1. Yesterday we heard, dear friends, how the holy apostle Paul comforts the Christians who mourn and grieve over their dead, namely: That they should have thoughts of them, not as reason, which knows nothing else, but that he who once died should not rise again; but as the Scripture speaks of them, namely, that they sleep, and that they are grains of God, and plants which he has sown and planted, that they should spring up again and grow forth to the summer; as a grain of wheat, or of another, which comes not forth sooner from the earth.
And bringeth forth manifold fruits, dying and rotting as before. So also, if we are to rise incorruptible, in glory and power, as St. Paul says in 1 Cor. 15:42, 43, we must first be sown corruptible in dishonor and weakness. The Gentiles, who do not know Christ, know nothing of this; therefore they have no such hope and die without all comfort.
(2) Further, he shows with all diligence how it will happen on the last day with the resurrection, so that he would like to comfort the believers against all objections and contradictions of reason, which lets go of God's word and judges here according to their feelings. And because he speaks of high, unheard-of and unbelievable things to the world, and
he is a bad, lowly person, he secretly admonishes them not to look at his person, nor to think that he has invented such things out of his head, but that they should hear and accept them as the word of God, and says:
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the future of the Lord shall not appear unto them which sleep.
3 He said above that God will take with Him those who have fallen asleep through Christ. Here someone might ask, because he says this only about those who have fallen asleep through Christ, that is, died in faith in Christ: Where then will those remain who are found alive in Christ's future? How? Will they have any advantage, see Christ sooner and be led to Him, than those who have died? He answers and says: "I will tell you something secret, which you have not yet heard from anyone, nor will you find it written so clearly anywhere, but it has been revealed to me from heaven. Therefore I tell it to you as "a word from the Lord" which is certain and true; therefore you should also accept and believe it as if you heard it from the Lord's own mouth, namely, "that we who are alive and remain in the future of the Lord will not precede those who are asleep.
(4) That is, we who shall live to see the future of Christ shall neither see Christ sooner nor come to him sooner than those who have fallen asleep, but it shall come to pass that at the moment when Christ comes and the last trumpet sounds, those who are dead in Christ shall rise immortal and incorruptible, and have a glorified body. However, we who are alive at that time will also be changed, that is, we will neither die nor be buried in the same way as all men have died and been buried from the beginning of age or by other chance, or burned to powder, torn apart by animals etc.; but will be changed in a bad way, so that our body will be formed differently than it is now, namely, that it will no longer be a mortal, corruptible body.
but a spiritual, immortal and transfigured one, much more glorious and beautiful than the sun. Therefore, we, both dead and buried or decayed as they are, and we who are found alive at the same time, will suddenly and in a moment be changed from mortal beings into immortal ones, and at the same time will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. So that at the same time, in a moment, the dead will come forth from the earth, or where they have remained and decayed; and we, together with them, will be taken away at the same time, as and where we are found, and snatched away from mortal life, and thus transfigured with one another.
5 He speaks of this in 1 Cor. 15:51, 52, 53 in this way: "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed; and that suddenly in a moment, at the time of the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will rise incorruptible, and we will be changed. For that which is corruptible must put on that which is incorruptible, and that which is mortal must put on immortality." Here St. Paul also indicates that although Christ, when he comes on the last day, will find the world quite devilish, evil and godless, there will nevertheless be righteous Christians. This is a great comfort. For Christ and the apostles speak of this time, when Christ will come as a judge over the living and the dead, with such words that it is terrible to hear and read. Christ says Luc. 18, 8: "When the Son of Man comes, do you also think that he will find faith on earth?" And elsewhere, Matt. 24:38, he says, "He will find the world as wicked and ungodly on the last day as it was in the days of Noah and Lot, when the people were not concerned about misfortune, but were happy and secure, eating, drinking, renting, buying, planting, building, until the flood came in the days of Noah, and in the days of Lot, when it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
The same will happen at the time of his future. Whoever has the essence of the world against
If you keep the words of Christ, you will see that things are now as he preached. There is now neither measure nor end to buying, building and planting; also the disorderly nature of eating and drinking, especially in Germany, has become so common; so also the shameful vice, the belly care and the cursed avarice and usury, let us not mention the common vices, is gaining the upper hand so violently from day to day that I think it cannot stand for long, but must soon break.
