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It is both Post-trib and Pre-wrath (closer to the view promoted by Roland Rasmussen), not simply just Pre-wrath (as promoted by Marvin Rosenthal).

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Sherry Hmiel, “I’d like to know how it is you believe that the seal and trumpet judgements are the wrath of Satan.”

Hi Sherry, thank you for your comments. The “seals” are not wrath per se. They are separate stages of the last-days Beast empire upon the earth — Islam — from its deceptive beginnings to its devastating end at the Second Coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. From what I read in Scripture, the first five seals describe the wrath of “Mystery Babylon” / Beast (cf. Revelation 12:12 and 18:3) which is Satan’s wrath, the sixth seal brings it to an end, and the seventh seal ushers in the “orge” wrath of God upon “Mystery Babylon” / Beast. I’ve outlined much of this in the article below, for your consideration:

Unsealed: A Closer Look At Revelation 6 And ‘The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse’

Btw, the “trumpets” and “vials” are God’s wrath against a specific group only — against Antichrist, against Antichrist’s land, against Antichrist’s kingdom, against those who have received the Mark of the Beast, against those who worship the image of the Beast, against those who have shed the blood of the saints (see Rev 16).

Sherry Hmiel, “I have read through the whole book of Revelation and I have never seen a statement calling the seals and trumpet’s Satan’s wrath.”

As was mentioned in the article, the trumpets are not identified as “wrath” anywhere at all in the text, and the only time wrath is mentioned in relation to the “seals” is in a post-trib context (Revelation 6:16-17), at which point the vials (“orge” wrath) are poured.

Sherry Hmiel, “I have not seen one mid-tribber or post-tribber explain Luke 21:36- ‘Watch therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to ESCAPE all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.'”

Then allow me, as a post-trib believer, to be the first. :) Many use Luke 21:36 to support a pre-trib rapture, so let’s take a brief moment to look at Luke 21:36 contextually. I’ll begin with a few preceding verses:

Luke 21:25-28, “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars… At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

Many who teach a pre-trib rapture often point to “begin” and say it only means the first few signs mentioned earlier in the chapter, but Jesus says “When these things begin to take place” after describing the cosmic signs that we are told happens immediately after the tribulation in Matt 24:29-31. The fact that Jesus does not say “when these things begin to take place” before mentioning those post-trib signs is very significant.

A couple of verses later in Luke 21:31 Jesus says, “when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand”, and again these things include the cosmic signs and the coming of the Son of Man immediately after the tribulation mentioned a few verses earlier.

Now let’s look at Luke 21:34-36:

Luke 21:34-36, “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, [referring to “that day”] and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

What day is “that day”? Jesus just gave us cosmic signs that Joel 2:31 says will happen just before the Day of the Lord, but immediately after the tribulation according to His own words in Matt 24:29.

Joel 2:31, “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.”

Matthew 24:29, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken”

According to its very own context, “that day” in which Jesus is referring to in Luke 21:34 is therefore the Day of the Lord. It is the day of Christ’s judgment, of His Divine Wrath – the “orge” that we as believers are not appointed to suffer (1 Thess 5:9). The Greek for “escape” in Luke 21:36 is “ekpheugō” (G1628) and is used elsewhere to refer to escaping the judgment of God (Romans 2:3).

The Apostle Paul even parallels this perfectly when telling us about the gathering of the elect (rapture):

1 Thess 5:2,4,6, “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night… But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief… Therefore let us not sleep, as [do] others; but let us watch and be sober.”

So how do we escape? Paul ties in the Day of the Lord with the gathering in 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and tells us to watch for that day just as Jesus does in Luke 21:36. Since we know that the Day of the Lord takes place immediately after the tribulation (read here), the escape — and therefore the gathering — is post-trib as well.

Sherry Hmiel, “The parable of the 10 virgins is also telling of a pre-tribulation rapture.”

Teachers who first assume a pre-trib rapture to begin with will teach you that it does, but in reality it does not. Here is something for you to consider that pre-trib teachers won’t tell you:

In “The Parables of Jesus,” Joachim Jeremias (authority on Jewish customs) quoted an earlier book written by his father in 1909, which describes the ancient Semitic wedding custom.

