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The Rapture: In the Twinkling of an Eye--Countdown to the Earth's Last Days (Before They Were Left Behind, Book 3) Paperback – February 1, 2007

by Tim LaHaye (Author), Jerry B. Jenkins (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 1,296 ratings
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Book 3 of the 3-book prequel to the best-selling Christian fiction series that sold over 63 million copies!

“The Left Behind series . . . is among the best-selling fiction books of our times―right up there with Tom Clancy and Stephen King.” ―Time

Get a glimpse into the lives of your favorite characters before they were left behind.
  • What was life like before the Rapture for Rayford, Irene, and Chloe Steele, Bruce Barnes, Buck Williams, and Tsion Ben Judah?
  • Why does Viv Ivins play such a pivotal role in Nicolae Carpathia’s life?
  • What were the events surrounding Nicolae’s sudden rise to power?
  • How did he become filled with evil?
You will find all these answers and more in this exciting series!

The Rapture: In the Twinkling of an Eye / Countdown to Earth’s Last Days
In this the final prequel to the blockbuster series, the story alternates between events on earth immediately after the Rapture and characters in heaven as they view the chaotic events on earth.
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Previous page
  1. Book 3 of 3
    Before They Were Left Behind
  2. Print length
    351 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Tyndale House Publishers
  5. Publication date
    February 1, 2007
  6. Dimensions
    5.4 x 1.1 x 8.2 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    9781414305813
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1414305813
  9. See all details
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The Regime: Evil Advances (Before They Were Left Behind, Book 2)
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The Rising: Antichrist Is Born (Before They Were Left Behind, Book 1)
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Time seems to slow as the clock ticks down. . . .

Pan-Con Airlines captain Rayford Steele prepares for a flight to London with beautiful flight attendant Hattie Durham. Because of his wife's newfound faith, Rayford looks forward to time-and the possibilities-with Hattie.

Journalist Cameron "Buck" Williams is in Israel when the Russians attack and experiences for himself the miraculous deliverance of the Holy Land. Buck cannot deny Chicago bureau chief Lucinda Washington's insistence that the event was prophesied in Scripture, though he dares not consider the personal ramifications.

Meanwhile, Nicolae Carpathia eliminates any obstacles in his path to power. As the newly appointed president of Romania, Nicolae is invited to speak before the U.N.

Without warning, millions disappear and are welcomed into the unspeakable presence of God.

On earth some realize what has happened . . . what they've lost . . . what they've missed.

And the darkest days lie ahead for those left behind.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1414305818
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tyndale House Publishers; First Edition (February 1, 2007)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 351 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781414305813
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1414305813
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.4 x 1.1 x 8.2 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 1,296 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Jerry B. Jenkins

    Jerry B. Jenkins

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    Author of more than 195 books with sales of over 70 million copies, including the best-selling Left Behind series, Jerry B. Jenkins is former vice president for publishing and former chairman of the board of trustees for the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago.

    Jerry's writing has appeared in Time, Reader's Digest, Parade, Guideposts, and dozens of Christian periodicals. Twenty-one of his books have reached The New York Times best-seller list (seven debuting number one).

    Jerry owns the Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild, through which he trains writers online at www.JerryJenkins.com.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Tim LaHaye

    Tim LaHaye

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    Dr. Tim LaHaye (www.timlahaye.com), who conceived the idea of fictionalizing an account of the Rapture and the Tribulation, is a noted author, minister, and nationally recognized speaker on Bible prophecy. He is the founder of both Tim LaHaye Ministries and The PreTrib Research Center. He also recently cofounded the Tim LaHaye School of Prophecy at Liberty University. Presently Dr. LaHaye speaks at many Bible prophecy conferences in the U.S. and Canada, where his current prophecy books are very popular.

