The Closer We Get, the Clearer the Vision: Book 1—Introducing the Pre-Seventh-Year Rapture Theory

By James Moody

Worldwide turmoil and chaos have caused many to turn to biblical prophecy for answers only to become confused. They then turn to those who profess to understand those prophecies and become even more confused because of the many different opinions.

Perhaps there is something major wrong with our understanding of the seven years we refer to as the tribulation. The seven seals, trumpets, and vials are twenty-one separate judgments or are they? And they consume all seven of those years or do they? Those seven years are filled with wrath or are they?

A major nuclear war could account for most of Gods wrath. It is now biblically possible to see how all of Gods wrath will likely be confined to the last year of those seven years. Previously it was a challenge to try and fit all the many other prophesized events into those seven years. Now: The Closer We Get, the Clear the Vision makes it much easier.

The Bible is the best commentary for the Bible. This book 1 titled: Introducing the Pre-Seventh-Year Rapture Theory contains about nine hundred Bible verses and partial verses to support its conclusions with the least amount of commentary as possible for clarity.

Prepare to be utterly amazed as the results of these studies unveil concepts and possibilities that most of us have never considered or even imagined.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jan 16, 2014
• ISBN: 9781490814636

James Moody

Finding many problems with the popular prophetic theories of today; Moody has devoted eighteen years of intense studying, praying, and writing about biblical prophecy. He is a deacon, bible scholar and teacher. He and his wife of fifty four years live together in the piney woods near Cleveland, Texas.

Book preview

Chapter 1

Studying Biblical Eschatology

Eschatology is the study of things to come. Theology is a biblical study of the nature of God and His relation to mankind and the universe. Therefore, biblical eschatology is the biblical study of that part of systematic theology that deals with the doctrine of future events, such as resurrection, the second coming of Christ, the millennium, judgment, and eternity.

Biblical prophecy is written in ways that make it very difficult to achieve accurate understanding of future events. Many of our greatest pastors, evangelists, biblical scholars, theologians, and laypersons, past and present, have a wide range of theories concerning biblical prophecies of future events.

There can be no doubt that some of these are godly men and women who on many occasions are led by the Holy Spirit; yet many of them cannot agree on the interpretation of many of the prophecies of future events. One of the main purposes of these writings is to shed some light on how these differences of opinion come about.

Prophecy is a large portion of God’s Word, the Bible, which is divinely inspired, and God has good reason for making it difficult for us to understand. Perhaps it is written in that manner because God does not want the truth of His prophecies to be revealed until He is ready for that truth to be revealed. What He wants known, whom He wants to know it, and when he wants them to know it is entirely up to Him, and He is in control.

Therefore, with that in mind, should we stop studying prophecy? Certainly not! God gives us His Word, the Bible, and in the book of Revelation, which is prophecy, we are instructed to read, hear (understand), and keep (hold fast to) the sayings of that which is written therein, and He promises that by doing so we will be blessed (Revelation 1: 3).

1. Dos and Don’ts of Studying Biblical Eschatology

Cautions Regarding Rules

There are some godly and highly educated men who have established very elaborate rules to follow while studying biblical eschatology. Many of these rules are designed to correspond with a particular logic or theory; therefore, we should be cautious about which rules we follow.

A major concern that seems to be missing in most of those rules is that theories are theories; they are not facts. Prophecy can be very difficult to understand. After studying some of these prophecies, without understanding them, many of us begin to seek other people’s opinions as to what these prophecies mean. Different people have different opinions, and some of them can be very convincing, especially when those opinions fit in with the rules we have studied. Their opinions can become our opinions, and as a result we can become convinced that those opinions are accurate.

It is easy to begin viewing those opinions as facts, and then when we study other related prophecies we tend to interpret those prophecies in ways that fit in with those supposed facts. This is why it is so very important that when the interpretation of a prophecy seems to contradict what we think is fact, we should reexamine those supposed facts and remember that they are theories rather than facts.

Also, we should be very careful when communicating our theories to others that we do not present them as facts; after all, these are prophecies of future events, and the accuracy of our interpretations can neither be proved nor disproved until these events actually occur.

