The story of Lot.

Note, the plural, "days" of the Son of man.  Thus, the arrival of our Lord is more of a process, and not all happening in one 24 hour day.  More like a 1000 year day, spread out, including the beginning and end of the seven year tribulation.

[Luke 17:26] And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.
[Luke 17:27] They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.
[Luke 17:28] Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
[Luke 17:29] But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

[2Pet 2:4] For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
[2Pet 2:5] And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
[2Pet 2:6] And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;
[2Pet 2:7] And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
[2Pet 2:8] (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)
[2Pet 2:9] The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

Rapture themes in Genesis Chapter 19:

The chapter starts with a clear picture of the rapture.  The Gate is like the open door.  Lot rose up, going out to meet the angels.  This is a symbolic picture of Lot abiding in Jesus, and then going out through the gate (the open door) being raptured up going out to meet the Lord as he returns.

Gen 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up [06965 quwm] to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;

The gates are open on the Feast of Trumpets, which is the only Feast of the Lord on a new moon.

[Ezek 46:1] "Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east shall be shut on the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be opened and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened.

The gate is like the open door of the rapture in Rev. 4:1.  Jesus is the door, the gate.

John 10:9  I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
Luke 13:24  Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

We are to abide in Christ Jesus.

1 John 2:28  And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
John 15:10  If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

The word "rose up" or quwm, used to describe Lot is the same word used in Hosea, which links quwm to chayah, a word meaning brought to life.

Hsa 6:2 After two days will he revive [02421 chayah]  us: in the third day he will raise us up [06965 quwm], and we shall live in his sight.

The rapture is not only a "catching up" in the air, it is also the time when he will revive or resurrect us, & it is the fulfillment of the promise of prophecy, changing to immortality, when we all must stand before the Judgement Seat of Christ.

06965 quwm {koom}

                 a primitive root; TWOT - 1999; v

                 AV - (stood, rise, etc...) up 240, arise 211, raise 47, establish 27,
                 stand 27, perform 25, confirm 9, again 5, set 5, stablish 3,
                 surely 3, continue 3, sure 2, abide 1, accomplish 1, misc 19; 628

                 1) to rise, arise, stand, rise up, stand up
                 1a) (Qal)
                 1a1) to arise
                 1a2) to arise (hostile sense)
                 1a3) to arise, become powerful
                 1a4) to arise, come on the scene
                 1a5) to stand
                 1a5a) to maintain oneself
                 1a5b) to be established, be confirmed
                 1a5c) to stand, endure
                 1a5d) to be fixed
                 1a5e) to be valid
                 1a5f) to be proven
                 1a5g) to be fulfilled
                 1a5h) to persist
                 1a5i) to be set, be fixed
                 1b) (Piel)
                 1b1) to fulfil
                 1b2) to confirm, ratify, establish, impose
                 1c) (Polel) to raise up
                 1d) (Hithpael) to raise oneself, rise up
                 1e) (Hiphil)
                 1e1) to cause to arise, raise
                 1e2) to raise, set up, erect, build
                 1e3) to raise up, bring on the scene
                 1e4) to raise up, rouse, stir up, investigate
                 1e5) to raise up, constitute
                 1e6) to cause to stand, set, station, establish
                 1e7) to make binding
                 1e8) to carry out, give effect to
                 1f) (Hophal) to be raised up

02421 chayah {khaw-yaw'}

                 a primitive root [compare 02331, 02421]; TWOT - 644; v

                 AV - live 153, alive 34, save 13, quicken 14, revive 12, surely 10,
                 life 9, recover 8, misc 9; 262

                 1) to live, have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously,
               live for ever, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health
                 1a) (Qal)
                 1a1) to live

                 1a1a) to have life
                 1a1b) to continue in life, remain alive
                 1a1c) to sustain life, to live on or upon
                 1a1d) to live (prosperously)
                 1a2) to revive, be quickened
                 1a2a) from sickness
                 1a2b) from discouragement
                 1a2c) from faintness
                 1a2d) from death
                 1b) (Piel)
                 1b1) to preserve alive, let live
                 1b2) to give life
                 1b3) to quicken, revive, refresh
                 1b3a) to restore to life
                 1b3b) to cause to grow
                 1b3c) to restore
                 1b3d) to revive
                 1c) (Hiphil)
                 1c1) to preserve alive, let live
                 1c2) to quicken, revive
                 1c2a) to restore (to health)
                 1c2b) to revive
                 1c2c) to restore to life

Genesis 19:4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
Genesis 19:5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.

