The Rapture of the Church and The Resurrection of the Saints

Other scriptures that have led me to a post-tribulational position are those that describe the relationship between the rapture, the tribulation, and the resurrection of the dead.

1. In I Thessalonians 4, Paul said that the dead in Christ would rise first, and then, only afterwards, would those who were alive and remaining be caught up in the air. To emphasize this order of events, Paul said that the survivors would in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep (v.15). Thus we see that the rapture clearly occurs after the resurrection of the saints.

2. In Revelation 20, John wrote that he saw the souls of those who had been killed by the beast for refusing to worship him. He went on to prophesy that these would come to life and reign with Christ for a thousand years. More importantly for the purposes of this argument, John revealed that the raising of the martyrs of the tribulation period would be the first resurrection (v.5). That is, the first group of saints to be raised from the dead would be those who had suffered in the Great Tribulation.

3. It goes without saying, of course, that if the raising of the tribulation martyrs is to be the first resurrection, then there can be no resurrection before the tribulation. If, therefore, there cannot be a resurrection before the tribulation, then the rapture, which takes place after the resurrection, simply cannot take place before the tribulation.

Thus it seems that the pretribulational position is further undermined, not by a fanciful allegorical interpretation, but by the plain words of scripture themselves. It is, in fact, difficult for me to see how a literal interpretation of this language could possibly allow for any other position. I ask again, is the doctrine of the pretribulational rapture taught so clearly in the Bible as to serve as a legitimate mark of faithfulness to the scriptures?