Lessons #575 and 576
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Mystery of end revealed (1 Cor 15:51-57)
51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”55“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Apostle Paul began the fifteenth chapter of this first epistle to the Corinthians by summarizing the gospel he preached. He demonstrated that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the heart of the gospel message. Consequently, he proceeded to focus his attention on the subject of resurrection. Firstly, he dealt with the implications of the denial of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in verses 12-19. In dealing with the first set of implications, the apostle argued that if Jesus did not resurrect then the preaching of the gospel has no value, faith in Him has no value, believers’ sins are not forgiven, those who have died in Christ have perished, and believers are to be pitied. Secondly, he discussed resurrection related matters that involved the confirmation of Christ’s resurrection, the causal agents of death and resurrection and resurrection order. These matters he discoursed in verses 20-28. Thirdly, he considered further implications of denial of resurrection in which he argued that some activities related to the Christian faith would become unnecessary if there is no resurrection. Furthermore, he conveyed that there would be no need to be concerned about spiritual deception and to avoid sinful conduct if there is no general resurrection in the future. These further implications are given in verses 29-34. Fourthly, he discussed the nature of resurrection bodies in verses 35-50. In this discourse, he made comparison of physical and resurrection bodies and comparison between the first Adam and the last Adam, Jesus Christ. Following all these considerations on resurrection, the apostle ends his discourse on the subject of resurrection by revealing an important fact regarding the change or transformation that will take place in the future that the apostle described as a mystery. This revelation is the concern of 1 Corinthians 15:51-57.
The section that we are about to consider may be viewed as concerned first with a statement of the mystery in verse 51. This is followed by descriptions of the change or transformation involved in the mystery in verses 52 to 55. The section ends with thanksgiving to God in verses 56 and 57. Based on the focus of the section we are about to consider; we can state a message we believe the Holy Spirit wants you to hear. This message is that Not everyone will experience physical death, but everyone will undergo a bodily transformation necessary for existence in the eternal state.
The message we gave is based on the statement of the apostle given in verse 51 but before we get to it, we should recognize that what the apostle stated in verse 51 is very important and he was also emphatic as he did so because he began verse 51 with the word Listen of the NIV. The word “listen” is translated from a Greek word (idou) that is used in two ways in the Greek. It is used for getting the attention of a hearer or a reader and so it may mean “look, behold” as James used it to get the attention of his readers regarding the mistreatment of the disadvantaged by the powerful according to James 5:4:
Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty.
Another usage is as a marker of strong emphasis hence means “see,” as it is used to show that the Lord Jesus strongly emphasized to His disciples that the number of swords they had with them, as he was heading to being arrested, were sufficient since they were really of no use in defending Him as implied in Luke 22:38:
The disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.” “That is enough,” he replied.
The word may also mean “indeed” to emphasize what is said as in the declaration of the Lord Jesus that warns of what would happen to some who think they are secured in their position as narrated in Luke 13:30:
Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:51, it is used as an attention getter of the readers or those who heard the reading of the epistle we are studying, so that it may be translated “look” or “listen.” Hence, the word is used by the apostle to call special attention to what he was about to state.
It is quite likely that some of the Corinthians have a short attention span that the apostle used the Greek word translated “listen” in the NIV in the passage we are studying to focus their attention to what he was about to state because of its importance. I say this because the apostle used the Greek word in question eight times in his epistles but six times in his epistles to the Corinthians. When the apostle used it in his epistle to the Romans, he was quoting the wordings of the OT Scripture as we read in Romans 9:33:
As it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”
Here the Greek word is translated “see.” The other usage of the Greek word outside his epistles to the Corinthians is in his epistle to the Galatians where he used the word to emphasize what he was about to communicate to them according to Galatians 1:20:
I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie.
The translators of the NIV did not translate our Greek word since the sentence I assure you before God is literally behold, I assure you before God. That aside, the other six occurrences of the Greek word in question are in the apostle’s epistles to the Corinthians. The apostle used it, for example, to call the attention of the Corinthians as he referenced the acceptable time for salvation as recorded in 2 Corinthians 6:2:
For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.
