As It Was in the Days of Noah: A Hidden Gem to the Blessed Hope
What do Enoch, Noah, Lot, and the disciples at the cross all have in common?
Each was removed, lifted, or spared before judgment fell.
Jesus told us the end would be “as it was in the days of Noah”—not just in wickedness, but in deliverance.
This study explores the hidden thread of divine rescue that points to a coming moment of mercy before wrath.
# As It Was in the Days of Noah: A Hidden Gem to the Blessed Hope
> _“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”_
> —Matthew 24:37
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## God’s Consistent Pattern: Deliverance Before Wrath
Scripture repeatedly shows a divine pattern—before judgment falls, God secures the righteous. This pattern supports the blessed hope of a **pre-wrath deliverance** and highlights God’s mercy through typology.
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### 1. Enoch – Taken Before the Flood
> _“And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.”_
> —Genesis 5:24
> _“By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death…”_
> —Hebrews 11:5 [^1]
Enoch is removed entirely from the earth before the flood judgment—a picture of those who will be translated (1 Thess. 4:17) before wrath begins.
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### 2. Noah – Lifted Above the Judgment
> _“Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”_
> —Genesis 6:8
> _“And the Lord shut him in.”_
> —Genesis 7:16 [^2]
Noah was not exposed to wrath—he was sealed in a God-appointed refuge and lifted above the flood. He came through untouched, and stepped out into a renewed earth.
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### 3. Lot – Removed Before Destruction
> _“Haste thee… for I cannot do anything till thou be come thither.”_
> —Genesis 19:22 [^3]
Judgment on Sodom was withheld until Lot was out. His removal was reluctant and messy, but it still proved that God would not let wrath fall while the righteous remained.
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### 4. The Cross – Christ Alone Bears Judgment
> _“Let these go their way…”_
> —John 18:8
> _“Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.”_
> —Matthew 26:56 [^4]
Christ suffered the greatest judgment in history, yet His followers were scattered—not condemned. Even in His hour of wrath, He ensured His own were not touched.
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## A Note on the Tribulation Survivors
There is one partial exception: those who survive the Great Tribulation and enter the Kingdom in their natural bodies. These are not the Church but tribulation saints—those who believe after the catching away.
> _“But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”_
> —Matthew 24:13
> _“Inherit the kingdom prepared for you…”_
> —Matthew 25:34 [^5]
Even they are preserved by distinction, not by accident. God’s mercy still marks them apart from the wicked, and their survival proves that He always knows who are His.
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## Timeline: God’s Pattern of Particular Deliverance
**(Insert Visual Here)**
This timeline visually illustrates the consistent theme:
- **Enoch**: taken before wrath
- **Noah**: lifted and sealed above it
- **Lot**: forcibly removed
- **Christ**: alone under wrath, disciples spared
- **Church**: caught up before tribulation begins
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## Conclusion
God doesn’t change. His pattern is not mystical—it’s consistent.
He never pours out wrath on the righteous with the wicked.
Those who are in Christ are sealed, hidden, and caught up—not swept away.
**“As it was in the days of Noah…” so it shall be again.**
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## Footnotes
[^1]: Enoch’s translation is a type of the catching away—he was removed before judgment, not merely spared in it.
[^2]: Noah’s sealing by God foreshadows the Church’s sealing unto the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30).
[^3]: Lot’s case shows that God actively restrains judgment until the righteous are out.
[^4]: Christ bore the full cup of wrath, but His own were not condemned with Him.
[^5]: Those who endure and survive the tribulation are gathered and allowed into the earthly Kingdom—distinct from the glorified Church, which returns with Christ.