''The Rising: Antichrist is Born/Before They Were Left Behind'' is the thirteenth novel in the ''Left Behind'' series and the first

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term " ...

. It was written by

Tim LaHaye Timothy Francis LaHaye (April 27, 1926 – July 25, 2016) was an American Baptist evangelical Christian Minister of religion, minister who wrote more than 85 books, both fiction and non-fiction, including the ''Left Behind (series), Left Behind ...

and

Jerry B. Jenkins Jerry Bruce Jenkins (born September 23, 1949) is an American writer. He is best known for the ''Left Behind'' series, written with Tim LaHaye. Jenkins has written more than 200 books, in multiple genres, such as biography, self-help, romance, m ...

and published on Thursday, March 31, 2005. The hardback edition has the title and subtitle as ''The Rising: Before They Were Left Behind''. It takes place 32–9 years before the Rapture.

Plot introduction

''The Rising'' is Prequel 1 of 3 in the books leading up to the events mentioned in ''

Left Behind ''Left Behind'' is a multimedia franchise that started with a series of 16 bestselling religious novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. It focuses on a seven-year conflict between the Tribulation Force, an underground network of converts, a ...

'' itself. It focuses 32 years before the main ''Left Behind'' series starts.

Marilena Carpathia This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the Glob ...

has only one dream: to be a mother. So when a mysterious

clairvoyant Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

promises the fulfillment of this dream, Marilena does not hesitate. Through

genetic engineering Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including t ...

and the power of the Prince of Darkness himself, Marilena is about to become a chosen vessel, an exact contrary to the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

, one who will unknowingly give birth to the greatest evil the world has ever known. Halfway around the world,

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

's plans are subtly being carried out too. Young Ray Steele is determined to avoid one day taking over the family business. Instead, Ray sets his heart on becoming a pilot. Soon Carpathia and Steele's lives will intersect. And good and evil will clash in an explosion that will shake the world.

Plot summary

''The Rising'' deals with

Rayford Steele Rayford Steele is a fictional character and the ''de facto'' protagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series of novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. He is the leader of the group known as the Tribulation Force, and is the most fully developed char ...

's childhood and college days, and how he nearly married another woman. A conflict between father and son as Ray decides to become an airline pilot against his father's wishes. Also featured is the birth of

Nicolae Carpathia This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the Glob ...

, who would later rise up in '' Nicolae'' as the

Antichrist In Christian eschatology, the Antichrist refers to people prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and substitute themselves in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form) 1 John ; . 2 John . ...

. Marilena is a simple

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

woman who is overcome by the need to have a baby. Her husband, Sorin, does not love his wife anymore and is revealed to be a

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

. Thus, Marilena reads an ad for a group to find something "Beyond themselves", and meets Viviana Ivinisova, later known as

Viv Ivins VIV or Viv may refer to: People * Viv (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Viv., the standard author abbreviation of Domenico Viviani (1772–1840), Italian botanist and naturalist Places * 2558 Viv, a main belt asteroid * ...

. Viviana is a

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

who talks with the spirit world. She is a Luciferian, and says that loyalty to her lord can bring Marilena the baby she wants so badly. However, this baby comes through

with the best traits of two

sperm Sperm is the male reproductive cell, or gamete, in anisogamous forms of sexual reproduction (forms in which there is a larger, female reproductive cell and a smaller, male one). Animals produce motile sperm with a tail known as a flagellum, whi ...

mixed into a hybrid sperm, which is fused with the egg. At first, it is unknown who Nicolae's two biological fathers are. (Later, they are found out to be Sorin and his lover.) After giving birth and realizing the amazing talent her son possesses, while showing no concern for her, Marilena discovers Viv's plans for the prodigy child.

Jonathan Stonagal This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the G ...

is the financier of Nicolae's education. However, Marilena disagrees with these plans so much that she is finally assassinated; however, Nicolae is the one who plans her death through poisoning. Nicolae has his first taste of fame in a

TIME Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...

article at a young age, graduates Secondary School early and graduates University in under 2 years and after learning of his parentage, he orders the deaths of both his fathers. After he becomes a multi-millionaire through Stonagal, Nicolae is taken by a demon to the desert, where he is forced to remain without food or water for forty days. In a contrast to

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

temptation Temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals.Webb, J.R. (Sep 2014). Incorporating Spirituality into Psychology of temptation: Conceptualization, measurement, and clinical implications. Sp ...

, Nicolae falls to all three temptations. After this, Nicolae is returned to

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. Meanwhile, Ray Steele deals with his father, who is determined to have Ray take over the family business. Ray has his own dreams of becoming a pilot, and joins

ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

to attend college, where he meets and almost marries Kitty. However, Ray has second thoughts about the latter, and breaks up with her. Furthermore, he later dates his friend Irene, and they get married after a while.

Chloe Steele Chloe Steele is a fictional character from the ''Left Behind'' series of novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Chloe was a junior at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, during the vanishing of millions of people during the Rapture. ...

is born during this time as well. After befriending a woman named Jackie, Irene slowly begins to feel something is missing in her life. Jackie, a Christian, lays out God's plan of salvation, and Irene accepts Christ.

Characters

* Nicolae "Nicky", "Nick" Carpathia * Dr. Sorin Carpathia, dies in this book * Baduna Marius, dies in this book * Dr. Marilena Carpathia * Viviana Ivinisova * Reiche Planchette *

Irene Steele This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the Glob ...

Hattie Durham This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the Glob ...

Raymie Steele This a list of characters in the ''Left Behind'' novel series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Suhail Akbar Suhail Akbar is a supporting antagonist in the ''Left Behind'' series. A native of Pakistan, he was a prominent member of the Glob ...

* Robert "Bobby" Stark * Mr. and Mrs. Stark * Mr. and Mrs. Steele * Jackie * Katherine "Kitty" Wyile * Fuzzy Belman * Commander Olson, An officer at ROTC * Christopher "Chris" Smith * Earl Halliday * Janet Allen

Release details

*2005, U.S.: Tyndale House (), Pub date 31 March 2005, hardback (First edition) *2006, U.S.: Tyndale House (), Pub date ? September 2005, paperback

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rising, The Left Behind series 2005 American novels Prequel novels Novels set in Chicago Novels set in Illinois Novels set in Israel Novels set in Romania