I’m sure you’ve heard about the red heifer that has been found somewhere in the US, that is apparently qualified to be used in the third temple that will be built soon. I know finding the perfect candidate is huge in Biblical prophecy, but how does it fit into the rapture, are we that close ?
According to Numbers 19 the ashes of a pure red heifer were an ingredient in the water of purification that made Israelites ceremonially clean. Today all living Jews are unclean and cannot enter the Temple or touch anything that’s holy. Before they can begin building the new temple they will have to be made clean again. To become so, they need a red heifer and that’s why the birth of one is so exciting to them.
In all of Israel’s history there have only been 9 red heifers sacrificed. Hebrew tradition holds that when the 10th one is sacrificed it will be a sign of the Messiah’s coming.
This is not the first red heifer to be born in this generation. The previous ones exceeded the maximum allowable number of non-red hairs before reaching age 3 and were disqualified. This bears watching, but everything depends on the heifer remaining spotless until it is qualified.
The red heifer pertains to the rapture in that the Temple is a necessary component of Daniel’s 70th Week. It has to be built and functioning by the middle of the week when the anti-Christ defiles it (Daniel 9:27, Matt. 24:15-21, 2 Thes 2:4). From my studies, I’m convinced that the rapture will occur before the 70th Week begins. In short, a red heifer makes building the Temple possible soon and that makes the rapture possible sooner.