Wherefore comfort one another with these words points to the account of the return and the resurrection as the comfort, that the Lord himself comes down from heaven with a shout and trumpet, the dead in Christ rise first, and the living who remain are gathered together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord and remain with him forever. The order is fixed that those asleep in Jesus are raised before the living receive immortality, so the living do not go to meet the Lord ahead of them. The dead in Christ are asleep in unconscious rest in the grave until the resurrection morning, not already passed into glory to receive blessedness at death. That hope stands sure because Jesus died and rose and broke the fetters of the tomb, so every believing saint who falls asleep will come forth as a conqueror to share His glory, in contrast to the claim that the dead are received among the angels as soon as they die which obscures the resurrection and takes away the intended comfort. The verse therefore commands mutual encouragement for the bereaved, whose grief is real but not as those with no hope, since mourners will meet their loved ones again and remain together with the Lord forever.
The Words Promised
The comforting words are the account of the return and the resurrection, given to encourage one another, especially the bereaved. The Lord himself comes down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God. The dead in Christ rise first, then those who are alive and remain are caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so to remain with him forever. That coming will be glorious when Christ comes to be admired by believers, when the fetters of the tomb are broken and the dead in Christ are raised to eternal life. The grave is a place of unconsciousness but not the final abode, for the saints will be redeemed from it with a great and glorious redemption.
The verse establishes an order in which the resurrection of the sleeping ones comes before the living receive immortality. Those alive at the coming do not go to meet the Lord ahead of those asleep in Jesus. The trumpet call reaches the sleeping ones first, the dead in Christ rise first, then immortality is given to the living and they are gathered with the risen. The dead sleep unconsciously until that raising, when they join the living faithful to meet the Lord and remain with him forever.
The verse was directed to believers at Thessalonica who were burying loved ones that had hoped to live to witness the coming. Paul pointed them to the resurrection to take place at the advent, when the dead in Christ rise and together with the living are caught up to meet the Lord in the air to remain forever with him. That coming has in all ages been the hope of true followers, filling hearts with joy and hope that sorrow cannot quench nor trials dim. It sustained amid suffering and persecution as the blessed hope of the appearing of the great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
At that gathering the living righteous are changed and taken to heaven before the earth's destruction by fire, as Enoch was translated before the Flood. The risen keep their individual identity perfectly preserved and will recognize loved ones, for Jesus' resurrection is the sample of theirs. Though mortal bodies were deformed, diseased or disfigured, the freed, immortal, glorified bodies will no longer bear those conditions when the last trumpet sounds. Believers are to encourage one another with this hope that the sleeping ones are asleep in Jesus and will rise freed from the grave and made immortal.
Sleep Versus False Hope
The dead in Christ are asleep in Jesus, in unconscious rest in the grave until the morning of the resurrection. Having finished their work they rest free from toil and pain, and are not to be called back to suffer life over again. A Christian can face death with trust knowing this sleep in the Lord. The grave is a place of unconsciousness but not the final abode of the saints, for it will be redeemed with a great and glorious redemption.
They have not already passed into glory, and they do not receive judgment and blessedness at death. The Lord does not come for believers at death. They wait for the trumpet and the resurrection.
The true comfort stands in wide contrast to the claim that the dead, however sinful they were, are received among the angels as soon as they breathe out life here. The words to comfort one another with are that the fetters of the tomb shall be broken, the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, the dead in Christ shall rise first to eternal life, the living who remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so all shall ever be with the Lord. To replace that hope of the future coming and the resurrection with the doctrine of the blessed immortality of the righteous at death, making death itself the coming of the Lord, neglects and obscures the resurrection, makes waiting for the coming and the resurrection seem unnecessary, and takes away the practical comfort intended.
The assurance rests on the fact that Jesus died and rose again, so God will bring those who sleep in Jesus from the dead. Because He triumphed over death and broke the fetters of the tomb, coming forth from the prison house of death and the grave, every believing saint who falls asleep in Jesus will come forth in triumph as a conqueror to share His victory and glory as all shared His humiliation and sufferings. His resurrection is the sample of theirs, bringing life and immortality to light through His death. That light dispels the darkness over the grave and replaces sorrow without hope and pagan ideas of no future life with cheering hope that believing friends will be raised to a holy, happy, immortal life in the kingdom of God, giving hope and joy, firmer faith, and deeper love for the Redeemer, and assuring the bereaved that their faithful dead are not beyond hope and that the grave need not cast gloom.
