Reclaiming the 1st Thessalonians Rapture Narrative [ Part- 2]

Chapter 13 of Reclaiming The Rapture : Reclaiming the 1st Thessalonians Rapture Narrative (Chris Steinle)

Translating the Rapture Verse 

First let’s examine the common Greek-to-English equivalent of each word or phrase so that we can start with the literal Greek meaning expressed by the original language. Commentary is inserted where English words are added, or where English translations depart from the literal Greek equivalent. (Greek words and phrases from Verse 17 are in bold) 

Verse 17: ἔπειτα ἡμεῖς (epeita haemeis); Then we. 

Verse 17: οἱ ζῶντες (hoi zontes); the ones alive. 

Verse 17: οἱ περιλειπόμενοι (hoi perileipomenoi); the ones left behind 

These “ones” are typically translated into English as; “the living survivors,” or “those alive and remaining.” 

The word commonly used in the New Testament for “remain” is the Greek word μένω (meno); to remain, abide. Therefore Paul’s choice to use a different word reflects a peculiar aspect about these living ones. 

Strong’s NT 4035: περιλείπω (peri-leipo) 

From peri and leipo; to leave all around, i.e. (passively) survive – remain. 

Greek; peri; about, around 

Greek; leipo; to be destitute, lack.⁶⁰ 

According to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon: 

περιλείπω: present passive participle περιλειπόμενος (cf. περί, III. 2); to leave over; passive, to remain over, to survive: 1 Thessalonians 4:15, 17. (Aristophanes, Plato, Euripides, Polybius, Herodian; 2 

Macc. 1:31.)⁶¹ 

The Complete Word Study Dictionary of the New Testament by Spiros Zodhiates begins its definition of perileipo by noting the Classical Greek meaning as; “those who survived, and therefore remained, or were left behind.”⁶² Specifically referring to First Thessalonians 4:17, Zodhiates translates οἱ περιλειπόμενοι (hoi perileipomenoi) as; the surviving ones. 

St. Paul described these ones remaining as a remnant of survivors who will not merely be alive and abiding, but they will be literally leftover or left about. 

Paul was echoing the ideas expressed in the fourth chapter of Isaiah. The Greek Septuagint uses the same root words as Paul used in First Thessalonians 4:17: 

και εσται το υπολειφθεν εν σιων και το καταλειφθεν εν ιερουσαλημ αγιοι κληθησονται παντες οι γραφεντες εις ζωην εν ιερουσαλημ (Isa. 4:2)⁶³ 

In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious; and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing for those of Israel who have escaped [death]. And it shall come to pass that he who is left (LXX; hupo-leiph-then) in Zion and remains (LXX; kata-leiph-then) in Jerusalem will be called holy – everyone who is recorded among the living [those left alive] in Jerusalem. Isa. 4:2, 3 

Verse 17: ἅμα (hama); together / at the same time, or simultaneously. 

Verse 17: σὺν αὐτοῖς (sun autois); with them. – The Spirit testifying that they should not be made perfect apart from us. Heb. 11:40 may apply here as to why we must be glorified together. The dead, together with the living, at the same time, will both experience the change described by the following verb. 

Harpagēsometha 

Verse 17: ἁρπαγησόμεθα (harpagēsometha) 

Paul used a word for rapture that is so unique in form that this exact word doesn’t occur anywhere else in the Greek New Testament or in the Greek Septuagint version of the Old Testament. Yet the Pre- Tribulation rapture theory has pinned its hopes and built a media empire upon this one word. The internet is replete with images of being “caught up” – the English translation of the word “harpázō.” But there is a Greek word even closer to harpagēsometha than harpázō. The Greek word “harpagē” is so close to the word Paul used for “rapture” that it is actually part of the word, harpagēsometha. 

Harpázō, and harpagē are closely related; but do they mean the same thing? And more importantly, which one of these words expresses the meaning intended by Paul? 

The Greek stems of these words are; harpas (Gr. ἁρπασ), and harpag (Gr. ἁρπαγ). Using Latin characters, the only difference is the last letter of each stem – sigma (sometimes taking the phonetic forms z or dz). And gamma (g). These two words have slightly different definitions and are designated by Strong’s as; GS724 and GS726. 

GS724 harpagē har-pag-ay’ from 726; pillage (properly abstract):– extortion, ravening, spoiling.⁶⁴ 

GS726 726 harpázō har-pad’-zo from a derivative of 138; to seize (in various applications):–catch (away, up), pluck, pull, take (by forces).⁶⁵ 

Strong’s indicates that harpagē is derived from harpázō. And the origin of harpagēsometha has been attributed to both of these lexical entries. But, as can be seen above, the words do not mean the same thing. Nevertheless each of these two words can be shown to support the authors’ conclusions about the rapture and its timing. 