Literal or Figurative?

One reason that biblical prophecy is so difficult to understand is that it contains literal wording along with a great deal of figurative wording, metaphors, symbolism, and parables, which makes it difficult to distinguish which items should be interpreted literally and which should not. Then that difficulty is compounded when we attempt to accurately interpret the things that we believe are not literal.

One prophecy that clearly uses figurative wording and symbolism is:

And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. (Revelation 13:1)

For obvious reasons, most of this verse is not to be interpreted literally. There are other prophecies in various parts of the Bible that offer suggestions as to what some of this symbolism represents. Yet there are a variety of opinions among these godly and highly educated people as to the correct interpretation of these symbols. Don’t let this discourage you, because there are biblical ways to overcome many of these difficulties. Some examples appear in the following section.

Biblical Confirmation of Figurative Meanings

There are some prophecies that clearly state the interpretation of a particular figurative word. For example, Jesus said in Revelation 1:20 that the stars are the angels. knowing that, we are left wondering when in prophecy the word stars should be interpreted literally and when it should be interpreted figuratively. Usually, but not necessarily in all instances, it will be obvious because of the way it is used in context.

Because Jesus said that the stars are the angels, then any time in biblical prophecy that we see the word stars, we should try to determine which meaning——literally stars or angels—best fits into the context of those prophecies.

There are many biblical prophecies, especially in the book of Daniel, where a figurative word is used in the description of a dream or vision, and then, when the interpretation of that dream or vision is given, the literal meaning of that figurative word is also given. One example of this is in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, where the word mountain (Daniel 2:35) is used figuratively to mean kingdom. We know this because in the interpretation of the dream, the word kingdom is used in place of the word mountain (Daniel 2:44). In these verses, the words mountain and kingdom are both used when referring to the kingdom that Jesus Christ will establish when He returns to establish His kingdom, which shall never be destroyed. (Daniel 2:44)

Therefore, in prophecy, when we see the word mountain, we should check to see which meaning best fits in the context of that prophecy, the literal meaning of the word mountain or the figurative word kingdom.

An example of this is:

And here is the mind that hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sitteth. (Revelation 17:9, emphasis mine)

To see if the literal or the figurative meaning of the word mountains should be used, we should look at the following verse:

And there are seven kings… (Revelation 17:10, emphasis mine)

What goes best with the word kings, mountains or kingdoms? Obviously, the figurative word kingdoms should be used. Also, these seven heads have seven crowns (Revelation 12: 3) and crowns represent kings and kingdoms. If we did not know that the word mountains is sometimes used figuratively to mean kingdoms, then we might find ourselves looking for seven literal mountains.

You see, the more familiar we become with these biblical meanings of those figuratively used words, the better our chances are of correctly interpreting the prophecies that contain those words.

Cautions of Chronology

Looking at the way fulfilled biblical prophecies have been written should give clues as to understanding prophecies that are yet to be fulfilled. One thing that becomes clear by examining fulfilled prophecy is that the chronology of the way they are written has little to do with the chronology of the events as they occurred.

Based on that observation, we should be very cautious not to assume that prophecies of future events will occur in the same chronological order in which they are written. Thinking outside of this chronological box may not seem to be the right thing to do, and it may not even seem logical. However, once you begin finding your way out of that box, you may become enlightened to the many other possibilities.

Biblical Methods of Time and Calendars

The manner in which periods of time are written about biblically, and our understanding of them, can have a major effect on how we interpret prophecies. Biblically there are two main systems of keeping up with time. The Hebrew calendar system is a lunisolar system. There are about twenty nine and one-half days in a lunar (moon) month. A normal Hebrew year is twelve lunar months (about 354 days); therefore, every two to three years an additional thirteenth month is added to keep up with the seasons. Also, their twenty-four-hour day begins at sundown.

The schedule of God’s appointed feast days is based on the Hebrew calendar system. Concerning prophecy, when the Bible uses the word month in relation to Hebrew feast days or times of worship, it is usually referring to lunar months. Also in prophecy, when the Bible is not referring to Hebrew feast days or times of worship, then the word month should then refer to prophetic time.