Comfort for Mourners
Wherefore comfort one another with these words is a command to mutual encouragement, given especially to the bereaved who face the death of loved ones who trusted in Jesus. Grief in such loss is real, yet believers do not sorrow as those who have no hope, because the account of Christ's coming and the resurrection is given to restrain grief with the hope of the resurrection morning. That hope is that death's hold will be broken and the faithful dead will receive eternal life, so that the second coming becomes a source of comfort, joy and triumph that sorrow cannot quench nor trials dim. It was first directed to the Christians at Thessalonica as they buried loved ones who had hoped to live to witness the coming of the Lord, pointing them to the resurrection to take place at the Saviour's advent, when the dead in Christ rise and together with the living are caught up to meet the Lord in the air to remain forever with Him. The resurrection morning will be glorious when Christ comes to be admired by believers, and all who shared His humiliation and sufferings will share His glory, and in all ages this coming has been the hope of true followers, sustaining amid suffering and persecution as the blessed hope of the appearing of the great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
The comfort includes reunion, for the living and the resurrected meet the Lord together and remain with Him forever. Mourners will meet their loved ones again, because Jesus passed through death and the tomb and brings joy and hope even in the face of death. The grave therefore need not cast gloom or a shadow of gloom, and fear of death and lasting separation is answered by the assurance that Jesus entered death and came forth and that the faithful dead are not beyond hope.
Speaking these comforting words with freedom blesses the hearers, brings the presence of Jesus among them, and softens and subdues the heart with the warmth of His love and the value of His pardon. Mourners are not to linger at the grave in gloom but to take comfort in Christ's victory over the prison house of death and to look to the open gate of heaven with light on the pathway. Afflicted ones are to be of good comfort in the hope of the resurrection morning, with Jesus making bitter waters sweet with His love as the waters of Marah were made sweet. That hope comforts even one brought very near death through severe bodily and mental suffering and despair, and comforts those left grieving, with assurance of acceptance with God, with a charge not to murmur, and with duties to the living still resting upon the mourner.
Bereavement and affliction are permitted so that those who have mourned can sympathize with others passing through sorrow and help them lean on the Saviour, who is a Father to the widow, and lead mourning mothers to go to Jesus. These words of comfort belong to the few keeping the commandments of God, and the teaching is linked with the sleep of the dead and the inheritance of the saints. It also comforts when life is weary and sorrowful, by holding to the hope of Christ, who sought and redeemed believers through His precious blood, and by trusting in His unfailing strength and goodness.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words points to the account of the return and the resurrection as the comfort, that the Lord himself comes down from heaven with a shout and trumpet, the dead in Christ rise first, and the living who remain are gathered together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord and remain with him forever. The order is fixed that those asleep in Jesus are raised before the living receive immortality, so the living do not go to meet the Lord ahead of them. The dead in Christ are asleep in unconscious rest in the grave until the resurrection morning, not already passed into glory to receive blessedness at death. That hope stands sure because Jesus died and rose and broke the fetters of the tomb, so every believing saint who falls asleep will come forth as a conqueror to share His glory, in contrast to the claim that the dead are received among the angels as soon as they die which obscures the resurrection and takes away the intended comfort. The verse therefore commands mutual encouragement for the bereaved, whose grief is real but not as those with no hope, since mourners will meet their loved ones again and remain together with the Lord forever.
The Words Promised
The comforting words are the account of the return and the resurrection, given to encourage one another, especially the bereaved. The Lord himself comes down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God. The dead in Christ rise first, then those who are alive and remain are caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so to remain with him forever. That coming will be glorious when Christ comes to be admired by believers, when the fetters of the tomb are broken and the dead in Christ are raised to eternal life. The grave is a place of unconsciousness but not the final abode, for the saints will be redeemed from it with a great and glorious redemption.
The verse establishes an order in which the resurrection of the sleeping ones comes before the living receive immortality. Those alive at the coming do not go to meet the Lord ahead of those asleep in Jesus. The trumpet call reaches the sleeping ones first, the dead in Christ rise first, then immortality is given to the living and they are gathered with the risen. The dead sleep unconsciously until that raising, when they join the living faithful to meet the Lord and remain with him forever.
The verse was directed to believers at Thessalonica who were burying loved ones that had hoped to live to witness the coming. Paul pointed them to the resurrection to take place at the advent, when the dead in Christ rise and together with the living are caught up to meet the Lord in the air to remain forever with him. That coming has in all ages been the hope of true followers, filling hearts with joy and hope that sorrow cannot quench nor trials dim. It sustained amid suffering and persecution as the blessed hope of the appearing of the great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
At that gathering the living righteous are changed and taken to heaven before the earth's destruction by fire, as Enoch was translated before the Flood. The risen keep their individual identity perfectly preserved and will recognize loved ones, for Jesus' resurrection is the sample of theirs. Though mortal bodies were deformed, diseased or disfigured, the freed, immortal, glorified bodies will no longer bear those conditions when the last trumpet sounds. Believers are to encourage one another with this hope that the sleeping ones are asleep in Jesus and will rise freed from the grave and made immortal.
