THE CHURCH, THE TRIBULATION, AND THE THREE GATHERINGS

I. Why the Church Will Not Be Present in the Tribulation

A. Promise of Deliverance From the Time of Wrath

Revelation 3:10 declares:

“Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”

This “hour of trial” is global in scope and directed toward “earth dwellers,” a technical term in Revelation for unbelievers.

The phrase tēreō ek (“keep from”) appears elsewhere only in Gospel of John 17:15. In both contexts, the construction implies being kept out of something, not protected within it.

The promise is not preservation through wrath, but removal from the hour itself.

B. Call to Watch and Escape

In Gospel of Luke 21:27–28, Jesus speaks of His coming:

“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory… when these things begin to happen, look up… your redemption draws near.”

Two groups emerge:

• “They” who witness His coming.

• Those watching who are told redemption is near.

In Luke 21:34–36, Jesus instructs this second group to pray that they may “escape all these things… and stand before the Son of Man.”

Escape is total — not partial. Their destination is before Him.

C. Jesus’ Promise to His Church

Gospel of John 14:1–3 clarifies where believers go:

Christ prepares a place in the Father’s house and promises to receive His followers to Himself.

The Church is not caught up merely to reverse direction immediately. She is taken to heaven.

This aligns with the marriage supper described in Revelation 19.

This is the first gathering.

D. The Catching Up of the Wicked

Gospel of Matthew 24:36–44 speaks of “one taken and one left.”

The parallel in Gospel of Luke 17 clarifies the meaning. When asked where the taken go, Jesus answers:

“Where the body is, there the eagles will be gathered.”

Scholar Craig A. Evans notes this imagery points to carrion birds — a scene of judgment, not rescue.

This corresponds to Revelation 19:17–21.

This is the second gathering — the removal of the wicked at Christ’s visible return.

E. The Gathering of Israel

Gospel of Mark 13:24–27 describes Christ’s return after the tribulation. Angels gather His elect from the four winds.

This concerns Israel’s faithful remnant.

The Parable of the Wheat and Tares in Matthew 13 establishes the order:

• First the tares are gathered for judgment.

• Then the wheat is gathered into the barn.

Thus at Christ’s return:

• The wicked are removed.

• Israel’s remnant enters the kingdom.

• The Church returns with Christ.

II. Establishing the Order of Events

A. The Purpose of the Tribulation

The tribulation is “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7). Its primary focus is Israel’s restoration.

B. Revelation 14: A Panoramic Preview

Revelation 14 steps outside strict chronology and provides a panoramic preview of final separation.

The Two Harvests

I. The Son of Man Reaps — Revelation 14:14–16

John sees One like the Son of Man on a white cloud with a sickle.

This harvest corresponds to redemption.

II. The Angel Reaps the Grapes — Revelation 14:17–20

Another angel gathers fully ripened grapes and casts them into the winepress of God’s wrath.

This harvest corresponds to judgment.

C. The Broader Biblical Harvest Pattern

The harvest motif does not originate in Revelation. It stretches across redemptive history.

Ancient Israel’s agricultural cycle unfolded in three stages:

I. First Fruits

The first ripened grain was offered in the Temple as a pledge of the coming harvest.

At Christ’s resurrection, saints were raised and appeared in Jerusalem (Matthew 27:52–53). These may be seen as first fruits — a pledge of the greater resurrection to come.

Christ Himself is called the first fruits (1 Corinthians 15:20).

II. The Great Harvest

The main harvest required many laborers and spanned the land.

This aligns with the Church Age. At Pentecost, the field of the world began to be harvested through the Gospel.

This culminates in the catching away of the Church before the Tribulation.

Thus Revelation 14’s Son of Man harvest harmonizes with the broader ingathering of believers.

III. The Gleanings

Finally came the gleanings — grain left for the poor, the foreigner, the outcast.

This final stage corresponds to those who come to faith even in the closing hours — including Tribulation saints and Israel’s remnant.

This satisfies Christ’s declaration that the end will not come until the Gospel reaches all nations.

D. The Wheat and Tares Clarified

The Parable in Matthew 13 describes the harvest “at the end of the age.”

This is not the beginning of harvest — but its final phase.

At the end:

• The tares are gathered first.

• Then the wheat is gathered.

This matches:

• The removal of the wicked.

• The gathering of Israel.

• The visible Second Coming.

Thus the parable strengthens the multi-stage harvest model.

III. The Complete Timeline

I. First Fruits — Christ’s resurrection and pledge of harvest.
II. Great Harvest — Church Age ingathering.
III. First Gathering — The Church removed before the Tribulation.
IV. Tribulation unfolds.
V. Christ returns in glory.
VI. Second Gathering — The wicked removed in judgment.
VII. Third Gathering — Israel’s remnant gathered.
VIII. Marriage supper and millennial kingdom.

The harvest is progressive. The separations are ordered. The Church’s removal fits naturally within the pattern.