    Dr. LaHaye holds a doctor of ministry degree from Western Theological Seminary and a doctor of literature degree from Liberty University. For 25 years he pastored one of the nation's outstanding churches in San Diego, which grew to three locations. It was during that time that he founded two accredited Christian high schools, a Christian school system of ten schools, and San Diego Christian College (formerly known as Christian Heritage College).

    Dr. LaHaye has written over 50 non-fiction books and co-authored 25 fiction books, many of which have been translated into 34 languages. He has written books on a wide variety of subjects, such as family life, temperaments, and Bible prophecy. His most popular fiction works, the Left Behind series, written with Jerry B. Jenkins, continue to appear on the best-seller lists of the Christian Booksellers Association, "Publishers Weekly," the "Wall Street Journal," "USA Today," and the "New York Times."

    Another popular series by LaHaye and Jenkins is The Jesus Chronicles. This four-book fiction series gives readers a rich first century experience as John, Mark, Luke, and Matthew recount thrilling accounts of the life of Jesus. Dr. LaHaye is co-author of another fiction series, Babylon Rising. Each of the four titles in this series have debuted in the top 10 on the New York Times best seller list. These are suspense thrillers with thought-provoking messages.

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
1,296 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kweakley1924
5.0 out of 5 stars Well written!!!
Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2012
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I had started reading this years ago when I spotted it at a friends house. By the title I knew what this book had to be about. I read the first one and started reading the second of the series. Needless to say, I never finished the second one. I gave the first and second one to my Mom, and my Dad ended up buying her the rest of the series as it came out. I happened upon the first book of the series a couple of months ago and had no idea where the other ones were to the series she had. So I decided to order them through Amazon. I actually started with the the 3 Before they were Left Behind, which I recommend, and then started on the Left Behind Series.
Let me start out by saying I usually don't do reviews but because of the impact of this series it was a must. Even though they are fiction books all the info is backed up what the Bible tells us in Revelations. I was always hesitant to read the last book of the Bible because it was difficult for me to understand a lot of it. Now I find myself looking in the Bible as a cross reference (which is really what has been done for you, thanks to Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins) and have learned a whole lot by this. It has been an eye opener that is for sure. I totally am starting to understand how the ENTIRE Bible links Old Testament with New and it is amazing. I have not yet read 6-12 (just made an order for the rest of the books recently) but am captivated by it all. Great story line but if you compare the books with scripture you will find they have covered it. I would recommend this to anyone, whether a believer or non believer, it may just change your perspective, for the good. It is action packed to say the least. I think all in all the wisdom you gain is just through the roof if you are not familiar with Revelations.
BTW, the friend who gave me the book, his wife had just passed with cancer. A friend of her Church brought it over for her to read. Through lots of prayer they lead my friend to Christ. What a comfort to know where my friend is at after her life on earth!!! Praise The Lord!!!!
15 people found this helpful
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Frances Crable
5.0 out of 5 stars This book is biblically presented to the King James version.
Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2022
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This book is biblically presented to the King James version. This book was honestly based on scripture which was your important to me as a born-again Christian. It was very informative and rounded out some of the questions I had. I would not recommend it if it were not based on the king James version but it is in it as truthful as biblical fiction can be. Very interesting. Could not put it down
3 people found this helpful
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Picky looking for warmth
5.0 out of 5 stars Good books
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2023
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Well written all these books are excellent
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Stephanie
5.0 out of 5 stars I got goosebumps
Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2022
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While I understand it's in the religious genre, some parts were a bit preachy. Of course that's too be expected! The preachy parts made the story lag a little. However, the story was so well written, that i was up way passed my bedtime. I was chugging coffee the next morning with a smile in my face. I won't spoil it for you but there was a part that was coming. We knew it was going to happen! Yet, when it did, you weren't prepared! Which, according to the Bible, will happen just like in the book; any time! The rest of the Left Behind series, I've read before but I'm in a different place in my life and i can't wait to see what will hit me differently this time around!
3 people found this helpful
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Chuck
5.0 out of 5 stars Arrtived as described
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2023
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Great Job.
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JBiesecker
4.0 out of 5 stars Out of this World- literally, but still not as good as the main parts of the series
Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2015
Verified Purchase
It seemed strange to me that they would make a prequel involving the Rapture, considering that this was covered quite thoroughly in the original Left Behind book. Indeed many parts are taken directly from this with some parts left out, and some new scenes added. If you read the original Left Behind right after this one, you may want to skip the first chapter or two. But unlike the original books, not all of the scenes are centered on Rayford and Buck, this one covers it from the point of view of several other characters, so there are new parts.
The Rapture occurs about halfway into the book, but unlike in the original book, only part of the story actually involves those who are left behind. Much of it actually involves the characters that go to Heaven, mainly Irene and Raymie. A great deal of the story actually takes place in Heaven, mostly involving them and many other real people throughout history at the judgment seat of CHRIST receiving their rewards. In fact the rapture itself is actually a relatively small part of the book. It seems like the authors may be pushing things a little too far to have a fictional story going on in Heaven. But I guess there’s probably nothing wrong with this, and it actually does have an effective purpose- to make us want to do serve GOD as well as possible while we’re still here. I can tell that this was definitely the main goal the authors had in mind for this book, and they did it quite well. This is a very unique item not really found in any of the other books. This also gives it a very different style, significantly different from the other books.
Strangely, there is also one major character and event from the “Left Behind Kids” series that is briefly seen in this book. In the “Left Behind kids” series there are countless events and characters from the main series that are seen from time to time. But this is the only time in the entire main series in which a character and event from the Kids series is seen (actually this same character is heard very briefly in the first “Left Behind” book, but is unnamed, because it was written before the kids series was started). I was very surprised (almost shocked) to see this. Actually I wish that there were more times like this. I actually kind of wish they would combine the two series into one because the kids series was usually just as good (and violent) as the main series, sometimes even better.
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Proving 2B Possible
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible!
Reviewed in Canada on December 27, 2013
Verified Purchase
Of the 3 prequels in this series, this one is the last and, in my opinion, the best.

