See, e.g., Joel 2:21-23, Micah 4:1-4, Joel 1:1-7.)

9. Can We Know the Time of the End? It isn't exactly clear if we can know the time marked for certain end time events.  Jesus said, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone." (Matthew 24:36.)  However, Jesus was speaking specifically of his 2nd Coming, in direct response the question of His disciples: "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" (Matthew 24:3.) Of course, too, Jesus didn't foreclose our ability to know the year or month when these things will occur.  So, we can certainly endeavor to study as diligently as we desire in order to assess such times--not too differently from the Magi, who also studied prophecies and the stars to pinpoint the arrival of Jesus the first time.  (See Matthew 2:2-6.)  As it is becoming increasingly clear that the end of the age is close, we should pay attention to the words of Jesus: "Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come. ... What I say to you [the Jewish disciples of Jesus] I say to all [including us today], ‘Be on the alert!'” (Mark 13:33, 37.)

We could indeed be living in or near the Last Days.

Mark Absher
California

 

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