*On a side note, the reader should be aware that this study in no way will be speaking of any literal or spiritual harvesting, gathering or taking during the 6th trump (commonly called the rapture) which is when the tribulation of the antichrist and the great apostacy occurs. During that time most of the world will be "taken" in by his deception. This study will be focusing on a time after that has transpired, the 7th trump.

***************************************************************************
 

Matthew 24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

This is the verse we are here to discuss, but we will have to go back to the beginning of the chapter to establish the proper subject and timeframe.
 
 

Matthew 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
Matthew 24:2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
Matthew 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

The overall subject of this chapter will be the signs of the end of the world and Christ's return. There are seven signs to look for, and one benchmark event that will tell you when the seven things would start to come to pass.

For sake of time we will go directly to the 6th sign.
 

Matthew 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand)
Matthew 24:16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Matthew 24:17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
Matthew 24:18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Matthew 24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Matthew 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Matthew 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Matthew 24:22 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 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
Matthew 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Matthew 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
Matthew 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

This is the 6th event to happen before the end of the world. This is the time that the false christ reigns.

The next thing christ speaks about is the 7th and the last sign. This will be the events of His own return.
 

Matthew 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

What will the coming of the son of man be like? Like lightening flashing from the east to the west! An awesome time! This will happen when He returns. It's a sign we can look for.
 

Matthew 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

These signs take place at His return. These are all events that happen in this last and 7th sign. For a side study go to this link and read of the 6th seal, which speaks of these same events and times.

 https://www.angelfire.com/wa/warriorwarrior/sixthseal.html

***************************************************************************

Matthew 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

then
5119

 5119 tote {tot'-eh}

 from (the neuter of) 3588 and 3753;; adv

 AV - then 149, that time 4, when 1, not tr 5; 159

 1) then
 2) at that time
 

The word "then" is better translated "at that time".
 

Matthew 24:30 And (at that time) shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

At that time. What time? Go back to verse 27. The subject is Christ's return which is this last sign before the end. At the same time the events of verse 29 are happening we can also know for a fact that Christ will be seen in the "heavens", which is the sky, and He will be returning in all power and authority which is why the "tribes of the Earth mourn" because they know now that they worshipped the wrong Jesus.

Next verse: still in that 7th sign...
 
 

Matthew 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
 

This is critical to this study. The false doctrines of the pre and mid-tribulation "rapture" teach that Christ does this during or before the tribulation. That is obviously false if one sticks to the proper timeline and subject. We are in the last sign, which is the 7th trump. The tribulation is over according to verse 29 so there can be no doubt as to this gathering happening in the 7th trump. We are not gathered back to Christ in any shape or form until the last trump sounds and He returns for us.
 

Christ has now told us of the seven signs of the end and next He will go back to before the first sign and tell us what will be the benchmark sign/event that will alert us to when the season of the seven signs of the end shall reside within.

That benchmark is the planting of the fig tree and the parable concerning it. This was fullfilled when the good and bad figs returned to the land of Israel and began living together together as one nation under one name. From that time forward the seven signs would start to appear.

The 6th sign obviously hasn't come to pass yet since satan isn't ruling as "jesus" yet, so we know that we are in one of the other signs preceding that sign. I believe we are in the end of the 5th sign awaiting the 6th and his appearance.

Matthew 24:32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

The parable of the fig tree is a long and complex study of it's own, but I'd like you to note that the parable is not a parable dealing with the initial planting but a time after the planting of an unknown timelength. The parable wants you to recognize when that young, tender fig tree starts to blossom and show leaves that the summer and the summer harvest is near.

Matthew 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
Matthew 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

When you see the fig tree blossom and branch out with new leaves then you know that the end is coming near and the completion of the seven signs will be finishing.

Just something to chew on...back to the study at hand:
 

Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

Amen, we can rely and trust in Him.
 

Matthew 24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Let there be no confusion of the time He speaks of.  This is the time that He returns. He has just now re-established the subject as that last sign, the 7th trump. This is probably the most critical part of this study. To rightly divide the word of God one must absolutely have the right subject and the right timeframe in order to know what and when something is taking place. Without that a student can get lost.

Matthew 24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Now, this is as easy to understand as it appears to be. The coming of the son of man will be as, or will be like the days of Noah, which will center upon the flood and why the flood came in the first place..

It does not say the appearance of satan will be like the days of Noah. Do not make any attempt to change the subject from the coming of the son of man to the coming of the false son of man.
 

God sent the first flood, and yes God sends the second flood. Both times the flood is a flood of Gods wrath! A flood that destroys the wicked and saves the good.

Yes, satan will cast out a flood of lies and deception in the last days, but the verses we are reading are without a doubt speaking of a symbolic flood at the 7th trump while satan's wimpy little flood of lies happens long before this.
 

Revelation 12:15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

The target of this flood is the woman that brought forth Christ, verse 5 documents that.
 

Revelation 12:16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
Revelation 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The flood satan cast was swallowed very easily by the Earth and basically failed to accomplish what he wanted it to. No one is swept away by this flood. It fails. After this did not work, he sets off to hassle the remnant of the womans seed.

