This thesis seeks to clarify the doctrine of the imminent rapture by presenting the central arguments made by its proponents. It will examine historical, biblical, theological, and practical arguments for an imminent rapture found in church history and modern scholarship. The goal is not to evaluate the persuasiveness of the arguments but to determine which are most central to the position in order to understand the current case made for imminence. This will clarify the imminent rapture position amid ongoing debate over eschatological events.

1. SOUTHEASTERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
A PRESENTATION OF
THE CENTRAL ARGUMENTS FOR THE IMMINENCE OF THE RAPTURE
SUBMITTED TO DR. JOHN HAMMETT
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
THE MASTER OF THEOLOGY DEGREE
BY
JASON M. WHITLOCK
APRIL 12, 2010

2. ©
2010
Jason M. Whitlock
This Thesis was prepared and presented to the Faculty as a part of the requirements for the Master of
Theology degree at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, North Carolina. All rights
and privileges normally reserved by the author as copyright holder are waived for the Seminary. The
Seminary Library may catalog, display, and use this Thesis in all normal ways such materials are used, for
reference and for other purposes, including electronic and other means of preservation and circulation,
including on-line computer access and other means by which library materials are or in the future may be
made available to researchers and library users.

3. iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................................... iv
ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................................... viii
ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................... ix
DEDICATION................................................................................................................... xi
CHAPTER 1, INTRODUCTION........................................................................................1
History and Importance of the Debate 2
Assumptions 4
Definition of Applicable Terms 5
Imminence
The Rapture, Return, and Second Coming
Overview of the Thesis 7
CHAPTER 2, HISTORICAL ARGUMENTS...................................................................10
The Ante-Nicene Fathers 11
Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97)
Didache (prior to A.D. 100)
Constitutions of the Holy Apostles
Ignatius of Antioch (d. ca. A.D. 98/117)
The Epistle of Barnabas (A.D. 70-135)
The Shepherd of Hermas (A.D. 80-175)

4. v
Justin Martyr (A.D. 100-165)
Irenaeus of Lyons (A.D. 130-202)
Cyprian of Carthage (d. 258)
Summary
The Post-Nicene Fathers and the Medieval Church 28
Ephraem of Nisibis (A.D. 373), a.k.a. Pseudo-Ephraem, or Ephraem the Syrian
Codex Amiatinus (ca. 690-716)
The History of Brother Dolcino (1316)
Summary
The Reformation Church 35
Balthasar Hübmaier (c.1480-1528)
Martin Luther (1483-1546)
Hugh Latimer (c.1490-1555)
John Calvin (1509-1564)
Summary
The Post-Reformation Church 40
John Gill (1697-1771)
Morgan Edwards (1722-1795)
Conclusion 45
CHAPTER 3, BIBLICAL ARGUMENTS........................................................................46
The Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25; Mark 13, Luke 12:35-48; 17:22-37; 21:1-36) 48
The Upper Room Discourse (John 14:1-3) 50
The Pauline Epistles 52

5. vi
The General Epistles 59
The Book of Revelation 63
Conclusion 67
CHAPTER 4, THEOLOGICAL ARGUMENTS ..............................................................68
Theological Arguments Made By Imminent Posttribulationists 70
The Nature of Prophetic Fulfillment
The Nature of Prophetic Utterance
The Nature of the Prophets’ Limited Understanding
The Nature of the Interpreters’ Limited Understanding
Theological Arguments Made By Dispensational Pretribulationists 78
Logically-Prior Pretribulationism
The Mystery and Uniqueness of the Rapture
The Church is given no signs of the Rapture
Lack of Admonition, Warning or Signs given to the Church Regarding the
Tribulation
The Church is not appointed to God’s Eschatological Wrath
All Signs Occur After the Parousia Has Begun
Imminence of the Day of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Who is God)
Conclusion 94
CHAPTER 5, PRACTICAL ARGUMENTS ....................................................................96
The Exhortations to the Apostolic Church Indicate an Imminent Return 97
Imminence Empowers Service And Holy Living For Christians
Throughout Church History 100
The Doctrine of Imminence is a Source of Joy, Hope, Comfort,
and Patience in Trial and Persecution 105

6. vii
Rejection of Imminence has Resulted From and Resulted In Sin and
Doctrinal Error 109
Conclusion 113
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................114
Definition of Imminence 114
Summary of Arguments 115
The Central Case Most Often Made By Those Arguing For Imminence 116
The Arguments Employed By Only A Few 117
Future Studies 118
BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................119

7. viii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
AB = Anchor Bible
ASV = American Standard Version
BAGD = Bauer, W., W. F. Arndt, and F. W. Gingrich. Greek-English Lexicon of the New
Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. Chicago, 1957.
BECNT = Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament
BSac = Bibliotheca Sacra
CTJ = Calvin Theological Journal
CTR = Criswell Theological Review
Darby = Darby Translation
EBC = The Expositor's Bible Commentary
ESV = English Standard Version
EvQ = Evangelical Quarterly
GTJ = Grace Theological Journal
HNTC = Harper’s New Testament Commentaries
ICC = International Critical Commentary
JBL = Journal of Biblical Literature
JETS = Journal of the Evangelical Theology Society
LCC = Library of Christian Classics. Philadelphia, 1953–
LXX = Septuagint
MSJ = The Master’s Seminary Journal
NAC = New American Commentary
NASB = New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update
NKJV = New King James Version
NT = New Testament
OD = Olivet Discourse
OT = Old Testament
RSV = Revised Standard Version
RTR = Reformed Theological Review
TJ = Trinity Journal
TDNT = Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Edited by G. Kittel and G.
Friedrich. Translated by G. W. Bromiley. 10 vols. Grand Rapids. 1964-1976,
TNTC = Tyndale New Testament Commentaries
WBC = Word Biblical Commentary
WW = Word and World

8. ix
ABSTRACT
Throughout its history the church has proclaimed the soon return of the Lord Jesus Christ
in great power and glory and this event can be shown to be an integral aspect of
Christianity. This proclamation has served as a warning to the unrighteous, who will be
judged, and has served as hope for the righteous who will receive eternal glory in the
presence of Christ (1 Thess. 1:10; 2 Thess. 1:5-10; Tit. 2:13). Various preachers and
teachers in church history have proclaimed the imminent coming of the Lord in
judgment, while others have proclaimed the imminent coming of the Lord for His saints.
The problem with both proclamations is that the Lord gave in the Olivet Discourse many
signs that would precede His coming (Matt 24:33; Luke 21:28). Though the
proclamation of the imminent coming of the Lord can appear to be inconsistent, even
contradictory to these signs, this tension nevertheless does follow the characteristic
admonition of other texts, even those in the Olivet Discourse itself (Matt 24:36; 44; 1
Thess 5:1-3).
Up until the past two hundred years a clear understanding of what is imminent
and what is preceded by signs has not been sought. During this time, scholars have
debated whether the rapture is imminent, or whether the Tribulation is imminent. Many
arguments on both sides have been revised or abandoned. For the purpose of future
discussion, this thesis seeks to clarify the debate by the presentation of the central
arguments for the imminent rapture position. This thesis will answer the questions:
“What is the current case for imminence?” “What is the central case most often made by
those arguing for it?” “What are the arguments used most often?” “Are there any
arguments that are employed by only a few?” The imminent rapture position itself will be

9. x
clarified due to this study since the key arguments will be determined. This work does not
seek to evaluate whether or not any or all of the arguments presented are fully persuasive
or convincing. Rather, the more limited goal here is simply a presentation of the central
arguments for this position.

10. I would like to dedicate this work to my wife Fran, whose supportive and
sacrificial love has enabled me to complete this thesis.

12. 1
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
It is the thesis of this work that the doctrine of the imminence of the rapture can be
clarified by a presentation of the central historical, biblical, theological, and practical
arguments held by its proponents. This Th.M. thesis will present these arguments for the
view that the rapture can occur at any moment. Many of the arguments presented in the
study will have been abandoned or revised, so a key aspect of this presentation will be to
identify the current arguments to date. It is not the purpose of this thesis to make a
defense of these arguments against rebuttals; rather, the key contribution of this thesis
will be to present which arguments are the most central to the imminent rapture position,
as viewed by its proponents.
While the arguments do overlap considerably with those of the pretribulational
rapture position, it is not the purpose of this thesis to present all the arguments for that
position. Only the scriptural texts and arguments that deal specifically with the “any-
moment” aspect of the rapture will be addressed. In short, it is the goal of this thesis to
present the central arguments upon which the imminent rapture position stands.
The primary scholars represented here include Anthony A. Hoekema, Benjamin
L. Merkle, and J. Barton Payne for imminent posttribulationism, and Paul N. Benware,
Craig A. Blaising, Darrell L. Bock, Wayne A. Brindle, Lewis S. Chafer, Mal Couch,
Timothy Demy, Paul D. Feinberg, D. Edmond Hiebert, Thomas D. Ice, Grant R. Jeffrey,
John F. MacArthur, Richard Mayhue, J. Dwight Pentecost, Larry D. Pettegrew, Arthur

13. 2
W. Pink, John A. Sproule, Gerald B. Stanton, James F. Stitzinger, Todd Strandberg, John
F. Strombeck, Henry B. Thiessen, Stanley D. Toussaint, John F. Walvoord, and Leon J.
Wood for pretribulationism.
History and Importance of the Debate
Throughout its history the church has proclaimed the soon return of the Lord Jesus Christ
in great power and glory and this event can be shown to be an integral aspect of
Christianity. Adolf Harnack writes,
In the history of Christianity three main forces are found to have acted as
auxiliaries to the gospel. They have elicited the ardent enthusiasm of men whom
the bare preaching of the gospel would never have made decided converts. These
are a belief in the speedy return of Christ and in His glorious reign on earth. . . .
First in point of time came the faith in the nearness of Christ’s second advent and
the establishing of His reign of glory on the earth. Indeed it appears so early that it
might be questioned whether it ought not to be regarded as an essential part of the
Christian religion.1
This proclamation has served as a warning to the unrighteous, who will be judged, and
has served as hope for the righteous who will receive eternal glory in the presence of
Christ (1 Thess 1:10; 2 Thess 1:5-10; Tit 2:13). Various preachers and teachers in church
history have proclaimed the imminent coming of the Lord in judgment, while others have
proclaimed the imminent coming of the Lord for His saints.2
The problem with both
proclamations is that the Lord gave in the Olivet Discourse many signs that would
precede His coming (Matt 24:33; Luke 21:28). Though the proclamation of the imminent
coming of the Lord can appear to be inconsistent, even contradictory to these signs, this
1
Adolf Harnack, “Millennium,” Encyclopedia Britannica (ninth edition), XVI, 314.
2
J. Barton Payne, The Imminent Appearing of Christ (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1962), 12-13. Cf.
John F. Walvoord, The Rapture Question (Grand Rapids: Dunham, 1957), 5; also Henry B. Thiessen, “Will
the Church Pass Through the Tribulation?” BSac, 92 (1935), 190-196.