It is a wonderful fictionalized account of the Rapture that, despite being fiction, is entirely worth reading. It makes some excellent points about a person's walk of faith that encourage a better path without making a person feel worthless.

Worth the read and the series is, too!
One person found this helpful
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An Avid Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 29, 2014
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As a non-religious person I knew very little about the Christian beliefs concerning the 'Rapture' and 'Christ's Second Coming'. I also felt a series based in religion would hold very little interest for me. How wrong I was!!! The books are fast paced, exciting and real page turners. The characters are believable and you find yourself immersed in their stories, wanting them to survive. I also learnt a huge amount and found myself considering what the Bible foretells, wondering if there actually is some truth to it. The 'Left Behind' series commanded my interest, fascinated me and changed my perspective on religion. I would recommend this series to believers and to those who may be sceptical (like I was) but who are willing to approach this with an open mind and a preparedness to be taught something as well as enjoying a fascinating read. Excellent series and extremely talented authors who know what they're talking about.
6 people found this helpful
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Marie Metcalfe
5.0 out of 5 stars Love this book!!
Reviewed in Canada on July 31, 2019
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This book was an amazing read!! You will love it! Cant wait to order more from this series.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic series
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2013
Verified Purchase
The whole series makes you realise that Christ's second coming could be at any moment and challenges us to make sure we are prepared for it. From reading the first book in the series of 16, I couldn't put them down. This series although just a novel shows how scripture tells clearly of this time in earth's history and what it will possibly be like for those "Left behind" when God takes those who love Jesus to himself. An exciting series for both Christians and Non-Christians alike.Read and you won't be disappointed.
2 people found this helpful
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Melissa A. Carter
5.0 out of 5 stars Good books!
Reviewed in Canada on March 25, 2018
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Haven’t read this yet but all of the left behind books are amazing and I’m really looking forward to reading this one!
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