The clause now is the day of salvation is literally behold, now is the day of salvation. When the apostle wanted to focus the attention of the Corinthians that God could use remorse to bring about a positive change, he used our Greek word in 2 Corinthians 7:11:
See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.
Our Greek word is here translated “See.” When the apostle wanted to emphasize the importance of what he communicated to the Corinthians regarding a possible third visit, he used our Greek word to do so in 2 Corinthians 12:14:
Now I am ready to visit you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.
The translators of the NIV rendered our Greek word “now” in this passage. I have cited only three of the passages the apostles used the word beside 1 Corinthians 15:51 but the idea of the use of the Greek word to get attention is in the other two passages (2 Corinthians 5:17; 6:9) we have not cited. Anyway, you get the point that the apostle used our Greek word more times in his epistle to the Corinthians to focus their attention to what he communicated to them. The Corinthians were not the only believers that the apostle wrote and instructed with information that were indeed revelations from God, but he did not use our Greek word to these other believers. It is for this reason that I believe that the Corinthians must have had a problem focusing their attention on what is taught by the apostle. The situation in Corinth is certainly what we face today. Many Christians today find it difficult to concentrate while in church or Bible study, but they focus during other events such as watching movies or sporting events. If you are one of those, what the apostle said to the Corinthians applies to you. Focus your attention on what we are about to study in the passage before us, so you get the message conveyed.
The apostle, having secured the attention of the Corinthians, introduced an important truth he wanted to convey to them using the sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:51 I tell you a mystery.
The word “tell” is translated from a Greek word (legō) that may mean to express oneself orally or in written form and so may mean “to tell, say.” The word may mean “to declare” as it is used in Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman as recorded in John 4:21:
Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
The word may mean “to preach” as it is used in Jesus’ warning regarding the Pharisees and the teachers of the law as those who are hypocritical in that they teach one thing and do another and so should not be imitated as stated in Matthew 23:3:
So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:51, the word means “to say” in the sense of “to express in words” although in a written form.
The thing the apostle wants to communicate to the Corinthians in written form is given with the phrase a mystery. The word “mystery” is translated from a Greek word (mystērion) that was used in ancient Greece for secret religious ceremonies that were only known to those who were initiated into a given cult who were not at liberty to disclose them to others. Whatever these ceremonies were, they were unknown to the initiates until they became members of the given group. Thus, the word does not mean something that is difficult or impossible to explain as people often think of the word “mystery.” No, the word refers to the content of that which has not been known before, but which has been revealed to a restricted group of persons because they belong to a unique group of people. It is a word that was used frequently in Jewish apocalyptic literature for the secrets made known to God’s elect but hidden from others. A typical example of such a secret is the messianic kingdom or final judgment. So, the word as used in the NT means divine secret that was previously undisclosed so that there was no way any person could know it apart from divine revelation, but it has now been revealed to some people. The secret of God revealed is now in the NT Scripture as an open secret that only those who are spiritually enlightened and know the Scripture would become aware. For example, Apostle Paul used our word to describe the fact that Christ that was not recognized by many is indeed God’s secret or God revealed as we read in Colossians 2:2:
My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ,
That the Greek word refers to secrets disclosed to a select few but hidden from others is reflected in Jesus’ use of the word in answering the questions of the disciples as to why He spoke to the people in parables as recorded in Matthew 13:11:
He replied, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.
Here our Greek word is translated “secrets” so that it refers to truths that were then revealed to the disciples and not to the crowd. The phrase the secrets of the kingdom refers to Jesus’ teaching about the various aspects of the kingdom of God that were only revealed to the disciples. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:51, the word means “divine secret” that is now disclosed to believers through Apostle Paul. Thus, what we are about to study is only known by believers who have been taught the scriptures or who read their scriptures.