14. 3
tension nevertheless does follow the characteristic admonition of other texts, even those
in the Olivet Discourse itself (Matt 24:36; 44; 1 Thess 5:1-3).
Up until the past two hundred years a clear understanding of what is imminent
and what is preceded by signs has not been needed. In this time period, however, a
theological system known as dispensationalism has had a profound influence on
eschatology, particularly the doctrine of the Tribulation.3
Dispensationalism has caused a
large measure of study and interest to be generated about eschatology.
In an attempt to maintain imminence, dispensationalism has propounded a
pretribulational rapture theology, which teaches that the church will be removed from the
earth prior to the Tribulation period.4
This view of the rapture seeks to harmonize the
doctrine of the any-moment return of Christ with the newly developed (though not newly
created) doctrine of the Tribulation, which teaches that the second coming will be
preceded by clear signs (Matt 24:15-22, 29-30; 2 Thess 2:8).
As a result, a vigorous debate has been waged regarding the timing of the rapture
and the second coming, much of it centered upon the definition of imminence and
whether Scripture teaches the imminent return of the Lord for His saints.5
The debate
itself has generated many revisions to arguments on all sides, to the point that it becomes
difficult to be sure which arguments are current and which ones have been abandoned or
3
Throughout this thesis, tribulation will be capitalized when referring to the intense time of
trouble covered by Revelation 6-19 and Matthew 24-25, and prior to the second coming of Christ. The
word tribulation will not be capitalized when referring to the persecutions that come upon believers of all
ages, of which Paul and Peter spoke (2 Tim 3:12; 1 Pet 4:12-19).
4
It is interesting to note that recent research into church history has uncovered multiple references
throughout the last two millennia to a pretribulational rapture. For a detailed study of this see James F.
Stitzinger, “The Rapture in Twenty Centuries of Biblical Interpretation,” MSJ 13 (2002): 149-71.
5
Richard R. Reiter, “A History of the Development of the Rapture Positions,” in Three Views on
the Rapture (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 9-44.

15. 4
revised. In itself, this evolution of arguments is healthy and adds understanding to an
otherwise unstudied issue; however, it can lead to misunderstanding when arguments that
are no longer used are still attributed to a particular view.
It is to this issue that this thesis is geared. For the purpose of future discussion, the
imminent rapture position will be clarified by the presentation of the central arguments
for the imminent rapture position. An argument will be deemed to be central based on an
evaluation of its current usage by imminence advocates, the frequency of usage, and to a
lesser extent, its cogency.6
The arguments presented will be categorized under the
headings of historical, biblical, theological, and practical arguments. Significant revisions
or abandonment of arguments will be addressed in the appropriate areas.
This thesis will answer the questions: “What is the current case for imminence?”
“What is the central case most often made by those arguing for it?” “What are the
arguments used most often?” “Are there any arguments that are employed by only a
few?” The imminent rapture position itself will be clarified due to this study since the key
arguments will be determined. For the sake of brevity the opposing view and its
objections to the arguments will not be presented.
Assumptions
The first assumption is that Scripture is taken to be authoritative, complete, and inerrant
(2 Tim. 3:16). The second assumption is that the second coming of Christ will be visible,
bodily (Acts 1:11), and for the purpose of judgment (Matt. 25:31-46; 2 Thess. 1:6-10;
6
A full determination of the cogency of any particular argument will open up the need to address
foundational issues that far exceed the scope of this thesis, and therefore, cannot be fully explored.

16. 5
Rev. 19:11-19). The third assumption is that there will be a Tribulation period, whether
clearly identifiable or not, prior to the second coming (Matt 24:29-30; 2 Thess 2:1-8).
Definition of Applicable Terms
Imminence
Douglas J. Moo defines imminence by using the Oxford English Dictionary which says
this term denotes something that is “impending threateningly, hanging over one’s head;
ready to befall or overtake one, close at hand at its incidence; coming on shortly.”7
In
order to maintain a type of qualified imminence, or mediating position between
imminence and non-imminence, Moo’s view does not incorporate the idea of an any
moment possibility.8
In contrast to Moo, Robert Gundry completely rejects the idea that
Scripture teaches imminence. In his argument against imminence, he describes it more in
line with the traditional view. He writes, “By common consent imminence means that so
far as we know no predicted event will necessarily precede the coming of Christ. The
concept incorporates three essential elements: suddenness, unexpectedness or
incalculability, and a possibility of occurrence at any moment.”9
Despite Gundry’s
inclusion of the idea of an any moment occurrence, Robert L. Thomas takes issue with
this description due to its inclusion of the terms “necessarily precede,” and “possibility of
occurrence.”10
In keeping with other pretribulational scholars, Thomas defines
7
Douglas J. Moo, “The Case for the Mid-tribulational Rapture Position: Posttribulational
Response,” in Three Views on the Rapture (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 207.
8
Ibid., 208.
9
Robert H. Gundry, The Church and the Tribulation (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1973), 29.
10
Thomas, “Imminence,” 204.

17. 6
imminence as referring to an event in which no predicted event will occur prior to the
event in question, thus making the beginning of the event completely incalculable. An
imminent event could occur at any moment.11
While arguments presented from a
dispensational standpoint do hold to Thomas’ definition of imminence, imminent
posttribulational scholars follow Gundry’s definition. The key distinction between the
two definitions is the idea of predicted events occurring before the rapture, which is a
debate between eschatological systems on the order of events. This debate, however, is
beyond the scope of this thesis. The key aspect of imminence that is presented here is the
idea that the rapture could occur at any moment because that event is incalculable from
biblical data. While imminent posttribulationists would argue that predicted events must
transpire before the return, they would nevertheless agree with dispensationalists that the
return itself is incalculable and thus an any moment possibility. Therefore, for the
purpose of this thesis, the definition of imminence is limited to meaning only the
possibility of occurrence at any time.
The Rapture, Return, and Second Coming
For this thesis, the term ‘rapture,’ refers to the catching away of the dead and living saints
by Christ as depicted in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-53. For those
scholars who view this event as synonymous with the second coming of Christ, the term
‘rapture’ would merely refer to the aspect of that coming that describes Christ’s actions
with respect toward the saints. The term ‘return (of the Lord),’ depending on context
could refer either to the return of the Lord to rapture the saints, or the return of the Lord
11
Ibid., 191.

18. 7
to judge the unrighteous. Finally, the term second coming will refer to the physical and
visible appearing of Christ at the end of the Tribulation,12
unless otherwise noted. There
may be some instances in this thesis where a scholar uses this term to refer to all future
eschatological events, or grouping of them; however, in such cases this divergence from
the above stated definition will be noted.
Overview of the Thesis
Following this introductory chapter, chapter two will present historical arguments that
support the imminent rapture position and will present the writings of scholars throughout
church history up to the present. While ultimately not the final judge on whether a
biblical text or doctrine is correct, historical research cannot be separated from modern
development of doctrine. Payne correctly notes,
It is true that the decision reached today by any inquirer must rest ultimately upon
the study of Scripture alone, and not upon the blind acceptance of human
reconstructions, whether ancient or modern. But at the same time a given verse in
Scripture may be taken in various ways and may have been diversely understood
by sincere believers. The modern interpreter cannot divorce himself from the
teachings with which he has already come in contact, and he owes it to himself to
be aware of the total picture presented by past exposition. For the perspective
gained from the historical orientation constitutes an essential introduction, not
simply to the understanding of the crosscurrents of modern thought, but to the
formulation of one’s own exegetical conclusions. The deviations from sound
interpretation exhibited by church history give warning against similar pitfalls
today; and the studied conclusions of the most enlightened saints of former times
should not hastily be exchanged for doctrinal innovations.13
12
Paul N. Benware, Understanding End Times Prophecy (Chicago: Moody, 1995), 318.
13
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 12. Thomas Lea rightly notes, “The views of the ante-Nicene
fathers can function as a commentary to aid our formulating a theology concerning the return of Christ.”
Thomas D. Lea, “A Survey of the Doctrine of the Return of Christ in the Ante-Nicene Fathers,” JETS 29
(1986), 163.

19. 8
Chapter three will present the biblical arguments for the imminent rapture
position and will evaluate only the key passages that pertain to that position, specifically
those related to how one is to know the timing of the return of the Lord. This chapter will
be a presentation of the arguments drawn from each passage. The chapter will be divided
into five sections: 1) The Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25; Mark 13, Luke 12:35-48;
17:22-37; 21:1-36); 2) The Upper Room Discourse (John 14:1-3); 3) The Pauline
Epistles; 4) the General Epistles; and, 5) The Book of Revelation.
Chapter four will present the theological arguments for the imminent rapture
position, which answer this basic question: how can imminence texts (e.g. Matt 24:36) be
reconciled with sign texts (e.g. Matt 24:14)? This chapter will be divided into two
sections based on the theological systems from which these arguments arise. First,
imminent posttribulationists have argued that there will not be a clearly identifiable future
time of Tribulation on the earth. In one argument from this view, the Tribulation is seen
to consist of the entire church age.14
Broadly speaking, this view argues that the signs that
Christ gave are actually general events that have taken place throughout history, and thus
are meant as continual reminders of the imminent return of the Lord. Second,
dispensational pretribulationists generally argue that the rapture, which is imminent, is
distinct from the second coming, which is heralded by the sign texts.
Chapter five will present four practical arguments for the imminent rapture
position. First, the apostolic church was given exhortations and comfort based on the
imminent coming of the Lord for them, and thus those exhortations and words of comfort
14
Payne writes, “It is the very contemporaneity of this period which guarantees the hope of
Christ’s appearing as an imminent possibility.” Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 114.

20. 9
are intrinsically grounded upon it. Second, imminence stands as an admonition to service
and holy living. Third, imminence gives joy, hope, comfort and patience in the midst of
trial and persecution. Since the next moment could unite believers with Christ (cf. 1
Thess 4:17; 1 John 3:2-3), imminence teaches that in each passing moment Christ could
appear and take them out of their suffering. In effect, every moment brings them closer to
the time of their union to Christ (Rom 13:11). Finally, rejecting imminence of the rapture
undermines the exhortations and comfort that are based on Christ’s coming.
The conclusion will endeavor to identify the central and most current arguments
for the imminent rapture position. A list of which arguments are employed by only a few
will also be given. These arguments will have already been presented in the chapters in
which they appear, so they will only be listed in the conclusion. It will be determined
what the central arguments are upon which the view stands. Finally, a brief analysis will
be given to determine how this study will affect and aid future research in this field, and
what should be the next step to build upon this research.

