Joseph Prince’s Pre-tribulation rapture doctrine is contradicted by Martyn Lloyd-Jones & George Muller – By Rev George Ong (Dated 26 Oct 2022)
The view of Martyn Lloyd-Jones that is against the Pre-tribulation rapture doctrine of Joseph Prince, which is featured in this article, is what the vast majority of Bishops, Pastors, Elders and church members will be reading for the first time.
In fact, most Pastors and church members aren’t even aware that Martyn Lloyd-Jones has a view on the rapture issue, and much less that he is against the Pre-tribulation rapture.
So don’t miss what Martyn Lloyd-Jones has to say about the Pre-tribulation rapture doctrine.
Also, don’t miss the Appendix at the end of this article – a short 3-page but intriguing article
– “Does Joseph Prince really respect Martyn Lloyd-Jones & George Muller as he claimed, or does he not?”
Another tantalizing discovery in the Appendix
– “Does Joseph Prince really love all his critics which he claimed in his 16 Oct 2022 sermon, 2 Sundays ago” that was featured last Sunday?
No, he lied!
Besides the longer video on Joseph Prince which you will come across in a short while, there are 6 other short videos on Prince which are featured in the various parts of this article. Don’t miss them.
Since Joseph Prince didn’t preach last Sunday on 23 Oct 2022, let’s see if Prince has enough courage, not just to preach this Sunday on 30 Oct 2022, but also to rebut the points that have been raised against his heretical teachings in 3 articles which are featured this week, especially this current article.
In this article, I have once again surfaced the contradictions between the teachings of Martyn Lloyd-Jones and Joseph Prince – this time with regards to the rapture of the church.
Joseph Prince holds to the Pre-tribulation rapture doctrine, while Martyn Lloyd-Jones believes in the Post-tribulation rapture of the Church. These 2 positions are diametrically opposed.
Despite such massive contradictions between the teachings of Joseph Prince and Martyn Lloyd-Jones, why then did Prince call Lloyd-Jones a great man of God and regard him as the Charles Spurgeon of the modern church?
If a preacher teaches against the bulk of your doctrines, would you hail him as a great man of God and a Charles Spurgeon of the modern church?
You would be crazy if you did. Yet, that was what Joseph Prince did.
It is indeed a mystery that only Joseph Prince can throw light on.
But why is Prince keeping mum all this while about the whole thing?
Prince should have the guts to come forward and clarify this irony publicly, and not be a coward to hide behind the security of his silence!
Note: I’m using ‘Pre-tribulation rapture’ and ‘Pre-trib rapture’ interchangeably.
(This article was also sent to Rev Dr Ngoei Foong Nghian, General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Singapore (NCCS) office, and for the attention of the Executive Committee Members.)
Now, the article proper…
In a weekly Sunday sermon aired on YouTube on 16 Oct 2022, 2 Sundays ago, Joseph Prince said;
Please click here to view the 30-second video:
“Listen, God still has a special covenant that he will fulfil in the days to come, especially when we are raptured, God’s whole prophetic programme will go back to the Jews. Amen. Amen.
And, we will be watching down. Say ‘I don’t believe in the Pre-trib rapture.’ You can stay. We’ll be watching you from above, Amen. It’s very clear. To me, the Bible is very clear. The Bible says we are delivered from the wrath to come. Amen. We don’t go through the wrath. Are you with me so far?”
Joseph Prince brought up one key argument in the Pre-tribulation rapture.
It is the issue that believers will not go through the wrath of God, and hence, would have to be raptured.
But he wrongly assumes that the tribulation is the same period as the wrath of God, which isn’t (even though he is aware of this fact).
This issue about God’s wrath and the great tribulation will be dealt with in another article, hopefully soon.
The focus of this article is to point out that Joseph Prince’s Pre-tribulation rapture is contradicted by Martyn Lloyd-Jones.
Then, I will cover in greater details on the 4 areas about the Pre-tribulation rapture that Martyn Lloyd-Jones had briefly explained in his article (see below).
In ‘Great Doctrines of the Bible, The Church and the Last Things, Volume Three’, Chapter 13, Martyn Lloyd-Jones said;
“Another matter which is taught by the same school of interpretation concerns not only the time of His coming but also the mode of His coming. I am referring to what is commonly called the preliminary rapture of the saints (Pre-tribulation Rapture).
Now this teaching… was not known before 1830. It was first taught at one of the prophetic conferences which were known as ‘The Powerscourt Conferences on Prophecy’.
“According to this 1830 teaching, our Lord’s second coming will thus be in two stages, there will be two separate comings. He will come the first time only to receive the saints unto Himself. He will come the second time, accompanied by the saints, to destroy the Antichrist and to introduce the period of the millennium. But it does not stop at that.
This first coming of the Lord will be secret. Nobody will see Him but the saints. It will be a secret rapture. Unbelievers will not know that He has come. All they will be aware of is that the believers whom they knew are no longer there.
… The secret rapture may happen at any moment; there are no prior signs. It differs from the traditional view which I (Martyn Lloyd-Jones) have been putting to you which says that the Antichrist must appear and be revealed before the second coming of our Lord can take place.
No, it is held that this coming of the Lord for His saints (Pre-tribulation rapture) will precede the manifestation of the Antichrist and all his nefarious works. This is obviously a most important matter to consider.
I have said that the teaching about the secret rapture did not appear before 1830. We have, in fact, an authoritative statement as to how it began. There was a New Testament scholar called Tregelles, who belonged to the so-called Plymouth Brethren. Tregelles was certainly one of the greatest scholars of New Testament textual criticism of the last century, and in addition he was a saintly man of God. In 1830 and subsequently he was present at the Powerscourt Conferences which were attended by the great J. N. Darby and B. W. Newton, and other people belonging to that school.
This is what Tregelles says:
‘I am not aware that there was any definite teaching that there should be a secret rapture of the Church at a secret coming until this was given forth as an utterance in Mr Irving’s church, from what was then received as being the voice of the Spirit. But whether anyone else asserted such a thing or not, it was from that supposed revelation that the modern doctrine and the modern phraseology arose.’
“Now Tregelles says that as far as he knew the doctrine of the secret rapture of the Church at the coming of our Lord was first taught as the result of a prophetic utterance in Edward Irving’s church. It originated as an utterance in tongues, interpreted by somebody, and, indeed, Tregelles emphasised this by saying that this teaching was a ‘revelation’.”
“According to Tregelles, the teaching with regard to the preliminary rapture of the saints, which first came in as a prophetic utterance, was accepted by certain people present at the 1830 conference, including J. N. Darby.
But it was not accepted by B. W. Newton, nor by Robert Chapman or George Muller. Many people are not aware that it was not generally accepted, even among that circle, and there was a division.
Only J. N. Darby and certain of his followers accepted it, though they entirely dissociated themselves from Edward Irving when he began to talk about the tongues, the visions, the apostles and so on. Nevertheless, the teaching about the rapture persisted and still persists.
That, then, is the teaching about this preliminary rapture (Pre-tribulation rapture) and the friends who believe this claim that there are certain scriptures which prove it.
Next, we come to Acts 1:11: ‘This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.’
Here the argument of those who believe in the rapture (Pre-tribulation rapture) is that Christ’s ascension was not seen by the world and therefore Christ’s coming will not be seen either.
But when the angels say, ‘in like manner’, they are clearly referring to the mode of His coming, which will be bodily and visible.
Then we read in verse 52 (1 Cor 15) that ‘the trumpet shall sound’, and in verse 26 that ‘the last enemy will be conquered’. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 tells us that ‘the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first’. There is nothing secret about this.
Finally, in John 5:28-29 our Lord says, ‘Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation’; while in John 6:39-40 He (Jesus) refers to ‘the last day’.
So, the clear impression of Scripture is that there is only one coming, not two; nor are there two stages. There is only one resurrection, also, as we shall see later. There is, then, no ‘secret’ or ‘preliminary’ rapture, and no coming of our Lord at any moment. Certain things must happen first, as we have seen.
Shortly before his death, George Muller was asked whether we are to expect our Lord’s return at any moment or whether certain events must be fulfilled first. This was his reply:
‘… The Scripture declares plainly that the Lord Jesus will not come until the Apostasy shall have taken place, the Man of Sin, the son of perdition shall have been, revealed as seen in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5. Many other portions also of the Word of God distinctly teach that certain events are to be fulfilled before the return of our Lord Jesus Christ…’”
Martyn Lloyd-Jones brought up 4 main issues:
1. Pretribulation rapture is a secret and silent coming.
2. There is only one coming, not two as taught in Pre-tribulation rapture.
3. The Post-tribulation rapture and resurrection happens on the last day as pointed out by Jesus in John 6:39-40.
4. Pretribulation rapture was not mentioned before 1830.
Using my own phraseology, I will now cover them in greater detail:
1. Joseph Prince’s Silent & Secret Coming is Illogical & Indefensible.
2. Joseph Prince’s teaching of two second comings of Christ is Unsound.
3. Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture theory is Invalidated by Jesus’ teaching on Resurrection.
4. Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture doctrine wasn’t taught by the Early Church Fathers, the Reformation Fathers & the Church until 1830.
1. Joseph Prince’s Silent & Secret Coming is Illogical & Indefensible.
In a video, Joseph Prince said; please click here to view a 10-second video:
“So the rapture is such that He comes, the world won’t even know because it will happen in the twinkling of an eye. We will hear His voice, the world won’t. All they know is that we all disappeared.”
Joseph Prince’s doctrine about a secret and silent coming of Christ when He comes to rapture His saints is totally unbiblical and diametrically opposed to the teachings of scriptures.
When Joseph Prince teaches that the bodies of raptured saints will suddenly disappear in secret, and no one sees them, except themselves, it only reveals his ignorance for the simple reason that our resurrected (and raptured) bodies can be seen with the naked eye and touched with our bare hands.
If you know your scriptures, the resurrected body of Jesus can be touched and seen by anyone and everyone.
Our Lord Jesus in His resurrected body walked and talked with two men (seen by them) as they travelled to the nearby city of Emmaus.
The Apostle Thomas touched the scars on the Lord’s resurrected body and the resurrected Jesus taught about His Kingdom to (and was seen by) over 500 people at one time.
When it came for our Lord to leave, many people saw His resurrected body ascend to heaven.