(7) It is frightening to hear that the world is so shameful to the holy gospel, so that God has so graciously afflicted it in this last time before the last day. In that part the enemies persecute and blaspheme the recognized truth most fiercely and most horribly. Here, among friends, not only is ingratitude great, but the greatest number also begin to grow weary of the dear word. Where it is gentle and frees us from the cruel tyranny of the pope, who with his laws and cords has horribly burdened and imprisoned the wretched consciences, it is gladly heard and is pleasant. But if it punishes our unbelief and ungodly nature, and teaches us how we should live soberly, righteously and godly from now on, after we have become believers, it will not enter us, indeed, it does the opposite; which is a sure sign that we are not Christians, nor will we inherit the kingdom of God, Galatians 5. It will not enter so sweetly, indeed, one becomes hostile to it. Therefore I fear that in time it will come to pass that when the vices are punished, there will be no faith or fear of God in the people, especially the gross ones, such as eating, drinking, being greedy, usury, adultery, fornication etc.That even those who want to be Christians will be displeased about it, and will interpret such necessary punishment to mean that it is speaking to the people's honor and weighing on their conscience, that one should not frighten the people, but comfort them etc. For he who diligently heeds the word of Christ and the apostles sees that before the last day the world will be full of scoffers and epicureans etc.
8. then strikes with how to worry that ear weeders take the pulpit, the
preach there what one likes to hear (because the world wants to have such teachers): then the drunkard will be lost with the thirsty. For there can be no good end to a man's being so foolish about the matter, and receiving the dear truth so badly, even blaspheming and profaning it to the utmost, and not only having love and desire for lies and error, but also wanting to defend and preserve it for truth. Therefore the world, because it does not want to have the light, will be struck with greater blindness than before under the papacy; and will go according to the words of Christ Luc. 11, 26: the last will be worse than the first. The last wrath that God will inflict on the wicked at the last day will be the greatest. The world must deserve it before then; therefore it will be worse than it was in the time of Noah and Lot. Nevertheless, Christians, says St. Paul, will live when Christ comes. As we also confess in our faith that there is a holy Christian church, which, says St. Paul, will proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes, 1 Cor. 11:26.
Now, the world knows nothing about the secret and hidden part, of which St. Paul speaks here and in 1 Cor. 15, 51; therefore he also calls it a "secret". Yes, there are very few, even among Christians, who believe this, as St. Paul himself experienced, 1 Cor. 15:12. For it is strange, even impossible, that all who have died and been buried, from the first man to the last, should be raised from death in a moment. Therefore, reason does not want it to happen so quickly. For it sees that one is burned to powder, another is thrown into the water, the third is torn apart by wild beasts, the fourth is eaten by ravens on the gallows etc.; in sum, who can say, even think, how variously and wonderfully men perish in all the world? and yet all of them shall stand there alive in a moment before the last judgment etc. In the same way, the others who will then live and remain will be found at the table, in the house, in the field, in bed, drinking wine, at work etc., in the house of the Lord.
In a moment they will be transformed, and all of them will be gathered together with the others, and in a moment they will be drawn up together in the clouds to meet the Lord.
(10) If you consult reason, you will never believe it; but God will prove His divine power and majesty there. As he did when he created the heavens and the earth from nothing, he spoke only one word, and soon it was there; so it will be here also. "The Lord will come down from heaven with a shout and the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God"; then in a moment the dead will rise and we will be changed.
(11) Yes, it is said, "All men must die," Heb. 9:27. Right, they must all die, even those who are then found alive; but not like those who die on their deathbed or otherwise and are buried, rot or otherwise perish, eaten by worms or wild animals etc.; but they will be changed, says 1 Cor. 15:51. 15, 51. This will happen as St. Peter says, that the heavens will be dissolved by fire, but the elements will melt with heat, and the earth and all that is in it will be burned up, 2 Petr. 3, 10. So that this transformation, which will happen in an instant by fire, will be their death. That is why he uses the word "sleep" and does not say, "We will not all die," but "We will not all fall asleep. For he separates the two from each other, "die" and "sleep". He calls those "sleeping" who are dead and decaying in the grave, or otherwise pulverized and scattered. But those who are transformed by fire die, and are transferred from this mortal being into the immortal; but they do not die, as otherwise all men have died from the beginning of the world to the same time; for they will be dead and alive again in a moment.