“In the late evening the guests were entertained in the bride’s house. After hours of waiting for the bridegroom, whose coming was repeatedly announced by messengers, at last he came, half an hour before mid-night, to fetch the bride; he was accompanied by his friends; floodlit by burning candles, and received by guests who had come out to meet him. The wedding assembly then moved off, again in the flood of light, in a festal procession to the house of the bridegroom’s father, where the marriage ceremony and fresh entertainment took place.” [7] (emphasis mine)

This ancient Semitic custom does not fit the pre-trib scheme, where the groom is alleged to arrive at the bride’s house secretly to snatch her away, without any warning. The Gospel accounts agree with Jeremias’ historical account, also implying that the date of the groom’s coming for his bride was fully planned and known by the bridal party prior to his arrival. Jesus’ parable of the ten virgins is strikingly similar to the custom described above by Jeremias. This passage of Scripture is the ONLY account of a Jewish wedding procession in the Bible dating around the time of Christ.

Matt 25:1-10
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
2 “Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3 “Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,
4 “but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5 “But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’
7 “Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.
8 “And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
9 “But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
10 “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
(NKJV)

In Jesus’ parable, all ten of the bride’s maids had their lamps and oil in them while they awaited the groom’s arrival. Are we to assume that the bride’s maids were all waiting for a full 12 months with their lamps burning? Hardly! The picture painted by Jesus was of ten virgins accompanying the bride at her home on the day of the groom’s planned arrival. He was scheduled to arrive half an hour before midnight in a grand procession, to take the bride to their new home where the wedding would take place. When the shout came that the groom was on his way, they took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

They must have known the day of the groom’s arrival, otherwise they could not have known when to bring their lamps and assemble at the bride’s house! The whole purpose of the lamps was to participate in the festivities of the lighted procession once the groom arrived to fetch the bride. This fits perfectly with the custom described by Jeremias above. “In the late evening the guests were entertained in the bride’s house. After hours of waiting for the bridegroom,…”[8] Apparently, there was some delay in the groom’s arrival in Jesus’ parable. Jesus said they all fell asleep awaiting the groom’s arrival. At midnight the announcement was made, “behold the bridegroom cometh go ye out to meet him.” This fits perfectly with the above custom as well. “After hours of waiting for the bridegroom, whose coming was repeatedly announced by messengers, at last he came, half an hour before mid-night, to fetch the bride; he was accompanied by his friends; floodlit by burning candles, and received by guests who had come out to meet him.”[9] In Jesus’ parable, the bridegroom was half an hour late. This is why the virgins fell asleep. Instead of arriving at 11:30PM according to custom, the announcement finally came of his impending arrival at midnight! Even then the bride’s maidens scurried around to trim their lamps. The foolish virgins were told to go quickly and buy oil for their lamps. This strongly implies that there was some expected time anticipated between the final shout and the groom’s actual arrival at the home of the bride. Alfred Edersheim writes: “The parable proceeds on the assumption that the Bridegroom is not in town, but somewhere far away; so that it cannot be known at what precise hour He may arrive. But it is known that he will come that night.“[10]. In Jesus’ parable, the foolish virgins expected that the groom might come while they were out buying oil. Therefore, both the historical and biblical data strongly refutes the idea of “imminence” at any time during the betrothal period except after the shout on the scheduled day of the groom’s coming.

In his Sketches of Jewish Social Life, Edersheim wrote that the custom in Jesus’ day was to have the wedding on a Wednesday, allowing the first three days of the week for the bride to prepare herself for her groom’s coming.

“The marriage followed [the betrothal ritual] after a longer or shorter interval, the limits of which, however, were fixed by law. The ceremony itself consisted in leading the bride into the house of the bridegroom, with certain formalities, mostly dating from very ancient times. Marriage with a maiden was commonly celebrated on a Wednesday afternoon, which allowed the first days of the week for preparation, and enabled the husband, if he had a charge to prefer against the previous chastity of his bride, to make immediate complaint before the local Sanhedrim, which sat every Thursday. … This circumstance enables us, with some certainty, to arrange the date of the events which preceded the marriage in Cana. Inferring from the accompanying festivities that it was the marriage of a maiden, and therefore took place on a Wednesday… On “the third day” after it, that is, on Wednesday, was the marriage in Cana of Galilee.” [11]

Notice Edersheim stated clearly that the first three days (Sunday – Tuesday) were set aside for the bride to prepare. Since the day of the week was known (at least three days notice), it was impossible for a bride to be totally caught unaware, as pre-trib writers claim. The day of the groom’s coming for His bride was known by both bride and groom. It was also known by the bride’s maids who came to her home to await the groom’s arrival. And it was known by the friends of the groom, who accompanied him to the bride’s home to fetch her.

