In part 7 of our study on Pentecost, we connected Hebrews 12 both to the original Pentecost (Shavuot) and a future rapture followed by a time of wrath on earth, also possibly starting on Pentecost. Let’s examine that connection more fully in this post.
Thunder, Lightning, Smoke, Fire, and Terror
Remember back in part 1 of our study I told you to remember the thunder, lightning, billowing smoke, fire, and the voluminous blast of the trumpet sending terror into the heart of the people on Mount Sinai? This is what the author of Hebrews is referring to. See the comparison:
Exodus:
On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
[10 Commandments Given]
Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.
Exodus 19:10-20; 20:18-21
Hebrews:
For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.”
[that was on the first Pentecost, the giving of the Laws of Moses on Sinai]
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
[this suggests the resurrection/rapture event in my opinion, when we are gathered to the heavenly Mount Zion]
See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
[this section is referring to the entire Day of the Lord, which culminates in God shaking the heavens and the earth to remove the kingdoms of humanity and of the fallen angelic realm. This is when Jesus will set up His Millennial Kingdom – at the Second Coming]
Hebrews 12:18-29 ESV
A Time of Darkness
Just as God marked His arrival on Mount Sinai with a time of darkness upon the mountain, the Day of the Lord will be a time of great darkness over the whole earth. Let’s see how well the descriptions match up:
Mount Sinai – Giving of the Law
Preceded by:
- a time of consecration beforehand, they should ensure their garments are washed
- come near the mountain, but do not touch it on penalty of death
- refrain from sexual intercourse
- stand before the mountain
Marked by:
- thunder
- lightning
- fire
- smoke
- thick cloud
- darkness
- gloom
- tempest
- very long, loud trumpet blast
- a great earthquake
- thunderous reverberating voice of God
- all the people terrified
Day of the Lord – Coming of Wrath
Preceded by:
- The gathering of believers unto Christ (the apostasia, or rapture) – ensure our garments are washed in the blood of the Lamb!
- Believers gather on the heavenly Mount Zion, a place of rejoicing! (Heb12)
- The revealing of the antichrist
- Elijah will appear
Marked by:
- thunder
- lightning
- hailstones
- fire
- torrential rains
- blood
- columns of smoke
- sulfur
- darkness
- wonders in the heavens and on the earth
- great earthquake, starting in Israel and spreading globally
- mountains thrown down
- cliffs shall fall
- every wall shall tumble to the ground
- all the people on earth terrified
While the Day of the Lord and the Giving of the Law at Sinai obviously have very different intents and purposes, I want you to notice how God’s interactions with humanity invoke fear and terror in the hearts of man. At the conclusion of each of the Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls, there are flashes of lightning, thunder, and rumblings.
“Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it.” Isaiah 13:9 ESV
God will rise up to protect Israel from certain destruction in order that all prophecy can be fulfilled; this begins the Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord is an intense period of God’s intervention and judgment (wrath) on earth.
During the Day of the Lord:
- The earth, and in particular Jerusalem, will be cleansed of its bloodguilt (answering the prayers of the Seal 5 martyrs)
- Nations will be judged by how they treated Israel
- Wickedness will be purged
- Those who rejected God’s salvation plan will be punished (2 Thessalonians 2)
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ ends the wrath of the Day of the Lord and will bring about Israel’s reconciliation with God. Ultimately, the Day of the Lord will prepare the earth (physically) and its inhabitants (spiritually) for Jesus to usher in His Millennial Kingdom.
Blow A Trumpet in Zion!
When praying for understanding the connections between Pentecost and the Day of the Lord several nights ago, the Lord brought to mind a song from when I was a kid in church:
I believe a key passage to understanding the connections between Pentecost, the Day of the Lord, the Ezekiel 38-39 war, and the rapture of the church is found in Joel Chapter 2.
Joel 2:1-2,15-20,28-32 ESV
Blow a trumpet in Zion;
sound an alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming; it is near,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
assemble the elders;
gather the children,
even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O Lord,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Then the Lord became jealous for his land
The Lord answered and said to his people,
“Behold, I am sending to you
grain, wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
a reproach among the nations.
“I will remove the northerner far from you,
and drive him into a parched and desolate land,
his vanguard into the eastern sea,
and his rear guard into the western sea;
the stench and foul smell of him will rise,
for he has done great things.
“And it shall come to pass afterward,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
Even on the male and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit.
“And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.
Notice that a trumpet sounds in Zion before the Day of the Lord begins (Joel 2:1-2). The Day of the Lord follows, accompanied by darkness, clouds, gloom, and thick darkness. Note the assembly of the people, the bridegroom and the bride leaving their chambers. The bridegroom would leave His chamber, heaven, at the time of the opening of the skies to reveal Him. The bride would leave her earthly chambers to come join Him in the heavenly ones that He has prepared for her. We will speak more on this wedding in a future post!
I also want you to note the connection to God arising so His heritage is not made a reproach among the nations, the Northerner being removed, and his stench and foul smell arising. This has connections to the battle of Ezekiel 38-39, the purpose of which is to exalt God’s Name among Israel and the nations! We will also delve into that further in a future post!
We also have our special passage that we discussed in Part 3 in Peter’s Pentecost Prophecies, regarding the connection between the blood moon sign and the end of the church age.
Next, however, we need to examine this trumpet that is blown in Zion!
Pentecost Part 9 – The Trumpets and the Feasts
Main Pentecost Study Menu: Everything You Need to Know About Pentecost, the Feast that Ties It All Together For The Church
Further Resources:
Are you CERTAIN of your Salvation, beyond a shadow of a doubt? Do you KNOW that no matter when the rapture occurs, you will be counted worthy to escape? If not, please read What Must I do to Be Saved.
Precursors to the Day of the Lord
Examining the Day of the Lord in Depth
Does Scripture Support a Pentecost Rapture? (PDF – T.W. Tramm)
The Feast of Pentecost (GraceThruFaith)
Shavuot – Revelation and the Fruit of the Spirit (Hebrew4Christians)
The Mystery of Pentecost (Prophecy Watchers)
The Rapture of the Church – Our Blessed Hope
The Noisy, Not-So-Secret Rapture of the Church
Seals, Sealing, and the Ministry of the Holy Spirit
Braxton Hicks, Labor Pains, and the Time of the End
God’s Mosaic – A Whole Scripture Overview of Things To Come
Main Menu – God’s Mosaic Prophecy Model
The Bible is infallible. I am not. I am merely challenging traditional models and testing them against Scripture. I believe that traditional pretribulation teachings provide a solid backbone upon which to lay the musculature of details, some of which I think might need to be adjusted slightly. I encourage you to consider my thoughts as you also examine the scriptures to see if these things are so!
Red Moon Rapture 