21. 10
CHAPTER 2: HISTORICAL ARGUMENTS
The purpose of this chapter is to present the historical arguments for the belief that the
rapture could occur at any moment and to determine which arguments are central to the
case for imminence. The arguments presented here have been used by imminence
advocates to show that a belief in the imminent rapture1
has been an ongoing view
throughout history.2
Gerald B. Stanton is typical among imminence scholars when he
writes, “The very fact that all generations of Christians have looked for and are exhorted
to keep looking for the coming of the Lord, gives witness to the fact that Christ may
come at any time.”3
The purpose of this study, then, is to clarify which of these historical
arguments for imminence are central. …
The primary imminence advocates represented here include J. Barton Payne for
imminent posttribulationism, and Paul Benware, Larry V. Crutchfield, Timothy Demy,
Francis Gumerlock, Thomas Ice, Grant R. Jeffrey, Frank Marotta, J. Dwight Pentecost,
Larry D. Pettegrew, James F. Stitzinger, Todd Strandberg, Henry B. Thiessen, Robert L.
Thomas, and John F. Walvoord for pretribulationism. Arguments made by these
1
Many of the texts cited in support of an imminent ‘rapture’ will not refer directly to the rapture,
but to the second advent. For those writers the second advent of Christ was not distinguished from the
rapture of the saints of 1 Thess 4:13-18.
2
This view was particularly dormant throughout the medieval period from roughly the time of
Augustine to the Reformation, though even then there were traces still observable.
3
Gerald B. Stanton, Kept From the Hour: Biblical Evidence for the Pretribulational Return of
Christ, 4th ed. (Miami Springs: Schoettle Publishing, 1991), 127.

22. 11
advocates will be assessed based on their frequency of use among all imminence
advocates surveyed, breadth of usage by advocates, and prominence within an advocate’s
writings. An argument will be identified as central to the case for imminence if it either is
used frequently by a number of advocates, is used broadly among all eschatological
views that hold to imminence, or holds a prominent place within an advocate’s writings.
Cogency of the arguments will be addressed only if a major logical fallacy is apparent.
Arguments for imminence will be presented chronologically according to the historical
texts that are cited. It will be determined which are the most central to the case for
imminence. Arguments that fail any of the criteria will be identified. Disagreement,
abandonment, or revision of arguments will be noted when appropriate.4
This chapter will be divided into the following four sections: 1) the Ante-Nicene
Fathers; 2) the Post-Nicene Fathers and the Medieval Church; 3) the Reformation
Church; and, 4) the Post-Reformation Church.
The Ante-Nicene Fathers
The return of Christ was particularly prominent within the writings of the apostolic and
early church fathers up to generally the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325),5
and the following
4
Unlike the other chapters in this thesis the majority of the changes that have occurred in this field
have not been through revisions or improvements but by new texts being discovered that support
imminence. For this reason little change will be observed in the arguments, but a significant amount of new
material will be presented of which many readers may not have been aware. One cause of this ongoing
discovery of new texts is the continuous translation of historical texts in English, which were not previously
translated. For example, the majority of Christian Apocalyptic texts after 400 A.D. are still untranslated. Cf.
Bernard McGinn, Visions of the End: Apocalyptic Traditions in the Middle Ages (New York: Columbia
University Press, 1979), xiii.
5
J. L. Neve wrote, “the time of the Apostolic Fathers, like that of primitive Christianity, was
thoroughly eschatological in tendency. Men had the consciousness that they were living in the last times.
The immediate return of Jesus was anticipated. It was this expectation which held the congregation
together.” J. L. Neve, A History of Christian Thought, 2 vols (Philadelphia: The Muhlenberg Press, 1946) I,
43.

23. 12
imminence scholars argue that there was a passionate belief in the imminent return of
Christ for his church: Crutchfield, Payne, Ice, Stitzinger, Thiessen, Thomas, and
Walvoord. All argue that many of the early church fathers support imminence.6
The modern scholar is faced with a problem, however, trying to discern what the
fathers believed regarding end time events. A brief survey will quickly reveal that a
diversity of views was held between different writers, and within the individual writers
themselves. Contradictory views of the return of Christ and the Tribulation are frequently
held with seemingly no hint that the father saw an inconsistency.7
The coming of the
Lord was frequently cited by the fathers as imminent while often in the same text there is
an admonition to be ready for the tribulation and the appearance of the Antichrist before
that coming. 8
John Walvoord, late president of Dallas Theological Seminary, writes
regarding this seeming paradox:
6
Larry V. Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” in Thomas Ice and Timothy Demy gen. ed. When The
Trumpet Sounds (Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 1995), 85-104; Thomas Ice, “Myths of the Origins of
Pretribulationism,” Pre-Trib Research Center, http://www.pre-trib.org/article-view.php?id=50; J. Barton
Payne, The Imminent Appearing of Christ (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1962), 11-19; Gerald B. Stanton, Kept
From the Hour: Biblical Evidence for the Pretribulational Return of Christ, 4th ed. (Miami Springs:
Schoettle Publishing, 1991), 124-26; James F. Stitzinger, “The Rapture in Twenty Centuries of Biblical
Interpretation.” MSJ 13 (2002): 153-56; Henry C. Thiessen, “Will the Church Pass Through the
Tribulation? III” BSac 92 (1935): 190-196; Robert L. Thomas, “The Doctrine of Imminence in Two
Recent Eschatological Systems.” BSac 157 (2000): 452 ; Robert L. Thomas, “Imminence in the NT,
Especially Paul’s Thessalonian Epistles.” MSJ 13 (2002): 191-92; Walvoord, The Rapture Question: A
Comprehensive Biblical Study of the Translation of the Church (Grand Rapids: Dunham, 1957), 52-56.
7
For example, the Didache states, “Watch over your life: do not let your lamps go out, and do not
be unprepared, but be ready, for you do not know the hour when our Lord is coming (Didache, 16);” yet in
the same section the Didache adds that a “world-deceiver” shall come before Christ returns to bring a “fiery
trial” so that “many shall be made to stumble and shall perish; but they that endure in their faith shall be
saved from under the curse itself (Didache, 16:3-5).”
8
J. Barton Payne, an imminent posttribulationist, writes, “Prior to the Council of Nicaea in A.D.
325, the ancient church was characterized in general by two convictions respecting the sequence of events
of Christ’s second coming. In the first place, it expected that the Lord could appear in the clouds with any
day of its own contemporary life. The ante-Nicene fathers, in other words, were committed to the concept
of the imminence of their Lord’s return. Their writings testify that they lived in the hope that His appearing
would be soon. It must be observed at the outset, however, that imminency as herein defined does not mean
that it had to be close at hand, only that it could be, that the establishment of Christ’s eschatological

24. 13
The early church believed in a coming time of trouble, in the imminent coming of
the Lord, and the millennium to follow. How the coming of the Lord could be a
daily expectation as is clearly indicated by the early Fathers, and at the same time
have a lengthy series of events preceding the Second Advent, was apparently not
discussed or ever resolved in the early church. If major doctrines like the Trinity
and the procession of the Spirit took centuries to find acceptable statement, it is
hardly to be expected that the problems of Eschatology would all be settled in the
early centuries. The inroads of the spiritualizing principles of Origen, which
caused the downfall of Premillennialism in the third and fourth centuries along
with the departure from the Scriptures which characterized the organized church
until the Protestant Reformation, were hardly a climate in which an intricate
problem such as Pretribulationism versus Posttribulationism could be solved.9
This lack of development has led to the modern debate over what the fathers believed.10
While imminence advocates agree that the overall view of the fathers was an
imminent return of the Lord, their arguments differ regarding how to reconcile clear
imminence texts with clear Tribulation texts. All imminence advocates mentioned in this
chapter have argued that there are within the writings of the fathers clear and direct
statements of the Lord’s imminent return. For instance, all imminence scholars who have
written concerning this period use Clement’s statement, “Of a truth, soon and suddenly
shall His will be accomplished, as the Scripture also bears witness, saying, ‘Speedily will
He come, and will not tarry’ and, ‘The Lord shall suddenly come to His temple, even the
Holy One, for whom ye look.”11
Yet, they disagree on how to understand Justin Martyr’s
kingdom was conceived of as capable of overtaking them at any time.” Payne, The Imminent Appearing,
12-13. cf. Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 5; cf. Henry B. Thiessen, “Will the church Pass?” 190-196.
9
John Walvoord, “Premillennialism and the Tribulation,” BSac 112 (1955), 296.
10
Crutchfield writes, “The cause of the confusion among modern scholars on this issue is no
mystery. They are confused because the fathers were confused on the subject. Eschatology was in its
infancy in the early centuries A.D. If anyone searches the fathers for a fully detailed, systematic
presentation about the doctrine of last things, he searches in vain.” Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88.
11
The First Epistle of Clement, 23. The Scriptures are from Habakkuk 2:3 (Hebrews 10:37) and
Malachi 3:1 respectively. Cf. Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent
Appearing, 13; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 154; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 190; Thomas,
“Imminence in the NT,” 191; Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 53.

25. 14
comment, “He shall come from heaven with glory, when the man of apostasy, who
speaks strange things against the Most High, shall venture to do unlawful deeds on the
earth against us the Christians.”12
Payne argues that the fathers held to an imminent posttribulationism.13
Walvoord
would largely agree and add that there are some pretribulational references present.14
In
contrast, Thiessen holds a less advocated view, arguing that there are some historic texts
that are truly pretribulational.15
Crutchfield argues that the view of the fathers can best be
described as an imminent intratribulationism.16
Ice and Stitzinger follow Crutchfield and
argue that there are inferences in the fathers’ writings of both an imminent return of
Christ, and of the church enduring the Tribulation, yet are held in a loose, unreflective,
and simplistic way.17
Crutchfield argues that the early church did not significantly
develop an eschatological outline; rather, end time events such as the Tribulation,
12
Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, CX.
13
This view says that the return and rapture occur after Tribulational events, but those events are
such to negate any possibility of accurately determining the timing of the end. Payne, The Imminent
Appearing, 15-16.
14
Walvoord follows Payne’s view that the historical writings represent more closely an imminent
posttribulationism. He adds, “The historical fact is that the early church fathers’ view on prophecy did not
correspond to what is advanced by pretribulationists today except for the one important point that both
subscribe to the imminency of the rapture.” Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 53-54.
15
Thiessen, “Will the Church Pass?” 196.
16
Crutchfield coins the phrase “imminent intratribulationism,” which is the view that the church is
currently experiencing the Tribulation, and all predicted events have either occurred, or about to occur thus
making the return of Christ imminent. Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 91, 101, 103.
17
Responding to Erickson’s statement that “it is difficult to find in them an unequivocal statement
of the type of imminency usually believed in by pretribulationists,” Crutchfield correctly notes that “this in
essence is all that we are arguing for. We do not say that the early fathers were pretribulationists in the
modern sense, only that the seeds were indeed there but were crushed under the allegorist’s foot before they
could sprout and bear early fruit.” Millard Erickson, Contemporary Options in Eschatology (Grand Rapids:
Baker, 1977), 131; Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 454 n. 77. Contra the thesis of Thiessen, who stated,
“If they held to the imminence of the Lord’s return, they must of necessity have held to a Rapture before
the Tribulation.” Thiessen, “Will the Church Pass?” 193.

