For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
Truth to Learn
The rapture could happen any day now!
Behind the Words
The word “alive” is from the verb dzaō, which means “to be alive” or “to have life.” It is expressed here as a present participle, so it could be translated as “the living.”
“Remain” is translated from perileipō. This word is made up of peri, meaning “around” and leipō, meaning “to leave” or “to have a lack of something.” Hence, perileipō means “to leave around” or “to leave behind.” This verb is also expressed as a present participle, so it could be translated as “the ones left behind” (when the others died).
Parousia is the Greek word translated “coming.” This word is derived from pareimi, meaning “to be present.” It can refer either to the presence of something or it can refer to the coming of someone into our presence.
“By no means” is the translation of the two Greek words ou mē. Ou represents the absolute negative and mē represents the relative negative. When the two words are used together it indicates the strongest form of a negative, meaning “absolutely not” or “no way.”
The word translated “precede” is phthanō, which means “to be beforehand” or “to precede.” When the King James Version of the Bible was by far the most frequently read translation, many people became confused about this verse. The reason is that the word phthanō was translated as “prevent.” At the time the KJV was translated, the word “prevent” meant “to come before,” not “to keep from happening” as it does today. Nearly all modern translations use the word “precede,” meaning “to happen before something else.”
Meaning Explained
Paul is currently teaching about the rapture, indicating in verse thirteen that it is a future hope that belongs to all Christians. In yesterday’s verse we learned that when Jesus Christ comes back at the rapture, He will bring with him everyone who has died having a saving faith in his work on the cross.
He now makes a statement about why we should believe what he is telling us. He says, “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord.” In other words, this is not just some hair brained idea that Paul came up with. This is teaching directly from the mouth of God, His Word.
Some Christians believe that this is a description of the “second coming of our Lord” which takes place at the end of the tribulation as described in Revelation 19:11-14. However, in that passage (verse 14) those who come with Him are clothed in fine linen, white and clean. This is an indication that those who come with Him have already been presented before the Father, which must occur after the Bema Seat Judgment, which happens after the Rapture. Therefore, this must be a description of the Rapture and not the Second Coming.
Paul’s message here is that Christians who are alive at the time of the rapture will not receive their heavenly bodies before those who are asleep in Jesus (Christians who have died). Finally, notice that Paul said “we who remain.” He fully expected the rapture to occur within his lifetime!
Application
The rapture hasn’t happened yet, but we (like Paul) believe it could occur any day now. Christians should be serving God faithfully now, looking forward to Christ’s return when “we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2)
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved