Being “Left Behind” – Is It Good or Bad?
For many (mostly evangelical) Christians, the teaching of a pre-tribulation rapture of believers is a major component of a widely held system of prophetic interpretation. In brief, Jesus will come secretly and suddenly remove all “true” believers in a first of two (three?) resurrections. After the rapture, those “left behind” will enter and either die in, or a few survive the following 7-year time of terrible wars, plagues, disasters, and fierce governmental persecution. Some may be jolted to faith immediately, others believe later on, and of course unbelievers will mostly embrace the anti-Christian government and culture. As you probably realize, for these churches preaching a fear of being “left behind” becomes a major tool for evangelizing and to motivate “better” Christian living and reduces the gospel Paul preached to an “entrance event.”
However, the verses most used to justify and teach the “left behind” aspect of the event are like the verses we looked at earlier that were supposed to teach a rapture /2-stage return of Jesus and didn’t. These don’t teach that being left behind is all that bad.
First, here are the most used verses claimed to teach that being “left behind” by the rapture exposes the one who misses out to the terrible 7-year tribulation.
(Matthew 24:36-44) 36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
(Luke 17:26-37) 26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all — 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” 37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
I. A First Look
Q1. Do any verses say that this is a secret return of Jesus (rapture) and not the Day of the Lord at the end of the age? No.
Q2. What about the statement that on this day, the Son of Man is revealed? That pretty much rules out a “secret” return. To claim that Jesus is revealed only to the “raptured” is simply not in the verses and has to be added to them by one’s belief system.
Q3. Note that the very day Lot left Sodom, total destruction fell. Not seven years later. This powerfully contradicts the rapture teaching.
Q4. Some rapture proponents interpret the gathering of vultures as a sign of mass martyrdom. Do the verses say this? No. Again, the belief must precede the interpretation. More on this later.
II. A Closer Look at Who Is Blessed and Who Is Not in Matthew 24
Setting aside that Jesus clearly states his primary purpose in these teachings is to emphasize that his return at the very end will be without warning, and that unbelievers will not be ready for judgment, we will consider these verses in view of the “left behind” theory of the rapture.
Mt. 24 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Q5. In Noah’s day, who was taken/swept away? The believer or the unbeliever? Clearly, the unbelievers.
Q6. In Noah’s day, would you rather have been taken, or left behind? I don’t know about you, but I’d rather have been among those “8 souls” (1 Peter 3:20) who were left behind.
Q7. How many unbelievers were destroyed/swept away/taken that day? If this is to be a type of the “coming rapture”, how many unbelievers are left by the flood to enter a tribulation- like time following the flood? Answer, none. ALL were destroyed at the time of the flood. This is contrary to the rapture belief about the unbelievers who are clearly NOT destroyed at the time of the rapture.
Q8. Can you see why rapture teachers must associate the “all” with believers taken in the rapture, thereby reversing the roles of the “taken” and “left behind” in Noah’s day? I submit this is at best, a very poor handling of the Scriptures.
Matthew 24:40-41 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left.
This is not as clear as the reference to Noah’s day. But since the verses do not specify what is happening, it seems proper to consider things that commonly happened in Jesus’s day that produced the situations he describes. After all, he expected his listeners to understand him, and there is no indication they were confused or uncertain. In that day, when Roman soldiers had reason to arrest someone, they came without warning and took the accused (law breakers) away to trial and punishment. There are no other significant parallels to being taken or left behind in Jewish life of that day.
Q9. If these verses describe a common occurrence in Jesus’s day, is it wiser to interpret his words in this manner rather than force a belief from outside of the Bible onto these verses? I would say, YES!
Q10. In Jesus’s day, if indeed these verses speak to a common experience among the Jews of that day, would you rather have been taken, or left behind when the Roman soldiers suddenly came? I’d rather have been “left behind.” Notice also, it is the lawbreakers (wicked?) who were taken away, not the law abiding (righteous?). This is also precisely opposite of what the rapture is supposed to do and also agrees with the flood event.
III. A Closer Look at Who Is Blessed and Who Is Not in Luke 17
Luke 17:26-37 26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all — 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” 37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
Q11. (v. 26-27) Is there any reversal in Luke of who is and who is not blessed in Matthew concerning Noah’s day? No.
Q12. (v. 30) Is this a secret return? Obviously not.
Q13. (v. 28-33) In the days of Lot, who was blessed, the taken or the ones left behind? Here, those left behind were the wicked, those taken were blessed.
Q14. (v. 28-30) Yet, even if this one situation makes the taken ones blessed, what happens to those left behind? Immediate, total, comprehensive, final judgment, not a time of “tribulation” or “second chances” to believe. It precisely fits the very end of the age and arrival of final, universal judgment.
Q15. Is there any indication of a 7-year delay before the judgment/destruction of the unbelievers after “the day/that night”? Or a time to possibly come to faith before death or the 2nd return of Jesus? Neither are even hinted at.
Q16. (v. 34-36) Is there any indication in Luke that a rapture is the cause of these separations? No.
Q17. So, should we interpret it broadly as Jesus himself indicates, or impose a non-biblical concept of a rapture upon these verses? I think it far wiser to listen to Jesus and not to rapture teachers.
Q18. In regard to the taken and left behind concepts of both Matthew 24 and Luke 17, how might our fellow Christians enduring severe persecution today understand these verses? How would that be very similar to the experience of Christians when Jesus spoke, and the context of persecution these verses reflect? We who live in relative peace and safety surely tend to interpret these and a myriad of other verses about persecution quite differently than they who live amidst it. Millions of our brothers and sisters in Christ live daily with people taken and left behind by various governments, religions, and cultural enemies. Not by rapture. They see their daily life in these verses, just as Jews in Jesus day would have.
IV. A Quick Look at the Vultures
Luke 17:37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
Matthew 24:27-28 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
Q19. Some rapture proponents claim that this verse teaches mass martyrdom of the saints during the 7-year tribulation. Setting aside the fact that Jesus predicted that martyrdom would be a common experience of the church in all ages, and will surely be so as the end draws near, does anything in this verse indicate this has anything at all to do with a 7-year tribulation period? No.
Q20. Where would the vultures gather? Obviously, with the dead, not the living.
Q21. If the ones taken are then the ones where vultures gather, does that make you want to be among the ones taken, or the ones left behind? Noting that the context clearly identifies the ones taken that became the corpse that the vultures would gather upon, I’d much rather be among those left behind who aren’t dead and food for the vultures.
Q22. Some rapture teachers rightly point out that the word translated as vulture in both Matthew and Luke often means eagle. Then, they sometimes appeal to the concept of an eagle being a more noble bird, and therefore points to the rapture and represents believers being gathered to Jesus. How does that seem to fit the verses? Really poorly, I’d suggest. And a distinctly urban American view of the eagle.
Q23. Besides, you may be familiar with eagles. The ones in Israel are similar. Do eagles eat carrion, that is, like vultures, will they eat dead animals? Yes, they do. Copiously. So, what’s the difference if we translate the birds that gather around the corpse as vultures or eagles? None, really.
Q24. Logically, if the previous verses are pointing to the Scripture-predicted end of the age and final judgment of unbelievers, what is the simple meaning of the vultures gathering with the dead, who in context were either taken away or immediately judged? They symbolize death and judgement. As the Bible teaches, at the end of the age the unbelieving will be judged and condemned according to their unbelief. They have no life in them as they do not have Christ in them.
Just for a final thought, in Revelation, we again find the concept of birds, obviously big, carrion eating birds, gathering to eat.
Revelation 19:11-21 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great.” And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.
Q22. Does this fit the words and context of both Matthew 24 and Luke 17 better than the supposed rapture? I would suggest, far better.
Q23. In general, do the supposed passages present being taken away a blessing and being left behind a terrible thing to have happen? Abundantly not. Clearly, the preponderance of verses say that it is better to be among those left behind than among those taken. All fit the end of the age resurrection and judgment perfectly.
V. A Few Discussion Points to Wrap Up
Q25. What is your response to using fear of being left behind instead of the biblical/gospel truth about standing before God in judgment after this life, whenever it ends? It is a different gospel than the apostles proclaimed and that we are also called to preserve and proclaim.
Q26. Is this version of the Gospel largely about “me” avoiding earthly trouble and not so much about eternal things? How might that change dynamics of faith and life? Really fits the American self centered culture, doesn’t it?
Q27. Does the “rapture” teaching (generally) destroy the gospel message or simply confuse the hearer? (heresy vs. heterodoxy) It does teach contrary to sound biblical doctrine (heterodoxy), but does not necessarily destroy the message of Jesus Christ, Messiah, Savior, Son of God, ascended Lord, and returning in glory at the end of the age (contradiction of these would indicate heresy). No, this isn’t a precise, theological definition, but will do for now.
Q28. Some “rapture” theologians state that “God loves his children too much to let them go through the great tribulation [=last 7 years of suffering on earth]. What does this say about God’s love for the Christians of all ages and of our world today who suffer horribly and die horribly for their faith? Further, does God therefore love the “raptured saints” more than others whom he allows to suffer terribly? How about our brethren in North Korea or various Muslim controlled lands? I would be ashamed to say that my Lord loves me more than the believers of other ages or other parts of the world who suffer now.
Q29. Might very terrible events occur in the very last days before Jesus does return? Might He return at a time when the world thinks it is going to become peaceful and safe? Might there even be an essentially one-world government and cashless economic system? Yes to all these and more.
Q30. Some “rapture” theology leaders teach that those who do not accept their teaching of a rapture are not truly Christians and because of their lack of faith will be “left behind” to suffer terrible things to “purify” their faith.
a. Can you find this assertion in the Bible? Good luck!
b. Does this teaching distort the gospel message as to how a person is saved? Yes. This moves into the realm of heresy.
Q31. Does the general teaching about a period of earthly wrath and the purification of “late” believers in order to make them acceptable to God sound reminiscent of the Catholic teaching of purgatory? [Purgatory is a state of suffering for sins committed in the flesh until the soul is “clean” and can enter heaven.] Obviously. I’ve had many laity who have not studied this subject before come to and voice this perception without our class getting even close to comparing the rapture/tribulation to purgatory.
(Note to those taught Roman Catholic beliefs about purgatory. If you believe in Jesus, the virgin born son of Mary whose life and death paid for your sins, and who rose bodily from the grave and one day will also resurrect you, the good news is that after death you will awaken in the resurrection, not purgatory. His divine and human blood covered ALL our sins. We cannot, do not need to, and thankfully will not have to pay for our sins now, or ever. Sin may bring earthly consequences, but Jesus took care of our debt before God. Jesus is the author AND finisher of our salvation – Hebrews 5:9.)
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