What Comes Before the Catching Up to the Lord in the Clouds in the Air (1th 4:16-17) and What Comes After This Event?
1) Direct answer
Before the catching up, the Lord descends with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God—this call gathers and readies the Bride, the dead in Christ are raised, and the living saints are changed. After the catching up, the Bride meets the Lord in the air and goes to the Marriage Supper, while the earth enters the great tribulation and God turns to Israel; then the Lord returns with His saints to reign in the Millennium, followed by the White Throne judgment and the New Heavens and New Earth.
2) Scriptural explanation
- The order itself: “The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God… the dead in Christ shall rise first… then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up… to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17). “We shall not all sleep… at the last trump… the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51–52).
- The Bride made ready before the meeting in the air: “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him” (Matthew 25:6). “His wife hath made herself ready… blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:7–9).
- Kept from the hour that is to try the world: “I… will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world” (Revelation 3:10). “Watch… that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things… and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:36).
- After the catching up: earth’s tribulation and Israel’s sealing and witness (Matthew 24:21; Revelation 7:1–8; Revelation 11). Then Christ returns with His saints (Revelation 19:11–16; note the armies clothed in fine linen, the same linen of the Bride in Revelation 19:8). Then the Millennium (Revelation 20:1–6), the White Throne (Revelation 20:11–15), and the New Heavens and New Earth (Revelation 21–22).
3) Simple clarifying logic
- Now notice the steps in 1 Thessalonians 4: the shout is the call by the Word that awakens and gathers a ready people; the voice raises the sleeping saints; the trumpet changes the living; then comes the catching up to meet the Lord in the air. You see, the meeting is in the air, not on the earth—that’s the catching away of the Bride.
- While the Bride is with the Lord at the Marriage Supper, the earth faces the tribulation. God then deals with Israel, sealing the 144,000 and sending His two witnesses. After that season, the Lord returns with all His saints to reign, and the rest of the prophecy flows into the Millennium, the final judgment, and the eternal order.
4) Reinforcing statement
It’s the same Lord doing it all—He calls, He raises, He changes, He catches away, and He returns with His redeemed. The Bible lays the line, and we simply walk in it.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Preparation
53-1111 §14
Now, in Acts 2 and 8 we read. I beg your pardon, Acts 1 and 8 we read this: But you shall receive power, after ... the Holy Ghost is come upon you: ... you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, ... Judea, ... Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfast toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood with them in white apparel; Which also said, You m...
Abraham and his Seed after him
61-0423 §85
If they don't, what happens? Ashes come. When could that happen? In another hour from now. But remember, before that happens... Here's where you disagree. But before that happens, Jesus comes for the church. Before one speck of fire fell on Sodom, Lot had to come out. Before one drop of rain fell, Abraham had to be in ... I mean, Noah had to be in the ark. And as it was in the days of Abra... days of Noah, and in the days of Sodom, so shall it be at the coming of the Son of man. Before anything takes place, the chu...
Testimony
63-1128M §4
"The trumpet of God shall sound; the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain." Did you notice the order of the resurrection? "... shall be caught up together with them." We meet each other before we meet Him. "... be caught up together to meet them ... with them, to meet the Lord in the air. See, He's God, and then when He wants to be worshipped, that's what his very nature is, is to be worshipped, because He's God. And He knows if we were there, be looking out of the corner of your eye...
Questions and Answers, Part 4
64-0830E §46
QUESTION: The church age ending and has blacked out, the bride is called, we have already entered into the tribulation period? No, no, no, you're ... I wished that I could just have more time on that, see. See, the bride, when she's taken from the church, then the church age will cease. Laodicea goes into chaos; the bride goes to glory; and the tribulation period sets in upon the sleeping virgin for three and a half years while Israel is getting its prophecy, then tribulation sets in upon Israel; and then comes the...
Standing in the gap
63-0623M §60
All those honest and true Lutheran, Presbyterian, Baptist, Methodist, and whoever's born of the Spirit of God will be caught away with Jesus Christ when He comes. I believe that. I differ with some of our Pentecostal brethren who believe that the remnant of the church is those who will be caught away in the last age. I differ there because God... How could a man... How could God... If we would say, "How could He?" He can do what He wishes to. But God, who promised Luther. And under justification, that's all they kn...