Psalm 118:10 All nations compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD will I destroy them.
Psalm 118:11 They compassed me about; yea, they compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
Psalm 118:12 They compassed me about like bees: they are quenched as the fire of thorns: for in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.

More rapture descriptions in Psalm 118 surrounding those verses above:

Psalm 118:5 I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place.
Psalm 118:6 The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?

Psalm 118:17 I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.
Psalm 118:18 The LORD hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.
Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:
Psalm 118:20 This gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter.
Psalm 118:21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.

The gates, are open on the new moon, which is during the Feast of Trumpets; a symbol of the "open door" to heaven in Rev. 4:1.

[Ezek 46:1] "Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east shall be shut on the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be opened and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened.

Psalm 118 concludes with a phrase repeated in the Gospel accounts:

Psalm 118:26 Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we have blessed you out of the house of the LORD.

Matthew 23:39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Luke 13:35  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Earlier in Luke 13, this same open gates rapture reference is used...

Luke 13:24 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.
Luke 13:25 When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:
Luke 13:26 Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets.
Luke 13:27 But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.
Luke 13:28 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.

This idea of escaping up in the rapture, away from enemies who have planned to kill--and who will kill saints in the tribulation-- is also clearly shown in Psalm 27, which is to be read daily for the 30 days prior to the Feast of Trumpets.

The idea of escaping in the rapture, away from enemies, is also shown in Rev. 12, where the man child is raptured up to heaven away from and out of reach of Satan, who was standing ready to devour the man child, who, like believers & Christ, is to rule with the rod of iron.  That this man child of Rev. 12 is a nation born at once in the rapture is also shown in Isaiah 66.

Thus, the rapture is shown to be pre-tribulation, prior to the time when saints will be killed in the tribulation.  Those saints who will be killed are the other children of the woman, not the man child who was raptured.

Finally, perhaps the best case of a rapture, or harpazo, away from the enemies (who compass us round about) is:

John 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out [harpazo] of my hand.
John 10:29  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out [harpazo] of my Father's hand.

In this case, the harpazo does not describe being changed and "caught up" to eternal life (Yet eternal life is mentioned as the contrast!), as harpazo is used in 1 Thess 4, but rather it is describing a "violent taking by force" to be jailed, as the word is used to describe Paul being taken to jail.

Acts 23:10 And when there arose a great dissension, the chief captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them, commanded the
soldiers to go down, and to take him by force [**harpazo**] from among them, and to bring him into the castle.

I noted earlier the difference between being "taken and left" in Matt 24:40,41 and  in Luke 17:34-36, paralambano vs aphiemi.  I noted that paralambano is like begin taken and joined (with Christ) as a man and a woman become one flesh in marriage.  Paralambano also means to be taken away to jail, fitting the use of "harpazo" in Acts 23:10 perfectly.

And thus, this brings us back to seeing how our enemies will "compass us about" getting ready to persecute and kill and "take away" Christians during the tribulation, but the rapture will "take away" Christians, prior to that tribulation.

As we continue into the story in Genesis 19, we see the open doors are repeated, and strongly featured in the story.

6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door.
10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door.
11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.

Going through the open door, and then the door being shut, is like the ten virgins parable...

Matt 25:10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

Lot was pulled through the door by angels.

Matt 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.

And those left outside the door wanted to get in, but were stricken with blindness.  2 Thess 2 describes the rapture as the removal of the restrainer, who is taken out of the way, followed by a strong delusion, or spiritual blindness, on the enemies.

2 Thess 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2 Thess 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2 Thess 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2 Thess 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2 Thess 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

Those left behind in Matt 25, wanted to get in through the door.

