The Wheat, the Tares, and the End of the World: Part 3 . . . and the Grapes??

In the last few posts, we have been talking about the Harvest at the End of this World. Most Christians don't know that there is a very clear illustration of this in chapter 14 of the book of Revelation.

Before we look at it, I want to remind you that the order of events on the last day is:

1. The unsaved nations are gathered in preparation for Armageddon
2. The saved are caught up to meet the Lord in the clouds
3. The unsaved nations are destroyed at Armageddon

I also want to make sure that you are familiar with a couple of biblical terms. The battle of Armageddon is fought in the Valley of Megiddo. Because it takes place in a valley, and because it is a real blood-bath, it is often referred to figuratively as 'treading out grapes in a wine press.'

With that in mind, please read Revelation 14:14-16.

"And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man [that's Jesus!], having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped."

This is the gathering of the saints to meet the Lord in the air. Revelation 1:7 tells us that the visible Second Coming will be with clouds.

Now watch, something else happens (v. 17-20):

"And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs."

Here we see that the saints are called 'the harvest of the earth' and the unsaved are called 'the vine of the earth.' The saints are gathered to the clouds, and the unsaved are gathered to Armageddon, the winepress of God, where they are destroyed.

This is a very clear picture of the wheat and tares/grapes being allowed to grow together unto the end of the world. (By the way, grapes are very different from wheat and represent the obviously unsaved people of the world. Tares look just like wheat and, as such, represent those who profess to be saved but in actuality are not.)

Before we close this post, I'd like to look at one Old Testament passage that is an exact parallel to this one.

Joel 3:9-11

Here is the first gathering. The unsaved nations are gathered against the nation of Israel, more specifically the city of Jerusalem. They hope to destroy it. However, God has other plans, and they are being gathered for their own destruction!

"Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about:"

"...thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD."

The mighty ones of God who come down are the believers who return with him -- that's us!!

The valley of Jehoshasphat is the valley of Megiddo (more or less) where the battle of Armageddon will be fought. This is the winepress of God.

"Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great."

"Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision."

And here is another reference to the valley of Megiddo.

"The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining."

Matthew 24 tells us that "Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,..." so here we have a time stamp that tells us when these things will happen. The battle of Armageddon, like the Rapture, will happen immediately AFTER the Tribulation.

"The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake:”

This is the "shout" of 1 Thess. 4:16 which is actually a 'war cry.' It is a ROAR! Notice that the heavens "shake" at this point. Revelation mentions this in several places, always associated with the post-tribulation return of Christ.

“but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel."

And, behold, the Blessed Hope is right where it should be!! It is always connected with this great, singular event known as the Day of the Lord, the Second Coming of Christ, etc.

After all this, we enter into the Millennial reign of Christ on earth, a time of peace and plenty.

"So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim."

Again, this is all very simple to understand once you know the key: The Rapture occurs AT the Revelation!

The Wheat, the Tares, and the End of the World: Part 2

In the last post, we saw that the Harvest of the Wheat and Tares:

1. Was a singular event
2. Took place at the end of "this" world
3. Took place prior to the Kingdom of Christ on earth
4. Was comprised of the angels gathering the lost together, the angels gathering the saved to Christ, and then the angels gathering the lost into fire/destruction

I'd like to focus on #2, the Harvest of the Wheat and the Tares occurs at the "end of the world."

The Lord Jesus told his disciples that he would be with them "even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:20). Comparing scripture with scripture, that means that he would be with them right up unto this Harvest where the saints are gathered to meet him in the air, and the lost are gathered to be destroyed.

The Gospel is to be preached right up until this Harvest, right up until the end. The Lord Jesus said, " And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations: and then shall the end come.” The Gospel that Jesus preached - "this gospel" - is the same one that we preach, and will preach, right up until the "end of this world."

Look for a moment at Matthew 24:29-31:

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days (v. 29)...then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

This is yet another description of the same Harvest, but these verses specifically focus on the gathering of the Wheat, i.e. the elect. Notice the timing, it is immediately after the tribulation. (More on this later.)

If the Wheat were raptured out SEVEN years before the Tares were gathered to be burned, could it be said that they grew together unto the end?

No, it could not.

Don't forget our earlier posts. They all complement each other. Jesus is with the believers right up until the "last day" which marks the "end of this world." On that day, the last trump will sound to signal the first resurrection. The unbelievers will have been gathered together at Armageddon in preparation for the final battle. The believers will then be gathered to meet the Lord in the air, and escort him the final stage of his journey. The Lord's enemies will be destroyed, being gathered until fire and destruction. Then the Millennial reign of Christ with his saints begins, and the Lord rewards his servants for their faithfulness.

