An Atheist Explores the Bible Part 227: The Rapture: It’s a lot like having a baby (1 Thessalonians 1-5)

1 Thessalonians 1-5
The Rapture: It’s a lot like having a baby.

Welcome to another instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Bible version).

In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the King James Bible, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.

For more detail, see the introductory post http://bit.ly/2F8f9JT

For the online KJV I use, see here http://bit.ly/2m0zVUP

And now:

1 Thessalonians 1

“For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.”

A short opening chapter which is little more than some formula salutations, from Paul, Timotheus and Silvanus to the Thessalonians who have spread the word, inspired as Paul says not just by words but by the “Holy Ghost” (for which in this case I guess we can read “religious zeal”) to Macedonia and Achaia, i.e. northern Greece.

The only theological point of note here is the mention that the Thessalonians have turned from idols to the one God and “to wait for his Son from heaven”; the first hint I’ve seen in Paul’s theology of the idea of a second coming, not that those words have been used so far. At the back end of the gospels and at the start of Acts there is mention of Jesus telling the disciples that they will see Him again in their lifetimes, but this is the first time that I recall that Paul says any such thing. It could also refer to a metaphorical thing, of a “receiving the spirit of Jesus” kind of experience.

1 Thessalonians 2

“But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.”

Paul gives a summary of his relationship with the Thessalonians, and it appears that he’s visited them before. The majority of what he writes is an interesting insight into how he sees his teaching – he does so because he must, because what he says he believes to be the truth of God. He claims not to be seeking glory for himself, nor approval from others, but only to spread the “true word”. He seems to see the words as magical – “when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.” In other words, it’s not me convincing you through “flattery”, says Paul, it’s because the words I speak contain the power of God.

In a way this is an interesting psychological point. We could take Paul’s God out of the equation and consider that more abstract concept of “inspiration” - that the ideas put forward by Paul have evidently caught on with the Thessalonians and given them some kind of emotional response, which Paul would characterise as the “Holy Spirit”. But really, how different is the experience to, say, hearing a song you really like, or even, to continue the musical metaphor, the works of a group that you like? Going to a concert to see a band that you like is no different psychologically to a shared act of worship; you are gathering together with like-minded people to engage in a shared act of devotion, both of which grant an expansive experience of being part of a greater whole. No wonder many religious types have a strong dislike of popular culture and secular shared experiences as they demonstrate that one can have the same psychological response absent of a God.

1 Thessalonians 3

“And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you”

There’s not much to this particular chapter. Paul says that last time he was with the Thessalonians he predicted that he would be in trouble, and was later imprisoned (perhaps at Rome?). During his imprisonment he sent Timotheus to the Thessalonians in his stead to check that they were adhering to his particular version of the faith, which they were, so Paul is pleased with them.

Theologically there are two points of doctrine – as in the quote above Paul mentions loving one another, and here makes it plain that this extends “toward all men” and not just within the Christian community as seemed to be implied earlier. However, one thing I forgot from the last chapter was the sudden hostility shown to the Jews (given that Paul is Jewish this seems strange, the anger of an apostate, perhaps, or as I’ve suspected before a feud between Peter and Paul).

The second theological point is that once again Paul mentions “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints”.

1 Thessalonians 4

“Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

This would appear to be the first explicit description of what would come to be called the Rapture, of not only the faithful being saved at some kind of end time, but also specifically of being “taken up” into the clouds. What Paul also seems to be saying here, though, is that even those who are not Christians (“even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him”) will be saved as well, and not condemned to some horrible after life for not believing. Which seems to be different to what a lot of, mainly American, Christian groups like to believe.

In which case, the rewards for belief would seem to be an effect in the current life, if it is not an exclusive ticket to heaven. Here Paul encourages chastity and charity, implying that those who give will get in return – “That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing”. I say chastity, but actually he says to avoid “fornication” but also encourages the Thessalonians to “increase more and more”, which could be through conversions or it could be through reproduction, he isn’t clear.

1 Thessalonians 5

“For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.”

Okay, maybe I was wrong last chapter, because this chapter explains that believers, at least, have some kind of better preparation for the “day of the Lord” compared to non-believers. What this means in practice is unclear apart from, near as I can tell from this chapter, imparting a sense of smugness. What happens on the “day of the Lord” if you aren’t prepared, Paul does not say, but possibly it isn’t good – “then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape”.

Now, wait a second. Travail (ie childbirth) does not come entirely suddenly and unexpectedly. You’re going to expect it around nine months after a bit of “entering unto”. Or at least eight months after a missed “time of uncleanliness”. Getting into the biblical euphemisms there. Maybe the first contractions take you by surprise, but you’re going to be expecting them at some point then.

Compared to whatever the “day of the Lord” may be, there’s much more of a timetable, compared to a God who created everything in existence in six days but somehow hasn’t managed to return for two thousand years.

And yes, I am being snarky here, sorry, but this kind of millennial end-of-times eschatological smugness really annoys me.

This epistle is written from Athens, but doesn’t have any authorial notes at the end, not any dedications. In fact the style is quite different, with short verses of exhortations to “greet one another with a holy kiss” and to “prayer constantly”.

And that’s it for 1 Thessalonians. There’s a shift in tone here to a kind of day of judgment, compared to earlier epistles whereby the Christians got a spiritual rebirth both in their life and possibly after death thanks to their belief. Here is the first hint that things will go badly for non-believers above and beyond simply not having this option.