The divine secret that the apostle wants to reveal to the Corinthians and so to all believers in the church of Christ is given in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:51 We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed. By the way, you should be aware that there are manuscript variations of this sentence. A commentator explains the variation as probably because later scribes found the text difficult to understand or accept. There is certainty that the reading reflected in the NIV is the original. So, we will not concern ourselves with manuscript variations. That said, the sentence means that not all will die but all will be transformed bodily. This interpretation would become clearer as we examine the Greek words used in the sentence We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed.
The word “sleep” is translated from a Greek word (koimaō) that may mean “to fall asleep” in a literal sense as the word is used to describe Apostle Peter sleeping in jail in Acts 12:6:
The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance.
The word may mean “to fall asleep” figuratively in the sense of “to die” as it is used to describe the death of Lazarus by the Lord Jesus as we may gather from John 11:11–12:
11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” 12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.”
The Lord Jesus described Lazarus of having fallen asleep, but the disciples did not understand that He was speaking figuratively so we have a commentary that indicates He meant death, as we read in John 11:13:
Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.
The figurative usage of the meaning “to fall asleep” is one that is specifically used to describe the death of believers in Christ. Thus, Apostle Paul used it to describe to the Thessalonians the death of believers who will be resurrected in the future in 1 Thessalonians 4:14:
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
Of course, the Greek word we are considering is outright translated with the meaning “to die” in the passage where Apostle Peter speaks about those who would mock the idea of the second coming of Christ in 2 Peter 3:4:
They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”
The sentence our fathers died is literally the fathers fell asleep. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:51, the Greek word is used in the sense of “to be dead.” Hence, when the apostle wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:51 We will not all sleep he meant that not everyone will die physically. The statement of the apostle implies that not all will experience death since those who are alive at the second coming of Christ would not experience physical death as the Holy Spirit communicated to the Thessalonians and so to all believers through Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:14–17:
14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
It is true that not everyone will die but the apostle indicated that everyone would be transformed as stated in the clause of 1 Corinthians 15:51 but we will all be changed. The word “changed” is translated from a Greek word (allassō) that may mean “to change,” that is, to make something other than it is or to make something different as the word is used in the accusation brought against Stephen before the Sanhedrin as stated in Acts 6:14:
For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”
The word may mean “to exchange” as it is used to describe the kind of thing the wicked do as given in Romans 1:23:
and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:51, the word is used with the meaning “to be changed” or “to undergo transformation.” Thus, the apostle said that all will undergo bodily transformation, but he did not specify who would do it. We say this because the apostle used a passive voice in the Greek that is translated in the English as we will all be changed. The passive voice implies that there is a subject that is responsible for the transformation that is not identified here but the Holy Spirit has indicated that such transformation of our bodies would be the work of Jesus Christ, as we may gather from what the apostle wrote in Philippians 3:20–21:
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
Anyway, the apostle conveyed that there would be a transformation of the body. Definitely, this transformation of the body would be such that it is nothing like the present body we have since nothing associated with our present body will be a part of the eternal state.
In any event, the apostle wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:51 We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed. There is the question of how we should understand the word “all” that is translated from a Greek word (pas) that has different meanings. Often, when we encounter the word “all” in the English, we are prone to think in terms of absolute totality but that is not always the case. It is the context that helps us in interpreting the word “all.” In the context of 1 Corinthians 15:51, “all” refers to believers in Christ since the apostle had been addressing the Corinthians, as those he revealed God’s secret of what is going to occur in the future. However, the truth the apostle revealed to the Corinthians is also applicable to unbelievers. In effect, not all unbelievers will die at the time of Christ second coming but they also will be transformed in that they would have a body that they will use to suffer the pain of hell. We say this because we have already, in the course of our study of the subject resurrection, indicated that everyone that is dead – believer or unbeliever – will be resurrected. Therefore, the unbelievers who are resurrected and those who are alive when Christ returns that will face God’s judgment would certainly have transformed bodies although their transformation will not occur at the same time as that of believers. The point is that all humans will experience bodily transformation suitable for heaven or hell.
Be that as it may, the apostle having revealed God’s secret that not everyone will die but that everyone will be changed or transformed, proceeds to describe the change or the transformation. He described the suddenness of the time of the transformation in two related ways. The first description is given in the first phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 in a flash.