26. 15
Antichrist, and the return were all seen as possible at any-moment.18
Finally, and much in
line with Crutchfield, Thomas argues that the fathers’ views could be classified as dual
imminence of both the return and beginning of the Tribulation. He argues that this view
was a direct result of a straightforward reading of Scripture, which also can seem to
produce a paradox. Furthermore, he argues that the fathers merely transmitted the
Scriptural teaching of dual imminence of the rapture and the day of the Lord without
developing it.19
The dual imminence argument is slightly different than imminent
intratribulationism, though compatible because they are two perspectives of the same
argument. Thomas’ argument seems to be motivated by Scripture’s own apparent
paradoxical presentation of these events rather than trying to explain why the fathers hold
a paradox. It is argued that Scripture itself presents both the rapture and the Tribulation as
imminent; therefore, it should not be surprising that the first generation readers after the
apostles would have merely conveyed the paradox into their own writings rather than
resolve it. Crutchfield focuses on the neglect of the fathers to systematize their beliefs
whereas Thomas focuses on the confusing effect that Scripture’s prophetic teaching
would have on the early church. The following texts from the apostolic fathers have been
used by a number of imminence advocates to argue for historical imminence.
18
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 101-102.
19
The biblical basis for this argument will be expanded in the following chapters on Biblical
Arguments and Theological Arguments. Robert L. Thomas, “Imminence in the NT, Especially Paul’s
Thessalonian Epistles,” MSJ 13 (2002): 191-214.

27. 16
Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-9720
)
All imminence advocates surveyed have used this text in support of arguing for a
historical belief in imminence.21
First Clement says, “Of a truth, soon and suddenly shall
His will be accomplished, as the Scripture also bears witness, saying, ‘Speedily will He
come, and will not tarry’ and, ‘The Lord shall suddenly come to His temple, even the
Holy One, for whom ye look.”22
Crutchfield argues that “Clement’s sole reason for
quoting Malachi 3:1 was to “set forth the suddenness of Christ’s second coming.”23
A
possible problem for using Clement as an imminence text is his statement, “Ye perceive
how little time the fruit of a tree comes to maturity.”24
It is possible that this could show
Clement’s belief in a measure of delay before Christ’s return.25
Rather than showing that
there must be the maturing of the tree yet to occur, however, Clement is comparing the
coming to the maturing of the fruit. Just as fruit matures seemingly overnight and cannot
20
1 Clement, 23. All quotations from the apostolic fathers are from Michael W. Holmes ed., The
Apostolic Fathers (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1999).
21
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 13;
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 154; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 190; Thomas, “Imminence,” 191;
Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 53.
22
1 Clement, 23. The Scripture are from Habakkuk 2:3 (Hebrews 10:37) and Malachi 3:1
respectively.
23
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 89.
24
1 Clement, 23.
25
Non-imminence scholars, such as Lea and Gundry, have used this passage to show that Clement
did not intend imminence; however, this conclusion ignores the context of the passage. Robert H. Gundry,
The Church and Tribulation (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1973), 173; Thomas D. Lea, “A Survey of the
Return of Christ in the Ante-Nicene Fathers,” JETS 29 (1986): 171.

28. 17
be predicted when it will occur, so also will be Christ’s coming. 26
Since it is widely used,
Clement’s statement can be considered central to the historical imminence argument.
Didache (prior to A.D. 10027
)
Crutchfield, Ice, Payne, Stitzinger, Thiessen, and Walvoord have also used the Didache
in their arguments for imminence.28
In the Didache, Crutchfield notes that imminence is
one of the “chief eschatological concepts” found.29
The Didache states, “Watch over your
life: do not let your lamps go out, and do not be unprepared, but be ready, for you do not
know the hour when our Lord is coming. Gather together frequently, seeking the things
that benefit your souls, for all the time you have believed will be of no use to you if you
are not found perfect in the last time.”30
Advocates have used this text to argue for
26
He writes, “Clement’s point is that just as it takes a short time for a tree to pass from bud to fruit
state, so in reality it takes a short time for the accomplishment of God’s will When Christ does come, and
that could be at any moment, it will result in the sudden accomplishment of His will. Gundry seems to
assume that the whole process of budding to ripened fruit must yet take place. But it can be argued that his
message to these “old men,” who have waited in vain for Christ’s coming, is that they have seen and are
presently part of the budding and putting forth of leaves stages, while only the appearance of ripened fruit
remains. Some time is necessary for the accomplishment of God’s plan for mankind, just as it is for a tree
to bear fruit. How much time is necessary, no one knows. All of that necessary time could be spent at any
moment. Then suddenly, as fruit appears on a tree, Christ will return to accomplish His will.” Crutchfield,
“The Blessed Hope,” 89.
27
Holmes writes, “The Didache may have been put into its present form as late as 150, though a
date considerably closer to the end of the first century seems more probable. The materials from which it
was composed, however, reflect the state of the church at an even earlier time.” Holmes, The Apostolic
Fathers, 247.
28
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 13;
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 154; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 190; Walvoord, The Rapture
Question, 53.
29
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 90. Crutchfield sees the doxology of the Eucharistic prayer in
the Didache also connoting imminence: “Let grace come, and let this world pass away. Hosanna to the God
(Son) of David! If any one is holy, let him come; if any one is not so, let him repent. Maranatha. Amen.”
Didache, 10.6. Cf. 1 Corinthians 16:22 and Revelation 22:20, texts which both illustrate the attitude of
hope in the soon coming of the Lord, and the possibility of that soon advent. No other advocate has noted
this text within the Didache in support of imminence because its too vague to be persuasive.
30
Didache, 16.

29. 18
historic imminence; however, only Crutchfield attempts to deal with the problems raised
within the text of a possible reference to the church in the Tribulation and signs preceding
the return.31
As was common among early church writers, there was the unresolved tension
between the imminent coming and preceding signs. There does seem to be a place where
the Didachist believes that there are signs preceding the rapture of the saints. The
Didachist says that the “world-deceiver” shall come to bring a “fiery trial” so that “many
shall be made to stumble and shall perish; but they that endure in their faith shall be
saved from under the curse itself.”32
He further writes that after the appearance of the
world-deceiver there will be three “signs of the truth,” which culminate in the Lord
coming “upon the clouds of heaven” and will be witnessed by the world.
Crutchfield presents two solutions: first, there was a widespread belief from the
time of the persecution of Nero in A.D. 64 to the Edict of Milan by Constantine in A.D.
313 that the Roman Empire was the fourth beast of Daniel 7:7-8 and the Antichrist.33
Early Christians believed that they were or could be living during the prophesied
persecution of the Antichrist, due to the proliferation of persecution that was then present.
To them, it was a distinct possibility that the persecutions that they were experiencing
were the very persecutions of the Antichrist and the tribulation, thus making the coming
31
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88-89. Payne solves the problem by simply affirming that it
supports his view of imminent posttribulationism. As already noted this creates a problem for those who
believe the signs will be identifiable. Payne, Imminence, 14-16.
32
Didache, 16:3-5.
33
Epistle of Barnabas, 4. Cf. Didache, 16:1-3 which shows a strong parallel between the current
empire and the ‘deceiver of the world.’ For further verification of the connection that early Christians made
between the Roman Empire, the emperors and the prophesied Antichrist see Victorinus of Petau,
Commentary on the Apocalypse 17.10-11; Commodian, the Instructions of Commodianus 41, Lactantius,
Of the Manner in Which the Persecutors Died 2. Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 88-89.

30. 19
of the Lord to rapture the church an imminent possibility. 34
Second, the identities of
those who undergo the fiery trial are unnamed. While it is true that in 16.5 the Didache
states, “Then all humankind will come to the fiery test, and ‘many will fall away’ and
perish; but ‘those who endure’ in their faith ‘will be saved,’ ” the reader is left to infer
their identity.
Crutchfield argues that since this entire last section is drawn heavily from the
Olivet Discourse it is necessary that believers would be in this fiery test that has come
upon all humanity. This fact does not negate imminence. Neither the Didache nor
Matthew 24 require that the identity of those believers who undergo that test be the
church.35
Since the material of the Olivet Discourse is largely repeated, rather than
interpreted, it would be best to conclude that the Didachist is not reflective about who
they are, only that there will be those who must go through the test. A similar case could
be made that those who go through the fiery trial are the same ones who let their “lamps
go out,” were “unprepared” and were “not found perfect in the last time.”36
Their identity
could just as easily be the saints who were saved after the rapture. Both
posttribulationism and pretribulationism could see their position consistent with the
language here. Regardless, the Didachist writes this passage to exhort his readers to “not
let your lamps go out, and do not be unprepared,” because they “do not know the hour
34
The Epistle of Barnabas states “let us hate the deception of the present age,” and “The last
stumbling block is at hand, concerning which the Scriptures speak, as Enoch says. For the Master has cut
short the times and the days for this reason, that his beloved might make haste and come into his
inheritance.” Epistle of Barnabas, 4.1, 3.
35
Crutchfield notes, “The writer makes no direct statement that it is the church which is in view
here. Rather, in early patristic fashion, he simply repeats the language of the inspired text with little
amplification or interpretation.” Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 93.
36
Didache, 16.1-2.

31. 20
when our Lord is coming.”37
Crutchfield argues that the point is not to give a detailed
outline but to exhort obedience because no one knows when the Lord is coming. The
argument from the Didache should be considered central since it is frequently and widely
used by advocates from different theological positions, and is prominent within the
imminence argument made by Crutchfield.
Constitutions of the Holy Apostles
Thiessen and Walvoord38
argue that the following text from the Constitutions of the Holy
Apostles support imminence: “let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning, and
ye like unto men who wait for their Lord, when He will come, at even, or in the morning,
or at cock-crowing, or at midnight. For at what hour they think not, the Lord will come;
and if they open to Him, blessed are those servants, because they are found watching.”39
While the text itself does point to an imminent return of the Lord, the next section implies
that the rapture will occur after the Antichrist is revealed.40
Since this text is not widely
used, it cannot be considered a central argument for historical imminence.
37
Ibid., 16.1.
38
Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 193-94; Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 54.
39
Ante-Nicene Fathers, VII, 382. “Constitutions of the Holy Apostles,” Book VII, Sec. ii, xxxi.
40
“Constitutions,” Book VII, Sec. ii, xxxii.

