The Apostasy before the Flood
To help us understand the time in which we live, the time known as the Last Days, Jesus used an enlightening comparison. In the Olivet Discourse, He warned,
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
Matthew 24:37-41
Jesus compared the days before His coming to the days of Noah, implying that His coming will coincide with judgment and calamity on a scale comparable to the Flood, which destroyed almost all life on the earth. The days of Noah resembled His coming not only in their apocalyptic climax, but also, as Jesus said, in the condition of human society just beforehand. In other words, men in the Last Days will descend to the same deplorable wickedness that God saw in the world before the Flood.
The sin at the root of all sinfulness before the Flood was apostasy—that is, departure from the truth and righteousness that the people had learned from their godly fathers. The Book of Genesis leaves no doubt that apostasy had, by Noah's time, overtaken and infected the whole body of mankind.
Adam had many sons and daughters, including Abel, the godly son who was slain by his brother Cain, but the Bible has nothing good to say about any of their other children except Seth. His distinction was that he fathered Enos, and it was in the days of Enos that men began "to call upon the name of the LORD" (Gen. 4:26). Reading between the lines, we surmise that Enos helped to stir up spiritual revival among the Sethites and perhaps among others as well. It was in the line of Seth rather than in the line of Cain that Enoch appeared, the man who obtained such favor with God that God took him alive into heaven. Yet a few centuries later, about 1500 years after man was created, righteousness had nearly disappeared from the face of the earth. Only one man, Noah, remained who was "just" and perfect" and who "walked with God" (Gen. 6:9). Noah "found grace in the eyes of the Lord" (v. 8), but the rest of mankind earned only the Lord's regret that He had made them.
5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Genesis 6:5-7
The sinful ways of Cain and his descendants had spread to all the descendants of Adam. Corruption had even swallowed up the descendants of Seth, creating a nearly universal departure from truth and righteousness. Apostasy had all but erased godly religion.
The analogy that Jesus drew between the days of Noah and the Last Days implies that the latter will be as apostate as the former.
Ultradispensationalism
In recent years, an approach to prophecy has become popular which denies that the Olivet Discourse has anything to say about events just preceding the rapture of the church. A passage generating radically different interpretations is the one just quoted in Matthew 24. Luke 17 offers a parallel passage.
26 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.
27 They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.
28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
31 In that day, he which shall be upon the house top, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back.
32 Remember Lot's wife.
33 Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.
34 I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left.
35 Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.
Luke 17:26-37
Words in italics, such as "women" in Matthew 24:41 and Luke 17:35 and "men" in Luke 17:34 and Luke 17:36, are not in the original. The original speaks only of two in a bed, two grinding together, and two in the field.
Now what do you think these two passages are talking about? The answer that springs to the mind of most believers is, the Rapture. Can anyone offer another interpretation? What you have offered me is the traditional view. But there are Bible teachers today who would disagree with you.
The interpretation of these passages has taken a new turn. At one time most Bible students believed that "the one . . . taken" will be the privileged one—that he will be taken to heaven while the other will be left behind to suffer the wrath of God. They inferred that Jesus was describing the rapture of the church. Now, however, some Bible teachers hold a different position. They believe that the one taken will go to judgment, while the one left behind will be made a citizen of Christ's Kingdom.
The recent shift of opinion reflects the emergence of a new school of Bible interpretation which many dissenters call ultradispensationalism.1 Like the older school generally known as dispensationalism, this recent offshoot recognizes that God’s program for the Jews stands apart from His program for the gentiles. Yet it goes out of bounds in many claims. For example, its followers view the teachings of Jesus as addressed primarily to the Jewish people living under Mosaic law. Such a perspective leads to denial that any of His prophetic discourses speaks to believers during the coming Church Age. Rather, passages such as the two we have quoted lay out the future experience of Jews during the Tribulation, after the church has been removed from the world.
Ultradispensationalists theorize, "The very end of the Tribulation will bring a separation between the godly and the ungodly. God will send His angels to carry away all the ungodly to judgment and eternal damnation. The ungodly will suddenly disappear from the face of the earth, and the godly will remain to pay homage to Christ."
So, ultradispensationalists deny that Matthew 24:37–41 and Luke 17:34–37 are talking about a future rapture of the church. To read any rapture into these passages is, they say, a basic mistake. In their view, these passages are predicting not a rapture, but a judgment. Moreover, they deny any connection between the days of Noah and the Last Days of the Church Age. They say that the days of Noah are a picture of the world during the Tribulation. Are they right? I think not. I think the devil has been working overtime to keep people from understanding these vital passages—passages intended for the instruction of believers living in our time.
Rebuttal
Five reasons demand that we reject the ultradispensational interpretation of Matthew 24:37-41 and Luke 17:26-37.
1. Look at the state of the world at the time previewed in these passages. We see two men in the field. Presumably they are doing some sort of agricultural work. We also see two women grinding at the mill. Again, nothing out of the ordinary. And we see two people in bed asleep. What do these snapshots suggest about life on the earth at this time? They suggest life as usual. We see only the normal activities of people, activities of a kind that flourish in a time of peace and tranquility.
But it will not be life as usual at the end of the Tribulation. Just consider some of the last plagues.
1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.
