Refuting Chuck Missler's Points for Pretrib-Only

1. Argument...The lampstands in Rev. 2 & 3 that represent the 7 church periods are not seen in heaven in John's vision in chapter 4.

Answer...Since the vision John is seeing is taking up in his spirit, not bodily, then the church is not thence raptured, but at Rev. 7.9 right before the trumpets of the Tribulation are blown (Rev. 8ff). You don't see the lampstands in heaven either after Rev. 7.9 at first rapture (12.5, 14.1-5) or 11.15 at the final harvest (14.14-16).

2. Argument...Out of 50 manuscripts only 1 uses the 3rd person. "Us" is used by all the others.

Answer...Then why do all the major Bible versions except for KJV use the third person of people or men in Rev. 5.9 and "they" in verse 10? Surely, there is a reason for this. Perhaps you misread those other 49 manuscripts besides the KJV. Take another look at those manuscripts more closely. However, we can't rule out the exception that this was mistranslated early on. I am no scholar so I can't comment on what these apparent 50 manuscripts said. I cam across this page textual variants for 5.10.

Revelation 5:10:

TEXT: "and they shall reign on earth."
EVIDENCE: S P 1 94 1854 2053 2344 some Maj(K) most Maj(A) Maj(B,C) most lat earlier vg syr(ph) cop
TRANSLATIONS: RSV NASV NIV NEB TEV
RANK: C

NOTES: "and they reign on earth."
EVIDENCE: A 046 1006 1611 most Maj(K) some Maj(A) one lat syr(h)
TRANSLATIONS: ASV

OTHER: "and we shall reign on earth"
EVIDENCE: one lat later vg TRANSLATIONS: KJV

COMMENTS: Since in Revelation 20:6 manuscript A changes "they shall reign" to "they reign," a majority of the UBS Textual Committee felt that the same thing had happened here.

Bruce Terry writes, "I have no idea what 50 manuscripts he is referring to. It certainly is not the older manuscripts. Maybe there are Latin Vulgate manuscripts since it [the "us", "we" view of Rev. 5.9,10] is supported by the Clementine Vulgate. But these would be from the middle ages."

Conclusion: Chuck Missler's claim 49 out of 50 manuscripts speak in the first person obviously does not agree with these findings, so somebody is wrong. Chuck doesn't list the specific manuscripts like we have here, so we can conclude Chuck is wrong in self-declaring his view for pretribulation rapture onlyism.

3. Argument...The 24 elders worship the Lamb before He receives the scroll and the Tribulation begins when the scroll is unsealed.

Answer...The Lamb is slain. What book is it that is sealed and must be seen to know what is going to happen. It is the New Testament for the Lamb is slain on the cross to save the church, Israel, the world and the universe by the shedding of His precious blood. All the plans are presented in the New Covenant. The 24 elders are the eldest elders of the universe, the 24 archangels. They always worship God. They have no experience of the blood. John saw "the scroll written within" (5.1) so he could describe it what its contents were for these past 20 centuries.

4. Argument...Revelation 6 on is the detailing of the Tribulation.

Answer...The 6 seals are the past 20 centuries, but the 7th seal opens up the 7 trumpets of the Tribulation, like the 7th trumpet pours out the bowls in the last 24 months of the Tribulation (3rd woe). Rev. 7 to 11 give the major points, and 12 to 19 give the details of those major points.

5. Argument...The 7 churches are the apostolic church, martyred church, married church, medieval church, denominational church, missionary church, and the apostate church. The first three are similar with their promises post-scripted in the letters. The latter four the promises are in the body of the letter and have explicit references to the Second Coming of Christ. Thyatira promises it will enter into tribulation. Philadelphia will not go into the tribulation, and Sardis and Laodicea are problematical. Thyatira (Roman Catholic church) and Sardis (Protestant churches) are the only two that nothing good is said about them. All 7 churches were surprised by their report cards. Those who thought they were doing well were not and those that weren't were doing well. So if these are the churches then what follows is the rapture then follows the Magog invasion of Israel. Some think the Magog invasion starts to happen before the 70th week or sometime during the 70th week, but pretribber onlyists are convinced they will be raptured before it happens.

