Types of the Rapture
by Larry W. Cockerham
The study of types and shadows has been missing from most studies in our seminaries today. It is a shame since these make excellent illustrations concerning New Testament truths. What is a type? It can be a person, place, thing, event, action, or institution that looks forward to its fulfillment in the New Testament. Most types or shadows find their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ. Many are related to prophecy. In this chapter we will look at some types related to the pretribulation rapture of the church.
(1) Enoch – The Bible tells us that Enoch walked with God and was not. He was taken without seeing death in a miraculous way (raptured) one day while walking with God. He was a prophet (Jude 1:14) that saw the second coming of the Lord: “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints” (Jude 1:14). Enoch becomes a type of the church that is taken out before the flood which foreshadows the tribulation period. Noah and his family picture the Jewish remnant who will be preserved or sealed through this time and come out on the other side to form the nucleus of a new society.
(2) Lot – Jesus said that it would be as in the days of Lot (Luke 17:28-30). Lot was taken out of Sodom before judgment rained down upon the city.
(3) Rebekah – Rebekah, who is also a Gentile, meets Isaac after receiving gifts from Abraham’s servant, Eliezer, who is a type of the Holy Spirit. They journey together to meet Isaac at eventide without suffering tribulation.
(4) Joseph – Joseph received his Gentile bride, Asenath (Gen. 41:45), before the seven years of famine. The famine is a picture of the tribulation and Egypt is a type of the world.
(5) Moses – Moses received his Gentile bride, Zipporah (Ex. 2:21), before the ten plagues that came upon Egypt. The plagues picture the tribulation period.
(6) Rahab – Rahab (Joshua 2:1), is a Gentile, who by faith hangs a scarlet thread from her window which is symbolic of the blood of Christ. She and her family are delivered before the city is burned with fire (Joshua 6:24). Jericho is a type of the world system that will be destroyed during the Day of the Lord.
(7) Ruth – Ruth, a Gentile, returns with Naomi to Bethlehem at the beginning of the Barley harvest without experiencing famine. Her marriage to Boaz, a type of Christ, our kinsman redeemer, places her into the Messianic line along with Rahab. Ruth is a picture of the church, whereas, Naomi is a type of Israel.
(8) Abigail – David, who is a picture of the greater David, Jesus Christ, desired to make Abigail his bride (1 Sam. 26:40-42). She immediately responded and “hasted, and arose” with “five damsels” that went after her to go to David for the marriage. This is reminiscent of the five virgins that had oil in their lamps (Matt. 25:1-13) who went forth to meet the Bridegroom from their dwelling place.
(9) Song of Solomon – In the Song of Solomon, the bride, (Song of Solomon 2:8-13), which is a type of the church, hears the voice of her Beloved (Jesus) coming for her. The Bridegroom calls, “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away” (vs. 10).
(10) Daniel – Some see Daniel as a type of the church in that he was out of the country when the three Hebrew children when they were cast into the fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar is a type of the Antichrist and the three Hebrew children picture the Jewish remnant who will be preserved through the Day of the Lord.
These ten types prefigure our catching up to meet the Lord in the air. There are many other references to the Rapture in the Old Testament, but these should suffice in proving that the church will be taken out before the coming Day of the Lord.