Sleep Versus False Hope
The dead in Christ are asleep in Jesus, in unconscious rest in the grave until the morning of the resurrection. Having finished their work they rest free from toil and pain, and are not to be called back to suffer life over again. A Christian can face death with trust knowing this sleep in the Lord. The grave is a place of unconsciousness but not the final abode of the saints, for it will be redeemed with a great and glorious redemption.
They have not already passed into glory, and they do not receive judgment and blessedness at death. The Lord does not come for believers at death. They wait for the trumpet and the resurrection.
The true comfort stands in wide contrast to the claim that the dead, however sinful they were, are received among the angels as soon as they breathe out life here. The words to comfort one another with are that the fetters of the tomb shall be broken, the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, the dead in Christ shall rise first to eternal life, the living who remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so all shall ever be with the Lord. To replace that hope of the future coming and the resurrection with the doctrine of the blessed immortality of the righteous at death, making death itself the coming of the Lord, neglects and obscures the resurrection, makes waiting for the coming and the resurrection seem unnecessary, and takes away the practical comfort intended.
The assurance rests on the fact that Jesus died and rose again, so God will bring those who sleep in Jesus from the dead. Because He triumphed over death and broke the fetters of the tomb, coming forth from the prison house of death and the grave, every believing saint who falls asleep in Jesus will come forth in triumph as a conqueror to share His victory and glory as all shared His humiliation and sufferings. His resurrection is the sample of theirs, bringing life and immortality to light through His death. That light dispels the darkness over the grave and replaces sorrow without hope and pagan ideas of no future life with cheering hope that believing friends will be raised to a holy, happy, immortal life in the kingdom of God, giving hope and joy, firmer faith, and deeper love for the Redeemer, and assuring the bereaved that their faithful dead are not beyond hope and that the grave need not cast gloom.
Comfort for Mourners
Wherefore comfort one another with these words is a command to mutual encouragement, given especially to the bereaved who face the death of loved ones who trusted in Jesus. Grief in such loss is real, yet believers do not sorrow as those who have no hope, because the account of Christ's coming and the resurrection is given to restrain grief with the hope of the resurrection morning. That hope is that death's hold will be broken and the faithful dead will receive eternal life, so that the second coming becomes a source of comfort, joy and triumph that sorrow cannot quench nor trials dim. It was first directed to the Christians at Thessalonica as they buried loved ones who had hoped to live to witness the coming of the Lord, pointing them to the resurrection to take place at the Saviour's advent, when the dead in Christ rise and together with the living are caught up to meet the Lord in the air to remain forever with Him. The resurrection morning will be glorious when Christ comes to be admired by believers, and all who shared His humiliation and sufferings will share His glory, and in all ages this coming has been the hope of true followers, sustaining amid suffering and persecution as the blessed hope of the appearing of the great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
The comfort includes reunion, for the living and the resurrected meet the Lord together and remain with Him forever. Mourners will meet their loved ones again, because Jesus passed through death and the tomb and brings joy and hope even in the face of death. The grave therefore need not cast gloom or a shadow of gloom, and fear of death and lasting separation is answered by the assurance that Jesus entered death and came forth and that the faithful dead are not beyond hope.
Speaking these comforting words with freedom blesses the hearers, brings the presence of Jesus among them, and softens and subdues the heart with the warmth of His love and the value of His pardon. Mourners are not to linger at the grave in gloom but to take comfort in Christ's victory over the prison house of death and to look to the open gate of heaven with light on the pathway. Afflicted ones are to be of good comfort in the hope of the resurrection morning, with Jesus making bitter waters sweet with His love as the waters of Marah were made sweet. That hope comforts even one brought very near death through severe bodily and mental suffering and despair, and comforts those left grieving, with assurance of acceptance with God, with a charge not to murmur, and with duties to the living still resting upon the mourner.
Bereavement and affliction are permitted so that those who have mourned can sympathize with others passing through sorrow and help them lean on the Saviour, who is a Father to the widow, and lead mourning mothers to go to Jesus. These words of comfort belong to the few keeping the commandments of God, and the teaching is linked with the sleep of the dead and the inheritance of the saints. It also comforts when life is weary and sorrowful, by holding to the hope of Christ, who sought and redeemed believers through His precious blood, and by trusting in His unfailing strength and goodness.