The Apocalypse Rapture: End Time Prophecy in Revelation 12 and 13

Discussing current events and how they relate to Biblical prophesy. What are some critical signs are pointing to the imminent Rapture of the Church?

Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (Revelation 3:10)  

Revelation 12:

The Woman, the Child, and the Dragon

A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of 12 stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in labor and agony as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: There was a great fiery red dragon having seven heads and 10 horns, and on his heads were seven diadems. His tail swept away a third of the stars in heaven and hurled them to the earth. And the dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she did give birth he might devour her child. But she gave birth to a Son—a male who is going to shepherd all nations with an iron scepter—and her child was caught up to God and to His throne.

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The Dragon Thrown Out of Heaven

Then war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels also fought, but he could not prevail, and there was no place for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was thrown out—the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the one who deceives the whole world. He was thrown to earth, and his angels with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

The salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of His Messiah
have now come,
because the accuser of our brothers
has been thrown out:
the one who accuses them
before our God day and night.

They conquered him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,
for they did not love their lives
in the face of death.

Therefore rejoice, you heavens,
and you who dwell in them!
Woe to the earth and the sea,
for the Devil has come down to you
with great fury,
because he knows he has a short time.

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The Woman Persecuted

When the dragon saw that he had been thrown to earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. The woman was given two wings of a great eagle, so that she could fly from the serpent’s presence to her place in the wilderness, where she was fed for a time, times, and half a time. From his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river flowing after the woman, to sweep her away in a torrent. But the earth helped the woman. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the river that the dragon had spewed from his mouth. So the dragon was furious with the woman and left to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and have the testimony about Jesus. He stood on the sand of the sea.

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Revelation 12 Commentary:

Starting in chapter 12, Revelation takes an interlude from the step-by-step main narrative of the end times. The events described occur over a wide variety of eras, including past, present, and future. In the course of these visions, seven main figures are described. Five of those appear in this chapter. The next two chapters will continue to fill in the details. Chapter 15 adds another vision of heaven, and chapter 16 will return to a more chronological depiction of the last days.

This passage typifies the grand symbolism found in much of the book of Revelation. John sees a woman, clothed with the sun, crying out in pain as she gives birth. Waiting to kill her child is a red dragon. The woman symbolizes Israel, the dragon is Satan, and the male child is Jesus. The male child is “caught up to God,” a reference to Jesus’ ascension after His resurrection, and the woman is able to flee into the wilderness (Revelation 12:1–6).

The woman also represents the visible, true church of Christ, just as the scarlet-clad woman represents Satan’s church in Revelation 17. Likewise, because there are numerous born-again Christians within the church before the Tribulation Rapture, the woman is said to be clothed with sunlight, the garment of righteousness and evidence of the indwelling Holy Spirit. (“You are the light of the world.”) The labor and pain of birth also represents the Rapture. 

The word translated “caught up” in verse 5 is actually the word from which we get the English word rapture (harpazo). It is the same word used in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, where it is obviously describing the rapture. The word has a connotation of being rescued at the last possible minute from imminent danger.

Next, John observes a war in heaven, where Michael the archangel fully casts Satan out of heaven. This is not a depiction of the initial fall of Satan; according to Old Testament books such as Job, the Devil was still able to access heaven and accuse humanity before God. At this point, however, he will be entirely evicted and thrown down to earth. This results in rejoicing in heaven, but also a dire warning. Now that Satan is running out of time, and confined to the earth, his rage will be taken out on mankind, especially Israel (Revelation 12:7–12).

Jesus predicted an “abomination of desolation” in Matthew 24:15–16. There, He most likely referred to a defilement of the temple by the Antichrist. Jesus warned that people ought to respond to this act by fleeing to the mountains. Here, in Revelation, the people of Israel are given protection by God—symbolized by the reference to wings—and able to survive for a period of three and a half years. John sees the serpent attempt to wash the woman away with a flood of water from his mouth. This would symbolize an armed invasion. God, again, protects the woman with a tremendous earthquake. This enrages Satan, who commits to attacking the offspring of the woman (Revelation 12:13–17).

The five figures mentioned in this chapter are the woman who symbolizes Israel, the seven-headed dragon who represents Satan, the male child who is Jesus, Satan himself as the fourth figure, and the offspring of the woman, referring to the people of Israel. The following chapter will introduce the last two major characters, who are among the most infamous in all of Scripture: the Antichrist and the False Prophet.