There are thirty days in a prophetic month. A normal prophetic year is twelve of these thirty-day months (360 days). A (360 day) prophetic year is also shorter than a solar year; therefore, every six to seven years it becomes necessary to add an additional thirty-day month to keep up with the seasons (390 days).

Confused? If so, you are not alone, because the only calendar most of us have ever used is a solar calendar called the Gregorian calendar. Yet the Bible never uses a solar calendar. Therefore, some basic understanding of these calendars can be beneficial as you proceed.

Symbolic Periods of time

In some instances prophetic time is written in symbolic form rather than in numeric form. For example: … a time, times, and an half… and these things shall be finished (Daniel 12:7). Then in Daniel 12:8, Daniel said And I heard, but I understood not.

Even Daniel did not understand what this symbolism meant, so after asking, he was told; in Daniel 12:11, that from the abomination of desolation there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Then it shall be finished.

Three and one-half normal prophetic years are 1,260 days, but these three and one-half years will not be normal prophetic years; these have 1,290 days, because an additional thirty-day month will be added to them to catch up with the seasons.

The abomination of desolation will occur at the middle of the seven years of Daniel’s seventy weeks of years (Daniel 9:27). Therefore, in prophecy, when we see the symbolic language time, times and half times (or other similar forms) we can know that it refers to the last half of the seventieth week of Daniel. Also, when we see three and one-half years written in the literal form 1,260 days or in the form of threescore, meaning sixty days, or forty-two months, we can know that it refers to the first half of the seventieth week of Daniel. Some of the importance of this knowledge will be addressed in detail later in these writings, as it applies.

Also concerning time, the word week in Daniel 9:27 comes from the Hebrew word sabua, which refers to periods of time in increments of seven. One sabua can mean seven days, or it can mean seven years. In Daniel 9:27 one sabua means seven years. One day of that week is the equivalent of one prophetic year. Further evidence of this is that God said in Ezekiel 4:6, I have appointed thee each day for a year.

The word hour comes from the Greek word "hora," which is a portion of time in increments of one twenty-fourth. (an hour is one twenty-fourth of a day). It may also mean one twenty-fourth of a year. Since one normal prophetic year is 360 days, then one twenty-fourth of a normal prophetic year could be fifteen days (360 ÷ 24 = 15).

There are several places in the book of Revelation where one-hour periods of time are mentioned. Most agree that these one-hour periods of time are symbolic, representing a period of time that is longer than one actual hour. The most common perception is that they simply represent an indefinite period of time. Later in these writings you will be able to see how the fifteen-day periods of time mentioned above can fit in perfectly with other prophesied periods of time.

Caution: Theories Are Not Facts

These are some of the basic dos and don’ts of studying biblical eschatology. Yet probably the most important and hardest of all of these for us to follow is to not consider our theories to be facts.

2. Knowledge Barriers

God is in control, and He probably has good reasons for allowing, or even causing, us to form these various differences of opinion. What reasons might He have for causing those differences of opinion? Could it be that God intentionally places knowledge barriers between us and our understanding of His prophecies?

Knowledge Barriers of the First Advent

At the first advent of Christ, the Lord God had placed knowledge barriers in the minds of the people of that time who had the ability to influence others. In those days the people of Judea were mainly influenced by the scribes, the Sadducees, and the Pharisees, who for the most part had perverted God’s laws and had become hypocrites; therefore, God had blocked their ability to understand that Jesus was the promised Messiah. Had God not created this knowledge barrier and the people had known that Jesus was the promised Messiah, then they would not have crucified Him, and God’s plan for our redemption would not have been accomplished.

Even though Jesus’ disciples were told in advance of His coming crucifixion and resurrection, the Lord God still placed a knowledge barrier between them and what He had told them:

Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken. (Luke 18:31–34, emphasis mine)

It was not until after His resurrection that God removed that knowledge barrier:

And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then open he their understanding, that they might understand the scripture, And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day. (Luke 24:44–46, emphasis mine)

Had God not placed that knowledge barrier there for His disciples, they would have been right there with Him, and it is likely that they would have been killed also. It was not God’s plan that they should die at that time, but that they should carry on the work of establishing the church He had instituted. That was the beginning of the church age, and the church age will continue until He gathers together His saints and we become His bride.