As stated by Strong’s above, harpázō is translated into English in a variety of ways. But whether the Greek word means; take away, carry off, catch up, tear up, rend, ravish, or seize, harpázō usually signifies the use of force. There are other Greek words commonly used to convey that someone or something has been taken, lifted up, or carried away. But harpázō implies that the object which is being taken will be, or has been, seized or violated by force. 

Force is precisely what we would expect to be present at the Lord’s second coming. The exceeding great power of God will forcefully subdue death, including the mortality of our lowly bodies, at the time of the resurrection/rapture. 

The rapture will occur at the time of Christ’s plundering of the devil’s power, which he continues to hold over death. When Jesus was accused of relying on the power of Beelzebub, He used the occasion to talk about the triumph of His kingdom (house) over the household of Satan. Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder ἁρπάσαι (harpasai) his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder διαρπάσει (di-arpasei) his house. Matt. 12:29 (See also Mark 3:27.) 

Harpagē means; pillage, plunder, or spoil. Above in Matthew’s gospel, some English translators have rendered harpasai as “plunder.” Could there be any greater indicator that Christ has overcome His last enemy (death), than at the resurrection of the dead where death is swallowed up in victory? 

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. Heb. 2:14 (emphasis added) 

Harpagē conveys the same forceful aspect of harpázō, but actually fits the First Thessalonians rapture narrative better than harpázō. Based on the assumption that the purpose of the rapture is to remove the church from the planet, popular theologians have asserted that harpagēsometha is the first person plural future passive indicative of the word harpázō. [We] (first person plural) shall (future) be seized/caught/snatched (passive indicative). 

But if harpagēsometha is formed from harpázō, why does the stem contain the gamma ending? Why does it contain the very word, harpagē? This obvious harpagē connection has been conveniently explained away by asserting that the passive voice of “seized” somehow becomes equivalent to the word “plundered.” But changing “to seize” into “to be seized” does not make “seize” an interchangeable equivalent of the word “plunder.” The passive form of “to plunder” would be “to be plundered.” 

Dr. Spiros Zodhiates recognized that harpagēsometha is formed from the root word, harpagē. It is not merely the future passive indicative of harpázō. It is, in fact, the future indicative of harpagē. 

“724. ἁρπαγή harpagē; gen. harpagēs, from harpázō (726), to seize upon with force. Robbery, plundering. Zodhiates provides synonyms such as; skulon (4661), in the plural meaning spoils, arms stripped from an enemy; akrothinion (205), the top of a heap [of plunder], the choicest spoils of war.”⁶⁶ (emphasis added) 

“To seize upon,” does not mean “seized.” Likewise, a person being robbed or plundered of their possessions is not an equivalent expression for taking the whole person away; whether they be caught up, taken away, or carried off. 

The authors agree with Zodhiates that Paul intended harpagēsometha to be the first person plural future indicative of harpagē rather than a derivative form of harpázō. As a verb, harpagē denotes the act of plundering, a forceful change of ownership. But unlike harpázō, harpagē does not involve the abduction of the person himself. The contrast between taking someone away, and taking something away from its owner, is paramount if you happen to be the person involved. That is why our analysis of harpagē must go so much deeper than the casual observance that harpagēsometha would seem to come from the word “harpázō.” 

The future passive indicative of harpázō would indeed be “shall be seized.” But the future passive indicative of harpagē is “shall be plundered.” English translators have bypassed the literal meaning of harpagēsometha simply because they have not understood how “plundered” fits into the rapture scenario. The pre-tribbers have missed the point that Paul was trying to communicate because it doesn’t fit into their own narrative. Paul used the word “plunder” because he was describing the transformation that will occur when mortality is overpowered at Christ’s appearing. Great force will be present at the time of the resurrection/rapture. 

Furthermore, if Paul had used a form of harpázō to mean “seized;” he would have been implying that the force of God will be released for the purpose of gathering the saints against their will. The notion that God’s people would resist drawing near to their Savior is reminiscent of the words of the Psalmist; 

Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you. Psa. 32:9 

Rather, Paul was acknowledging the power of God to transform our lowly bodies. Immediately after this forceful rapture the saints will peacefully, joyfully, meet the Lord in the air. 

The chart on the following pages shows the overall consistency with which harpázō and harpagē are used in the biblical texts. Because harpázō has almost become a household word among students of eschatology, examples of its use are presented first. Included are some exceptions where the words have been used interchangeably. 