32. 21
Ignatius of Antioch (d. ca. A.D. 98/11741
)
Crutchfield, Ice, Payne, Stitzinger, Thiessen, and Thomas42
use the following from
Ignatius’ letter to the Ephesians: “The last times are come upon us. Let us therefore be of
a reverent spirit, and fear the long-suffering of God, that it tend not to our condemnation.
For let us either stand in awe of the wrath to come, or show regard for the grace which is
at present displayed – one of two things.”43
Ignatius wrote to Polycarp, “Be watchful,
possessing a sleepless spirit,” and “Be ever more becoming more zealous than what thou
art. Weigh carefully the times. Look for Him who is above all time . . . .”44
The quotes
imply an imminent return, but do not require it. Though this text does not require an
imminent return, it is used broadly and frequently, therefore, it should be considered
central to the argument for imminence.
The Epistle of Barnabas (A.D. 70-13545
)
Crutchfield, Ice, Payne, and Stitzinger46
use the following from the Epistle of Barnabas:
“The Lord has cut short the times and the days that His Beloved may hasten,” and “for
the day is at hand on which all things shall perish with the evil [one]. The Lord is near
41
Holmes, “The Letters of Ignatius,” 131.
42
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 89-90; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 13;
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 154-55; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 190-91; Thomas, “Imminence,”
191-92.
43
Ignatius, The Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians, 11.
44
Ignatius, The Epistle of Ignatius to Polycarp, 1.3.
45
“It appears to have been written after the destruction of the Templin in Jerusalem in A.D.
70(16.3-5) but before the city was rebuilt by Hadrian following the revolt of A.D. 132-135. Within these
limits it is not possible to be more precise.” Homes, “The Epistle of Barnabas,” The Apostolic Fathers, 272.
46
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 94-95; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 13-
14; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 155.

33. 22
and His reward.”47
In regard to the coming Tribulation he writes in chapter 4, “The last
stumbling block is at hand, concerning which the Scriptures speak, as Enoch says, ‘For
the Master has cut short the times and the days for this reason, that his beloved might
make haste and come into his inheritance.’ And so also speaks the prophet: ‘Ten
kingdoms will reign over the earth, and after them a little king will arise, who will subdue
three of the kings with a single blow.’”48
Crutchfield argues that Barnabas expects that the ten kingdoms are prior to the
coming of the Lord,49
which would support Payne’s view. Barnabas is careful to say that
the “last stumbling block is at hand.” Barnabas is simply citing texts to show that it is “at
hand.” Furthermore, Barnabas does not say that the persecution will get worse before the
end. He seems to affirm that the persecution that was then present was the Tribulation
that would precede the Lord’s coming.50
Crutchfield argues that there is nothing in the
epistle that would prevent an any-moment view of the rapture.51
This text is broadly and
frequently used; therefore, it should be considered central to the historical argument for
imminence.
47
The Epistle of Barnabas, 4 and 20.
48
Ibid., 4.
49
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 95.
50
Crutchfield writes, “For some of these fathers, it seems that the difference between the
persecution which they were undergoing and that which was to precede the second advent, was not a
difference in kind, and perhaps, not even a difference in degree of severity.” Ibid., 95, 96.
51
Ibid., 94. Patristic scholar J. N. D. Kelly that “Barnabas is satisfied that the scandal of the last
days is actually upon us. . . .” J. N. D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines (2d ed.; New York: Harper &
Row, 1960), 462. Quoted in Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 95.

34. 23
The Shepherd of Hermas (A.D. 80-175)52
Crutchfield, Ice, Payne, Stitzinger, and Thiessen have used this text in support of arguing
for a historical belief in imminence.53
Two separate visions are cited in The Shepherd to
support the imminent rapture: the vision of a beast which can be avoided, and the vision
of a tower being built whose master will come unexpectedly. The vision of the beast is
said to be “a type of the Great Tribulation that is coming.” The text continues, “If then ye
prepare yourselves, and repent with all your heart, and turn to the Lord, it will be possible
for you to escape it,”54
which has led Thiessen to argued that it depicts a pretribulational
rapture. He writes, “Though on the whole the testimony of the Fathers is somewhat
inconsistent, we seem to have in The Shepherd of Hermas a fairly clear indication of the
fact that there were those who believed that the church would be taken away before that
period of judgment begins.”55
The second vision depicts a sudden return of the Lord to
His tower that is under construction:
52
Holmes notes various inconsistencies within the text that point to a composite document.
Holmes, Apostolic Fathers, 330-331.
53
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 96-101; Ice, “Myths,” 2; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 15;
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 155; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 191.
54
Shepherd of Hermas, Vision Fourth, Ch. II.
55
Thiessen, “Will the Church?” 196. It is the view of Bell that a “protection” view rather than a
“removal” view is the best alternative. He writes, “He (Hermas) was never removed from the presence of
the beast but found that the beast was muzzled, as it were, and thus unable to harm him. One has difficulty
in avoiding the likelihood that Daniel’s deliverance in the lions’ den was also in the writer’s mind.”
William E. Bell, Jr. “A Critical Evaluation of the Pretribulation Rapture Doctrine in Christian Eschatology”
(Ph.D. Diss. New York University, 1967), 31. However, Crutchfield notes that “the virgin and the tower
both represent the church; Hermas does not. Hermas represents only an individual, ‘a saint under
construction’ (a stone), being made fit through trial and testing for inclusion into the tower.” Crutchfield,
“The Blessed Hope,” 98. The point is that neither the tower nor the virgin are seen to endure persecution or
Tribulation, but explain that “Hermas escaped the Tribulation completely unscathed” and anyone else can
escape, “if [their] heart be pure and spotless, and [they] spend the rest of the days of [their lives] serving the
Lord blamelessly.” Shepherd, 1.4.2.

35. 24
Let us go, and after two days let us come and clean these stones, and cast them
into the building; for all things around the tower must be cleaned, lest the Master
come suddenly and find the places about the tower dirty, and be displeased, and
these stones be not returned for the building of the tower, and I also shall seem to
be neglectful towards the Master.56
Within these two visions there is a virgin, representing the church, who appears to
Hermas to answer the questions regarding the visions.
Crutchfield disagrees with Thiessen’s view that the church is seen to be taken
away before judgment begins, and states that it is difficult to defend.57
However, he does
agree with Thiessen in that he captures the essence of Hermas’ position; that it
emphasizes the imminence of Christ’s return and the believer’s escape from the coming
Tribulation.58
Crutchfield writes, “Hermas presents Tribulation as a continuum. . . .
Furthermore, he makes no reference to the chronology of Daniel 9, nor does he in any
way posit an estimate of duration for the Great Tribulation. In fact, the whole encounter
with the beast is depicted as rather brief and imminent.”59
He continues, “Any attempt to
fully understand this peculiar allegory, and to reconcile it with Scripture is doomed. We
must concede that Hermas held to a type of condensed, imminent, posttribulationism (or
56
Shepherd of Hermas, Book III, Similitude Ninth, Ch VII.
57
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 98, 99. He continues, “Hermas is definitely pictured in the
presence of the beast, though fully protected. Elsewhere, we read in the Shepherd, “Happy ye who endure
the great tribulation that is coming on, and happy they who shall not deny their own life.”
58
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 99. Though not in complete agreement with Thiessen, he
views the posttribulationists’ position more problematic for three reasons: first, Hermas comes away from
the encounter unscathed, which is not the case for those who endure the Tribulation (cf. Rev. 6:9-11; 13:5-
8); second, Hermas is said to have already “endured great personal tribulation” because of his own “wicked
transactions” and “the transgressions of [his] house . . . ;” third, due to the process of selecting stones,
which go into the tower, the fiery test is not necessary for every stone. Stones have been placed and will
continue to be placed into the tower without the necessity of going through the fiery trial. Cf. Lea, “A
Survey,” 169. Though Lea does not think that the fathers taught imminence, he does write, “The fathers
believed that moral obedience among Christians would prevent their sharing in the judgment and
punishment that would come on the rest of the world.”
59
Crutchfield, “The Blessed Hope,” 100.

36. 25
‘intratribulationism’) unlike that previously encountered. He lives in constant expectation
of the Master’s sudden return to the tower.”60
This text is broadly and frequently used by
advocates to argue for an imminent view of the Lord’s return; therefore, it should be
considered central to the historical imminence argument.
Justin Martyr (A.D. 100-165)
Only Payne and Thiessen have argued that Justin Martyr held to imminence.61
They cite
the following from Justin Martyr’s Dialogue with Trypho: “For those out of all the
nations who are pious and righteous through the faith of Christ, look for His future
appearance.”62
Later in this work, however, Justin writes, “but the other, in which He
shall come from heaven with glory, when the man of apostasy, who speaks strange things
against the Most High, shall venture to do unlawful deeds on the earth against us the
Christians.”63
The text is not used frequently, nor can it conclusively be said to be
imminent. Rather, it is more likely to view it as requiring preceding signs. For these
reasons, Justin Martyr should not be considered central to the historical argument for
imminence.
60
Ibid., 101.
61
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 14-15; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 192.
62
Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, LII.
63
Ibid., CX.

37. 26
Irenaeus of Lyons (A.D. 130-202)
Only Thomas and Thiessen have argued that Irenaeus of Lyons held to imminence.64
They cite the following text from Against Heresies: “And therefore, when in the end the
Church shall be suddenly caught up from this, it is said, ‘There shall be tribulation such
as has not been since the beginning, neither shall be.’ For this is the last contest of the
righteous, in which, when they overcome they are crowned with incorruption.”65
Thomas
argues that Irenaeus believed that both the return of Christ for the church and the return
of Christ to inflict wrath in the tribulation were imminent, thus arguing for dual
imminence, while Thiessen argues that Irenaeus believed that the rapture would occur
during the Tribulation. In contrast to Thomas and Thiessen, Payne identifies Irenaeus as
an exception to the widely held view of imminent posttribulationism among the fathers.
He states that Irenaeus was solidly against imminence since he required a time period of
three and a half years66
in which the Roman Empire would be divided into ten kings.67
Since Irenaeus of Lyons is not frequently used, and is considered an exception by at least
one advocate,68
he should not be considered central to the historical argument.
64
Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 191; Thomas, “Imminence,” 192.
65
Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 5.29.1, cf. 5.35.1.
66
Ibid., 5.25.3, 4.
67
Ibid., 5.26.1; Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 17-18.
68
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 17-18.