Knowledge Barriers of Future Events

God chose His disciples, and He also chooses His pastors, preachers, and evangelists. For His disciples’ protection and to accomplish His objectives, prior to His crucifixion and resurrection, God placed knowledge barriers between them and their understanding of those events (Luke 18:34).

Therefore, for their protection and to accomplish His objectives, isn’t it likely that He has also placed some knowledge barriers between His chosen pastors, preachers, and evangelists and their understanding of certain events of His second coming? This should be obvious because, even among them, there are many differences of opinions regarding those prophesied events.

It is this writer’s opinion that rapture theories like the pre-, mid-, and posttribulation rapture theories are, to some extent, a result of these knowledge barriers. Just as Jesus told His disciples while He was yet with them, He has told us through his Word, the Bible. It is all right there, and He has good reason for how He allows us to perceive it.

The notion that God may have placed knowledge barriers between His pastors, preachers, and evangelists and their understanding should not be taken to mean that His chosen or anyone else should stop studying his prophecies. It should be that the more familiar we become with prophecies of future events, the easier it will be for us to understand them if and when He should remove those knowledge barriers.

Saul of Tarsus, before he became the apostle Paul, had devoted much of his life to the study of Jewish Scriptures. He had been well trained under Gamaliel, the best Jewish teacher of that day. Saul became very zealous and committed to the study of God’s Word, which at the time consisted of the Old Testament laws and prophecies. He knew what the Scriptures said about the promised Messiah, yet he did not realize that Jesus was that Messiah.

It was not until he was on the road to Damascus one day that God enlightened him to that truth. Because of his vast knowledge of God’s Word and His prophecies, once he became enlightened, it did not take him long to become possibly the most knowledgeable man of his time regarding the truth about Jesus.

The point here is that the more familiar we become with God’s prophecies of future events, their location in the Bible, and what they say, the better equipped we will be to understand them if and when God chooses to enlighten us.

Knowledge Barriers of the Second Advent

It should stand to reason, then, that the greater a person’s God-given ability is to influence others, whether by speech, writing, or any other means of communication, then the greater those knowledge barriers should become. What reasons might God have for putting those knowledge barriers in place?

In 1 Thessalonians 2:9–12 the Lord God, through Paul, said that anyone who does not love the truth (His Word, the Bible) that He shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie. That lie should be that the false Christ is the real Messiah.

The false Christ is the son of perdition; the one who commits the abomination of desolation (1 Thessalonians 2: 3–4). Because of what God says here, He is not going to allow anyone who is living at that time and who does not love the truth to come to the understanding of that truth. Could this be one of the reasons for God placing those barriers there?

God knows the beginning from the end, and He certainly knows more about what is best for us than we do. Perhaps keeping some knowledge of future events from us is in our best interest. For example: If by some chance we went through a time of extreme temptations and severe persecutions, and God allowed us to know about it in advance, because of our strong faith we would probably be able to cope with that knowledge. However, with that same knowledge, if we also knew that some of our own friends, family members, or loved ones would not be able to resist those extreme temptations or endure that severe persecution, would we be able to cope with that knowledge? God knows!

Obviously there is a barrier between us and our understanding as to the exact point in time when specific prophetic events of the future will occur. Concerning the Second Coming of Christ, Jesus said that no one knows but the Father only (Matthew 24:36). God has established a specific hour, day, month, and year for the four angels to be released for to slay the third part of men (Revelation 9:14–15), and we have no way of knowing exactly when that will be.

Many have made predictions as to when some of these events will occur, but as yet, none of them have been proven accurate, though many of them have been proven to be inaccurate. You should be able to learn more about these knowledge barriers and the reasons for them later in these writings.

Chapter 2

Tribulation

1. Tribulation / Great Tribulation

Tribulation: The Label

The pre-, mid-, and posttribulation rapture theories hold the position that the word tribulation, used in the biblical sense, refers to wrath. It is easy for anyone to come to that conclusion, because wrath is written about throughout much of biblical prophecy. Also, because of the way the seals, trumpets, and vials of the book of Revelation are written of, it is easy to see how those who hold the pretribulation rapture theory might think that it would take at least seven years for all of those prophecies to be fulfilled.