Matt 25:11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Matt 25:12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
Matt 25:13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

Gen. 19:12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:
Gen. 19:13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it.
Gen. 19:14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
Gen. 19:15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.
Gen. 19:16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.

Angels take them out.  It is interesting that the angels are described as "men".  We see angels being involved in the rapture process in the following verses, and the distinction between angels and men seem to blur after the rapture.  In fact, it is quite a debate as to who the 24 elders sitting on 24 thrones are in Rev. 4 & 5, because angels are also clothed with white robes.

[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.

[Heb 12:22] But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

[Jud 1:14] And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

Matthew 16:27  For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.
Matthew 25:31  When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Mark 8:38  Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Men share in this glory which will be revealed, those who return with Christ, his bride.

1 Peter 5:1  The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

Even Rev. 19:14 is disputed who the armies that follow Jesus are: angels or men:
[Rev 19:14] And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
Despite the fact that the saints are clothed in white linen, a few verses earlier, and Rev. 19 starts out with people in heaven.
[Rev 19:7] Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;
[Rev 19:8] it was granted her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure"--for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
[Rev 19:1] And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and
honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:

The identity of the 24 elders in Rev 4-5, whether angels or men, is not 100% clear, despite the following:

Matthew 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

People are the Bride of Christ, which comprise the New Jerusalem.

[2Cor 11:2] For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

[Rev 21:2] And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her
husband.

[Rev 21:9] And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
[Rev 21:10] And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem,
descending out of heaven from God,

So, it is quite interesting to see the angels being described simply as "men" in Genesis 19.

Another part about that passage from Genesis is that any and all of Lot's children came with Lot.

Gen. 19:12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:

This is like the children and unbelieving spouses being sanctified by our belief.

1 Corinthians 7:14  For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.

Lot's wife, would be seen as the wife with little faith.  She was brought forth, like one being raptured, but not found worthy.  Another parallel of this is the man without a wedding garment in Matt. 22.

Matt. 22:
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

Lot's wife becomes a pillar of salt.

Gen 19:17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my LORD:
19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
21 And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken.
22 Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do anything till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;
25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

A commonly known Bible Story, yet little expounded upon.  The Genesis account does not go into the meaning or detail about this.  Why salt?  Why not a pillar of dust?  Why didn't she just drop dead?  Salt is mentioned a few times in the Bible, I will not cover all, but just the key meanings.

First reference: Genesis 14:3 All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.

The sea is filled with salt, about the same concentration of salt as is in our blood.  And Rev. says the sea represents people, as we noted earlier in Revelation 17:15, when we considered the waters drying up off the face of the earth in the Noah account.

Second reference: Leviticus 2:13 And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.

And we know that we are to present out bodies as a living sacrifice.

Third reference: Judges 9:45  And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that was therein, and beat down the city, and sowed it with salt.

Sowing the land with salt makes it unsuitable as farmland.  The salt hinders growth.

Fourth reference: 2 Kings 2:21 And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the
LORD, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

A miracle of life to heal the waters.

Job 6:6  Can that which is unsavoury be eaten without salt? or is there any taste in the white of an egg?

There are only 6 new Tesament references

Matthew 5:13  Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Mark 9:49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
Mark 9:50  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.
Luke 14:34  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned?
Colossians 4:6  Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
James 3:12  Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.

In the story of Lot, his wife literally became salt--for disobedience.  Next, we are told that we are salt, in a spiritual sense, "Ye are the salt of the earth".  There must be a comparison.

It's funny.  Lot's wife doesn't even have a name.  She's just his wife.  Of course, we are the Bride of Christ.

The fact is that she escaped with lot, and then she was changed.

At the rapture, people are changed.  Again, as Christians, we are told we are the salt, being "the salt of the earth" is a good thing, and has a spiritual meaning.  (First the natural, then the spiritual)

Most commonly, we are told how Lot's wife was disobedient.  She was.  Her crime was direct disobedience to God, who told her not to look back.

It is a contrast, but it's also a parallel, at the rapture in Rev. 4:1, John is told to look at the things which must come upon the earth while he is in heaven.

Forth, Lot's daughters give themselves to Lot in a sexual act to bear children... a honeymoon type act.

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