38. 27
Cyprian of Carthage (d. 258)
Only Payne and Thiessen have used Cyprian of Carthage in support of arguing for a
historical belief in imminence.69
They quote the following from his Epistle:
. . . the end of the world comes suddenly. The apostle says: ‘The day of the Lord
shall so come as a thief in the night. When they shall say, Peace and security, then
on them shall come sudden destruction.’ Also in the Acts of the Apostles: ‘No one
can know the times or the seasons which the Father has placed in His own
power.’70
Payne quotes other statements that would affirm Cyprian’s view that the Tribulation was
presently occurring: “For you ought to know and to believe, and hold it for certain, that
the day of affliction has begun to hang over our heads, and the end of the world and the
time of Antichrist to draw near, so that we must all stand prepared for the battle.”71
Again
he quotes, “The enemy (Antichrist) goeth about and rageth, but immediately the Lord
follows to avenge our sufferings and our wounds.”72
Payne argues, “The ante-Nicene
fathers believed that the persecutions they were enduring at the hands of imperial Rome
could be those of the final tribulation, and that therefore the Lord’s appearing to rule
could be imminent.”73
Both Payne and Thiessen argue extensively in their writings that this text supports
imminence, which must be weighed heavily in its classification of centrality. While not
used frequently among all advocates, it does occupy a prominent place within two
69
Ibid., 16; Thiessen, “Will The Church Pass? III,” 192-93.
70
Ibid., Cyprian, Epistle, 12.3.89.
71
Cyprian, Epistle, 55.1.
72
Ibid., 55.7.
73
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 17.

39. 28
advocates’ writings. For these reasons, Cyprian of Carthage should be considered central
to the historical argument for imminence.
Summary
The arguments based on the following historical texts and writers have been found to be
central to the historical argument for imminence: Clement of Rome, the Didache,
Ignatius of Antioch, The Epistle of Barnabas, The Shepherd of Hermas, and Cyprian of
Carthage. The arguments based on the following historical texts and writers have been
found to not be central to the historical argument for imminence: The Constitutions of the
Holy Apostles, Justin Martyr, and Irenaeus of Lyons.
The Post-Nicene Fathers and the Medieval Church
It is commonly accepted by imminence scholars that there is very little teaching in the
Post-Nicene Fathers and Medieval Church regarding the imminent return of Christ. It is
argued that the primary reason for its neglect is the rise of the Alexandrian allegorical
hermeneutic made popular by Origen, and applied to eschatology by Augustine.74
John
Hannah writes that the time period between Augustine and the Renaissance was largely
dominated by “Augustine’s understanding of the church, and its spiritualization of the
Millennium as the reign of Christ in the saints.”75
In this environment, it was difficult to
develop any eschatological doctrine including the events concerning the second coming
since many of the events spoken of by Christ of His second coming, such as the binding
74
Ibid., 19-21.
75
John D. Hannah, Our Legacy: The History of Christian Doctrine (Colorado Springs: NavPress,
2001), 315. cf. Robert E. Lerner, “The Medieval Return to the Thousand Year Sabbath,” in The
Apocalypse in the Middle Ages (eds. Richard K. Emerson and Bernard McGuinn; Ithica, N.Y.: Cornell
University, 1992), 51-53 and Stitzinger “The Rapture,” 149-71.

40. 29
of Satan and the first resurrection, were believed to have already taken place. Ice and
Stitzinger76
quote Dorothy deF. Abrahamse’s observation regarding the lack of
eschatological reflection during the medieval period:
By medieval times the belief in an imminent apocalypse had officially been
relegated to the role of symbolic theory by the Church; as early as the fourth
century, Augustine had declared that the Revelation of John was to be interpreted
symbolically rather than literally, and for most of the Middle Ages Church
councils and theologians considered only abstract eschatology to be acceptable
speculation. Since the nineteenth century, however, historians have recognized
that literal apocalypses did continue to circulate in the medieval world and that
they played a fundamental role in the creation of important strains of thought and
legend.77
Nevertheless, there have been groups throughout the Catholic hegemony that were drawn
to a premillennial view, which is the foundation for both pretribulationism and
imminence. Yet, it was not until the Reformation that premillennialism began to again
take hold in the church.78
Ephraem of Nisibis (A.D. 373)79
a.k.a. Pseudo-Ephraem, or Ephraem the Syrian
Despite this poor environment, there were various statements and teaching made
regarding imminence, and particularly a pretribulational rapture. One particular sermon
76
Ice, “Myths,” 4; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 157.
77
Dorothy deF. Abrahamse, “Introduction” to The Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, by Paul J.
Alexander (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985), 1-2.
78
Ice, “Myths,” 4. Ice lists three major reasons for this. First, the Reformers returned to the
sources of Scripture and the early church fathers in which premillennialism was dominant. Second, they
rejected the allegorical approach in favor of a more literal hermeneutic. Third, they came into contact with
many Jews and learned Hebrew. These three combined led the Reformers to question the place of national
Israel in prophecy and whether they should continue to interpret these OT texts as allegorical. Cf.
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160.
79
Ephraem was a major theologian of the Syrian Church. Bernard McGinn writes, “Ephraem is
the most important and prolific of the Syrian Church Fathers, though there is still a good deal of uncertainty
regarding the authenticity of much that has been ascribed to him. His numerous treatises, homilies, and
hymns, many in metrical form, were soon translated into Greek and Armenian. Later Translations in Latin,
Slavonic, and other Eastern languages also exist.” McGinn, Visions of the End, 60.

41. 30
was attributed to Ephraem of Nisibis (A.D. 306-373) of the Eastern Church called “On
the Last Times, the Antichrist and the End of the World (373).” Grant Jeffrey was one of
the first to use the text by Ephraem as part of an argument for a historical pretribulational
rapture.80
The work has been used by Paul N. Benware, Francis Gumerlock, Timothy
Demy, Thomas Ice, James Stitzinger and Todd Strandberg in their arguments for
imminence.81
In the text Ephraem declares the imminent return of Christ for his church by an
early form of the pretribulational rapture doctrine. Ephraem states, “All the saints and
elect of the Lord are gathered together before the tribulation which is to come and are
taken to the Lord, in order that they may not see at any time the confusion which
overwhelms the world because of our sins.”82
Included in this sermon is a well
developed eschatological outline of end time events, which closely resembles modern
dispensationalism and most importantly included the imminent return of Christ. The
sermon continues, “We ought to understand thoroughly therefore, my brothers, what is
imminent or overhanging.”83
Ephraem affirms his belief in the imminent rapture of the
80
Grant R. Jeffrey, “A Pretrib Rapture Statement in the Early Medieval Church” When The
Trumpet Sounds (ed. Thomas Ice and Timothy Demy; Eugene: Harvest House Publishers, 1995), 110-111.
81
Paul N. Benware, Understanding End Times Prophecy (Chicago: Moody, 1995), 198; Francis
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation in the Fourteenth Century,” BSac 159 (2002): 351-52; Timothy J. Demy
and Thomas D. Ice, “The Rapture and an Early Medieval Citation,” BSac 152 (1995): 306-317; Stitzinger,
“The Rapture,” 157-58; Todd Strandberg, “Imminency: The Rapture of the Church is an Imminent Event,”
n.p. [cited Mar 23, 2010]. Online: http://raptureready.com/rr-imminency.html.
82
Pseudo-Ephraem, On the Last Times, 2. Full sermon found in Jeffrey, “A
Pretrib Rapture Statement,” 110-111. Interestingly, the sermon includes a parenthesis
between the 69th
and 70th
week of Daniel and a parenthesis between the Rapture and the
Second Coming in which 3 ½ years of Great Tribulation occur and the Antichrist appears
to rule the earth. Cf. Demy and Ice, “The Rapture and an Early Medieval Citation,” 306-
317.
83
Pseudo-Ephraem, On the Last Times, 2.

42. 31
saints by both explicit statements and by his pretribulational teachings. For him, no event
is left to occur before the rapture.84
Despite its infrequent use, which can be explained by
its relatively recent discovery, the text itself is a clear example of a detailed presentation
by a historical writer of the imminent rapture. This is thus a cogent argument for
imminence. By its acceptance by scholars from both Dallas Theological Seminary and
The Master’s Seminary, it seems likely that this text will become central in future
presentations of the historical case for imminence, and it will be deemed as such here.
Codex Amiatinus (ca. 690-716)
Only Stitzinger has been found to use this text as part of his argument for imminence.85
He writes that Abbot Ceolfrid from the monasteries in Jarrow and Wearmouth in
Northumberland, England commissioned this Latin manuscript as a gift to the Pope.86
In
the title for Psalm 22 it is written, “Psalm of David, the voice of the Church after being
raptured.”87
Of the two definitions possible for the Latin phrase post raptismum, either
“to snatch, hurry away,” or “to plunder, take by assault,”88
Stitzinger believes the former
84
Noted authority on the early Byzantine church, Paul Alexander, concluded that Ephraem meant
to teach that the Lord would remove the saints from the earth supernaturally just “prior to the tribulation
that is to come.” He continues, “Pseudo-Ephraem does not refer to the shortening of time. This author,
however, mentions another measure taken by God in order to alleviate the period of tribulation for his
saints and for the Elect. . . . It is probably no accident that Pseudo-Ephraem does not mention the
shortening of the time intervals for the Antichrist’s persecution, for if prior to it the Elect are ‘taken to the
Lord,’ i.e., participate at least in some measure in beatitude, there is no need for further mitigating action on
their behalf. The Gathering of the Elect according to Pseudo-Ephraem is an alternative to the shortening of
the time intervals.” Alexander, The Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, 210-211.
85
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 157-158.
86
Ibid., 158.
87
Ernst Wurthwein, The Text of the Old Testament (trans. Erroll F. Rhodes; Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1979), 206. Quoted in Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 158.
88
Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short, A New Latin Dictionary (New York: American Book
Company, 1907), 1523.