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Revelation 13:

The Beast from the Sea

And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. He had 10 horns and seven heads. On his horns were 10 diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names. The beast I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like a bear’s, and his mouth was like a lion’s mouth. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. One of his heads appeared to be fatally wounded, but his fatal wound was healed. The whole earth was amazed and followed the beast. They worshiped the dragon because he gave authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to wage war against him?”

A mouth was given to him to speak boasts and blasphemies. He was also given authority to act for 42 months. He began to speak blasphemies against God: to blaspheme His name and His dwelling—those who dwell in heaven. And he was permitted to wage war against the saints and to conquer them. He was also given authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation. All those who live on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name was not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slaughtered.

If anyone has an ear, he should listen:

If anyone is destined for captivity,
into captivity he goes.
If anyone is to be killed with a sword,
with a sword he will be killed.

This demands the perseverance and faith of the saints.

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The Beast from the Earth

Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.

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Revelation 13 Commentary:

This chapter contains four of the most iconic concepts contained in Revelation. The two “beasts” described here are the figures often referred to as the Antichrist and the False Prophet. The symbol mandated for all followers of Antichrist, administered by the False Prophet, is the mark of the beast, which is further related to the number 666.

The first beast is described as coming from the sea. Most interpreters see this as a reference to the Mediterranean, and this person as a political-military leader with roots in that area. The description of this creature is peculiar, but entirely symbolic, with each aspect representing part of that figure’s power or character. This figure will be empowered by Satan to exert near-unlimited power over the earth. This includes persecution and murder of Christians, accompanied by overt blasphemy against God, and cult-like worship from the people of earth. In most interpretations, this is the end-times figure popularly referred to as the Antichrist (Revelation 13:1–10).

The second beast arises from the land. As with the first beast, the symbolic description suggests his role and characteristics. In this case, those are mostly spiritual and religious. This person is most typically labelled as the False Prophet. This person is also supernaturally empowered by the Devil, performing false miracles and leading people to worship the first beast (Revelation 13:11–15).

The second beast also implements a worldwide identification: the mark of the beast. Earlier passages referred to God placing a “seal” on His people. This used the Greek root word sphragis, which is a signet or signature expressing value and protection. The “mark” of Satan, however, is described using the word charagma, which is what livestock owners use to mark their animals: a brand. Later statements in Revelation make it clear the mark of the beast is not something taken by accident—those who accept this mark do so knowing that it means worshipping the beast and rejecting God. Those who refuse to take this mark—such as Christians—will be unable to buy or sell anything, and many will be executed. This mark is connected to the number 666 (Revelation 13:16–18).

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The Apocalypse Rapture

About half way through the 7 year peace treaty there will be a second Rapture, this time of the Tribulation saints.  Before this can happen, many prophecies will occur that are in Ezekiel 36-39. There is also a direct correlation with the 7 year peace treaty, the rebuilding of the Temple, and many other things spoken in the written word of the Bible.

After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands… (Revelation 7:9)

Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?”

And I said to him, “Sir, you know.”

So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  (Revelation 7:13-14)

So we see in the above passages this wheat harvest will be a very great harvest, of those that had robes by virtue of their Faith in Messiah, but were not yet ready when the Bridegroom came for the bride at the Pre-Tribulation Rapture.

But Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed to them: “Men of Judah and all you residents of Jerusalem, let me explain this to you and pay attention to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it’s only nine in the morning. On the contrary, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

Pentecost, or Shavuot, was when the Lord gave Moses the law, and was the day the Church was born.

Interestingly, Enoch was said to have been born on Pentecost, and Raptured on Pentecost.

The Rapture is a harvest of souls, and Pentecost is a harvest Feast. The main theme surrounding Pentecost (or Shavuot, the “Feast of Weeks” is the harvest of the firstfruits, or the barley harvest, which was the first grain crop to ripen during Israel’s agricultural year.

Does the history of the Pentecost give us clues on the Tribulation Rapture?

The Israelites were enslaved by the Egyptians, and around 1,400 B. C. God used a man named Moses to deliver them from their slavery. After leaving Egypt, the Israelites wandered through the wilderness on their way to a good land, which God wanted them to live in. While they were in the wilderness, God gave Moses the law, which Moses taught the Israelites to obey. The 10 Commandments were given at Mt. Sinai, a mountain in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. This law provided the infrastructure for their society, for generations to come, and still impacts us today.

Every year on the holiday of Shavuot the Jewish people renew their acceptance of God’s gift, and God “re-gives” the Torah. The word Shavuot means “weeks.” It marks the completion of the seven-week counting period between Passover and Shavuot.

