One South African man wey simply describe imsef as a believer and servant of God don cause tok-tok for social media afta e predict say Rapture, one Christian belief about di end time go take place weda on 23rd and 24th of September 2025.

Joshua Mhlakela for one TV interview tok say im see Jesus in a vision. For dis vision, Jesus return to Earth on Rosh Hashanah, di New Year in Judaism.

Di pastor also announce say Rapture go take place on either September 23 or 24.

"Di rapture dey upon us, weda you dey ready or not. God carry me to see di future and e bring me back. For heaven, I see Jesus for one throne room and I hear am very loud and clear I dey come very soon.

"E tell me say on di 23rd and 24th 2025, I go come to take my church," Mhlakela tok.

Oga Mhlakela comments bin start di trend RaptureTok on TikTok, wey share how pipo dey react to im prediction of di 'return of Jesus Christ' on di 23rd and 24th of September 2025.

Di video wey dem share on YouTube for June don get more dan 560,000 views as at 22 September.

Rapture na belief of di followers of Jesus Christ say e go return to Earth for di Second Coming. Wen e hapun, all Christ followers - living and dead - go rise into di sky to meet am.

Wetin Mhlakela tok for di video

Though news reports don widely describe am as pastor, for di YouTube video from June, e say "I just be simple pesin, no title. I no be apostle, I no be pastor, I no be Bishop. I just be believer."

For di video, e say Jesus appear to am for inside dream for 2018 and e tell am say, "On di 23rd and di 24th of September 2025, I go come take my church."

Di context, as Mhlakela tok say im understand am na di 2026 FIFA World Cup. "E bin tell me say by June 2026, di world go dey prepare for di World Cup, but bicos kasala go burst afta di Rapture, World Cup no go dey for 2026."

Im prediction bin somehow gada momentum and a lot of reactions and comments on social media as searches for "rapture" and "di rapture Tuesday" begin trend around Sept. 20, according to Google Trends.

One of di notable pipo wey react na di Senior Pastor of di Household of God church for Lagos, Nigerian Pastor Chris Okotie.

Okotie respond directly to di vision of Mhlakela. Wit some biblical history, Pastor Okotie establish say Rapture no go take place and no fit take place on a Jewish feast of Trumpets.

E say although di South African pastor tok dey sincere but "e dey sincerely wrong and im conclusion dey opposed to New Testament doctrines and say e dey at variance wit Biblical revelations."

Wetin Rapture mean?

Some pipo believe say di Rapture na wen Christ followers go dey taken up to Heaven, while dos wey no follow am go dey left behind on Earth, changing life for humans forever.

However, no be all Christians hold dis belief. Di Rapture dey closely linked to evangelism.

Di word Rapture no dey mentioned specifically for di Bible. But for im First Letter to di Thessalonians, Paul - one of di Apostles – write say Jesus go return one day, and "we wey dey alive, wey dey left, go dey caught up" e share some of di imagery connected to di idea of di Rapture.

Some Christians believe say di world as we know am now go come to an end for di Apocalypse. Dis dey used to refer to God final and complete destruction of di world. Belief in di Rapture fit dey connected to interpretations of dat event.

Dis no be di first time wey pesin go predict di rapture. Pipo don dey predict say di rapture fit hapun anytime as far back as di 1800s, oda kinds of end-time prophesies even go farther dan dat.

Plenti books and movies about di rapture don sell millions of copies. Dem include, The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey, wey be di bestselling non-fiction book of di1970s, according to di New York Times.

For di book, Lindsey bin write say Jesus return no go occur until afta di final great war called "Armageddon" wey dey triggered by di invasion of di "new state of Israel".

E also claim say dis go only take place wen "mankind go dey on di brink of total destruction."

More recently, na di popular Left Behind series of books wey bring out one of di major themes of di rapture, wey say non-believers go dey left behind on earth.

At least three of di 16 books for di series bin reach number one for di New York Times bestseller list, and dem also do feem wit one of di books wey feature ogbonge actor Nicolas Cage.

Plenty men of God for Africa don preach about di Rapture. Di General Overseer of di Redeemed Church of God, Pastor E.A. Adeboye for one sermon for 2020 bin tok about di vision of rapture wey im get, but e no tok di date or time wen e go occur.

Also, di founder of Loveworld Ministries a.k.a Christ Embassy, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome for 2020 bin 'predict' wen rapture go hapun.

For one of im Sunday service , e bin explain to im members how much time dem get before rapture hapun and why dem need to dey ready.

E show im church members di chart wey im don use calculate am.

For inside di chart, e say im use di range of di time wey Jesus waka comot di temple as 30AD and wen dem born am within 4BC to 2BC to take calculate wen rapture go hapun again.

"If we just dey take an average of 30AD plus 2000 years from dia, we go enta year 2030."

"From 2020 to 2030, na 10 years and e mean say e no go pass 10 years before di man of sin go dey revealed," Pastor Chris tok.

Will The Rapture Occur On 24th September 2025 ? https://t.co/xWEGCIqdyk here is the link to the full video . pic.twitter.com/VPQ5YMCo68

— Rev Chris Okotie (@RevChrisOkotie) September 20, 2025