There are dozens more examples of harpázō and di–arpázō in the Greek Septuagint that could have been listed in the chart. But the chart is representative of the results of the larger study. 

An online article at PreceptAustin.org sites 34 uses of harpázō in the non-apocryphal Septuagint (LXX) (Gen. 37:33; Lev. 6:4; 19:13; Deut. 28:31; Jdg. 21:21, 23; 2 Sam. 23:21; Job 20:19; 24:2, 9, 

19; Ps. 7:2; 10:9; 22:13; 50:22; 69:4; 104:21; Isa. 10:2; Ezek 18:7, 

12, 16, 18; 19:3, 6; 22:25, 27; Hos. 5:14;6:1; Amos 1:11; 3:4; Mic. 

3:2; 5:8; Nah. 2:12) 

The article continues; “A number of the uses of harpázō in the LXX translate the Hebrew word meaning to tear (taraph; 2963) (as of beasts of prey, tear to pieces – Gen. 37:33, Ps. 7:2, 50:22, Hos. 5:14, 6:1) which brings out the violent aspect of harpázō .” The article concludes; “None of the LXX uses of harpázō convey the same sense of rapture as found here in 1 Thessalonians.”⁶⁷ 

After reviewing the table above we can see that nearly without exception, harpázō is translated into English as “snatch”, “take away”, “seize”, etc.; and harpagē is translated as; “rob”, “spoil”, “plunder”, etc. Such consistent usage of the two words and their translations adds further support that harpagēsometha should be translated as “shall be robbed, spoiled or plundered.” 

John Jeffrey Dodson’s lexicon which harmonizes the work of Abbott-Smith, Berry, Souter, and Strong, gives the concise meaning of harpagē as; “the act of plundering, plunder, spoil.”⁶⁸ 

Based on the assumption that harpagēsometha is the future indicative of harpagē, what has, since the King James era, been translated as “caught up,” could justifiably be translated “plundered.” But would this translation make sense within the context of the verse? Yes! Using “plundered” in verse 17 of First Thessalonians Chapter Four brings out more detail and adds even more weight to Paul’s argument for the timing of the resurrection. 

The next thing to consider is why two of the exceptions in the table above were made when translating Paul’s use of harpagē into English. Paul may have used harpagē with the specific purpose of magnifying the ambiguity of whether, in fact, he had been taken in bodily form, or just caught away in a vision. 

A bolder position as to why harpagē has been translated as “caught up,” (as if it were the Greek word harpázō used in Revelation Chapter 12) is based on the possibility that the English translation has missed Paul’s intent; and that he meant “plundered” in all instances of harpagē. Paul, knowing that flesh and blood cannot enter into the real presence of God, may have used harpagē in recognition that his mortality would have needed to be transformed into a spiritual body; if indeed, Paul had actually been translated into a spiritual body. 

But to say that the English interpretation should vary from its typical meaning in First Thessalonians 4:17 simply because English interpreters have interpreted a previous verse as an anomaly, would base the translation of harpagē in First Thessalonians on circular reasoning. On the other hand, if “plunder” can be shown to work within the context of verse 17, then there is no need to rationalize why an atypical rendering of the word would yield a more accurate interpretation of the verse. 

As a technicality, we will find when we implement harpagē to First Thessalonians Four that “up” may be implied, but is not expressed in texts of either Second Corinthians 12:2-4 or First Thessalonians 4:17. More on this in a moment. 

Then we who are alive and remain shall be shall be plundered/robbed/spoiled. Our goods (our natural body, our mortality) will be plundered. The purchased possession spoken of Paul in Ephesians 1:14 will be redeemed. Instead of being snatched away, God will rob us of our soma psuchikon (the natural body) and further clothe us with our soma pneumatikon (spiritual body). This glorification process requires   the destruction, the plundering, of the old body. The saints are not being carried off at the instant of the “rapture.” The resurrected dead and those who are Christ’s at His coming will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. 

The plundering is not the removal of the body, but the redemption of the body. Paul’s employment of this single Greek word does not establish, by itself, the foundation for an eschatological system. But there are enough examples of the customary Greek usage of harpadzo and harpagē to support the conclusion that harpagē, found in First Thessalonians 4:17, depicts the moment of change promised in First Corinthians 15:23, 50-58. Harpagēsometha supports the idea that those who are Christ’s at His coming will be transformed. This change will occur before both the living survivors and the resurrected saints are gathered to be with the Lord. 

The main purpose of First Thessalonians 4:13-18 is to present such a precise order of events at the time of the Lord’s return so as to comfort to the living. If Paul had used harpázō, he would have been skipping over the moment of the change. This would have blurred the precision of the discrete realities which he was hoping would comfort the bereaved.