If people could see the resurrected body of Jesus, how could they ever miss seeing millions or billions of believers resurrected and raptured at Christ’s coming?
So, Joseph Prince’s teaching that once our bodies are caught up and changed in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, we will secretly disappear from sight and no one would be able to see us, is both untenable and nonsensical.
To be “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, is not the same as to disappear in total secrecy.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 NIV
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
Yes, the Church is “caught up” but the scripture does not say she will disappear.
Yet, that’s what Joseph Prince is teaching.
Joseph Prince has once again added to the word of God.
There isn’t a single scripture verse that teaches a secret rapture in that only believers will see their own resurrected bodies and hear the sound of the trumpet, while all unbelievers won’t see or hear a thing.
Even a child wouldn’t be fooled by Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture doctrine that in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, the loud command and the deafening trumpet sound are meant only for Christians, while the rest won’t even hear a single decibel of all those noisy activities:
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NASB
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who remain, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
Just by the plain reading of 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, this cannot be a secret, quiet and invisible coming.
In fact, this is one of the least secret and silent passages in the Bible.
Far from being silent, it is probably one of the noisiest passages in scripture.
The resurrection-rapture at Christ’s coming is anything but silent or secret. It is done with loud proclamation and great fanfare.
There is the public announcement by the archangel; THE KING IS HERE.
The shout in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, is a military shout of command.
It is a “war cry” of the Lord Jesus, summoning the troops to battle for the destruction of His enemies.
Then, this will be followed by the sound of the loud trumpet heralding His coming.
When Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers teach of a silent coming of Christ, they forget that there is no such thing as a silent trumpet.
Does anyone ever come across someone blowing a trumpet without any sound emanating from the trumpet?
If there is no sound, why blow the trumpet?
Trumpets aren’t elegant and quiet instruments. Trumpets are loud and they have a piercing and deafening sound.
If you wanted to sneak over to your neighbour’s house and secretly snatch something from his house, would you do it shouting at the top of your voice and blowing a thunderous trumpet?
Absolutely not!
People will think you’re mad if you did.
In the same way, it would be an impossible feat for Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers to logically explain that if 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 indeed paints a scenario of a secret and silent rapture, why are there shouting and trumpet blowing in the same passage?
The Pre-trib secret and silent rapture doctrine, is ironically, contradicted by their own key text in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17.
It is nowhere stated in the Bible that the return of Jesus would be invisible to the human eye of unbelievers as taught by Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers.
Not a single verse can be found that supports this Pre-trib invisible return theory and secret rapture.
But there are many passages that state that His return would be visible.
In Acts 1:9-11, it states that just as Christ’s ascension would be visible, His descent or return from heaven would be in that same visible manner too:
Acts 1:9-11 NIV
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Revelation 1:7 also states that every eye will see Him at His return:
Revelation 1:7 NIV
7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen.
Matthew 24:30 confirms that all peoples of the earth will see His second coming.
Matthew 24:30 NIV
30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.
This proves that the scriptures never teach an invisible but a visible coming of Christ that will be witnessed by every human eye.
Hence, both the invisible rapture and secret coming of Christ are not taught anywhere in the Bible and is a figment of human imagination.
How could it be a secret coming when resurrected bodies, which could be seen and touched, would be seen by the whole world?
How could it be a silent rapture when there is a loud command and the deafening sounding of the trumpet?
Indeed, the trumpet sound will be so loud that even the dead will hear it.
And the dead in Christ will rise. They’ll receive new immortal bodies. It is the day of their appearing.
Furthermore, we who are alive will be changed to have glorious bodies. Then together with them, we will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air.
Wow! What a day! Oh, what a sight!
The graves bursting open, the saints receiving new bodies, the heavens all aglow, millions upon millions of His saints all shouting.
It seems that everything on earth will be announcing this great and glorious day, that Jesus has come.
There will be singing, shouting, laughing, and arms-waving joyously offered in celebration and worship at this majestic and climatic event.
They will be shouting loud praises as they rise in their new immortal bodies, proclaiming, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”
The resurrection and rapture event at Christ’s second coming will probably be the noisiest event this world will ever see, not a silent, mysterious secret as falsely concocted by Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers.
How all these noisy and joyous activities can be a secret and silent event is just beyond human logic and comprehension.
It isn’t a secret and silent event. It is open, visible, audible; yet it is Christ’s parousia.
Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers have painted themselves into a corner – with the fact that their teaching of a secret and a silent rapture, is ironically contradicted by 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, their number one key text which undergirds their doctrine.
Once a doctrine suffers from internal contradictions, the game is as good as over.
But what’s totally unacceptable is that Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers have made the resurrection (and rapture) of the saints which is supposed to be a climatic and an earth-shaking event into a secret, invisible, quiet and low-key event, all in the cause of supporting their unbiblical Pre-trib rapture doctrine.
This must have been one of the greatest injustices that they have committed against the resurrection and rapture event at Christ’s coming.
Far from being a secret and silent occasion, it is a momentous and cataclysmic event that ought to be magnificently celebrated in the grandest and most glorious way.
2. Joseph Prince’s teaching of two second comings of Christ is Unsound.
Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture doctrine that there are two second comings of Christ is both confusing and misguided.