The ONLY evidence we have in Scripture of the Jewish wedding customs, related to the arrival of the groom for his bride, is the parable of the ten virgins. And it does not support the pre-trib scheme! Rather, it supports a post-trib scheme, where there is some advanced warning. This fits perfectly with Jesus’ teaching in this very same Olivet Discourse. Jesus indicated a fixed period of time prior to His coming. The Gospel must be preached in all the world first. He outlined a series of signs that would occur just before His coming “immediately after the tribulation” [Matt. 24:29-31].”

Read more.

Sherry Hmiel, “Paul reminds them that the catching away cannot happen until the restrainer is removed, and then the man of sin will be revealed. The restrainer, I believe, is the Holy Spirit, which indwells in each Christian.”

If the “catching away” cannot happen until the Restrainer is “removed” and the Man of Sin is revealed, then the “catching away” cannot happen until Antichrist is revealed. Moreover, according to the text itself, the Restrainer isn’t removed in the sense that he is completely gone. The Restrainer simply “steps out of the way” and ceases from restraining. The view that the Holy Spirit is the restrainer isn’t supported by Scripture hermeneutically nor is it supported exegetically.

2 Thess 2:7, “For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way.”

The Greek for “taken out of the way” is “ginomai ek mesos” and the word “ginomai” is a deponent verb (middle for active voice), so it need not mean removal by an outside force, but rather removal through a determined act on the part of the subject. In other words, the Restrainer moves himself out of the way by stepping aside or getting out from in between. He stops restraining. It does not mean to be completely removed as some have suggested, but to simply cease from standing in between or to refrain from actively restraining. The closest English translation for 2 Thess 2:7 is found in the NLT:

2 Thess 2:7, “For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way.”

If it’s not the Holy Spirit, then who or what is it? Well, when Paul told the Christians of Thessalonica about the revealing of the “man of lawlessness”, the one “Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2:4) he was obviously alluding directly to the Prophet Daniel (Daniel 11:36-37) who spoke of the exact same event:

Dan 11:36-37, “And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods … for he shall magnify himself above all.”

Paul even continues by saying, “Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?” (2:5). Told them what things? The things that were written in the Book of Daniel. Up until then, the Old Testament was their only Scriptural reference to draw from, and after Paul reminds them that he told them these things from the Book of Daniel he then continues, “And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time” (2:6). So, given the reference to the end of Daniel 11, what else does Daniel say that would have caused them to remember? A few verses later Daniel writes:

Dan 12:1, “At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book.”

Archangel Michael has watched over the people of God throughout history, but a time would come when Michael would “stand up”. The Hebrew word for “stand up” in Dan 12:1 is “amad” (H5975) and it means “to stand aside or stand still, stop (moving or doing), to cease.” We know that this is the intended meaning because after Michael does this we read about “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time”. And wouldn’t you know it, this is exactly what Jesus said would happen after the Abomination of Desolation in Matthew 24:15,21, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place … then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” Why? Because now “the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped …” (2 Thess 2:3-4).

The fact that Daniel describes great distress after Michael steps aside is no coincidence, and I believe that this is precisely what Paul reminded the Christians of Thessalonica about so that they would remember. Because of this, I believe that the Restrainer is therefore Archangel Michael.

Sherry Hmiel, “Let us not also forget that the 7 year tribulation is not meant for the Church, but for the Jewish people- it is known as the time of Jacob’s trouble.”

Pre-tribism teaches this, but the Bible does not tell us to expect a 7-year tribulation anywhere. It doesn’t exist. We only read about 3.5 prophetic years of “great tribulation” in Scripture. When you have time, I encourage you to read the articles below for a Biblical review:

Daniel 9:27 And The Confirmation Of The Covenant – A Peace Treaty?

Daniel 9:27 Redux: Will Antichrist Make A False 7-Year Peace Treaty With Israel?