The Wheat, the Tares, and the End of the World: Part 1

We have already examined the last day, the end, the first resurrection and the last trump. So far, everything points to the Rapture occurring AT the Revelation.

In this post, we will more closely examine the Harvest at the End of the World.

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. But let them grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.” (Matthew 13:24-30)

This passage from Matthew 13 gives us several clues concerning the timing of the Rapture. Note that the Lord Jesus said that believers (the wheat) and nonbelievers (the tares) would grow together until the harvest. He did NOT say that they grow together until SEVEN years before the harvest, or any other such thing.

He explained the parable in verses 38-43:

1. The field is the world
2. The good seed are the children of the kingdom (the saved)
   
3. The tares are the children of the wicked one (the unbelievers)
4. The enemy that sowed them is the devil
5. The harvest is the end of the world
6. The reapers are the angels.

"As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."

Now this is fairly straight forward stuff unless you've been taught to believe that the Rapture does not occur at the Revelation. All he is saying is that the saved and unsaved will continue together until he returns. At his return several things will happen, and they will happen in a very specific order:

1. Christ will send out his angels to first gather together the UNSAVED into ONE LOCATION - This is for the battle of Armageddon.
2. Then, before the battle starts, Christ will have his angels gather together the saints - This is the meeting in the air (1 Thess. 4)
3. Then, the tares will be gathered into the fire - The enemies of Christ who fight against him will be destroyed

All of this gathering of wheat and tares is known as the Harvest at the End of THIS World, and marks the completion of this age in preparation for the start of the Kingdom Age - "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father."


A problem arises: The scholar who believes in a pre-tribulation Rapture reads into this passage that Christ will allow believers and non-believers to live together until the end of the Millennium, which they believe is the “end of this world.” They do this by making the ‘kingdom of heaven’ a reference to the thousand year reign of Christ.

But this passage says that AFTER the destruction of the tares, "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father." The destruction of the tare precedes the Millennium, and therefore so does this Harvest.

That is, this passage is teaching the premillennial destruction of the Lord’s enemies in preparation to establishing a global, righteous kingdom (cf. Dan. 12:1).

And besides, this cannot be a reference to life in the Millennium. The devil will not be sowing anything in the Millennium; he will be bound for a thousand years!

This passage clearly teaches that the "end of this world" takes place before the Millennium. (Please read that last sentence again!)



More to come next time!

The Old Hymns Testify to a Rapture AT the Revelation

I thought this might be a good time for a 'just for fun' post. Then, we'll jump right back into our studies.

Many of the old hymns that are sung every Sunday contain references to a Rapture that occurs AT the Revelation. Let's start off with a VERY clear hymn written by Charles Wesley.

Lo, He Comes With Clouds Descending, Charles Wesley, 1758.

Note that Christ comes with clouds as the Bible says in 1 Thess. 4, and with thousands of departed saints. But, also note that He is coming to reign on earth! The phrase "Every eye shall now behold Him" is straight out of Revelation 1: 7, and speaks of the visible Second Coming of Christ. The third stanza is also in regard to the Second Coming (see Rev. 16:20). And, yet, in stanza four, the saints are rising to meet Christ in the air! There is even a reference to the Day of the Lord at the end of the fourth stanza. "Come quickly" is the cry of the bride and the Spirit!

This is exactly as expected when we understand that the Rapture is AT the Revelation!!

"Lo! He comes with clouds descending,
Once for favored sinners slain;
Thousand thousand saints attending,
Swell the triumph of His train:
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
God appears on earth to reign.

Every eye shall now behold Him
Robed in dreadful majesty;
Those who set at naught and sold Him,
Pierced and nailed Him to the tree,
Deeply wailing, deeply wailing, deeply wailing,
Shall the true Messiah see.

Every island, sea, and mountain,
Heav’n and earth, shall flee away;
All who hate Him must, confounded,
Hear the trump proclaim the day:
Come to judgment! Come to judgment! Come to judgment!
Come to judgment! Come away!

Now redemption, long expected,
See in solemn pomp appear;
All His saints, by man rejected,
Now shall meet Him in the air:
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
See the day of God appear!

Answer Thine own bride and Spirit,
Hasten, Lord, the general doom!
The new Heav’n and earth t’inherit,
Take Thy pining exiles home:
All creation, all creation, all creation,
Travails! groans! and bids Thee come!

