A South African pastor has predicted that Jesus Christ will return to Earth on September 23-24, 2025. The claim, made by Pastor Joshua Mhlakela in a viral YouTube interview, has been viewed nearly 500,000 times and is drawing global attention just days before the dates.
Mhlakela said he experienced a vision in which he saw Jesus on a throne and heard: “I am coming soon… on the 23rd and 24th of September 2025, I will come back to the Earth.” He urged Christians to prepare for the rapture, a belief that faithful believers will be taken to heaven before a time of tribulation.
The dates coincide with the Jewish Feast of Trumpets, or Rosh Hashanah, which some Christians link to biblical prophecies in Revelation 12. Supporters of the claim point to wars, natural disasters, and other global crises as signs of the end times. Others online have shared similar dreams they believe confirm the message.
However, Christian leaders have strongly rejected the prophecy. They cite Matthew 24:36, which says, “no one knows the day or hour” of Jesus’ return. Andrew Morse, a pastor in New Jersey, warned that setting dates harms faith and has no biblical basis. Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn has spoken about the prophetic significance of September 23 but has never confirmed a specific date.
This is not the first rapture prediction linked to September 23. Similar claims in 2017 and earlier years did not come true, leading many to dismiss such prophecies as unreliable. On Reddit and other forums, critics have described Mhlakela’s vision as unscriptural and misleading.
Mhlakela’s church has not issued an official response, and no major Christian organisations support the prediction. As the date nears, debate continues over whether believers should focus on spiritual readiness rather than setting exact timelines.
