Historic premillennialism

Historic premillennialism is one of the two premillennial systems of Christian eschatology, with the other being dispensational premillennialism.^[1] It differs from dispensational premillennialism in that it only has one view of the rapture, and does not require a literal seven-year tribulation (though some adherents do believe in a seven-year tribulation). Historic premillennialists hold to a post-tribulational rapture, meaning the church is raised to meet Christ in the air after the trials experienced during the Great Tribulation.^[2] Historic premillennialism does not require that apocalyptic prophecies be interpreted literally.^[3][4] The doctrine is called "historic" because many early church fathers appear to have held it, including Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and Papias.^[5] Post-tribulational premillennialism is the Christian eschatological view that the second coming of Jesus Christ will occur prior to a thousand-year reign of the saints but subsequent to the Great Apostasy (and to any tribulation).