Three Views on the Rapture [Paperback]

Gleason L. Archer Jr. (Author), Stanley N. Gundry (Series Editor), Paul D. Feinberg (Contributor), Douglas J. Moo (Contributor), Richard R. Reiter (Contributor)

Book Description

Series: Counterpoints: Bible and Theology | Publication Date: September 2, 1996

Premillennialists continue to be divided on the question of the rapture of the church. Will it occur before, in the middle of, or after the tribulation? Drs. Feinberg (pretribulation), Archer (midtribulation), and Moo (post-tribulation) present the cases for their respective positions. They also critique each other's positions, and they provide a defense in response to the critiques of their fellow authors. Firmly held and clearly stated convictions are tempered by an irenic spirit. The interactive and fair-minded nature of the Counterpoints format allows the reader to consider the strengths and weaknesses of each view and draw informed, personal conclusions. Three Views on the Rapture is introduced by Richard Reiter's helpful essay tracing the history of this debate in American evangelicalism. The Counterpoints series provides a forum for comparison and critique of different views on issues important to Christians. Counterpoints books address two categories: Church Life and Bible and Theology. Complete your library with other books in the Counterpoints series.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Three Trinity Evangelical Divinity School professors present their premillennnialist views on when the rapture will occur - before, during, or after the tribulation. Paul D. Feinberg argues the pre-tribulation position. Gleason L. Archer presents the mid-tribulation position. Douglas J. Moo holds the post-tribulation view. Richard Reiter gives a historical overview. Previously titled The Rapture.

From the Back Cover

Premillennialists continue to be divided on the question of the rapture of the church. Will it occur before, in the middle of, or after the tribulation? Drs. Feinberg (pretribulation), Archer (midtribulation), and Moo (post-tribulation) present the cases for their respective positions. They also critique each other’s positions, and they provide a defense in response to the critiques of their fellow authors. Firmly held and clearly stated convictions are tempered by an irenic spirit.

The interactive and fair-minded nature of the Counterpoints format allows the reader to consider the strengths and weaknesses of each view and draw informed, personal conclusions.

Three Views on the Rapture is introduced by Richard Reiter’s helpful essay tracing the history of this debate in American evangelicalism.

[Set bios inside.]

[Series blurb] The Counterpoints series provides a forum for comparison and critique of different views on issues important to Christians. Counterpoints books address two categories: Church Life and Exploring Theology. Complete your library with other books in the Counterpoints series.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan; Rev Sub edition (September 2, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310212987
• ISBN-13: 978-0310212980
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A study and counterpoint of three rapture views., May 13, 1999

By 

Todd Hudnall (Colorado Springs, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Three Views on the Rapture (Paperback)

Three Views on the Rapture assumes a premillennial eschatology and contrasts the three primary rapture views. It is scholarly and probably not for the average reader. For the student of eschatology it is a very interesting work. The authors are quite respectful of one another, yet not fearful to mix it up. I recommend it only for those who already have some knowledge of issues concerning premillennial eschatology.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Decent Treatment, Not Great But Adequate, April 12, 2001

By 

Mark Jones (Watkinsville, GA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Three Views on the Rapture (Paperback)

The format, three predominant views of premillenialism set side by side intrigued me. I was a little bit disappointed because all three scholars are from the same school, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. I was also slightly disappointed because the book is quite dated, going back to the an early 80's prophecy conference. A lot of prophetic viewpoints have changed since then, which affect interpretations and schools of thought in eschatology.

But, overall I was duly impressed. Feinerg, Archer and Moo are fine conservative scholars, and each make an impressive case for their stance as to the timing of the premillenial rapture. In my opinion, Archer stands out among them, and does an excellent job of setting forth the mid-tribulational rapture.

Not a great eschatology work, but an adequate synopsis of widely held views. I agree with the other reviewers that it is not for the novice, but for someone already familiar with premillenialism and end-times prophecy. It's a read and pass-on, no permanent place on my shelf kind of book.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Backgrounder, January 22, 2004

By 

H. L. Nigro - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Three Views on the Rapture (Paperback)

The timing of the rapture is a matter of much debate these days, and in order to have a discussion in what I call "the James 3 tradition" (respect, love, humility, and grace), it helps to have an accurate understanding of what the other positions are and why others hold to them. As such, this book does a good job of describing three of the four main premillennial positions on this topic. I believe the omission of the emerging and rapidly mainstreaming prewrath position, however, was an unfortunate oversight that I hope will be corrected in future editions.

One of the most fascinating aspects of this book is its introduction that discusses the development of the pretrib, midtrib, and posttrib positions. When one understands how these positions developed and why one gained more steam and notoriety than others, one begins to understand why popularity alone does not determine orthodoxy.

Interestingly, the origination of the pretrib concept in the early 1800s and its rapid deployment throughout the evangelical circles in the 1900s had less to do with good practices of scriptural interpretation than a response to the amillennial interpretations that had dominated for centuries, combined with popular exposure to this position due to power and resources of its defenders during a time of relative scriptural ignorance among the general population. The midtrib and posttrib positions developed in the academic circles in response to the perceived error of rapidly popularizing pretrib position, but they came too late; pretrib had already become entrenched. Such background is fascinating and necessary for any student of the rapture and helps to put the positions themselves into perspective.

The presenters of each of the three positions covered in this book are well chosen, and they provide good, overall assessments of the academic proof-texting of each of these three views. The back-and-forth debates between the holders of each position expose the reader to the basic reasoning behind them, as well as the strengths and flaws in each argument. They also expose the fact that none of these positions can stand strong against critical scrutiny and holds firm only in isolation. Hence, my disappointment that the prewrath view was not included in this discussion.

I think this is a terrific book for anyone wanting to gain grace and understanding in the rapture debate. I do not recommend it because any of the three presentations are, in themselves, convincing (they are not). Rather, I recommend it as an important backgrounder and primer on three of the four primary positions from an academic (rather than popular) perspective and a good sense of how and why they developed.

-- H. L. Nigro, author of Before God's Wrath: The Bible's Answer to the Timing of the Rapture