Word "Rapture" not in the Bible

[Steve]

Have you ever heard that argument? I was just watching a show on PBS, interviewing a Doctor of Divinity at some fancy-schmancy university who argues that End Times prophecies were relevant to the people of the time but not today (*snort*) and that the word "rapture" does not appear anywhere in the Bible. I couldn't believe it! This is a person with a PhD and he couldn't find the word "rapture"!? I'm no PhD but I can certainly tell you where to find it:

" deinde nos qui vivimus qui relinquimur simul rapiemur cum illis in nubibus obviam Domino in æra et sic semper cum Domino erimus"
ad Thessalonicenses I 4:17 (Vulgate)

See the underlined word "rapiemur"? That's Latin for "caught up" (passive future tense), as in

"Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
I Thessalonians 4:17

The word "rapture" is the English-ized version of the Latin infinitive "raptere"--to catch up or take away. That was pretty easy to figure out and I'm no professor!

So, next time someone give you that tired argument you can show them where the word "rapture" is in the Bible.

[Keith]

Well, there ya' go...

[Omega]

The word rapture actually does appear in the bible, that is the Latin Vulgate only. The Latin bible indeed uses the verb from which the rapture is derived. The latin vulgate is one the best translations of the New Testament and uses the word rapture. However the New Testament was written in "koine" Greek and uses the word (harpazo) which means "to seize," "snatch"). The point here is that the Latin Vulgate usage of the word (raptus - carry off) is actually a correct translation of the word the Greek word (harpazo). So the Doctor of Divinity was probably referring to the words used in the original manuscripts which were written in Koine Greek and not latin.

God Bless!

[Steve]

That is exactly my point--if they're looking for a Latin word they need to look in a Latin translation. Any time I've heard this argument it was in reference to English translations. I could just as easily argue against the rapture because the word "begeisterung" isn't in the Bible. But it is, if you look in the right translation. "Begeisterung" is German for "rapture". Just because it isn't English doesn't mean it isn't there.