End-times author Hal Lindsey dies, leaves sprawling legacy

Harold Lee Lindsey died on Nov. 25, just a couple of days after his 95th birthday. He is survived by his wife, three daughters, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, according to an obituary on his ministry’s website.

He was best known for his apocalyptic interpretations of Scripture, explained in bestselling books and, later, in video presentations. The success of his books helped popularize the ideas of a pre-tribulation rapture of Christians and an end-times apocalypse.

He came to the Christian faith while working as a tugboat captain on the Mississippi River, according to his website. He attended Dallas Theological Seminary for four years and while there was drawn into studying prophecy.

His controversial teachings were based on premillennial dispensationalist theology, which distinguishes between God’s dealings with Israel and the Church. Lindsey saw the founding of the modern state of Israel as a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. He expected Christians to leave Earth before Christ’s Second Coming by an instantaneous rapture—during which they would vanish and be united with Christ in the air. He taught that the rapture would initiate a seven-year tribulation period concluding with the world’s apocalyptic end. He viewed the rapture and the return of Christ to be imminent. His eschatological views were disputed by many.

Lindsey’s best-remembered book, The Late Great Planet Earth written with Carole C. Carlson, debuted in 1970 from Zondervan. Reportedly selling about 10 million copies by 1980, The New York Times declared it the top nonfiction book of the decade. Other bestsellers followed, further explaining his interpretations of Biblical prophecy. He later dove into video, hosting a program on the Trinity Broadcasting Network from 1994–2005, a program on Daystar, and videos released on his website.

What is his legacy in greater American culture? University of Texas at Dallas Professor of American Studies Erin A. Smith observed that his popularization of dispensationalist end-times theology helped pave the way for the success of the Left Behind books by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, and their film adaptations. The Late Great Planet Earth was made into a 1978 movie starring Orson Welles.

He also may have had some effect on popular music. In the 1970s, he was involved in Vineyard Fellowship, a loose association of churches in the Southern California area. He was also linked to Calvary Chapel. Gospel songwriter Keith Green and legendary recording artist Bob Dylan were also active in Vineyard Fellowship at the time.

Oral Roberts University Professor of New Testament Theology Jeffrey Lamp wrote that Lindsey’s ideas influenced Dylan’s Christian-and-Gospel phase. The legendary singer-songwriter was born into a Jewish family but released three gospel albums from 1979–1981. Lindsey’s focus on prophecy about the Jewish people and the state of Israel allowed Dylan to integrate his Jewish background and newfound Christian faith, Lamp wrote in an article for The Dylan Review.