Even though the word rapture is not actually a biblical word, most people who study biblical eschatology accept that label. Even though the Bible never refers to the seventieth week of Daniel as the seven years of the tribulation, most accept that label as biblical.

Is that a proper label, or is that label misleading?

Great Tribulation: What Did Jesus Mean?

The seven years commonly referred to as the tribulation comes from Daniel 9:27. Daniel 9:27 says that the abomination of desolation will occur at the middle of that week (that seven-year period of time). In Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, He was referring to the same future point in time that Daniel was referring to:

When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place… (Matthew 24:15)

While referring to that point in time, He said:

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. (Matthew 24:21, emphasis mine)

The word tribulation in this verse comes from the Greek word "thlipsis."

That same statement, as recorded in Mark 13:19, translates the same Greek word, thlipsis, as affliction:

For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. (Mark 13:19, emphasis mine)

The First Three and One-Half Years

Thlipsis (Strong’s number 2347) can refer to trouble, distress, oppression, affliction, or tribulation. It is translated as tribulation eighteen times, affliction eleven times, afflictions six times, tribulations three times, trouble three times, afflicted once, anguish once, burdened once, and persecution once. That is a total of forty-five times that the word thlipsis is used in the New Testament.

The English word tribulation is defined when used as a noun as great trouble; severe trial; affliction, or when used as a synonym as oppression, or distress. While some dictionaries may include wrath when defining tribulation, it appears that the Bible never does. Note: This definition of tribulation is from the Thorndike – Barnhart Comprehensive Desk Dictionary.

In all forty-five places in the Bible where thlipsis is used, it is never used in reference to the first three and one-half years of those seven years, and it is never used in relation to wrath. Since biblically thlipsis is not describing the first half of those seven years and is not about wrath, then what will that period of time be about? This subject is addressed in great detail in Chapter 12 section 1 Events That Bring About the Worldwide Empire.

Biblically, born-again believers, including the apostles, were often persecuted. The period of time that Jesus described as great thlipsis likely relates to the persecution of the saints; which is described as war with the saints (Revelation 13:7). Again, this probably does not refer to wrath. Born-again believers are not appointed unto wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9).

Persecution and wrath are not the same thing. God’s wrath occurs when God brings about judgment as a result of His anger. During the time of the end, God’s wrath will begin when Gog comes up against the land of Israel.

And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord

God

, that my fury shall come up in my face. For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; So that the fishes of the sea, and the beasts of the field, and the creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. (Ezekiel 38:18–20, emphasis mine)

Note: The timing of this event in relation to other events is addressed in detail in Chapter 4 under the heading The Second Phase of the War, and it may not occur at the beginning of those seven years, as many theorize.

2. Biblically: What Is Tribulation?

Examples of How Thlipsis Is Used Biblically

These are some examples of how the word thlipsis is used throughout the New Testament when it is translated as tribulation:

…for when tribulation or persecution ariseth… (Matthew 13:21, emphasis mine)

…In the world ye shall have tribulation… (John (16:33, emphasis mine)

Ye in the above verse refers to born-again believers.

…and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. (Acts 14:22, emphasis mine)

We in the above verse also refers to born-again believers, as does the following verse:

And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patents. (Romans 5:3, emphasis mine)

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35, emphasis mine)

Here born-again believers who love Christ are asked the question, Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword, separate us from the love of Christ?

Now compare the word sword here in Romans 8:35 with:

…And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God… (Revelation 20:4)

This refers to those of us who will love Christ more than our own lives and will not let the threat of physical death separate us from the love of Christ. Remember, born-again believers are not appointed unto wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9); therefore, none of these things should refer to wrath. There have been in the past and will be in the future many martyrs for their testimony of Jesus Christ, and that is not wrath.

Following are two examples of how the word thlipsis is used in the New Testament when translated as afflicted:

Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. (Matthew 24:9, emphasis mine)

Born-again believers are those who will be giving a testimony "for my