The parable of the ten virgins spoken by Jesus fascinated me as a child. Although I must admit I did not understand its significance then. Why did HE choose to use this allegory of Judaic marriage in this particular parable? What was its significance and intent? And, why did the bridegroom have to come in the wee hour for his bride? Who would do such a thing, definitely not in the practices, traditions and culture of other races, as I reflected? Why are there five wise and another five imprudent virgins to begin with? Why did HE choose the number ten for this parable to warn us of HIS imminent return for us, HIS bride? All these “strange customs and practices” mentioned in this parable became apparent, as we endeavor in our in-depth study of the parallel between Jewish customs and traditions with the imminent return of our Lord for us in the Rapture.
To begin with, Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour came to be a Jew by birth, make no apology for that. There were numerous bible verses written in the scripture that proved this claim of his Jewish heritage. God promised us a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, the true royal descent of the Davidic lineage, can be verified in Isaiah 9:6-7, Matt 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-7, John 1: 11 & 14. No wonder, as HE is a Jew and so, will inadvertently use references and allegories related to his upbringing and culture.
When Jesus made references of HIS imminent return, the Rapture, it was as similar to a thief in the night, but more so identical to the Jewish marriage. In a Jewish marriage custom during Jesus’ time, after the Ketubah’s signing, the walk to the Chuppah and the completion of the agreed bridal purchase price, the bridegroom will leave to prepare their marital residence at his father’s place. The duration of time in the separation of the “love-birds” is unknown to anyone except the groom’s father. Does that sound familiar? When it was time, the bridegroom would make an impromptu appearance to whisk off the bride at the in-law place without warning. Hmm, why not, I surmised. After all, isn’t our Lord and Saviour, a Jew by descent, and that HE chose to be like HIS brethren, the special people that was chosen to carry the salvation of the whole earth through HIM. Understanding the Jewish customs and traditions with regards to their betrothal and wedding customs and traditions would help us greatly in our understanding of the momentous occurrence of Rapture.
So, back to the ten virgins in this parable that Jesus shared, what were the significances or rather lessons to be learnt. There were five wise virgins who took enough oil with them, whereas the other five did not. The five wise virgins did not know the time the groom would come for his bride. In anticipation of the uncertainty, they took their lamps with reserve supply of oil but not for the imprudent fives. While waiting, all ten of them fell into slumber. Just about then, the commotion of the sounding of ram horns and the shouts of the arrival of the groom were heard. The five wise virgins immediately got up and trimmed their lamps and the other five virgins, perhaps, did the same. However, the difference between the two groups of virgins lies with the supply of oil for their lamps that each carried with them. Obviously, the imprudent ones ran out of supply as they did not anticipate the delay in the coming of the groom. But the wise ones had no problem and went with the groom to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut for the five injudicious virgins. What a tragedy!
As we study deeper into the meaning of this parable and its significance with us in relation to the imminent return of the Lord that is known as the Rapture. Jesus, our groom, forewarned us that the occurrence of HIS return for HIS bride, the church, in the Rapture is unpredictable, as no men know when but only HIS Father. We were also reminded that our mental attitude towards this momentous event of Christ coming for HIS bride must be in a state of preparedness and readiness. So, we must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when we do not expect him as mentioned in Matthew 24:44.
The oil in this parable signified God’s Holy Spirit. The five wise virgins referred to the prudent Christians. These true believers are always in the led by the Holy Spirit, inevitably, they are called the sons of God in the scripture. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and perhaps, what we filled ourselves with determined whether our “lamp” is full of the oil of the Holy Spirit or the things of this world. If our vessels of light are in full tank, when the call of trumpets or shout of the archangels are heard, we will be with the groom when HE returns to us in the Rapture. What a day that would be, when my groom, the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, I will see face to face.
In conclusion, we are urged to be as wise as the prudent virgins. We are to be in constant preparedness and readiness as we see the recent world events and developments happenings before our eyes. How accurate are the warnings as we match the bleak scenario with the Word of God regarding the end’s times. We do not want to be caught with our guard down, like the ones mentioned in Matthew 24:38, “For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark.” Might I reiterate that such activities are not wrong per se. The point here is the total disregard of the impending warnings of the flood, or in this matter, the imminent return of Christ that is the issue. We can do all these things, yet, knowing that our final destination is not here on earth but our eternity with Christ is. We are as close in human history as with the days before the flood. Our one and only ticket to be absent from this world which will be overwhelmed with terrible and perilous things in the last days as mentioned by Apostle Paul to Timothy in his 2nd epistle. Therefore, putting aside every weight and sin that might hinder us or derail us in our quest towards heavenward.
Eternity matters!