The word “flash” is translated from a Greek word (atomos) that appears only here in the Greek NT. Outside the NT, the word refers to that which cannot be cut or divided especially because of its smallness so the word means “indivisible.” It is from this word that our English word “atom” is derived. That aside, in its only usage in the NT, the word is used of time with the meaning “moment,” that is, “pertaining to what happens in an instant, a flash of time so brief it could not be briefer.” In modern time, we could think of this time as that of “a nano-second.” The point of the word in our context is that the time of the change or transformation of the body would be such it cannot be measured so the apostle is concerned with suddenness of the transformation in view.
The second description of the suddenness of the change or transformation of the body of believers is given in the next phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 in the twinkling of an eye. The word “twinkling” is translated from a Greek word (rhipē) that appears only here in the Greek NT. The word in Greek literature refers to “swing or force with which anything is thrown” so that the word has the meaning of “rapid movement” especially that of the eyelids. In our passage, it is used with the word “eyes” to give the sense of “suddenly.” Thus, the transformation of the body of those who are alive when Christ will return will occur suddenly. Again, the point of the apostle is that the transformation would occur suddenly and at the briefest time imaginable.
Apostle Paul having describe the suddenness of the transformation of the bodies of the believers who are alive when Christ returns, proceeds with a time description of the event of the transformation as in the next phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 at the last trumpet.
The word “last” is translated from a Greek word (eschatos) that may mean “least, last” as it pertains to being the final item in a series, as the word is used to the describe the workers hired last in the Parable of Workers in a Vineyard as narrated in Matthew 20:8:
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’
The word may mean “last, least, most insignificant,” as it pertains to furthest extremity in rank, value, or situation, as the word is used in Jesus’ teaching regarding humility in Luke 14:9:
If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place.
The word may mean “farthest, last” as it pertains to being at the farthest boundary of an area, as the word is used in Jesus’ declaration of the mission of His disciples when they received the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in Acts 1:8:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, the word has the sense of “last,” that is, “coming after all others in time.”
The word “last” qualifies the word “trumpet” in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 at the last trumpet. The word "trumpet" is translated from a Greek word (salpigx) that may refer to a wind instrument used especially for communication hence means a “trumpet” as it is used in comparison of the voice Apostle John heard during the revelation he received as stated in Revelation 1:10:
On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet.
The word may refer to the sound made, or signal given by a trumpet so that it may mean “trumpet call” as it is used to describe what will happen at the second coming of Jesus Christ as we have recorded in 1 Thessalonians 4:16:
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, the word is used with the meaning “trumpet-call” or “trumpet sound,” that is, the sound made by a trumpet.
In any case, the phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 at the last trumpet is significant. You see, as we have considered previously, trumpet in the OT Scripture was used in different ways. Trumpets served as instruments for public summoning of Israel to several kinds of events other than war. For example, trumpets in Israel were for worship purposes. Hence, the Levitical choirs of Israel played the trumpets as implied in Nehemiah 12:40–42:
40 The two choirs that gave thanks then took their places in the house of God; so did I, together with half the officials, 41 as well as the priests—Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah and Hananiah with their trumpets— 42 and also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam and Ezer. The choirs sang under the direction of Jezrahiah.
As part of Israel’s praise of God, the trumpet was used as implied by the admonition of the psalmist to Israel to praise Yahweh as recorded in Psalm 98:4–6:
4 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; 5 make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, 6 with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn—shout for joy before the LORD, the King.
Of course, a most common usage of trumpet in Israel was for military purposes. So, trumpets were used to signal the beginning of a military attack as we read in Judges 6:33–35:
33 Now all the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples joined forces and crossed over the Jordan and camped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him. 35 He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling them to arms, and also into Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali, so that they too went up to meet them.