43. 32
definition is appropriate for two reasons. First, there was no evidence of persecution in
Coelfrid’s life that would have given him comfort in thus naming the Psalm. Second,
Coelfrid writes in a letter regarding Christ’s return, “[W]e show that we rejoice in the
most certain hope of our own resurrection, which we believe will take place on the Lord’s
Day.”89
Though not conclusive without further study, Stitzinger believes that Coelfrid
viewed the coming of the Lord to rapture the saints as soon and sudden, and
representative of pretribulational thought.90
At the present time, this has not been considered a significant argument in favor
of imminence since only Stitzinger uses it; nor is the text itself clearly pretribulational or
imminent. While the root of the word used in the Latin manuscript could be considered
synonymous with the modern word ‘rapture,’ the text presented by Stitzinger does not
unambiguously present an imminent rapture of the church. At most it would just say that
the church would be raptured at some time in the future. For these reasons, this text
should not be considered central to imminence.
The History of Brother Dolcino (1316)
Marjorie Reeves was the first to argue a pretribulational understanding and imminence of
this text.91
Francis Gumerlock has recently evaluated and developed it as part of his
89
“Ceolfrid’s letter to Nechtan,” in Venerable Bede, A History of the English Church and People,
(trans. with an introduction by Leo Sherley-Price, rev. by R.E. Latham; New York: Dorset Press, 1968)
323. Quoted in Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 158.
90
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 158.
91
Reeves notes, “When Antichrist appeared Dolcino and his followers would be removed to
Paradise, while Enoch and Elijah descended to dispose of him. After the death of Antichrist, they would
descend again to convert all nations, while Frederick of Sicily ruled over the last world empire.” Reeves,
Joachim of Fiore and the Prophetic Future, 49, cited in Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation in the Fourteenth
Century,” 357, n. 24; Marjorie Reeves, The Influence of Prophecy in the Later Middle Ages: A Study in

44. 33
historical argument for the pretribulational rapture and imminence.92
The text has also
been used by Stitzinger.93
The History of Brother Dolcino is a text written in 1316 by an
anonymous source who was documenting a splinter group called the Apostolic
Brethren.94
Founded in 1260, the Brethren were under severe persecution by the Catholic
Church until its eventual demise. Brother Dolcino became leader of the group in 1300
after their leader was burned at the stake. Dolcino and the group resided in northern Italy
until they were largely massacred by a papal army in 1306.95
The section of the text
pertaining to imminence follows:
Again [Dolcino believed and preached and taught] that within those three years
Dolcino himself and his followers will preach the coming of the Antichrist. And
that the Antichrist was coming into this world within the bounds of the said three
and a half years, and after he had come, then he [Dolcino] and his followers
would be transferred into Paradise, in which are Enoch and Elijah. And in this
way they will be preserved unharmed from the persecution of the Antichrist. And
that then Enoch and Elijah themselves would descend on the earth for the purpose
of preaching [against] Antichrist. Then they would be killed by him or by his
servants, and thus Antichrist would reign for a long time. But when the Antichrist
is dead, Dolcino himself, who then would be the holy pope, and his preserved
followers, will descend on the earth, and will preach the right faith of Christ to all,
and will convert those who will be living then to the true faith of Jesus Christ.96
Joachimism (Notre Dame, Ind: University of Notre Dame Press, 1993), 243; and idem, Joachim of Fiore
and the Prophetic Future (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1976), 49.
92
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 349-62.
93
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 159.
94
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 355.
95
For a detailed history of the group and its beliefs see Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 349-62.
96
Historia Fratris Dulcini, Arnoldo Segarizzi, 8-9, in Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, Tomo IX-
Parte V (ed. L. A. Muratori; Cittá di Castello, Italy: Coi Tipi Della Casa Editrice S. Lapi, 1907). Pius
Memorial Library at Saint Louis University has a copy. Due to the scarcity of this text, it is quoted from
Gumerlock. His article also includes the Latin version. Cf. Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 354-355.

45. 34
Gumerlock and Stitzinger argue that The History of Brother Dolcino affirms that
the Apostolic Brethren believed in the imminent and pretribulational rapture of the
Church.97
Gumerlock writes, “The History of Brother Dolcino reveals that the
eschatology of the Apostolic Brethren included an expectation of the imminent rapture of
the church.”98
He continues, “examination of the ecclesiology of the Apostolic Brethren,
however, reveals that their view of the rapture was not a partial rapture theory, but a
rapture of the entire church.”99
The coming of the Antichrist was imminent, and thus the
rapture of the church was imminent. Though this text is not frequently cited, it holds a
prominent place in the writings of two advocates; therefore, it should be considered
central to the historical argument for imminence.
Summary
Though both the Ephraem of Nisibis text and The History of Brother Dolcino texts are
newly discovered, and they have only been used in a few imminence arguments, it should
be noted that they have quickly come to prominence among imminence scholars. Two
major pretribulational works have included them,100
and Bibliotheca Sacra, a prominent
dispensational journal,101
has published them. Furthermore, due to their explicit teaching
of a pretribulational rapture, they may soon become central to the historical argument for
97
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 349-62; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 158.
98
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 356.
99
Ibid., 357.
100
Thomas Ice, and Timothy Demy, ed., When The Trumpet Sounds (Eugene, Ore.: Harvest
House, 1995), 109-115; Thomas Ice, and Timothy Demy, ed., The Return: Understanding Christ's Second
Coming and the End Times (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1999), 55-66.
101
Gumerlock, “A Rapture Citation,” 354-355.

46. 35
the imminent rapture. Codex Amiatinus should be considered a secondary or a non-
central argument, as it is in need of more thorough research.
The Reformation Church
As with the medieval period, there is little development of eschatology during the
Reformation. Stitzinger argues that the Reformation Church in many ways follows
closely the Medieval Church in its lack of reflection and systematization of eschatology.
He notes that the lack of commentaries and books written on the subject proves this
point.102
Even Calvin wrote commentaries on many books of the Bible, and almost all
the books of the NT, but not Revelation.103
He also wrote only one chapter on
eschatology in The Institutes of the Christian Religion.104
Despite both the lack of
doctrinal development and their Augustinian influenced eschatology, four major
Reformers from different Protestant traditions have been used to argue for historical
imminence: Balthasar Hübmaier, Martin Luther, Hugh Latimer, and John Calvin.
Balthasar Hübmaier (c.1480-1528)
Stitzinger argues that a segment of the Anabaptists known as the Taufer was the strongest
in their affirmation of imminence.105
Stitzinger singles out Anabaptist writer Balthasar
Hübmaier in his argument for historical imminence.106
Despite rejecting radical chiliasm
102
Timothy George, Theology of the Reformers (Nashville: Broadman, 1988), 323.
103
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 24; cf. Heinrich Quistorp, Calvin’s Doctrine of the Last
Things (trans. Harold Knight; London: Lutterworth, 1955), 113.
104
John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book III, Ch XXV.
105
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 159.
106
Ibid., 159-160.

47. 36
he nevertheless wrote in support of imminence, “[A]lthough Christ gave us many signs
whereby we can tell how near at hand the day of his coming is, nevertheless, no one but
God knows the exact day. . . . Take heed, watch and pray; for you know neither the day
nor the hour. . . . [T]he judge is already standing at the door. . . .”107
While the statements
coincide with typical statements on imminency, it does also state that there are “Many
signs” to indicate how close the coming is.
At this time, Stitzinger is the only advocate to cite Hübmaier, which indicates that
it is not widely viewed as a central text for imminence. Because of its infrequent use by
advocates, arguments from this historical writer should not be considered central for the
historical argument for imminence.
Martin Luther (1483-1546)
Payne, Pentecost, Stanton, and Stitzinger108
have argued that Martin Luther believed in
the imminent return of the Lord based on the following statements: “I think the last day is
not far away”109
and “the world runs and hastens so diligently to its end that it often
occurs to me forcibly that the last day will break before we can completely turn the Holy
Scriptures into German. For it is certain from the Holy Scriptures that we have no more
107
Balthasar Hübmaier, “Apologia,” Balthasar Hübmaier, Theologian of Anabaptism (trans. and
eds. H. Wayne Pipkin and John H. Yoder; Scottdale, Pa.: Herald, 1989), 541-543.
108
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 23-24; J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come: A Study in
Biblical Eschatology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1964), 203; Gerald B. Stanton, “The Doctrine of
Imminency: Is It Biblical?” in When The Trumpet Sounds, 230; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160.
109
Martin Luther, Table Talk, Luther’s Works (Hagerstown, Md: Christian Heritage, 2003),
54:427.

48. 37
temporal things to expect. All is done and fulfilled.”110
In a sermon entitled “The Signs of
Christ’s Coming” Luther wrote,
I would compel no man to believe me, and yet in this matter I will not yield up
my judgment to any other, namely, that the Last Day is not far off. . . . Let us not
therefore be wanting to ourselves, disregarding the most diligent premonition and
prophesie of Christ our Saviour; but seeing in our Age the Signs foretold by him,
do often come to pass, let us not think that the coming of Christ is far off.111
Luther further writes, “I believe that all the signs which are to precede the last days have
already appeared. Let us not think that the Coming of Christ is far off; let us look up with
heads lifted up; let us expect our Redeemer’s coming with longing and cheerful mind.”112
Since Luther is used broadly and frequently by imminence advocates, arguments based
on his teaching can be seen as central to the historical argument for imminence.
Hugh Latimer (c.1490-1555)
Payne argues that Hugh Latimer taught the imminent return of Christ.113
In preaching to
Edward VI in 1549 he stated, “The end of the world is near at hand. For there is lack of
faith now. Also the defection is come and swerving through the faith. Antichrist the man
of sin the son of iniquity is revealed, and the latter day is at hand.”114
In prison in Oxford
in 1555 Latimer wrote to “unfeigned lovers of God’s truth” and directed them to the day
110
Hugh Thomson Kerr, Jr., ed., A Compend of Luther’s Theology (Whitefish, Mt: Kessinger,
2008), 245.
111
Bryan W. Ball, A Great Expectation: Eschatological Thought in English Protestantism to 1660
(Netherlands: E. J. Brill, 1975), 15; cf. Luther, “The Signs of Christ’s Coming, and Of the Last Day
(1661),” Luther’s Works, 4, 28.
112
Pentecost, Things to Come, 204.
113
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 25.
114
Ball, A Great Expectation, 17. cf. Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 25.

49. 38
“when our Christ shall come in his glory, which I trust will be shortly.”115
While there are
clear indications that Latimer believed that Christ would return soon, it could be argued
from these citations that he still believed in preceding signs to occur that would reject an
any-moment view of the return. However, it seems clear from the texts that this view is
unlikely since the two clear signs given by Scripture to precede the coming of Christ, the
apostasy and the man of sin (2 Thess 2:3), have both been stated to have occurred. No
other signs are left either in Scripture or in Latimer’s writing that would indicate that the
Lord’s arrival would be delayed. For this reason, this argument is possibly cogent; since,
however, it is not frequently cited by imminence advocates, it should not be considered a
central historical argument for imminence.
John Calvin (1509-1564)
Payne, Pentecost, Stanton, and Stitzinger have also cited Calvin in their historical
arguments for imminence.116
These scholars have cited the following from Calvin:
We must always remember the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. For were it not
for this, we should faint every minute of an hour . . . there is no other means to
confirm us to stand steadfastly, and to follow the right way, but only to know,
that our Lord Jesus Christ will come and restore all things that are now out of
square. . . . True it is, that according to our fleshly senses, it cannot sink into our
heads that the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is at hand. . . . And though our
flesh be not able to reach unto it, yet we must behold it with the eyes of faith . . .
let us love this coming of the Son of God.117
115
Ball, A Great Expectation, 17.
116
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 24; Pentecost, Things to Come, 203-204; Stanton, “The
Doctrine of Imminency,” 230; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160.
117
Ball, A Great Expectation, 16; cf. John Calvin, Sermons of M. John Calvin on the Epistles of S.
Paule to Timothie and Titus (trans. Laurence Tomson, n.p. 1579), 994-96; trans. of Sermons de Iean Calvin
sur les deux Epistres Sainct Paul à Timothee, & sur l’Epistre a Tite (Genèva, 1563), 502, 503.

