Astrapto (ἀστράπτω) means "to flash like lightning," "to gleam," or "to dazzle with brilliant light." It appears in Luke 17:24 in Jesus' teaching on His Second Coming, and in Luke 24:4, describing the appearance of the two angels at the empty tomb. The word conveys sudden, blinding, supernatural luminosity.
Lightning as a theological metaphor carries overwhelming weight in Scripture. When Jesus says the Son of Man will come like lightning flashing from one end of the sky to the other (Luke 17:24), He is dismantling every covert or secret-rapture speculation. The return of Christ will be unmissable, instantaneous, and comprehensive. The same word describes the appearance of the resurrection angels — their garments gleaming like lightning. This linguistic link between the Resurrection announcement and the Second Coming is intentional: the same glorious, terrifying, beautiful light that attended the empty tomb will attend the final appearing. Astrapto is the word Scripture uses for moments when heaven's glory interrupts earth's darkness with a flash that cannot be ignored.