Sherry Hmiel, “In Revelation 19 we read about the marriage supper of the Lamb. John records that,”blessed are they who are summoned to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

The Book of Revelation does not place the marriage supper of the lamb during the tribulation anywhere in the text. That is a pre-trib invention. Rather, the context of Revelation 19 is post-trib only and the marriage supper “has come” (erchomai), which is to say, it is coming into being per the Greek text. In fact, Revelation 19:2 even shows us that the Lord “hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.” The marriage supper of the Lamb does not come into being until after this judgement. According to John, the marriage supper is post-trib only, not pre-trib:

“The context indicates this is the very end of the tribulation. Notice, those John saw rejoicing over the (past) destruction of Babylon were also rejoicing in anticipation of the ‘marriage of the Lamb’ to come. The ‘Bride,’ the true Church, is shown in direct contrast to this false church (Mystery Babylon). It is vitally important to recognize the sequence laid out in this passage. John did not describe any wedding or supper occurring here. He was a witness to a joyous bursting forth of anticipation on behalf of the ‘Bride’ after Mystery Babylon was destroyed. What John actually witnessed, after the destruction of Babylon, was the saints rejoicing because the time had arrived for the wedding of the Lamb. John then heard a pronouncement regarding the Bride’s wedding garments. Then he heard a blessing pronounced on those called to the wedding supper. Immediately, John saw heaven opened, and Christ descending, followed by the angelic armies of heaven. It is quite clear, from Revelation 19, that at the very end of the tribulation the marriage of the Lamb is still being anticipated right up until the second coming” (read more).

Sherry Hmiel, “Revelation 20 is when Christ returns to the earth to slay the antichrist and all his followers.”

Christ also returns in Revelation 6:12-17 – 7:14 .This parallels Matthew 24:29-31, which you can read about here. According to Christ’s own words, this is post-tribulational. Remember, the Book of Revelation is written Semitically, not chronologically. There is recapitulation throughout the book, so we see John writing about the Second Coming of Christ more than once (eg. Revelation 6-7, Revelation 10-11, Revelation 14, Revelation 19-20).

Sherry Hmiel, “Nowhere does it state that when Christ comes back he raptures the Church away.”

Check out Revelation 10, for example. It’s all right there.

The Revelation Of Jesus Christ And The Rapture Of The Church

It’s also in Matthew 24:

Matthew 24:29-31, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days … they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect …”

Who are the elect? According to the New Testament, we are:

Colossians 3:12-13, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another …”

Acts 14:22b, “… we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.”

Sherry Hmiel, “What would be the point of rapturing the church at the end of the tribulation, only to meet in the air (as paul describes) and then coming right back down to reign on the earth.”

To protect us from the immediate “orge” wrath of God upon the wicked. Remember, we are not appointed to the “orge” wrath of God.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 Paul says that when Christ descends, the dead in Christ are resurrected and then we will be caught up to meet Christ and the resurrected saints in the air. The word “meet” is the Greek word “apantesis”, a very special word that only occurs here and in three other places in Scripture. In Vocabulary of the Greek Testament by G. Milligan and James Hope Moulton, “The word apantesis seems to have been a kind of official welcome of a newly arriving dignitary – a usage which accords excellently with its NT usage.” In Matthew 25:1,6 it describes the virgins going out to meet the bridegroom, to escort him back into the house. In Acts 28:14-16 it is used to describe brethren from Rome coming out to Appii Foru, to meet Paul and his company, and then escort them back to Rome. In each example of “apantesis”, the escort back is virtually immediate. We don’t have them going out to meet the subject, then going to where the subject came from for years, and then escorting the subject back. That was not the custom. The subject who was coming is met by those who are already at his destination. And what is His destination? Where we are — earth. When Christ comes back to Earth, we will go out to meet Him, we will remain in the air temporarily until the indignation/wrath is complete, and where ever He goes, we go, and He is going to Jerusalem to set His feet upon the Mount of Olives.

Zechariah 14:4-5, “And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, [Making] a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south. Then you shall flee [through] My mountain valley, For the mountain valley shall reach to Azal. Yes, you shall flee As you fled from the earthquake In the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Thus the LORD my God will come, [And] all the saints with You.”

In Greek culture the word “apantesis” had a technical meaning to describe the visits of dignitaries to cities where the visitor would be formally met by the citizens, or a deputation of them, who had gone out from the city for this purpose and would then be ceremonially escorted back into the city. Apantesis was often used to suggest the meeting of a dignitary or king, a famous person, describing people rushing to meet the one who was coming. For instance, when a Roman emperor approached a city, the leading citizens went out to welcome him and had the honor of processing into the city with him. This whole event was described as the “apantesis.”

Apantesis from apantáo from apó = from + antáo = to come opposite to, to meet especially to meet face to face describes a meeting especially a meeting of two who are coming from different directions.

