Is the Pretrib Rapture Anti-Semitic? Is pretrib latently anti-Semitic? Does it have anti-Jewish baggage because of its eschatology?
I often see strange comments on social media. One person in a group wrote that believing in pretribulationism means you believe Israel has to face persecution alone. They went on to say that pretribbers support Israel, but “during its greatest need” they are raptured away; therefore, the pretrib rapture is anti-Jewish. No one bothered to correct the statement.
This sentiment isn’t that uncommon. Following a tweet by a non-pretribber with a decent size ministry, someone remarked,
Though probably not intentional or well thought out by most, pre-trib doctrine leans anti-Semitic. God is faithful to His word. He said He would deliver Israel in the end and He will.
Only one person (a pretribber) pulled them up. The original tweeter didn’t.
Sprit & Truth example
In a Q & A session with Tony Garland another person wrote,
[Pretrib is] An ivory tower theology that does not want to face the facts of history is also evident in the relatively recent doctrine that the Church will escape what Scripture calls tribulation and all the punishment will fall on Israel. While this is not a total Replacement theology it nevertheless is a partial one in that the Church inherits the blessings and Israel is left behind with the curses. I see this as another manifestation of Christian anti-Semitism which closes its eyes to the damage that the Church has caused and is still causing with this comforting (for Christians) so called pre-trib teaching. WHERE IS THE THEOLOGICAL VIEW OF HISTORY that does justice to God’s eternal covenant with Abraham, to God’s own name, for he is supposed to act NOT BECAUSE OF WHAT ISRAEL IS BUT BECAUSE OF WHAT HE IS? (Bolding mine)
Tony’s response was gracious. You can read it in full HERE. But I’ll be blunt; statements such as the above tend to self-exult: “my rapture view is more virtuous and/or biblical than yours.” Or “I’m braver than you.”
A little irony
The first two examples (the group and the tweet) manifested in a Prewrath (PW) Rapture setting. How does removing the church and leaving Israel behind square with the PW position? It maintains that the worst time of all sees the church removed to spare its life. But Israel has to suffer the “Day of the Lord wrath.” And according to more recent PW accounts, the tribulation continues for the Jews.
Not only does this view leave Israel behind, we are also left to ponder how anyone can survive the continuing (worst) tribulation (given the church has to be removed) and (presumably) combined with what ought to be the worst period of all—God’s wrath.
Anti-Semitism is insidious. Over the years I’ve written articles addressing anti-Israel bias and anti-Semitism. My rapture view is formed by my (no doubt imperfect) understanding of eschatological passages, not bias against Israel.
Inferring otherwise smacks of a cultic mindset.
Maranatha!
Further reading
Israel Replacement Eschatology
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