by Stan Feldsine (www.tojesusbeallglory.com)
Introduction
Jesus, in Mat 24:31 is quoting from Isaiah. The passage is speaking of the regathering of the Jewish people to the land promised them in the Abrahamic Covenant.
Gen 12:7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
This restoration of Israel is prophesied to take place at or near the end of the Tribulation period as they finally come to understand that they crucified their Messiah and mourn that transgression. Following the Tribulation, Israel will be gathered to their land in preparation for the Messianic Kingdom at the second coming of Christ. It is a quote from Isa 27:12-13.
Isa 27:12-13 In that day the LORD will thresh from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, Israel, will be gathered up one by one. (13) And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.
Compare this with Mat 24:31 as both passages speak of the regathering of Israel from the nations and the sounding of a great trumpet. The trumpet in Mat 24:31 and Isa 27:12-13 is the same trumpet.
Mat 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.
The people of Israel would have been very familiar with the Old Testament prophecies relating to the gathering of Israel to their land. Passages in the Hebrew scriptures speaking of Israel's return to the land are spread throughout the scriptures and are a major topic. Mat 24:31 speaks of the same event in the same language and directly corresponds to them, as the following passages show. Mat 24:31 is not a Rapture passage, it is referring to the restoration of Israel at the second coming.
Physical Restoration Passages
The following is a sampling from the Hebrew Scriptures dealing with Israel's restoration to their land.
Deu 30:1-5 When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come on you and you take them to heart wherever the LORD your God disperses you among the nations, (2) and when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, (3) then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you. (4) Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back. (5) He will bring you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors.
Isa 43:5-7 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. (6) I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth-- (7) everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made."
Jer 23:3-4 "I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. (4) I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing," declares the LORD.
Jer 31:7-8 This is what the LORD says: "Sing with joy for Jacob; shout for the foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard, and say, 'LORD, save your people, the remnant of Israel.' ( 8 See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return.
Eze 11:14-18 The word of the LORD came to me: (15) "Son of man, the people of Jerusalem have said of your fellow exiles and all the other Israelites, 'They are far away from the LORD; this land was given to us as our possession.' (16) "Therefore say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.' (17) "Therefore say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.' (18) "They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols.
Eze 36:24-28 "'For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. (25) I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. (26) I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (27) And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. (28) Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
Hos 3:4-5 For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. (5) Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the LORD and to his blessings in the last days.
Amo 9:14-15 and I will bring my people Israel back from exile. "They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. (15) I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them," says the LORD your God.
Zep 3:18-20 "I will remove from you all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals, which is a burden and reproach for you. (19) At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you. I will rescue the lame; I will gather the exiles. I will give them praise and honor in every land where they have suffered shame. (20) At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes," says the LORD.
Zec 10:8-12 I will signal for them and gather them in. Surely I will redeem them; they will be as numerous as before. (9) Though I scatter them among the peoples, yet in distant lands they will remember me. They and their children will survive, and they will return. (10) I will bring them back from Egypt and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them to Gilead and Lebanon, and there will not be room enough for them. (11) They will pass through the sea of trouble; the surging sea will be subdued and all the depths of the Nile will dry up. Assyria's pride will be brought down and Egypt's scepter will pass away. (12) I will strengthen them in the LORD and in his name they will live securely," declares the LORD.
Mar 13:24-27 "But in those days, following that distress, "'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; (25) the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.' (26) "At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. (27) And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
Conclusion
The context of Mat 24:31 is the restoration of Israel, the regathering to their land. Forcing the context of Mat 24:31 into a Rapture context is a misuse of the passage to support a Post-Trib viewpoint.
