Another Bible text makes it even more clear that Jesus will not return secretly. “Behold, He [Jesus] is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him” (Revelation 1:7, NKJV). This text says that when Jesus comes, every eye—everyone on earth—will see Him come. That doesn’t sound like He is coming secretly! Matthew says that Jesus’ coming will be as visible as the lightning that flashes from one end of the sky to the other. “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matthew 24:27, NKJV). The Bible says that Jesus will come in glory with the angels (see Matthew 16:27); that He will come with the shout of the archangel and a blast from the trumpet of God (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17); that the wicked will see Him coming and cry out for the rocks and mountains to fall on them and hide them from His face (see Revelation 6:14-17); and that He will return as King of kings, leading the armies of heavenly angels (see Revelation 19:11-16). All these texts make it clear that Jesus’ coming is anything but secret!

The Bible says, “The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10, NKJV; see also 1 Thessalonians 5:2). But does this mean that He will come secretly and snatch away the saved, leaving the wicked behind? No. This very text that says Jesus will come like a thief in the night, also says that the heavens will pass away with a great noise. That won’t be secret!

So what does it mean for Jesus to come “like a thief in the night?” The apostle Paul says, “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thessalonians 5:4-6, NKJV). Jesus’ coming will be unexpected by those who are not watching and waiting for Him. It will come upon them like a thief in the night. But His people—who are not of the night nor of darkness—will be looking for Him. They will be aware of the signs of His coming and will know that it is near. Jesus’ coming will not overtake them like the unexpected appearance of a thief. That’s what the Bible means by saying that Jesus’ coming will be like a thief in the night—it will be unexpected to those who are not watching for Him.

The "Day" Of The Lord Comes As A Thief In The Night

Note: both 2 Peter 3:10 and 1 Thessalonians 5:2 do not speak about the “Lord” coming as a thief in the night, but rather the “day” of the Lord coming as a thief. This completely changes the meaning of the verse. In fact, the subject of the sentence is “day,” while the phrase modifying the subject is “of the Lord.” Christians are to watch and be ready for the “day" of the Lord to come suddenly, but once the event is at hand it cannot be hidden. It will be very obvious when Jesus comes again!

But doesn’t Matthew 24:37-42 say that when Jesus comes, some people will be snatched away and others will be left behind? Let’s see what Matthew says. “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:37-42, NKJV).

Matthew says that when Jesus comes it will be like it was in the time of Noah—some people will be saved (left) and other people will be destroyed (taken). Looking more in-depth at Matthew’s wording, those who are “taken” when Jesus comes are those who are lost, taken away, and destroyed by the brightness of His coming (see 2 Thessalonians 2:8).

You can think of it like this, imagine a flood swept through your town. Those who escaped, were left behind by the waters of the flood, while those who lost their lives were taken away by the water. Additionally, in the parallel passage of Luke 17:37, Jesus' 12 disciples ask the question, “Where Lord?” referring to those who are taken. Jesus responds by saying, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.” Thus Jesus again explains that those who are taken will be destroyed as is symbolized by the gathering of vultures seeking to consume the dead. Therefore, we can see that the Bible does not support the idea of the secret rapture for the saved.

(Note: Logically and scripturally, the question “where” only applies to those who are taken, because the location of those who are left would be the exact same location as before the event occurred.)

Those who hold to the idea of a secret rapture also believe that there will be seven years of tribulation following the rapture and that during this time individuals who were left on earth will have another opportunity to accept Jesus and be saved. Is there any Bible evidence for this belief?

First, there is no biblical evidence for a seven-year period of tribulation following Jesus’ return to Earth. And the Bible is clear that when Jesus returns, every person’s eternal fate has been decided; individuals who are lost will not have a second chance to be saved. Jesus says, “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work” (Revelation 22:12, NKJV). The Bible presents Jesus’ second coming as the great climactic event of the ages when men and women are either saved or lost for eternity. There is no seven-year period to reconsider our lives and change our destiny. Jesus pictured the separation that will take place at His coming between the righteous and the wicked—the saved and the lost—in these words: “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’ . . . Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels’ ” (Matthew 25:31-34, 41, NKJV).

That is not to say there will not be a tribulation. The Bible does certainly foretell of a soon coming “time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time” before Jesus’ return (Daniel 12:1). However, does Scripture support the interpretation that Christian believers will be raptured, and taken away from the tribulation, leaving only the wicked?

Jesus doesn’t leave us in the dark and sheds light on the event that will be like none other before it. “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened” (Matthew 24:21-22).

One must question, if the “elect,” or God’s people, are raptured before “the great tribulation,” why would they need the days “shortened?” Actually, all throughout the Bible, we are given examples of God’s people being saved in the middle of tribulations, not being saved before it.

• When the Israelites were captive in Egypt, God preserved them in the midst of the plagues that devastated Egypt. Just as Israel was delivered from Egyptian bondage after the plagues, so God's church will be protected through the plagues and be delivered from the hand of the oppressor (1 Corinthians 10:11; Psalm 91; Psalm 46).
   
• Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego entered the flames when they refused to yield to the universal death decree of Babylon's King. Their death-defying faith forced them to face the flames of tribulation, and in those flames God miraculously delivered them (Daniel 3:16-28).
   
• Daniel’s decision to be faithful in his daily prayers caused him to be tossed into the lion’s den. God saved Daniel while he was going through tribulation, not before it came (Daniel 6).
   

Similarly, right before Christ returns, the faithfulness of the elect will cause them to be the target of the ungodly, bringing about a time of persecution and great tribulation. However, just as throughout all of Biblical history, God preserves His elect. The same Jesus that was with the Hebrew men in the fire and lion’s den, will go with us through our trials.  When the last day judgments are poured out on the world, God will shield those who follow Him with all their heart and mind.