Two different floods. One of deception that failed to harm it's intended victim and was swallowed and done away with, and one flood of wrath that happens when Christ returns and is compared to the flood in Noah's time.
 

Back to the flood of wrath:

Matthew 24:38 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,
 

Christ's return is compared to this flood. So before His return the same thing will be happening, the fallen angels will be here with satan and they will be spiritually wedding the world to satan as the false christ, the false husband. They will do this just as they did this in Noah's day, right up until the time the flood comes.
 

Matthew 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

The return of Jesus Christ will be just like the flood of Noah's time.

The flood then caught them off guard and so will this flood of wrath. Christ comes as a thief in the night and He will catch them off guard thinking they already had the messiah here.

This verse clearly says that the coming of the son of man will be like this flood. That flood destroyed the wicked and took away to safety the good souls within the ark, an ark of safety if you will. Same thing at the 7th trump. Christ returns as a flood of wrath, He gathers his elect to Him while destroying the rest of the wicked world for marrying the false christ.
 

Matthew 24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

Let there be no mystery as to the time that this verse is also speaking of.

(same word as in verse 30)
then
5119

 5119 tote {tot'-eh}

 from (the neuter of) 3588 and 3753;; adv

 AV - then 149, that time 4, when 1, not tr 5; 159

 1) then
 2) at that time

Matthew 24:40 (At that time) shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

At the same time we've been discussing! The subject hasn't changed, we are still talking about the time Christ returns. At the time of the flood of wrath, at the time of Christ's return, shall one be taken and one will be left.

Remember what Christ said will happen prior to His telling of the parable of the fig tree?
 

Matthew 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet (7th trump), and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Is it such a mystery that one is taken "at that time" while others would be left behind? The elect are taken from the field, gathered back to Christ as it is written. Remember that this is not the 6th sign/trump. This taking from the field is not happening until Christ returns. No rapture, no gathering until the 7th trump, period.
 

Matthew 24:41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

Notice that both are doing work. When Christ returns he had better find you doing the right work, for if you aren't doing His work you are doing satan's work. That's the difference between these two: One works for satan, one works for Christ.

Matthew 24:42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

Again, the subject is when the true Lord comes, and He will be doing the taking and the leaving.

There are some interesting things to learn about these two words, taken and left.

taken
3880

 3880 paralambano {par-al-am-ban'-o}

 from 3844 and 2983; TDNT - 4:11,495; v

 AV - take 30, receive 15, take unto 2, take up 2, take away 1; 50

 1) to take to, to take with one's self, to join to one's self
    1a) an associate, a companion
    1b) metaph.
        1b1) to accept or acknowledge one to be such as he professes to be
        1b2) not to reject, not to withhold obedience
 2) to receive something transmitted
    2a) an office to be discharged
    2b) to receive with the mind
        2b1) by oral transmission: of the authors from whom the
             tradition proceeds
        2b2) by the narrating to others, by instruction of teachers
             (used of disciples)

"to take with one's self"
 "to join to one's self"
" an associate"
" a companion"
 "not to reject"

Sounds like a very positive thing to be taken "at that time", does it not?

Here are other examples of this same greek word being used:

Matthew 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of
the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of
David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is
conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
 

Matthew 2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord
appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child
and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring
thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
 

Matthew 2:20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and
go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young
child's life.
 

Matthew 18:15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Matthew 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

This clearly is not a negative example of  "taking".
 

The next verses are of  different greek words translated into take/taken and are not in a positive sense.
 
 

Matthew 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the
kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.

Very negative taking.

Interesting word:

726

 726 harpazo {har-pad'-zo}

 from a derivative of 138; TDNT - 1:472,80; v

 AV - catch up 4, take by force 3, catch away 2, pluck 2,
      catch 1, pull 1; 13

 1) to seize, carry off by force
 2) to seize on, claim for one's self eagerly
 3) to snatch out or away
 

This is more like when satan takes the world in deception. Also take note that this is the greek word where the word "rapture" is derived from.
 
 

Matthew 26:4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and
kill him.

Negative taking.

 2902 krateo {krat-eh'-o}

 from 2904; TDNT - 3:910,466; v

 AV - hold 12, take 9, lay hold on 8, hold fast 5, take by 4,
      lay hold upon 2, lay hand on 2, misc 5; 47

 1) to have power, be powerful
    1a) to be chief, be master of, to rule
 2) to get possession of
    2a) to become master of, to obtain
    2b) to take hold of
    2c) to take hold of, take, seize
 
 

Matthew 26:55 In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye
come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat
daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.

Negative taking.