In a video, Joseph Prince said; please click here to view a 10-second video:
“1 Thessalonians 4, “But I do not want to be ignorant brethren.” Paul is writing this. Alright, this is not second coming, listen.”
Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture theology teaches that the “coming” in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 is not the second coming of Jesus but the Pre-trib rapture of the church, which happens 7 years before Christ’s second coming.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:15, the word “coming” (parousia) is used by Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers to support the Pre-trib rapture that Christ will rapture the Church before the tribulation:
1 Thessalonians 4:15 NIV
15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming (parousia) of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
Yet, when the same word, “coming” (parousia) is used three times in Matthew 24, they say that Matthew 24 is referring to another coming of Christ seven years later, when He will come with His saints to earth, after the church, who has escaped the tribulation on earth has enjoyed seven years of bliss, safety and security in heaven:
Matthew 24:3 NIV
… “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming (parousia) and of the end of the age?”
Matthew 24:27 NIV
For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming (parousia) of the Son of Man.
Matthew 24:37 NIV
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming (parousia) of the Son of Man.
How utterly confusing that the same English word, ‘coming’ and the same Greek word, ‘parousia’ could represent two different comings in two different periods of time?
The same word for ‘coming’ and ‘parousia’ have to represent the only one second coming of Christ, not two.
But Joseph Prince teaches that there are 2 second comings of Christ.
Prince is of the view that the coming of the Lord in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 is an earlier coming of Jesus 7 years earlier to rapture the saints,
1 Thessalonians 4:15 NASB
15 For we say this to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will not precede those who have fallen asleep,
and not the second coming of Christ in 1 Thessalonians 3:13, when He comes to destroy the enemies and rule the earth,
1 Thessalonians 3:13 NASB
13 so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.
Joseph Prince is effectively teaching that there are 2 second comings of Jesus!
But Paul didn’t teach there are 2 comings.
Why would Paul in the same book of 1 Thessalonians (1 Thess 4:15 & 1 Thess 3:13), speaking to the same audience, use the same word, ‘coming’ and the same Greek word, parousia to denote 2 different comings in 2 different periods of time?
If that’s what Paul had in mind, that would have been utterly confusing to everybody.
If Paul wanted to convey the idea of 2 comings, he would have made this clear – that the coming in 1 Thessalonians 3:13 refers to the second coming of Christ while that of 1 Thessalonians 4:15 refers to an earlier coming of Christ to rapture the saints 7 years earlier.
When Paul is silent, how would the Thessalonians know that the 2 comings in these 2 texts are referring to different comings?
Every coming in the scriptures taught by Paul is always in the singular representing one second coming of Christ, not two that Joseph Prince teaches.
Next, it is as clear as daylight that according to Hebrews 9:28 Christ will return a second time:
Hebrews 9:28 NIV
… so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers must state clearly what this second coming of Christ means in Hebrews 9:28.
If they say this refers to the coming of Christ when He comes for His Church to rapture them, then how do they account for another second coming of Christ seven years later when Christ comes with His Church to defeat the Antichrist?
If Hebrews 9:28 clearly states that Christ is coming a second time, and Pre-tribbers take this to mean that this refers to His coming to rapture the saints, then the coming of Christ 7 years later must be His third coming.
The Pre-trib rapture teaching of 2 second comings of Christ will result in a ridiculous situation that when we approach a text about Christ’s coming, we will have to ask the question – is this text referring to the First second coming of Christ or the Second second coming of Christ?
In a video, Joseph Prince said; please click here to view a 20-second video:
“So first and foremost, I want to tell you that there are 2 phases to the second coming of the Lord. And people confound the two. They confound the rapture with the second coming of the Lord. The Lord will return after the 7 years of tribulation. He will return for Israel, not for the church. For the church He will come in the rapture.”
Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers try to defend their doctrine by arguing that it is not two second comings that they are posturing, but one second coming occurring in two phases.
The first phase, being the Pre-trib rapture of the saints at His coming, and the second (7 years later), when He comes with His saints to judge the world.
By advancing a two-phased second coming of Jesus, Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers have once again daringly added to the word of God.
There is nowhere in the Bible that records a two-phased second coming of Christ.
The two-phased second coming of Christ is shown to be false from Acts 1:11:
Acts 1:11 NIV
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Did Jesus go to heaven in two phases?
No!
Then, He will not return in two phases either as Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers falsely posture.
This is because Luke clearly says;
“… This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)
He left planet earth once and He will return the same way to planet earth once again (and not twice).
And there are absolutely no scripture verses to be found that support the idea of a “two-phased” second coming of Christ!
If Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers could prove that Jesus went up in two phases then they could say Jesus would come down in two phases.
Did Jesus have a ‘two-phased’ departure from earth to heaven after His “first coming”?
Did He go up part of the way, turn around and come back down, and then go back up all the way on a ‘second’ departure?
No!
Jesus simply ascended up (in one phase) into heaven!
And the Bible says that He is coming back in the same way in one phase; one second coming, not two!
And as they watch him ascend into heaven on a cloud, two angels appear and tell them that when He returns it will be in the same way as they had seen Him ascend to heaven:
Acts 1:9-12 NIV
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” 12 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.
What does that mean?
It means that Jesus’ feet are on the ground of the Mount of Olives.