The giving of the Law (or Torah) was a far-reaching spiritual event, compared to a wedding between God and the Jewish people. Shavuot also means “oaths,” for on this day God swore eternal devotion to the Jewish people, and they in turn pledged everlasting loyalty to Him.

Two wheat loaves would be offered at the Holy Temple, and the Jewish people would begin to bring their first fruits, to thank God for Israel’s bounty.

Just as Passover celebrates physical freedom of the Israelite’s redemption from bondage in Egypt, Shavuot celebrates spiritual liberation through their experience of God’s presence and revelation at Sinai. In the Passover exodus, God brought a people out from among the nations.

At Sinai on that first Shavuot and later at Pentecost, God created a nation set apart for Himself. He revealed Himself and how to live as a redeemed community, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:6).

As the Jewish people celebrate this feast year after year, they recount the awesome events that took place at the foot of Mt. Sinai. It is what defines them as a people. Therefore it was not by chance that God chose Shavuot, called Pentecost among Christians, for this miraculous event took place exactly seven weeks following Jesus’s last Passover. This was a time when Jerusalem would have been filled with Jews from all the surrounding lands who had come with great anticipation to “meet with the Lord”—the meaning of the “appointed times” listed in Leviticus 23—Jewish people of that time had a keen sense of this.

The first followers of Jesus must have had a greater sense of expectation as they were told by the Lord Himself that, “in a few days you will be immersed in the Holy Spirit!” (see Acts 1:5) before He was taken up before their eyes.

Acts 2 records that approximately 120 followers of Jesus were gathered in Jerusalem for the Shavuot celebration when “suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated and came to rest on each one of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages, as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:1-4).

No longer would man walk by commandments on tablets of stone, but by the Holy Spirit, who would write the law on hearts of flesh and give power to overcome the powers of darkness…the law of sin and death…while empowering us to become witnesses to the ends of the earth! The “church” had been born.

Just as the nation of Israel had been created in the wilderness of Sinai to reveal the one true God to the world, now the doors had opened to the nations to come and know and worship Him in Spirit and in truth. Whereas God once dwelt in the Temple fashioned of bricks and mortar, by His Spirit, He now dwells in vessels of clay.

Whereas men once went up to Jerusalem to enjoy God’s presence, His presence now remains with us as we travel the earth taking His wonderful message—this Good News of the Messiah of Israel to the Jewish People and to the nations.

* The Kingdom began on Pentecost, along with the End Times

* The Lord descended upon man in the form of fire on both Pentecost and Shavuot

* Pentecost was the reverse of the Babel curse

The Acts 2 checklist itself is interesting:

 blood and fire and a cloud of smoke – A clear reference to battle. Blood is commonly used as an emblem of slaughter or of battle. Fire is also an image of war, and the conflagration of towns in time of war. It has always been customary in war to burn the towns of an enemy, and to render him as helpless as possible. Therefor, the clouds of smoke are rising from burning towns.

 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood – A reference to the sun and moon being darkened by the smoke of war.

 before the great and remarkable Day of the Lord comes – A clear reference to the Day of the Lord, which is halfway into the 7 year Tribulation period, the Great Tribulation. Current events show this day rapidly approaching.

 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved – A clear reference to the Rapture. 

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You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:18-29)

Wheat is a tougher grain than barley. Thousands of years ago, farmers used a tool called a “tribulum” to separate the chaff from their wheat. Today our word “tribulation” is derived from the name of that tool. It takes a tribulum to break the seed from the chaff. It goes through a breaking process to become free and be what our Father, the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob, would have us to be sons.

We have a God who loves us so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus, Yeshua to come in the flesh and dwell among men, teach us the way, die for us as a perfect sacrifice with all the sins of the past, present and future upon Himself, and taking the stripes upon His back, shedding His precious blood, was buried, raised, and ascended into heaven, sitting at the right hand of the Father and making intercession for us.  He did it all for us! 

Just as the ancient farmers used a tribulum to separate the chaff from their wheat, God will use the Tribulation to separate the chaff from the lives of the Christians at this time.

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As you can see, if you are not a believer, it would surely in your best interest to come to know Jesus as Savior early rather than later. You can claim Him now:

Jesus, I thank You that You came to save us from our sins and redeem us back to the Father God that was lost when Adam sinned in the garden.  Please forgive me of my sins and I choose to turn from them and I ask You to help me to sin no more.  I invite You Jesus to be my Savior and Lord over all of my life. I invite the Holy Spirit to live in me and teach and guide me.  Thank you Lord Jesus! Amen!

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Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (Revelation 3:10)  

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Warning: The end is coming – sooner than we think!

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Current events are aligning with Biblical prophecy