I am Pre-Trib or at least rapture before the REAL WRATH (3 1/2 yrs.), but I will tell one of the arguments of the others. It is Mathew 24.
And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world.
World can and is printed as "age" in certain manuscripts. My problem is says "thy coming".
Another argument is the fact that it says one man will be left while another taken, one woman left while another taken, etc. This entire chapter is meant by non rapturers to mean (and it could and I will explain how) that 1/2 of the people of Israel were killed in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. If you read the chapter closely with the thought of the destruction of 1/2 of the total Jewish population (less than in the holocost, but 1/2 of the population was a MUCH greater percentage and would touch every family extra hard so the tribulation talked about could be related to that destruction and the one man taken the other left could refer to the number killed or taken into slave labor.
Their key phrase to use is:
"16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be."
The last sentence referring to the great tribulation to occur to the Jews which also meant the FINAL destruction of the country of Israel, until its rebuilding later.
Then their key phrase is verse 34:
Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
As I said many thinks he is referring to the 70 year AD destruction of Jerusalem which would essentially be the end of the world as the Jews know it. They also say that 70 AD was approximately 40 years from when he made this speech which is typically one generation for the Jews (see Exodus and 40 year delay before entering the Holy land to let generation die off.)
HOWEVER: There seems to be too much mention of the Lord's return and like some who say it is symbolism like in Revelation then to me it sure seems like the REAL tribulation.
BUT, let me make one more remark that is interesting. My pastor feels that almost every scripture in the Bible has something to tell EVERY age. AND because of this he might have been referring to both in a round about way. I know this sounds like a stretch, but it is not as much if you think about it with an open mind. Either way, it still appears to refer to a rapture followed by the great wrath (which may be the LAST 3 1/2 years, but still could be the entire trib).
Just some thoughts from different scholars with different points of views. Like all others I'm sure everybody will have their specific interpretation for exactly what this means.