Historically, the belief in the secret rapture is relatively new. Many of the notable Christian leaders of the faith understood from the Bible that Christ’s coming would be a literal, audible, glorious event for God’s persecuted people who would be raptured after they endured the great tribulation brought about by the antichrist including:  

John Bunyan, John Calvin, Adam Clarke, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Finney, Matthew Henry, John Huss, John Knox, Hugh Latimer, C.S. Lewis, Martin Luther, D.L. Moody, George Mueller, Sir Isaac Newton, John Newton, Charles Spurgeon, William Tyndale, Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, John Wesley, George Whitefield, William Wilberforce, John Wycliffe, Ulrich Zwingli, and many others.

Of course, the truth of a teaching is not dependent upon who believes it, but whether or not it is in line with all of the Scriptures.

There are some other points to consider when seeing if the “secret rapture” and pre-tribulation understanding fits into the last events of earth’s history as outlined in the Bible:

• The notion that the tribulation will occur after Christ comes for the church is glaringly inconsistent with 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, which makes it plain that the antichrist is revealed before Jesus comes and is destroyed by the brightness of His coming (2 Thessalonians 2:8).

Thus, as we have seen, the teaching of the secret rapture is not found in line with what the Bible teaches about the Second Coming of Jesus.

What day is the Sabbath? Exodus 20:10 says, "But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God."
 

Who made the Sabbath? It's in the Bible, Genesis 2:1-2, NIV. "By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done."

What is the reason for keeping the Sabbath day holy? It is the memorial of creation. It's in the Bible, Exodus 20:11, NIV. "For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."

For whom did Christ say the Sabbath was made? It's in the Bible, Mark 2:27, NIV. "Then He said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.'"

What does the fourth commandment require? It's in the Bible, Exodus 20:8-10, NIV. "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates."

What has God designated as a sign between Himself and His people? It's in the Bible, Ezekiel 20:20, NIV. "Keep My Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God."

The Sabbath is also a sign of sanctification. It's in the Bible, Ezekiel 20:12, RSV. "Moreover I gave them my Sabbaths, as a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I the Lord sanctify them."

In the new heaven and earth, how often will the redeemed worship the Lord? It's in the Bible, Isaiah 66:22-23, NIV. "'As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before Me,' declares the Lord, 'so will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before Me,' says the Lord."

While Christ was on earth, did He keep the Sabbath? It's in the Bible, Luke 4:16, TLB. "When He came to the village of Nazareth, His boyhood home, He went as usual to the synagogue on Saturday, and stood up to read the Scriptures."

What day immediately precedes the first day of the week? It's in the Bible, Matthew 28:1, NIV. "After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb."

After the crucifixion, what day was kept by the women who followed Jesus? It's in the Bible, Luke 23:56, NIV. "Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment."

What was Paul's custom concerning the Sabbath? It's in the Bible, Acts 17:2, NIV. "As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures."

At His death, didn't Jesus nail the Sabbath to the cross? Let’s look at what was nailed to the cross in Colossians 2:14-17.

“Having wiped out [blotted out] the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”
Read More: Is the Sabbath for the Jews only?
Read More: Is Sunday a memorial of Jesus’ resurrection?

Symbols and shadows

The law of ceremonies that pointed to Jesus, the Lamb of God, sacrificed on the cross for our sins, was nailed to the cross. There, at the cross, type (the Passover lamb) met antitype (Jesus, the lamb of God). The symbol faced reality and shadow found its substance. Paul sums up the meaning of all Jewish ceremonials as follows: "Which are a shadow of things to come.” So the sabbaths mentioned in Colossians 2:16 are those sabbaths that were types or symbols of something better to come.

Old Testament ceremonial sabbaths

If you study the ceremonials of ancient Israel, you will find seven yearly ceremonial sabbaths that had to do with the annual Jewish feasts. These sabbaths came on different days of the week, through the years, just as your birthday does. They were shadows of things to come.

What was nailed to the cross?

The seventh-day Sabbath of the fourth commandment was not a shadow waiting for its fulfillment. It was not symbolic of anything connected with the cross. The seventh-day Sabbath is the memorial of a completed fact, the creation of our world in six days. The seventh-day Sabbath of the 10 Commandments had no connection with the ceremonial sab­baths. Those ceremonial sabbaths of Colossians 2:16 were nailed to the cross or ended at the cross. While on the other hand, the seventh-day Sabbath, as a part of God's eternal law, is never-ending and will continue to be kept in the new earth when sin is forever gone. (see Isaiah 66:23.)

Is there any pronouncement from God that changes the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the week? Most Christians accept the Ten Commandments, given by God at Sinai, as a valid guide to live by. Moses reminded Israel:

“These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly, in the mountain from the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and He added no more. And He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me” (Deuteronomy 5:22).

The Ten Commandments are the only message God has ever personally written out for the human race. They are so important that He wrote them on stone with His own finger (Exodus 31:18). In the fourth commandment, God instructs us:

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work. . . . For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:8-11).

When God created our world, He set apart the seventh day as the “Sabbath of the Lord” by three divine acts (Genesis 2:1-3). God:

• Rested on the seventh day from all His work.
• Blessed the seventh day.
• Sanctified it.

Again at Sinai, when He gave the Ten Commandments, God reiterated these same truths. He also made it clear that no human being should revise or edit the instruction from His holy lips. “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you” (Deuteronomy 4:2).

God Himself pledges not to alter His commands: “My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips” (Psalm 89:34). The Bible is clear that God did not change the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the week.