The dear tokens of His passion
Still His dazzling body bears;
Cause of endless exultation
To His ransomed worshippers;
With what rapture, with what rapture, with what rapture
Gaze we on those glorious scars!

Yea, Amen! let all adore Thee,
High on Thine eternal throne;
Savior, take the power and glory,
Claim the kingdom for Thine own;
O come quickly! O come quickly! O come quickly!
Everlasting God, come down!"

One Day, by J. Wilbur Chapman, 1908.

In the fifth stanza, Chapman combines the Rapture of 1 Thessalonians 4 with the glorious appearing of Christ:

"One day the trumpet will sound for His coming,
One day the skies with His glories will shine;
Wonderful day, my belovèd ones bringing;
Glorious Savior, this Jesus is mine!"


It is Well with My Soul, by Horatio Spafford, 1873.

In the third stanza (which is not very well known), Spafford states that he is waiting for Christ to come back. He states that this coming will be with the trump of the angel (see Matt. 24:31) and the voice of the Lord (see 1 Thess. 4:16).


In fourth stanza, Spafford says that his faith will be sight when the 'clouds are rolled back as a scroll.' By comparing Revelation 1:7 and Revelation 6:14, we see that Spafford believed that he would finally see Christ with his own eyes at the glorious, visible Second Coming of Christ. Note the second mention of the trump of God.

"But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!

Refrain

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul."

When the Roll is Called Up Yonder, by James M. Black, 1893.

In the first stanza, Black writes that 'the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and time shall be no more.' Compare this to Revelation 10:6-7, "And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer: But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets."

Within the time frame of the Rapture AT the Revelation, this is exactly how it happens. At the visible coming of the Lord, the Lord Jesus himself shouts/roars, and then there is the voice of the archangel, and finally the trump of God is sounded.

"When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound,
and time shall be no more,
And the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair;
When the saved of earth shall gather over on the other shore,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there."


When He Shall Come, by Almeda J. Pearce.

At Christ's resplendent coming, not his secret coming, he will gather his own. The reference to the earth's remotest corners is from Matthew 24:31.

When He shall come resplendent in His Glory, To take His own from out this vale of night, O may I know the joy at His appearing, Only at morn to walk with Him in white. When He shall call from earth's remotest corners All who have stood triumphant in His might, O to be worthy then to stand beside them And in that morn to walk with Him in white. When I shall stand within the court of Heaven Where white robed pilgrims pass before my sight, Earth's martyred saints and bloodwashed overcomers These then are they who walk with Him in white.

The Resurrection at the Rapture

The apostle Paul plainly states that at the Rapture there will be a resurrection - "the dead in Christ shall rise" (I Thess. 4:16).

But when is this resurrection? Perhaps the apostle John can help clear things up. He plainly states that the first resurrection will be after the Antichrist appears, but before the thousand year reign of Christ begins:

"And I saw thrones, ... and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection."

So, if the FIRST resurrection is after the beast, and after his mark, and after his image, then the FIRST resurrection is a POST-Tribulation one!

And since the FIRST resurrection is a POST-Tribulation one, and the Rapture involves a resurrection, then the Rapture also must be AFTER the Tribulation.

Now, remember what Martha said to Jesus about her brother Lazarus? "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." She was exactly right!

At the last day of this age, which is just after the Great Tribulation, Christ will return. And at his coming, he will call up his earthly saints to meet him in the air. Since some of those saints will be dead, they will be RESURRECTED. This is the first resurrection. They will then live and reign with Christ for his thousand year reign on earth known as the Millennium.

Isn't that easy?

Living in God's righteous, earthly kingdom was the expectation of ALL of the Old Testament prophets. But that would necessitate a resurrection before the kingdom began! And that is what Martha was referring to.

Let's look briefly at Ezekiel 37. Ezekiel saw the resurrection of the 'dry bones' of Israel just before the reign of Christ began. "I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel" (v. 12), and "David my servant shall be king over them:..." (v. 24).

Ezekiel saw the reign of Christ from the throne of David. He also saw that the dead believers of the nation of Israel would resurrected just prior to Christ's kingdom so that they could be included in it.

More Simple Logic
IF the first resurrection of the saints is ‘at the last day,’
AND the first resurrection is after the Tribulation (Rev. 20:4),
BUT the first resurrection is before the Millennial reign (Rev. 20:4),
THEN the ‘last day’ is sandwiched between the Tribulation and the Millennium.

And that means that the Rapture must be AT the Revelation. And on the LAST DAY, just after the Tribulation and just before the Millennial reign of Christ, the saints will rise/be resurrected at the first resurrection.