CHAPTER ELEVEN
"The pre-Trib view explains why the church is not mentioned in Revelation 4:3 through chapter 18." 1
In the second and third chapters of the Revelation, the Lord dictated messages for each of seven specific churches. As mentioned, we interpret these messages as the second part of John's vision—the things which are. (See Revelation 1:19). Then, beginning in the fourth chapter, the subject changes from those seven churches to events which are future—to things which will take place after these things. Pre-Tribulationists note that for much of that portion of John's vision, the word "church" is absent from the narrative. This includes all of Chapters 6-18, which happens to be the section describing the Tribulation. They hold the reason for this "stunning silence" is the pre-Trib rapture. "How else can we explain that the church, the major player in the events of chapters 1 through 3, is mentioned specifically seventeen times but does not appear once during chapters 6 through 18, which describe in detail the events of the seven-year Tribulation period?" 2 We wonder, is this a sound argument for the pre-Trib rapture? To answer, let's first restate it in formal terms:
There are a number of problems with this argument. To begin, the first premise is a non sequitur. It simply does not follow that because a thing is present, it must be mentioned. (The church was clearly present when I and II Peter were written, yet the word "church" was not used in either epistle.) There is also a huge problem with the second premise; that is, it can only be true if you accept the pre-Trib notion that the so-called "Tribulation saints" are not members of the church. As we have shown, this idea is clearly contradicted by Scripture. In the Revelation we learn that these believers not only "keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus," but, along with all other members of the body of Christ, their names have been written "from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain." (See Revelation 12:17 and 13:8). In other words, while pre-Tribulationists may wish to exclude them, the "Lamb" does not. Therefore, since neither premise is valid, the pre-Trib conclusion that the church has been removed must be rejected as unsound.
By now, you should have recognized Reason # 11 for what it is—merely another argument from silence. The problem, of course, is that this kind of argument can be used to prove anything. In fact, it could just as easily have been employed to prove the church is not in heaven during the Tribulation. Let me illustrate. There are a number of passages in Revelation 4 through 18 which describe events in heaven. However, nowhere in those texts will you find the word "church." Based on this "stunning silence" we could, therefore, conclude the church cannot possibly be in heaven during the Tribulation.
As an aside, it is interesting to note Walvoord's response to the fact that Scripture does not mention the church as being in heaven during the Tribulation. He counters by suggesting the church's presence in heaven "may be indicated by the twenty-four elders." 3 To that we respond by saying, pre-Tribulationists cannot have it both ways. On the one hand, they argue that the word "church" is never applied to Tribulation believers, thus concluding that the church must have been removed from the earth. But on the other hand, when faced with the fact that the word "church" is not used of the 24 elders either, pre-Tribbers are loathe to come to the same kind of logical conclusion—which would be that the church must not arrive in heaven until after the Tribulation. The solution, of course, is simple. All pre-Tribbers have to do is recognize this argument for the logical fallacy it is, then they can reject it out of hand. Of course, once that is done, leaving Reason # 11 on the table might prove rather awkward.
Notes on Chapter 11.
Last Updated November 14, 1997 by Larry Simmons