In the NT, we read of trumpet as an instrument for gathering of God’s elect by angels as stated in Matthew 24:31:
And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Trumpets are used for various future judgments of God on people of this world. These trumpets would be sounded by angels one after another signaling different kinds of judgments that cause different kinds of suffering as we read in Revelation 8:6–13:
6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them. 7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. 8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. 10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter. 12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night. 13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”
These trumpet sounds mentioned in this passage would certainly precede the one that Apostle Paul described in 1 Corinthians 15:52 at the last trumpet in that it will be a trumpet that ends human history as we know it. So, the phrase at the last trumpet defines end of every event of human history and the time of the transformation of bodies that would be accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ. The phrase, as we have indicated, is one that defines a time of bodily transformation or change that all believers will undergo.
Be that as it may, Apostle Paul, having described the suddenness of the bodily transformation and the time that will take place, proceeds to provide an explanation of how the events will take place. We say this because of the word for that begins the next clause of 1 Corinthians 15:52. The word “for” is translated from a Greek conjunction (gar) that has several usages. For example, it can be used as a marker of inference with the meaning “so, then, by all means” or it can be used as a marker of cause or reason for something in which case it may be translated “for, because.” It can be used as a marker of clarification or explanation so that it may be translated “for” or “you see.” In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, it is used as a marker of explanation in that the apostle provides an explanation of how and what will happen at the time specified by the phrase at the last trumpet of 1 Corinthians 15:52. The conjunction being used for an explanation of events that will occur has the sense of “this is what would happen and how it will happen.” With this, the apostle proceeds with the events that would occur at the time of the bodily transformation of believers.
The first event the apostle indicates would take place is the sounding of the trumpet as we read in the next sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:52 the trumpet will sound or literally it will trumpet. This is because the apostle used a Greek verb (salpizō) that may mean “to publicize something with fanfare,” that is, “to trumpet” as the word is used in the teaching of the Lord Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount prohibiting publicizing one’s giving as the hypocrites do, as recorded in Matthew 6:2:
“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.
The word may mean “to blow a trumpet” as it used to describe the blowing of the trumpet by the seventh angel that will signal that God the Father and Christ have taken over the complete control of the world as described in Revelation 11:15:
The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.”
Anyway, the first event that will take place at the time of the bodily transformation or change of believers is the sounding of a trumpet.
The second event the apostle indicates would take place at the time of the bodily transformation or change of believers’ bodies is resurrection as stated in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:52 the dead will be raised imperishable. That the sentence is concerned with resurrection will be clearer as we examine the key words used in the sentence.
The word “dead” is translated from a Greek word (nekros) that literally pertains to being in a state of loss of life and so means “lifeless, dead.” It is in the literal sense that the word is used to describe a person whose life has left his or her body so that we say that the person is dead. However, the adjective is used figuratively to describe a person who is morally or spiritually deficient so that the person is said to be dead. It is in the sense of being morally deficient that the word is used to describe the wayward or prodigal son in Luke 15:24:
For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
In a figurative sense, the word may mean “unfaithfulness” or “inactive” in spiritual matters, as it is used to describe the local church in Sardis in Revelation 3:1:
“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
Of course, there is the implication that the local church was dead in the sense of being hypocritical in that its members gave an impression of spiritual vitality that was not true. The word can also mean one that is without spiritual life as evident in the person being annoyingly insensitive to spiritual things. It is this kind of person that Jesus described in Luke 9:60:
Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
In this passage of Luke 9, the word “dead” appears twice. In the first usage, it refers to those who are spiritually dead and in the second it refers to those who died physically. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, the word means “dead” in the sense of people not physically alive. The thing that would happen to them is described in the verbal phrase of 1 Corinthians 15:52 will be raised.
The word “raised” is translated from a Greek word (egeirō) with a range of meanings. The word may mean “to wake from sleep” as it is used to describe what the disciples of the Lord Jesus did when He was asleep and there was violent storm during a boat ride of the disciples with the Lord as we read in Matthew 8:25:
The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”
The word may mean “to raise up from sickness,” that is, to restore to health as in the promise of healing through prayer of faith given in James 5:15:
And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
The word may mean “to cause to return to life” after death hence means “to raise up.” The raising up to life is of two kinds. A person who died but is caused to return to life, that is, resuscitation, might still die at a later time as was the case with Lazarus that Jesus Christ raised from the dead as referenced in the record of John 12:17:
Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word.
