GLOSSARY OF CERTAIN KEY TERMS

Kingdom of God

This is a phrase used many times in the gospels. In Mark 1:15 Jesus said the kingdom of God was at hand at the beginning of his ministry. In Luke 9:27 he said that some standing in his midst would live to see the kingdom of God. Just days before his crucifixion he said the kingdom of God would be near after the fig tree brings forth its leaves and summer is past (Luke 21:29-31).  I believe the kingdom of God began at the end of the 70th week of Daniel's prophecy (Daniel 9:27) which coincided with Jesus appearing to Mary and the disciples at the empty tomb as described in John 20 (i.e., the last day of the feast of tabernacles in AD 35).  The reason the New Testament is so cryptic about when the kingdom of God arrived is likely because of the belief that Jesus was reincarnated after his crucifixion.  Given the controversial nature of reincarnation, the scriptures did not clearly identify the time when the kingdom of God arrived.

Rapture

The term is commonly used in connection with the event described by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18. In the passage Paul describes Christ returning and the dead in Christ being resurrected. At the same time he describes living people being "caught up" in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  Here's my take on this passage. This event coincides with the end of the world. The reason Paul mentioned people being caught up in the clouds is to draw a relationship between this event and the translation of Elijah described in 2 Kings 2:11. One finds similar imagery in Revelation 11:12 with the two witnesses ascending into heaven in clouds at the time of the final judgment. In my book The Millennium Chronology I explain the reason for drawing such a relationship. Paul's belief was that the world would end some perfect multiple of 1,000 years following Elijah's translation.

The Tribulation

Two tribulations are mentioned in Matthew 24:21 and 24:29. These were not the same periods of time. The former Matthew calls the "great tribulation" and it occurred after the spring of AD 66-leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.  The latter is a period that preceded the spring of AD 66 and defined a time when false Messiahs appeared.