What is Scripture saying? It is saying that we are not removed from the Earth to conveniently go to Heaven while all hell breaks loose down below. Those of us who are alive and remain (the Greek word means those who survive) are transformed from corruptible to incorruptible, and we are caught up to meet the Lord in the air per the “apantesis”, which means that we escort Christ back to earth — ie. Jerusalem — which is consistent with its usage in each of the other verses of Scripture. The pre-trib position, however, suddenly changes the intended meaning of the word (again). Instead of us escorting Jesus back to Earth for His Second Coming, pre-tribism has us conveniently going to Heaven instead, which the text does not say anywhere, at any place, at any time.

Sherry Hmiel, “Jesus says he goes to prepare a place for us in heaven. In which we will dwell in mansions made for us.”

Let’s think about this logically. According to pre-tribism, Jesus has been building literal mansions in Heaven for the past 2,000 years, and pre-trib raptured saints will only dwell in them for 7 years max only to abandon them forever since we’ll all be coming back with Christ when He returns at the end of a seven-year tribulation (remember, after the 1,000 years on earth there is a NEW heaven and new earth). When we really think about it, the whole pre-trib idea stretches credulity to the breaking point, in my humble opinion. For your consideration, please see this article to examine what Christ was teaching us:

‘… That Where I Am There You May Be Also’ – It Means More Than We Think

Sherry Hmiel, “If we are to go through the entire tribulation and then be raptured, there would be no going to heaven since at his glorious appearing Christ sets his feet on the Mount of Olives and begins his reign on the earth …”

Let’s look briefly at the “glorious appearing” of Christ. Pre-trib teachers directly associate Christ’s “glorious appearing” with the “blessed hope” that Paul writes about in Titus, but pre-trib teachers have misinterpreted this passage of Scripture, like many others, to conform to their understanding instead of allowing their understanding to conform to Scripture. Let’s take a quick look at what the Apostle Paul was referring to in the epistle of Titus:

Titus 1:2, 2:13, 3:7, “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began … Looking for that blessed hope [eternal life], and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ… That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Paul uses the word “hope” three times in his epistle — at the beginning when speaking about eternal life and then later while referring to that blessed hope, and then once more again near the end. Each time he is referring to the blessed hope of eternal life. When is our blessed hope of eternal life actualized? It is actualized at the Second Coming of Christ. Nowhere does Paul ever say that our “blessed hope” is a pre-trib rapture. We are looking for the blessed hope of eternal life at the glorious appearing of Christ.

The glorious appearing is the “epiphaneia” (G2015) and there is something that is very important about the “epiphaneia” of Christ that very few pre-trib teachers will tell you:

2 Thess 2:8, “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness [epiphaneia G2015] of his coming”

The “epiphaneia” happens after the tribulation. If it is true that the “blessed hope” of eternal life is actualized at the “epiphaneia” of Christ like Paul says, then we must therefore also believe that the blessed hope is His post-trib appearance and the resurrection/gathering of the elect. This means that Scripture is teaching a post-trib rapture, not pre-trib.

Sorry for the long reply, but it was necessary to dispel many of the misconceptions being put forth by pre-trib teachings. Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any questions.

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Pre-tribism has no historical leg to stand on. Here is another good explanation from Carl Gallups:

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Me, “The Church is removed. You do realize the book of Revelation is written to the Jews, and whatever Gentiles are left?”

Hi, thank you for visiting the blog. Where do you read that “the Church is removed” and that the book of Revelation is for Jews and leftover Gentiles only? Is it because you don’t see the word “church” after chapter 3? As mentioned previously, though the word “church” itself is not used after Revelation 3, keep in mind that the word “church” isn’t used in Mark, Luke, John, Galatians, Ephesians, 2 Peter, 1 John and 2 John, and not until the 16th chapter of Romans, either. If the events described by John in Revelation doesn’t apply to the church simply because the word “church” isn’t used after 3:22, then according to that logic a large portion of the entire New Testament doesn’t apply to the church, either.

If we search the Scriptures we’ll find the words “saints” and “tribulation” throughout the text, but nowhere do we ever read about “tribulation saints.” These two words are never found side by side. The word “saint” or “saints”, however, is used 59 times in the New Testament, referring to believers in Christ (ie, the Church). This term is used repeatedly throughout the various books of the New Testament, including Revelation. For instance, Christians are directly mentioned in Revelation 14:12, saying “Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the FAITH OF JESUS”, and Revelation 20:4-5 says in no uncertain terms that those who do not worship the beast or receive the mark and are killed for “the witness of JESUS” and will rule and reign with Christ for a thousand years. According to Scripture, the Church is therefore definitely present during “great tribulation”, not absent.

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