 4815 sullambano {sool-lam-ban'-o}

 from 4862 and 2983; TDNT - 7:759,1101; v

 AV - take 8, conceive 5, help 2, catch 1; 16

 1) to seize, take: one as prisoner
 2) to conceive, of a woman
    2a) metaph. of lust whose impulses a man indulges
 3) to seize for one's self
    3a) in a hostile sense, to make (one a permanent) prisoner
 4) to take hold together with one, to assist, help, to succour
 

2 Timothy 2:26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

2221

 2221 zogreo {dzogue-reh'-o}

 from the same as 2226 and 64;; v

 AV - catch 1, take captive 1; 2

 1) to take alive
 2) to take, catch, capture
 

2 Peter 2:12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

259

 259 halosis {hal'-o-sis}

 from a collateral form of 138;; n f

 AV - to be taken + 1519 1; 1

 1) a catching, capture, to be taken
 

Revelation 19:20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

4084

 4084 piazo {pee-ad'-zo}

 probably another form of 971;; v

 AV - take 7, catch 2, apprehend 2, lay hand on 1; 12

 1) to lay hold of
 2) to take, capture
    2a) of fishes
 3) to apprehend
    3a) of a man, in order to imprison him

These are examples of a greek word one would use if a negative type of taking was being expressed. The point is to show that the word for taken in Matthew 24:40-41 is in no way connected to any type of a negative, deceptive, evil taking as many are led to believe.
Paralambano is a positive word in the sense of being taken.
 

Now, lets look at the greek word "left" as used in Matthew 24:41.

left
863

 863 aphiemi {af-ee'-ay-mee}

 from 575 and hiemi (to send, an intens. form of eimi, to go);
    TDNT - 1:509,88; v

 AV - leave 52, forgive 47, suffer 14, let 8, forsake 6, let alone 6,
      misc 13; 146

 1) to send away
    1a) to bid going away or depart
        1a1) of a husband divorcing his wife
    1b) to send forth, yield up, to expire
    1c) to let go, let alone, let be
        1c1) to disregard
        1c2) to leave, not to discuss now, (a topic)
             1c21) of teachers, writers and speakers
        1c3) to omit, neglect
    1d) to let go, give up a debt, forgive, to remit
    1e) to give up, keep no longer
 2) to permit, allow, not to hinder, to give up a thing to a person
 3) to leave, go way from one
    3a) in order to go to another place
    3b) to depart from any one
    3c) to depart from one and leave him to himself so that all
        mutual claims are abandoned
    3d) to desert wrongfully
    3e) to go away leaving something behind
    3f) to leave one by not taking him as a companion
    3g) to leave on dying, leave behind one
    3h) to leave so that what is left may remain, leave remaining
    3i) abandon, leave destitute

 "to send away"
 "of a husband divorcing his wife"
 "to expire"
 "to disregard"
 "neglect"
 "keep no longer"
 "to leave on dying"
 "leave behind one"
 "abandon, leave destitute"

That's the complete opposite as being "taken" and is very negative. Do you want to be rejected at the return of Christ or do you want to be accepted? Christ takes the first one from the field and the rest is "left" by him, and are "kept no longer".

Here is another usage of the same greek word for "left":

Revelation 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou
hast left thy first love.
 

John 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not  left me
alone; for I do always those things that please him.

Same word again.

The Father hath not left us alone, nor will Christ leave us in the field when He returns. You do not want to be "left" in the field or anywhere else for that matter.
 

This same thing is spoken of in the great book of Revelation:
 

Revelation 14:14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.

Here's the son of man we've been reading about, and He has returned as it is written He shall. He has His crown, because HE is the King of Kings at this time. But look out! He's come armed with a sickle to do a little reaping of the field. To reap is to "take unto yourself" to "gather to" which is the same meaning of the word "taken" in Matthew 24:40-41.

Revelation 14:15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.

An angel comes out of the very temple of God in Heaven and tells Christ to begin the harvest!
 

Revelation 14:16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.

Amen, amen! He has now gathered unto himself symbolically all those he wanted from the field of the world. They are gathered first. Why? The good fruit is always first, they are called the first fruits!
 

Revelation 14:4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

If we just take a step back some verses we can learn that the 144,000 are these first fruits redeemed and harvested from among men in the field of the world.
 
 

Revelation 14:17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.

What do we have here? A second angel, and this angel also has a sickle for harvesting. This angel will harvest all the fruit that Christ left in the field, those who were not the firstfruits, those who were not found suitable.

It is what you do during the tribulation period that establishes whether you are good fruit or whether you are bad fruit so make sure you have the right fruits and that you do His work.

Revelation 14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

A sickle is a tool that is made of a long wooden handle with a long curved blade of steel at the end of it. One can "sweep" this tool through something like wheat and cut it down and therefore make it easy to gather up in harvest. However, this sickle is being used to harvest grapes! Takes little imagination to see that it will be very sloppy work, at the expense of the grapes! Basically the message is that the grapes are going to be harvested very roughly and it is no concern of the reaper because of what purpose he has for these left behind fruit.

Revelation 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

A winepress is a place where you put the grapes in order to stomp upon them to bring forth their juices (the blood of the grape) and thereby make wine. This shall be a bitter wine of God's wrath against these wicked people.

Joel 3:13  Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is
full, the vats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

Thats's speaking of this second harvesting, those who are punished by God's wrath. No wonder they make a bitter wine!

Jeremiah 4:18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.

Guess what? Christ himself treads this winepress and smashes the grapes with his own feet!
 

Click here for part two






http://browse.to/warrior