The other kind of being caused to return to life involves a state where death could no longer occur or be experienced by the one raised up from the dead. It is this kind of returning to life after death that is best described with the word “to resurrect” that is only applicable presently to Jesus Christ. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, the word means “to resurrect,” that is, to enter into a state of life as a result of being raised without the possibility of any further physical death. The fact that our word is concerned with the impossibility of any further physical death is stated in the sentence the dead will be raised imperishable.
The word “imperishable” is translated from a Greek word (aphthartos) that pertains to imperviousness to corruption and death hence means “imperishable, incorruptible, immortal,” as it is used in describing the word of God in 1 Peter 1:23:
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 15:52, it has the sense of “imperishable,” that is, “not being subject to breaking down (and thus lasting forever).” So, the word describes the state of those who have been resurrected. The imperishable state of those who have been resurrected constitutes a change or transformation of the dead since they would then possess a body that is no longer capable of decay or subject to death again. In effect, the sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:52 the dead will be raised imperishable describes the transformation or change for those who died prior to the second coming of Christ. Hence, as we stated previously, the second event the apostle indicates would take place at the time of the bodily transformation or change of believers is resurrection that results in the bodily transformation or change of those who died prior to the second coming of Christ in that they will receive a new body that is incapable of decay.
The apostle having described bodily transformation or change for those who died before the second coming of Christ, describes the third event that concerns what happens to those who are physically alive when He returns. These individuals would be transformed or changed. It is this bodily transformation or change that the apostle stated in the last sentence of 1 Corinthians 15:52 and we will be changed.
The clause and we will be changed indicates that the apostle continued with his description of what will happen at the time of bodily transformation that is his concern. This description implies that what is given in it is sequential to what preceded it. True, the word “and” is translated from a Greek particle (kai) that is often translated “and” in our English versions as done here in the NIV. However, the Greek particle has several other usages. For example, it may be used to introduce a result that comes from what precedes and so may be translated “and then, and so.” The word may mean “then” to indicate sequence as it is used to describe what should happen next to a husband and a wife that temporarily stopped sexual relationship because of devotion to God as we read in the instruction of 1 Corinthians 7:5:
Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
In our clause of 1 Corinthians 15:52 and we will be changed, the Greek particle translated “and” is used to add another fact to the one that preceded but, in a way, to convey sequence that it should probably be translated “and then.” We say this because the description we are considering follows that which the apostle gave to the Thessalonians where he indicates sequence. I am referring to the passage we cited previously, that is, 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17:
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
That aside, the apostle was emphatic in the clause of 1 Corinthians 15:52 and we will be changed because he used an independent pronoun noun “we” that is not necessary unless a Greek writer wants to emphasize a point. The apostle used the pronoun “we” to emphasize that he was referring to those, including himself, who would be alive when Christ returns. Those who are physically alive when Christ returns would be the last to experience bodily transformation. Their transformation concludes the transformation of bodies necessary for eternity for believers.
Our inclusion of the apostle in the pronoun “we” is used by some to challenge that the apostle was inspired in what he wrote because he wrote as if Christ would come back during his lifetime. There is a simple explanation for him writing the way he did. The Holy Spirit directed the apostle to write in such a way that he would not violate the assertion of Jesus Christ about the end of time as recorded in Matthew 24:36:
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
If the apostle had written in such a way to exclude himself as those who will be alive when Christ returns, he would have implied that he knew when Christ would return or that he knew that he would not be alive then. Thus, it makes sense for the Holy Spirit to direct the apostle to write the way he did without him being so much concerned about his own actual situation regarding the second coming. In any event, the apostle indicates that the last individuals to experience bodily transformation as it pertains to believers are those who are alive when Christ returns. Let me end by reminding you of the message we are considering, which is that Not everyone will experience physical death, but everyone will undergo a bodily transformation necessary for existence in the eternal state.
11/24/23