(12) Those who are true Christians should not be afraid of this day, but should desire it with all their heart. For as long as they live in this pitiful valley, they have little peace and tranquility: now they shall have
They were plagued with this misfortune, now with another. In addition, the world is bitterly hostile to them, hates and persecutes them most horribly. They are also challenged by their own flesh. Above all this, the devil does not leave them alone; he confronts them with their sins, makes them great, and gives them poisonous, evil thoughts, so that they become sad and melancholy, terrified of death and fearful of God's judgment. They will not get rid of their sorrow as long as this life lasts. But on that day all this will cease, and they will be delivered from all evil. Therefore the scripture calls this day the day of our redemption etc. Therefore we must not fear, but rather rejoice in the blessed and joyful day of the coming and appearing of Jesus Christ our Lord.
(13) But the devil turns it around, tortures and torments us, so that we sometimes forget this comfort and feel nothing but fear and trembling before God's wrath and judgment. But we keep to the word, do not turn to our feelings, but wait for it in hope through patience, which is held out to us in the word and promised. Again, he lets the wicked sit in good peace and tranquility, so that no misfortune passes over them; they are not hated or persecuted by anyone for the sake of their faith, nor do they care about their sins; they have no other choice but to remain here forever; therefore they alone seek to obtain great honor, riches and good days. So the devil leaves them undaunted, because they are his own, do, speak and think what he wants; they should be afraid of this day. But nothing will come of it; and if one threatens them with God's unbearable wrath, terrible judgment, eternal death and damnation, they will not take it a hair's breadth, will go safely and grow old in good days, and will hardly be frightened for a moment by hell, Job 21:13. But what will it be on that day when they stand before the judgment seat of Christ and hear the terrible judgment against them: "Go, you cursed, into the eternal fire," etc., Matth. 25, 41? Follow on:
For he himself, the Lord, will come down from heaven with a shout and the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God.
14 He also speaks of this future of Christ in 2 Thess. 1, 8. 9. how he will burst down from heaven with flames of fire, which will be terrible to see for the wicked; for he will take vengeance on them because they do not know God and are not obedient to the gospel, so that they will suffer torment, eternal destruction etc., and will be pushed into the abyss of hell. He will, he says, come himself in his own person. Although he is now in all places, ruling and reigning over all creatures, it will be done secretly and in secret, for he will not let himself be seen. But then he will come in his glory, with all the holy angels, and appear wonderfully with all believers, 2 Thess. 1, 10. He will come down publicly and visibly in the clouds, so that every eye will see him, Revelation 1, 7. But he will come down from heaven, says the apostle, with a shout and the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet, which he calls God's trumpet. The angels will be his predecessors and his satellites, just around him, and the archangel and the others will sound the voice, the shout and the trumpet.
(16) Here many have wondered what the shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God are. He speaks of the matter in a common way with such words that are used when one says and boasts of a great, magnificent army of a mighty, powerful king or emperor who goes to the field with his banner raised, with kettledrums and trumpets, and has with him a great multitude of people, both on foot and on horseback, so that the whole country resounds and knows how to speak of it. So he also wants to indicate with these words that the King of kings and Lord of lords will come with a glorious, unspeakable splendor together with all the holy angels (that will be a Lord, I think) with his sign or banner, Matth. 24, 30. 31. with much different shouting, voice and trumpet than human, which will resound through the whole world and so powerfully.
that heaven and earth will be burned up and changed in an instant, and all the dead will awake, but the living will be changed; therefore he also calls it a "trumpet of God".