4 And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
Revelation 16:1–9
When the First Vial is poured upon the earth, "a noisome and grievous sore" will fall upon all men who wear the mark of the Beast (v. 2). What type of sore it will be, we cannot imagine. But evidently it will be very painful, and it will afflict most inhabitants of the earth. Then the second angel will pour out his vial upon the sea, which will become "as the blood of a dead man" (v. 3). In consequence, every living thing in the sea will die. When the third angel pours out his vial, all the fountains of water—that is, all the underground sources—will become as blood also. The next angel, the fourth, will pour out his vial upon the sun. John's alarming observation that "power was given unto him to scorch men with fire" (v. 8) suggests a sudden catastrophic rise in the temperature of the earth.
The sensible question is this. When the people of the earth are suffering from grievous sores, shortages of good water, and burning heat, will they persist in their regular work? Will men still go out to the field and tend crops? Will women still go out to the yard and mill grain? Of course not. Few crops will survive the terrible plagues. Moreover, few people will feel like working. Sick from sores, thirst, and heat, most people will lie in misery upon their beds. The few robust enough to stay active will huddle indoors during the day rather than face the relentless sun. Consider what Jesus said about the conditions prevailing at the end of the Tribulation.
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
Matthew 24:21–22
It is obvious that the wretched climax of this harrowing time will force suspension of normal activities.
We conclude that the scenes of two in the field and two at the mill—these being scenes of life as usual—must belong to another period of history. The attempt by ultradispensationalists to make them fit the end of the Tribulation is unreasonable.
As a side note, Jesus’ prophecy in Luke says that while two are sleeping in bed, others will be outside hard at work. What knowledge does the Lord display here that skeptics cannot explain? Unlike everyone else in the ancient world, He understood that the earth is round and that people live on both sides, with night on one side and day on the other.
2. The notion that only the wicked will be taken for judgment at the end of the Tribulation does not agree with the plain teaching of Scripture. Scripture says that in the transitional period between the Tribulation and the Millennium, both the wicked and the righteous will be taken for judgment. What they will face is described in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse.
31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats.
33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
Matthew 25:31-46
The people brought to this judgment will be "all nations" (v. 32). We should not, however, imagine that each nation will be judged as a unit. In judging the United States, for instance (assuming the United States still exists), Christ will not relegate all its people to the same destiny. Look at what He approves and what He condemns. He approves acts of personal kindness, and He condemns acts of personal unkindness. So, obviously, as justice would indeed require, He is judging the nations one person at a time. No doubt some in every nation will be placed among the sheep, some among the goats.
Where will the nations be gathered? The place will be the Valley of Jehoshaphat.
1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
Joel 3:1-2
The name for the place of gathering is probably an ancient name for the valley directly east of Jerusalem. Gathered by whom? By the angels. Who will be gathered? All nations. So, at the end of the Tribulation, both the wicked and the righteous will be taken for judgment. The idea that only the wicked will be taken, while the righteous will be excused from judgment and left at their homes, is utterly false. Yet the angels will no doubt restore the righteous to their homes after they have heard Christ's invitation to live in His kingdom.
3. People who favor the ultradispensational interpretation of Matthew 24:37–41 and Luke 17:26–37 say, "In Matthew 24, look at the verses preceding verses 40 and 41—at verses 38 and 39." These ultradispensationalists reason, "The ones taken by the Flood were destroyed. In a sense, they were taken to judgment. So, the taking mentioned in the next verse, verse 40, where it says, 'the one shall be taken,' must be a taking to judgment also."
The hole in this argument is that although verses 39 and 40 may look similar in an English translation, they do not look similar in the Greek. The word "took" in verse 39 is entirely unrelated to the word "taken" in verse 40. The word in verse 39 is airo, which means to take in the sense of forcible removal.2 The word in verse 40 is paralambano, which suggests taking to oneself.3 It is evident that the words are not close synonyms. Whereas the one is suitable for describing the destructive effects of a flood, the other is suitable for describing a rapture. (A full defense of our interpretation of "taken" in Matthew 24:40 appears in another article on this site.)
4. The explanation of verses 40 and 41 in Matthew 24 lies not in the preceding verse, describing the Flood in Noah's day, but in the next verses.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
Matthew 24:42–43
Verse 42 answers the obvious question raised by the prediction that "the one shall be taken." The question is, by whom? The answer is, by the thief—in other words, by Christ. When Christ returns to catch away His church, He will be a thief intruding on the domain of another. The Bible teaches that Satan is presently the ruler and prince of this world. On the eve of His crucifixion, Jesus said,
Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.
John 14:30
Paul said,
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Ephesians 2:1–2
Thus, in Matthew 24:40-41, the selective taking of one here and there is not a taking to judgment, but a taking to heaven.
5. Three times in Luke 17:26–37, Jesus says that "the one shall be taken, and the other left." The disciples asked, "Where, Lord?" (v. 37). Jesus answered, "Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together" (v. 37). The meaning is hidden behind symbols, but they are not difficult to interpret. What is the body? The body is the body of Christ. What are the eagles? The eagles are saints in their glorified bodies. What is the gathering? It is not a removal to judgment, but a lifting upward of these eagles to join all the other saints assembling "in the air" (1 Thess. 4:17) before Christ at His return. The lifting will be accomplished at the event known as the Rapture. The host of saints together with Christ will manifest His body.
Conclusion
A careful examination of the texts referring to the days of Noah brings us to two firm conclusions.
- They are talking about the period before the rapture of the church.
- That period, which we elsewhere have called the Last Days, will be a time of apostasy, as the days before the Flood were also a time of apostasy.