50. 39
Stitzinger further cites Calvin concerning Christ’s teaching in the Gospels, “[Jesus]
wishes [the disciples] to be uncertain as to his coming, but to be prepared to expect him .
. . every moment,” 118
and, “[Jesus] wished [the disciples] to be uncertain as to his
coming, but yet to be prepared to expect Him every day, or rather every moment.”119
Calvin also writes, “It behooves us to comfort ourselves at this day, and to see by faith
the near advent of Christ . . . nothing more now remained but that Christ should appear
for the redemption of the world.”120
Commenting on Matthew 24:42 Calvin writes,
It ought to be observed, that the uncertainty as to the time of Christ’s coming—
which almost all treat as an encouragement to sloth—ought to be felt by us to be
an excitement to attention and watchfulness. God intended that it should be
hidden from us, for the express purpose that we may keep diligent watch without
the relaxation of a single hour. For what would be the trial of faith and patience, if
believers, after spending their whole life in ease, and indolence, and pleasure,
were to prepare themselves within the space of three days for meeting Christ?121
Advocates have frequently argued that Calvin believed that the return of the Lord was
imminent.122
All signs given were considered to have already occurred such that there
was nothing further prior to that coming. Based on the frequency with which advocates
cite statements from Calvin as supporting imminence, along with the intrinsic value of
118
Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160; J. Graham Miller, Calvin’s Wisdom: An Anthology Arranged
Alphabetically by a Grateful Reader (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1992), 336-38.
119
John Calvin, Calvin’s Commentaries (22 vols.; trans. William Pringle; Grand Rapids: Baker,
1999), 17:156. Calvin’s phrase “every day, or rather every moment,” which has been translated from the
original Latin is collated with the author’s French version in the footnote: “De jour en jour, ou plustost
d’heure en heure;” – “from day to day, or rather from hour to hour.”
120
Ibid., 22:189
121
Ibid., 17:160-61.
122
Payne, The Imminent Appearing, 24; Pentecost, Things to Come, 203-204; Stanton, “The
Doctrine of Imminency,” 230; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160.

51. 40
support from someone of the stature of Calvin, these arguments claiming support from
Calvin may be considered central to the historical argument for imminence.
Summary
Imminence advocates cite Luther and Calvin more often than any of the other Reformers
for at least two reasons. First, their writings have been reviewed and respected by more
Protestants than those of any of the other Reformers. Second, they both affirm that the
signs are such as to prevent absolute identification of the time of the Lord’s return, and
that in spite of signs the nature and purpose of the teaching itself was to ensure that
believers were ready at every moment. Luther and Calvin are thus most broadly and
frequently used, and most exegetically supported. For these reasons, the arguments based
on Luther and Calvin can be considered central from the Reformation Church for the
historical imminence argument.
The Post-Reformation Church
Benware, Boyer, Ice, Jeffrey, Marotta, Stitzinger, and Strandberg have argued that early
development of pretribulationism began during the Post-Reformation period as seen in
the writings of Joseph Mede (1586-1639), Increase Mather (1639-1723), Morgan
Edwards (1722-1795), Peter Jurieu (1637-1713), Philip Doddridge (1702-1751), John
Gill (1697-1771), and James MacKnight (1721-1800).123
This has been a particularly
123
Paul N. Benware, Understanding End Times Prophecy: A Comprehensive Approach (Chicago:
Moody, 1995) 197-98; Paul Boyer, When Time Shall Be No More: Prophecy Belief in Modern American
Culture (Cambridge, MA: Belknap, 1992), 75; Thomas Ice, “Myths of the Origins of Pretribulationism,”
n.p. [cited Mar 23, 2010]. Online: http://www.pre-trib.org/article-view.php?id=50; Jeffrey, “A Pretrib
Rapture Statement,” 119; Frank Marotta, Morgan Edwards: An Eighteenth Century Pretribulationist
(Morganville, N.J.: Present Truth Publishers, 1995), 10-12; Todd Strandberg, “Imminency: The Rapture of
the Church is an Imminent Event;” Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 160-64.

52. 41
intense area of research since it has been frequently argued by non-pretribulationists that
there is no hint of pretribulationism prior to John Nelson Darby.124
This section will
present these early pretribulational texts which have been used by imminence advocates
to argue for a historical belief of imminence via a pretribulational rapture. Unfortunately,
the primary sources for Joseph Mede, Increase Mather, Peter Jurieu, Philip Doddridge,
and James MacKnight are currently unavailable and not directly cited by these advocates;
therefore, they cannot be presented here nor considered central for the historical
argument for imminence. The two remaining writers of this time that have been used
include Morgan Edwards (1722-1795) and John Gill (1697-1771). They will be presented
below.
John Gill (1697-1771)
Benware, Jeffrey, and Stitzinger argue that John Gill taught the imminence of the
rapture.125
Gill was a Baptist minister at Horsleydown, Southwark for more than fifty
years, and a Calvinist theologian and scholar.126
He wrote his NT commentary, An
Exposition of the New Testament, in three volumes between 1746-48. The following is a
section of Gill’s commentary on 1 Thess 4:17 argued as supporting imminence:
Suddenly, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, . . . which rapture will
contribute agility, which the bodies of the raised and changed saints will have;
and this rapture of the living saints will be together with them; with the dead in
124
William Everett Bell, Jr. writes, “No trace of the doctrine is to be found in church history after
the Ante-Nicene fathers until the nineteenth century.” Bell, “A Critical Evaluation,” 27; John L. Bray, The
Origin of the Pretribulation Rapture Teaching (Lakeland, FL: John L. Bray Ministry, 1982), 18-20;
Gundry, The Church and Tribulation, 185; George E. Ladd, The Blessed Hope (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1956), 31; Dave MacPherson, The Great Rapture Hoax (Fletcher, NC: New Puritan Library, 1983).
125
Benware, Understanding End Times Prophecy, 198; Jeffrey, “A Pretrib Rapture Statement,”
119-22; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 163.
126
Robert G. Clouse, “John Gill,” The New Dictionary, 413.

53. 42
Christ, that will be raised, . . . and be rapt up together; in the clouds; the same
clouds perhaps in which Christ will come will be let down to take them up; . . . so
at this time will all the saints ride up in the clouds of Heaven: to meet the Lord in
the air; . . . as yet He will not descend on earth, because it is not fit to receive
Him; but when that and its works are burnt up, and it is purged and purified by
fire, and become a new earth, He’ll descend upon it, and dwell with His saints in
it: and this suggests another reason why He’ll stay in the air, and His saints shall
meet Him there, and whom He’ll take up with Him into the third heaven, till the
general conflagration and burning of the world is over, and to preserve them from
it: and then shall all the elect of God descend from heaven as a bride adorned for
her husband, and He with them . . . then they shall be with Him, wherever He is;
first in the air, where they shall meet Him; then in the third heaven, where they
shall go up with Him; then on earth, where they shall descend and reign with Him
a thousand years; and then in the ultimate glory to all eternity.127
Benware argues,
Philip Doddridge’s commentary on the New Testament (1738)128
and John Gill’s
commentary on the New Testament (1748) each use the term rapture and speak of
it as imminent. It is clear that these men believed that this coming will precede
Christ’s descent to the earth and the time of judgment. The purpose was to
preserve believers from the time of judgment.129
Jeffrey argues that “Gill’s commentary on the Thessalonian passage affirms that first, the
saints are raptured to the air in order that they would not go through judgment. Second,
the Lord will not descend to the earth, but take the church to heaven.”130
Furthermore,
Jeffrey argues concerning John Gill’s commentary on 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, “Dr. Gill
points out that Paul is delivering teaching that is “something new and extraordinary.’
Gill calls the translation of the saints ‘the rapture,’ and he calls for watchfulness because
127
Due to the limited availability of John Gill’s commentary, this text is quoted from Jeffrey, “A
Pretrib Rapture Statement,” 120-21. John Gill, Commentary On The New Testament (1748).
128
Doddridge’s commentary is currently unavailable, nor does Benware directly cite it; therefore,
his text will not be included in this presentation.
129
Benware, Understanding End Times Prophecy, 198.
130
Jeffrey, “A Pretrib Rapture Statement,” 120-121. John Gill, Commentary on 1 Thess 4:17,
(1748).

54. 43
‘it will be sudden, and unknown before-hand, and when least thought of and
expected.’”131
Commenting on 1 Thessalonians 4:15, Gill wrote, “It was a well known
thing that it would be sudden, and at an unawares, like the coming of a thief in the
night.”132
Because of its frequent use by advocates, this text should be considered central to
the historical argument for imminence.
Morgan Edwards (1722-1795)
Thomas Ice, Frank Marotta, James Stitzinger, and Todd Strandberg argue that Morgan
Edwards, the founder of Brown University, taught the imminence of the rapture in his
work, Two Academical Exercises on Subjects Bearing the Following Titles: Millennium,
Last-Novelties (1744).133
It is claimed that in this text Edwards taught that the rapture
would be three-and-a-half years before the beginning of the millennium. The following
text is used by advocates:
II. The distance between the first and second resurrection will be somewhat more
than a thousand years.
I say, somewhat more -- because the dead saints will be raised, and the living
changed at Christ's "appearing in the air" (I Thes. iv. 17); and this will be about
three years and a half before the millennium, as we shall see hereafter: but will he
and they abide in the air all that time? No: they will ascend to paradise, or to some
one of those many "mansions in the father's house" (John xiv. 2), and so disappear
during the foresaid period of time. The design of this retreat and disappearing will
131
Ibid., 119.
132
Ibid.
133
Thomas Ice, “Morgan Edwards: Another Pre-Darby Rapturist,” n.p. [cited Mar 19, 2010].
Online: http://www.according2prophecy.org/apredarby.html; Marotta, Morgan Edwards, 10-12; cf. Frank
Marotta, “Dave MacPherson’s the Rapture Plot: Weighed and Found Wanting,” n.p. [cited Mar 19, 2010].
Online: http://www.according2prophecy.org/macphers.html; Stitzinger, “The Rapture,” 163; Strandberg,
“Imminency.”