[Jim W N]

Of course details are important but so is the context. As I told unlearner, “Some things are plainly understood, other things are more difficult. You’re trying to use things that are difficult to understand to deny those things that are more plainly understood.”

I’m a lawyer and you read the law similarly to reading the Bible, which is the Law of Liberty (James 1:25). If part of a statute or passage is difficult to understand or seems ambiguous, you use the context to help you understand the intent of the author (the Holy Spirit is the author of the Bible). So context is king and generally helps resolve questions about a particular part of a statute or scriptural passage.

But you seem to want to continue to strive and strive doubling down on your confusion about a particular passage ignoring the context and the more plainly understood things in that context.

There are lots of ways to resolve your issues but first you’ve got to let go of your flesh trying to run things including interpreting and applying God’s Word. The flesh “lusts against the Spirit” (Gal. 5:17), the author of the Bible, and the carnal (fleshly) mind is the enemy of God (Rom. 8:7).

One way of telling that your flesh is running things here is the continuing debate apparently on this very subject with your family of origin. Our families of origin are the very wellspring of our flesh. We have to walk away from those old family debates that are almost always born of the flesh.

We all have had problems with the flesh running things because that’s basically how we grew up. But we all can and must conquer the tyranny of the flesh by grace through the Spirit (Romans 8:1-14).

I have had the same problems but I had to be willing to back off, let go, and erase the blackboard of my own pet doctrines and strivings. And when it was HIS time, GOD would begin to write on my heart very quietly and peaceably. You need to do this same IMO.

[Seven_0]

The content of Matthew 24 is mostly about the Tribulation. It is always possible for the things in the chapter to be in order. I think the order of events is the rapture, then the seven year tribulation followed by the second coming of Christ. The rapture and the second coming of Christ are not the same event. Calling the rapture part one of the second coming is does not work since Christ does not come down at the rapture. We go up to meet him in the air.

The question from Matthew 24:3 What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

Matt 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Matt 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Matt 24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Matt 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

The “abomination of desolation” takes place in the seven-year tribulation. In verses 16-20, Israel is told to flee because they missed the opportunity to escape the in the rapture because of unbelief. The second coming would come after the tribulation.

I see two possible interpretations of verses 40 and 41, the rapture or the second coming of Christ. I cannot eliminate the second coming interpretation by using your arguments about context.