Answer...Yes, these are the 7 church periods with their distinctive character, but remember, even the 6th church was promised to escape the hour of trial on the condition it keeps the word of God's patience (Rev. 3.10). Rev. 4 is the picture of the universe from heaven. Revelation 5 is the death on the cross in agreement with the 1st seal with the arrow that has been shot out of the bow giving Satan a deadly wound. The next 3 seals have past. Today we are on the cusp of rapture according to readiness for the first rapture as mention is made to the martyrs in the 5th seal. The six seal we are in now is that moment before the interjection of the first rapture in the 7th seal which occurs before the trumpets of the Tribulation begin.

6. Argument...The church is not the object of God's wrath. We will escape the Tribulation (Luke 21.36).

Answer...As there is tribulation today of Satan's wrath, that saints receive such in the Tribulation does not mean we are receiving God's wrath. Even so, the bowls are specifically the wrath of God. The last harvest rapture takes place before the bowls, because this is when the most devastation will occur and 1/3 of the people of the earth will die (Rev. 9.18). To escape is based on a condition in Luke 21.36. Can such a condition be spoken to the unsaved? No, for they do not know the precious blood of Christ. Therefore, it is being spoken to believers to overcometh as is spoken to each of the 7 churches to overcome in Rev. 2 & 3. Obviously, therefore some believers, though can't lose eternal life, will yet pass through the time of testing.

7. Argument...Before war, you call your ambassadors home (2 Cor. 5.10).

Answer...As there are man believers still lying on a bed of fornications these ambassadors are late in coming home.

8. Argument...Restrainer is moved out of the way before the Antichrist.

Answer...Satan moves out of the way to give way for the Antichrist. Satan has been holding back to unleash his ultimate wrath. The first rapture would cause him to react. It's as though Satan knows to come to the table he must have the right moment to wage war and what better excuse than to make the world jealous of millions of raptured souls who were overcomer believers. The Antichrist will have many on his side: the gentiles, pretribbers, posttribbers, amillennialists, etc. Only one group understands what will have just happed. We are the separate rapture believers. Some may come to realize this, but right now, we know this. So we will not be surprised whether we are received at first rapture or at the last harvest.

9. Argument...In the twinkling of an eye: not an extended activity over 7 years.

Answer...Since in 1 Cor. 15:50-52 (“We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed”) “all” is the word used, surely this signifies the whole body. Yes, the “all” here does indeed refer to the entire body, but it does not have reference to the same time. For example, we all will die, but certainly not all of us will do so in one day. The twinkling points to our being changed which is done instantly by the Lord. It does not imply no first rapture according to readiness. And if there is a first rapture according to readiness, then there is also a completion of the raptures at final harvest, with even some gleanings that follow during the last trumpet.

10. Argument...In the air, not on earth.

Answer...Do recognize the last trumpet of 1 Cor. 15.50-52 is the trump of 1 Thess. 4.15-17 to the air. Before before the first trumpet is also a rapture, which is to the throne, according to readiness.

11. Argument...The Woman is Israel, not the church (Rev. 12.5).

Answer...The Woman first is Israel and continues to be the eternal will of God. Her child gets raptured, which is the firstfruits (Rev. 14.1-5) of the church raptured. There are many similarities you can make between Rev. 7 when first rapture takes place before the trumpets and the details of which are given in Rev. 12 described as the man-child (overcomers).

12. Argument...The marriage supper of the Lamb includes the raptured before Rev. 19.11-14.

Answer...Since Rev. 19.11-14 is the appearance of Christ in His return with the overcomer believers, the marriage feast takes place afterward to reign for 1000 years on earth as the 5 wise virgins. Obviously, if some saints are going to return with Jesus then they were raptured previously. They could have been raptured:

• at first rapture before the Tribulation;
• as martyrs raptured individually (as indicated by the 5th seal) like the two witnesses;
• at pre-wrath (1 Cor. 15.23, Rev. 11.15) before the 7th trumpet;
• as gleanings during the bowls of the 7th trumpet.

13. Argument...Chuck Missler says he has 40 more points of pretribulation rapture onlyism where that came from.

Answer...If your best arguments failed the test, then why should your lesser arguments succeed?

For more two dozen other reasons to reject pretrib-only please study sections I,II,III,V,VI of the Partial Rapture Proof.