From there, He ascends to heaven from the Mount of Olives to a cloud (Acts 1:11-12).
And when Jesus returns, He will return the same way as He ascends up to heaven.
This means He will descend from heaven from a cloud (1 Thess 4:13-18) until His feet once again touch the ground of the Mount of Olives (Zech 14:4).
So Christ has to pass through clouds or the air to reach the earth.
While He is still in the clouds and in the air, on His way to the earth, He gathers His elect in the resurrection of the dead and the rapture of the living until His feet will finally touch the earth on the Mount of Olives.
So, it is rather clear that Jesus went up to heaven in one phase, not two, and He will return the same way, once, not twice.
In summary, I have shown that there is only one second coming of Christ, not two that Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers have been falsely teaching.
3. Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture theory is Invalidated by Jesus’ teaching on Resurrection.
We need to realise that believers will be resurrected at the “first resurrection” in Revelation 20:5-6.
Furthermore, this “first resurrection” occurs “at the last day” of this pre-millennial age, at the end of the age before the start of Christ’s millennial reign:
Revelation 20:4-6 NIV
4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
Prophet Daniel speaks with the same voice as the Apostle John when he stated that the resurrection will happen only at the end of the age, which is at Jesus’ second coming, and after the tribulation:
Daniel 12:13 NASB
But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age.”
And the incontestable fact is that Jesus Himself said four times He will resurrect the dead on the last day (Jn 6:39-40, 44, 54, and 11:24, said by Martha):
John 6:39-40 NIV
39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
John 6:44 NIV
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.
John 6:54 NIV
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
John 11:24 NIV
Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
Martha knew the heart of Jesus and echoed the same truth that Jesus will raise Lazarus again on the last day.
The last day is at the end of the age – not last days (plural) but last day (singular).
When Jesus plainly and unambiguously said Christians will be resurrected on the last day at the end of the age, Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers have the audacity to contradict Jesus when they teach that the Church will be resurrected 7 years before the end of the age.
To contradict Jesus once is bad enough, but Joseph Prince has the audacity to contradict Jesus four times.
If our Lord Jesus saw it fit to tell us four times in that one message in the Gospel of John chapter 6 that He will raise or resurrect His people at the “last day”, then His word on the matter ought to be final.
The last day is at the end of the present evil age and immediately before the introduction of the new age, the age to come of the thousand-year reign of Christ.
Because the rapture of the living happens immediately after the resurrection of the dead (1 Thess 4:16-17), the rapture will also happen on the last day, at the end of the age, and not 7 years before it as Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers falsely teach.
Therefore, the resurrection and rapture must come at the tail end of the 7-year tribulation, and not before it.
Hence, the resurrection and rapture must be a Post-tribulation rapture event. It must come after the great tribulation.
Furthermore, Jesus also stated in John 6:40 that He will raise everyone on the last day:
John 6:39-40 NIV
39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
The term “everyone” must include every Jewish and Gentile believer who had passed away since time immemorial, plus those who will be killed during the tribulation (Rev 2:10; 6:9-11; 7:13-14; 20:4), and the Old Testament saints.
In other words, everyone of them, together, at one and the same time, will be raised on the last day.
But there are Pre-tribbers who believed that while the dead in Christ will be resurrected and the living raptured 7 years before the tribulation, all the Old Testament and the Tribulation saints (Pre-trib rapture theory: saints who are saved during the Tribulation, while the church is in heaven for 7 years) will be resurrected at the end of the 7 years of tribulation.
Poor Abraham, poor Moses and David and those of our esteemed forefathers in the Old Testament are made to wait 7 years before they are resurrected, while their juniors in the New Testament have been given the undue privilege and advantage of being resurrected 7 years before them.
This is rather absurd!
What is more ridiculous is that according to Pre-trib rapture theology, these Old Testament saints will miss the Marriage Supper of the Lamb in heaven, reserved only for those who belong to the Pre-trib rapture Church.
But the more serious issue about the teaching of Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers on the resurrection of Old Testament saints and the Tribulation saints (those who are saved during the tribulation, according to Pre-trib rapture theory) which occur later, is that it clearly contradicts the plain teaching of scriptures by Jesus in John 6:40 that everyone, together, will be raised at one and the same time, at the last day.
So the New Testament saints will not be resurrected before the Old Testament saints, as Pre-tribbers falsely teach.
Nor will the Church be resurrected and raptured before the tribulation, but all believers (everyone, as given in John 6:40) will be resurrected and raptured together at the same time on the last day of this present age in the “first resurrection” in Revelation 20:5-6.
The Bible never presents a separate resurrection for Jewish and Gentile believers.
The “resurrection of the righteous” in the scriptures is always depicted as a singular event.
Jesus says, “the time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice,” and He will resurrect them:
John 5:28-29 CEB
28 Don’t be surprised by this, because the time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice. 29 Those who did good things will come out into the resurrection of life, and those who did wicked things into the resurrection of judgment.
Will anyone dare to say that when Jesus comes to resurrect the righteous, the Old Testament believers will not hear his voice, and hence will not be resurrected?
Will Jesus say to the Old Testament saints,
“My shout in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 to resurrect believers is not for you but only for all New Testament saints?
1 Thessalonians 4:16 NASB
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
So, too bad, you will have to wait until 7 years later to be resurrected.”
