The Rapture of the Churchනියැදිය

Day 2: Is the Word “Rapture” in the New Testament?

Some ask, “If the Rapture of the Church is real and such an important doctrine, why doesn’t the actual word ‘rapture’ appear in the New Testament?”

That is a good question. Many critics have argued that the idea of a “rapture” is a man-made concept because they can’t find the English word “rapture” in the pages of the New Testament. But it really is there, so let’s solve this riddle.

The first-ever translation of the Greek Scriptures into the Latin language was carried out by Jerome, a scholar who knew Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, in about 390 AD when he translated the original languages of the Old and New Testaments into what is called the Vulgate version of the Bible.

Although Greek was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, significant populations knew none at all, and their primary tongue was Latin. For this reason, Jerome produced a Latin translation of the Bible so that the Word of God would become accessible to a wider Latin-speaking audience. For 23 years, he worked nonstop on his translation and commentary.

We owe much to Jerome for his monumental work in translating the word harpadzo — which is the Greek word Paul uses in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 KJV to describe the catching away of the Church. Jerome translated it using the Latin word rapiemur, which is related to the Latin word raptus, and this is the root of our word “rapture.” The Greek word that Paul used and the Latin word that Jerome used to translate it both have the same meaning: to abduct, to carry away, to carry off, to catch, to forcibly grasp, to seize, or to snatch. They can both indicate the idea of suddenly snatching someone out of a dangerous situation, or suddenly snatching someone out of danger just in the nick of time.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:17 KJV, Paul explicitly uses this word to depict the soon-coming moment when Christ will abruptly abduct, carry away, carry off, catch, forcibly grasp, or suddenly snatch the Church out of danger, just in the nick of time. The dead will be raised first, then those who are spiritually living, robust, thriving, vibrant, and vigorous — the remaining remnant of spiritually alive believers who have endured and will still be left around at the time of the coming of the Lord — will be suddenly and supernaturally snatched out of imminent danger! The Lord will instigate a divine rescue operation to transport them into the clouds to join those whose bodies have just been resurrected.

This picture of the Rapture is undeniable, and because Jerome’s translation was the first ever to be translated from Greek into Latin, it became the foundation of all Bible-translation work for nearly one thousand years. This means that the Latin word rapiemur that he used for the Greek harpadzo — which describes this catching away of the Church in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 KJV as well as similar events throughout the New Testament — became a well-known biblical term describing the moment when Christ will abruptly and supernaturally snatch the Church out of danger, just in the nick of time.

This event will stand as the grand finale of the Church age that gloriously ends one epoch in history so that another can begin. Thus, we can clearly see that, while the English word “rapture” may not be literally present, the concept of this event is well-established and can be consistently seen throughout Scripture.

For Your Consideration

• Do you believe that the Rapture of the Church is a biblical doctrine? How has today’s devotional affected your view?
• As you read today’s scriptures, look for the translations of harpadzo (“caught up” in the KJV). Reflect on the ways this word is being used and see if you can find other verses that use this word.