016 But how it shall sound, I cannot know; but I suffer it to sound, as the fathers interpret it, "Arise, ye dead." Here do not worry how it is possible that such a voice will resound throughout the whole world and be heard; but take heed, as St. Paul speaks differently: "The Lord Himself," he says, "will come down with a shout, and with the trumpet of God." God's trumpet, word, and voice is much a different trumpet, word, and voice than ours; for He judges all things thereby. When he wanted to wake up Lazarum, who had lain in the grave for four days, he did nothing, but said, "Lazare, come forth"; and it happened. So did he also with the rest of the dead, whom he made alive, and with the sick, whom he healed; and as it was said, heaven and earth he made by one word, saying evil, "Let there be light" etc. He will do the same on the last day, as he himself says: "The hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear the voice of the Son of God and come forth.
But when St. John Cap. 5, 28. speaks of the voice of God, and St. Paul of the trumpet of God, they do not mean that Christ Himself will personally call and blow; but the archangel together with the others will do it, Matth. 24, 31. Therefore it is also called the voice of the archangel, and yet it is the voice of the Son of God or the trumpet of God, for it will be done by His command; just as the voice or word of all teachers who preach the gospel purely and loudly is not their word or voice, but God's; therefore whoever believes them believes God, Luc. 10, 16. 17.
And those who are dead in Christ will rise first, and then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so will always be with the Lord.
18. He describes with great diligence how things will be at the last day, all so that we should not worry too much about our deceased friends, nor should we ourselves be too anxious about death; but should long for the glorious, blessed future of Christ, our Savior, with a heartfelt longing and desire, and certainly hope that everything will turn out as it is indicated here, namely, that he will come, raise us up, take us with him, and take us into his eternal kingdom: Who shall be astonished at this? Yes, who shall not rejoice in it with all his heart? But faith is weak, therefore it hinders such joy.
(19) What will happen when the voice of the archangel and the trumpet sound, and Christ comes at the same time? In a moment the dead in Christ will rise; but we, who then live and remain, will be changed at the same moment, and at the same time be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so abide with the Lord forever. These are short and bad words, but who can explain what lies behind them? Let each one think about them diligently, and let them be his comfort in all kinds of temptations, especially in the time of death. Then we shall have no more temptation, but shall be delivered from all evil; mourning, weeping, sorrow, pain, death shall be no more, neither shall sin dwell in our flesh any more; but shall be wholly pure, without all filthiness, evil desire, and lust. In sum, we will receive again more abundantly and better that which we lost in Adam than we would have had in Paradise, loving God with all our heart, thanking Him, praising Him and glorifying Him forever, Amen.
(20) Here shall some ask whether the ungodly also shall rise again? Answer: As well as the godly; for Christ is a judge of the living and the dead, whether they be pious or wicked, righteous or ungodly. But only the faithful, that is, those who have fallen asleep in Christ, will have the unspeakable glory and grace of being introduced with Christ, their Bridegroom, into the new and eternal Jerusalem, into which they will be saved.
a much more glorious adornment than all the world has. But the ungodly, who die in their unbelief, will not be carried away in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, but will remain down here and hear their judgment: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire" 2c, Marc. 25, 41. Thus the ungodly will be raised as well as the believers; but the latter to the resurrection of life, the latter to the resurrection of judgment, Joh. 5, 29.
So now comfort yourselves with these words among yourselves.
21 Then he instructs us where to seek right and lasting comfort and how to comfort one another, namely with words and sayings from the Scriptures, as he also teaches in Romans 15:4. For as glorious and joyful as the comfort of the world may be, it is not true and lasting, but fleeting, and not certain of a moment; for a little wind may easily come and overthrow it. If one, where it is possible, has all the honor and good in the world, what does it help him? if he has to die, can he receive comfort from it? Yes, it is more grievous and sad for him that he must leave. But the comfort that the Holy Spirit gives through the Word of God remains firm and constant in all fear, distress and death.
22 Because our dear Lord and Prince, blessed one, was a special lover of the holy word, and has now suffered much over it these years, and also proved his faith at his last end with many beautiful speeches and words, confessed Christ that he died for his sin, etc., and was also given this comfort, we do not want to doubt at all that he is among those who have fallen asleep through Christ. Therefore, when the Lord comes, he will surely be resurrected with the others, and at the same time be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord, and be with him forever. May the Father of all mercies grant us through Christ our only consolation, that we may blessedly follow and sleep after him in Christ, that we may rejoice in the presence of the Son of man. Amen.