Preposterously, that’s what Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture theology teaches!
Rather, Jesus said that all saints, whether Old or New Testament, will hear his voice to be resurrected.
Furthermore, Joseph Prince and Pre-tribbers tried to postulate a resurrection of the righteous in stages and at different times over a 7-year period.
This blatantly contradicts what Jesus said in John 6:40 that everyone will be resurrected on the last day and at the same time.
Pre-tribbers try to get around this by refusing to interpret the word “day” literally.
The “last day”, which is really synonymous with the day of the resurrection and rapture, Pre-tribbers interpret it allegorically to be a 7-year period of time.
The problem with this interpretation of theirs is that nowhere in scripture is a day given to mean a 7-year period of time.
In their desperation to protect their Pre-trib rapture theology, they have even resorted to inventing a new meaning for the word “day” – they say it refers to 7 years, for which there is no scriptural precedent.
There is nothing vague and imprecise here. We are not talking of the “last days” (plural).
Jesus told us it would be the LAST DAY (singular).
Some Pre-tribbers object and say that this refers to the last day of the church age, which they claim is before the tribulation.
The problem is that not only is the phrase church age not found in scripture, but Jesus only speaks of two ages: this age and the age to come (Matt 12:32; Mk 10:30; Lk 18:30).
If there are only two ages mentioned in scripture, and this age ends with the Post-tribulation rapture return of Christ (Matt 24:3, 29-30), then the last day must also be after the tribulation.
This simply means that the resurrection (and rapture) must happen on the last day, which is after the tribulation and not 7 years before it as falsely taught by Joseph Prince and the Pre-tribbers.
But by far, the most serious error that Joseph Prince and the Pre-tibbers have committed is that their teaching on resurrection contradicted that of the Lord Jesus Himself.
Any teaching that dares to challenge the teachings of Jesus has to be false.
4. Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture doctrine wasn’t taught by the Early Church Fathers, the Reformation Fathers & the Church until 1830.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones has categorically said that the Pre-trib rapture doctrine did not appear before 1830:
“Now this teaching… was not known before 1830.”
“According to this 1830 teaching, our Lord’s second coming will thus be in two stages, there will be two separate comings.”
“I have said that the teaching about the secret rapture did not appear before 1830.”
Many are not even aware that the Pre-trib rapture doctrine was a recent addition to the history of eschatology.
Some may even think that it is a doctrine that has been taught by the Church Fathers.
The truth is the Church Fathers held to the Post-trib rapture doctrine until 1830 when John Darby introduced the Pre-trib rapture teaching.
The Early Church Fathers closest to the apostles believed that the Church would face the Antichrist and go through the tribulation.
Subsequently, the later Church Fathers, including the Reformation Fathers, also held to the Post-trib rapture view.
Please take a few minutes to browse through all the evidence that I have marshalled:
Didache (100) “then shall appear the world-deceiver as Son of God, and shall do signs and wonders, and the earth shall be delivered into his hands, …but they that endure in their faith shall be saved from under the curse itself.” (Didache – Chapter 16)
Justin Martyr (100-168) “O unreasoning men! Understanding not what has been proved by all these passages, that two advents of Christ have been announced: the one, in which He is set forth as suffering, inglorious, dishonoured, and crucified; but the other, in which He shall come from heaven with glory, when the man of apostasy, who speaks strange things against the Most High, shall venture to do unlawful deeds on the earth against us the Christians…” (First Apology of Justin, Chapter 110)
Melito (100-170) “For with all his strength did the adversary assail us, even then giving a foretaste of his activity among US [during the Great Tribulation] which is to be without restraint…” (Discourse on the Resurrection, i, 8).
Irenaeus (140-202) “And they (the ten kings who shall arise) shall lay Babylon waste, and burn her with fire, and shall give their kingdom to the beast, and put the church to flight.” (Against Heresies, V, 26)
Tertullian (150-220) “that the city of fornication may receive from the ten kings its deserved doom, Revelation xviii and that the beast Antichrist with his false prophet may wage war on the Church of God.” (On the Resurrection of the Flesh, Chapter 25)
Hermas (160) “Happy are ye who endure the Great Tribulation that is coming on and happy are they who shall not deny their own life.” (The Shepherd of Hermas, Vision 2:2)
Hippolytus (170-236) “Now, concerning the tribulation of the persecution which is to fall upon the Church from the adversary, John also speaks thus: “And I saw a great and wondrous sign in heaven…” That refers to the one thousand two hundred and threescore days (half of the week) during which the tyrant is to reign and persecute the Church (Treatise on Christ and antichrist, chapters 60-61)
Cyprian (200-258) “For you ought to know and to believe, and hold it for certain, that the day of affliction has begun to hang over our heads, and the end of the world and the time of Antichrist to draw near, so that we must all stand prepared for the battle …” (Epistles of Cyprian, LV, 1,2) “Nor let any one of you, beloved brethren, be so terrified by the fear of future persecution, or the coming of the threatening Antichrist… Antichrist is coming… but immediately the Lord follows to avenge our sufferings and our wounds.” (Epistles of Cyprian, LIII, p.722)
Victorinus (240-303) “He shall cause also that a golden image of Antichrist shall be placed in the temple at Jerusalem, and that the apostate angel should enter, and thence utter voices and oracles… The Lord, admonishing His churches concerning the last times and their dangers, … three years and six months, in which with all his power the devil will avenge himself under Antichrist against the Church.” (Commentary on the Apocalypse, 20:1-3)
Lactantius (240-330) “And power will be given him [Antichrist] to desolate the whole earth for forty-two months… When these things shall so happen, then the righteous and the followers of truth shall separate themselves from the wicked, and flee into solitudes” (Divine Institutes, VII, 17).
Athanasius (293-373) “… they have not spared Thy servants, but are preparing the way for Antichrist.” (History of the Arians, VIII, 79)
Ephraim the Syrian (306-373) “Nothing remains then, except that the coming of our enemy, Antichrist, appear….” (Sermo Asceticus, I).
Cyril of Jerusalem (315-386) “The Church declares to thee the things concerning Antichrist before they arrive…it is well that, knowing these things, thou shouldest make thyself ready beforehand.” (Catechetical Lectures, 15, 9).
Jerome (340-420) “I told you that Christ would not come unless Antichrist had come before.” (Epistle 21)
Chrysostom (345-407) “… the time of Antichrist… will be a sign of the coming of Christ…” (Homilies on First Thessalonians, 9)
Augustine (354-430) “But he who reads this passage (Dan 12) even half asleep cannot fail to see that the kingdom of antichrist shall fiercely, though for a short time, assail the Church before the last judgment of God shall introduce the eternal reign of the saints.” (The City of God, Chapter 23)
Venerable Bede (673-735) “The Church’s triumph will follow the reign of Antichrist.” (The Explanation of the Apocalypse, II, 8)
Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) “There remains only one thing – that the demon of noonday [Antichrist] should appear, to seduce those who remain still in Christ…” (Sermons on the Song of Songs, 33, 16)
Roger Bacon (1214-1274) “… because of future perils [for the Church] in the times of Antichrist…” (Opus Majus, II, p 634)
John Calvin (1509-1564) “… we ought to follow in our inquiries after Antichrist, especially where such pride proceeds to a public desolation of the church.” (Institutes, Vol. 2, p 411)
John Knox (1515-1572) “… the great love of God towards his CHURCH, whom he pleased to forewarn of dangers to come, so many years before they come to pass… to wit, The man of sin, The Antichrist, The Whore of Babylon” (The History of the Reformation…, I, p. 76).
Daniel Whitby (1638-1726) “…after the Fall of Antichrist, there shall be such a glorious State of the CHURCH…so shall this be the Church of Martyrs, and of those who had not received the Mark of the Beast…” (A Paraphrase and Commentary, p. 696).
Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) “… continuance of Antichrist’s reign (when the Church is persecuted) did not commence before the year of Christ 479…” (A History of the Work of Redemption, p 217)
George Mueller (1805-1898) “The Scripture declares plainly that the Lord Jesus will not come until the Apostasy shall have taken place, and the man of sin…shall have been revealed….” (Mrs Mueller’s Missionary Tours and Labours, p 148)
Carl F Keil (1807-1888) “…the persecution of the last enemy Antichrist against the CHURCH of the Lord…” (Biblical Commentary, Vol. XXXIV, p. 503).
Robert Murray McCheyne (1813-1842) “Christians must have ‘great tribulation’; but they come out of it” (Bonar’s Memoirs of McCheyne, p 26).
We have seen the evidence of the Church Fathers saying that the Church will be persecuted by the Antichrist in the tribulation.
If many of these people (Early Church Fathers) who very closely followed after the apostles, all believed that the Church would go through the tribulation and persecution from the Antichrist, then it must be obvious that the Apostles never taught a Pre-trib rapture.
It is a known fact that throughout the pages of Church history and literature, one can hardly find any mention of Christ’s coming before the tribulation until after 1830.
Not one of the brilliant theologians or Bible teachers of the pre-1830 period ever taught a Pre-trib rapture and coming of the Lord.
On the contrary, not only do we have the scripture backing us in the Post-trib rapture teaching, we have the support of the many years of Church Tradition on our side.
Next, how then did the Pre-trib rapture doctrine originate?
There are various views regarding the starting point of Pre-trib rapture theology.
But what is clear is that it was Edward Irving who began to teach the Secret Pre-tribulation Rapture theory in his prophetic meetings.
It was taught in prophetic meetings at Powerscourt House in Ireland, which was attended by the Plymouth Brethren organiser, John Nelson Darby (J N Darby).
Irving’s views had an influence on John Darby, and other Bible teachers such as C H Mackintosh and C I Scofield.
But the man most identified with Pre-tribulationism and responsible for its growth was John Darby, a well-educated, eloquent and brilliant man.
It was John Darby who was largely responsible for introducing this new teaching on a large scale.
Through John Darby, the Pre-trib rapture theory spread from Scotland to England and then to America.
The man most responsible for the spread of the Pre-trib rapture doctrine in America was C I Scofield to whom is ascribed the Scofield Reference Bible.
Scofield included the new Pre-tribulation rapture theory in the footnotes of his famous reference Bible ─ the Scofield Bible.
By adding his personal comments on the same page of the scriptures being discussed, it somehow gives the impression of it having the same authority as the inspired word itself.
That accounts for the spread of the doctrine.
In the early part of the 20th century, this teaching reached its peak in popularity through the writings of Clarence Larkin.
His Pre-trib rapture charts, which were used extensively, helped popularise the Pre-trib rapture theory at the turn of the century in the wave of a great spiritual awakening that shook Western Europe, United States and Canada.
Be that as it may, there were many outstanding men of that day who rejected the secret Pre-trib rapture theory.
Among them were B W Newton, George Muller, William Booth and Charles Spurgeon (see Appendix – I mentioned Charles Spurgeon again in the Appendix for a reason).
In summary, what I have tried to show is that while Post-trib rapture not only have scriptures on its side but it is also upheld by the Church Fathers and the years of Church Tradition, Pre-trib rapture came into the fore only after 1830 through John Darby.
Unfortunately, the false Pre-trib rapture theology has engulfed the Christian world until today.
May many more courageous people arise to expose and demolish this false doctrine that is detrimental to the welfare and future of the Church.
Rev George Ong
Appendix
Does Joseph Prince really respect Martyn Lloyd-Jones & George Muller as he claimed?
Does Joseph Prince really love all his critics which he claimed in his sermon on 16 Oct 2022, 2 Sundays ago?
Joseph Prince claimed he respects Martyn Lloyd-Jones as he said he is a great man of God.
In a video, Joseph Prince said; please click here to view a 10-second video:
“Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones, who is an English theologian, great man of God.”
Joseph Prince also claimed he respects George Muller as he said he is one of his heroes of faith.
In a video on 2 Feb 2022, 8 months ago, Joseph Prince said; please click here to view a 10-second video:
“George Muller, one of my heroes of faith. And George Muller is an amazing man of God.”
(In that sermon on 20 Feb 2022, 8 months ago, Joseph Prince brought in George Muller’s name to beef up his faith teaching in his Prosperity Gospel or Health and Wealth doctrine. While it is true that George Muller is known for his faith, it has nothing to do with Prince’s kind of distorted faith that he is promoting and practising in his Prosperity Gospel doctrine. Joseph Prince has indeed misused and abused George Muller’s faith to support his Prosperity Gospel doctrine of long life and excellent health.)
But in the sermon on 16 Oct 2022, 2 Sundays ago, Joseph Prince sarcastically & arrogantly said; please click to view a 10-second video:
“And, we will be watching down. Say ‘I don’t believe in the Pre-trib rapture.’ You can stay. We’ll be watching you from above, Amen.”
Since both Martyn Lloyd-Jones and George Muller taught against Joseph Prince’s Pre-trib rapture theory, this would be what Joseph Prince would say to them if they were alive today;
“And, we will be watching down. Say ‘I don’t believe in the Pre-trib rapture.’ You can stay. We’ll be watching you from above, Amen.”
So much for Joseph Prince who calls Martyn Lloyd-Jones a great man of God, and so much for Joseph Prince to declare that George Muller is one of his heroes of faith.
Joseph Prince would also have sarcastically and arrogantly said to all his critics who disagree with his Pre-trib rapture doctrine;
“And, we will be watching down. Say ‘I don’t believe in the Pre-trib rapture.’ You can stay. We’ll be watching you from above, Amen.”
So much for Joseph Prince saying in the same sermon on 16 Oct 2022, 2 Sundays ago that he loves all his critics.
Can Prince’s sarcasm and arrogance against his critics be reconciled with the fact that he genuinely loves them?
Of course not!
This simply means Joseph Prince is lying when he declared in his 16 Oct 2022 sermon that he loves all his critics.
And Joseph Prince would also have sarcastically and arrogantly said to every one of the early Church Fathers and the Reformation Fathers if they were alive today;
“And, we will be watching down. Say ‘I don’t believe in the Pre-trib rapture.’ You can stay. We’ll be watching you from above, Amen.”
The reason is – Like Martyn Lloyd-Jones and George Muller, no Church Father held to the Pre-trib rapture view.
As a matter of fact, no one taught on the Pre-trib rapture view UNTIL 1830.
The truth is (as you have already read) the Early Church Fathers and the Reformation Fathers held to the Post-trib rapture doctrine until 1830 when John Darby introduced the Pre-trib rapture teaching.
The Early Church Fathers and the Reformation Fathers believed that the Church would face the Antichrist and go through the tribulation.
Imagine Joseph Prince doesn’t even have one church father supporting his Pretrib-rapture doctrine.
And, of course, the same goes for his Prosperity Gospel and his (false) Grace Doctrine too.
Talking about church fathers – and by the way, I brought up this before in a previous article – that when an Ex New Creation Church member asked Joseph Prince’s right-hand man, who preaches in the worship services when Prince doesn’t, can he name one church father who supports Prince’s Grace doctrine, the answer given by Prince’s right-hand man was Charles Spurgeon.
This only reflects his ignorance as Charles Spurgeon, besides contradicting Prince’s many other doctrines, also did not believe in the Pre-trib rapture doctrine that John Darby (Spurgeon’s contemporary) taught – and what Joseph Prince teaches.
If the right-hand man of Joseph Prince (top end leadership of New Creation Church) can be that ignorant and given false counsel to a church member, can you imagine the ignorance and falsehood that go down the line!