7 ⁿThe end of all things is at hand; therefore ^obe self-controlled and sober-minded ^pfor the sake of your prayers.

29 This is what I mean, brothers: ^bthe appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, 30 and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy ^cas though they had no goods, 31 and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For ^dthe present form of this world is passing away.

10 And,

35 ^eHeaven and earth will pass away, but ^fmy words will not pass away.

17 And ^zthe world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

20 teaching them ^oto observe all that ^pI have commanded you. And behold, ^qI am with you always, to ^rthe end of the age.”

39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. ^mThe harvest is ⁿthe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds ^oare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at ⁿthe end of the age.

3 knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come ^jin the last days with scoffing, ^kfollowing their own sinful desires. 4 ^lThey will say, “Where is the promise of ^mhis coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5 For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth ⁿwas formed out of water and through water ^oby the word of God, 6 and that by means of these the world that then existed ^pwas deluged with water and ^qperished. 7 But by the same word ^rthe heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and ^sdestruction of the ungodly.

8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and ^ta thousand years as one day. 9 ^uThe Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise ^vas some count slowness, but ^wis patient toward you,^{1 x}not wishing that any should perish, but ^ythat all should reach repentance. 10 But ^zthe day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then ^athe heavens will pass away with a roar, and ^bthe heavenly bodies² will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.³

11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, ^cwhat sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 ^dwaiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and ^ethe heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for ^fnew heavens and a new earth ^gin which righteousness dwells.

11 and said, ^y“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, ^zwill ^acome in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

7 Behold, ^vhe is coming with the clouds, and ^wevery eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail¹ on account of him. Even so. Amen.

28 so Christ, having been offered once ^qto bear the sins of ^rmany, will appear ^sa second time, ^tnot to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly ^uwaiting for him.

21 ^xwhom heaven must receive until the time for ^yrestoring all the things about which ^zGod spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.

The Coming of the Lord

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, ^gthat you may not grieve as others do ^hwho have no hope. 14 For ⁱsince we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him ^jthose who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you ^kby a word from the Lord,¹ that ^lwe who are alive, who are left until ^mthe coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For ⁿthe Lord himself will descend ^ofrom heaven ^pwith a cry of command, with the voice of ^qan archangel, and ^rwith the sound of the trumpet of God. And ^sthe dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be ^tcaught up together with them ^uin the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so ^vwe will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

The Day of the Lord

1 Now concerning ^wthe times and the seasons, brothers,^{1 x}you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that ^ythe day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then ^zsudden destruction will come upon them ^aas labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you ^bare not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all ^cchildren² of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then ^dlet us not sleep, as others do, but let us ^ekeep awake and ^fbe sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, ^gare drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, ^hhaving put on the breastplate of ⁱfaith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for ^jwrath, but ^kto obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 ^lwho died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

15 ^jhaving ^ka hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be ^la resurrection ^mof both the just and the unjust.

The Resurrection of the Dead

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, ^zhow can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, ^athen not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that ^bhe raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and ^cyou are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who ^dhave fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope¹ in this life only, ^ewe are of all people most to be pitied.

20 But in fact ^fChrist has been raised from the dead, ^gthe firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as ^hby a man came death, ⁱby a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For ^jas in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then ^kat his coming ^lthose who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he delivers ^mthe kingdom to God the Father after destroying ⁿevery rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign ^ountil he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be ^pdestroyed is death. 27 For ^q“God² has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. 28 When ^rall things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that ^sGod may be all in all.

29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we ^tin danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by ^umy pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, ^vI die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, ^wI fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, ^x“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 ^yDo not be deceived: ^z“Bad company ruins good morals.”³ 34 ^aWake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For ^bsome have no knowledge of God. ^cI say this to your shame.

The Resurrection Body

35 But someone will ask, ^d“How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” 36 You foolish person! ^eWhat you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. 38 But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. 39 For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. 40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.

42 ^fSo is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; ^git is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, ^h“The first man Adam became a living being”;^{4 i}the last Adam became a ^jlife-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 ^kThe first man was from the earth, ^la man of dust; ^mthe second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, ⁿso also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just ^oas we have borne the image of the man of dust, ^pwe shall⁵ also bear the image of the man of heaven.

Mystery and Victory

50 I tell you this, brothers: ^qflesh and blood ^rcannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. ^sWe shall not all sleep, ^tbut we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For ^uthe trumpet will sound, and ^vthe dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and ^wthis mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

56 The sting of death is sin, and ^zthe power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, ^awho gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 ^bTherefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in ^cthe work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord ^dyour labor is not in vain.

14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid ^cat ^dthe resurrection of the just.”

2 And many of those who ^dsleep in ^ethe dust of the earth shall ^eawake, ^fsome to everlasting life, and ^fsome to shame and everlasting contempt.

28 Do not marvel at this, for ^van hour is coming when ^ball who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, ^cthose who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who ^jlooks on the Son and ^kbelieves in him ^lshould have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

25 Jesus said to her, ^j“I am the resurrection and ^kthe life.¹ Whoever believes in me, ^lthough he die, ^myet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me ⁿshall never die. Do you believe this?”

10 and which now has ^ybeen manifested through ^zthe appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, ^awho abolished death and ^bbrought life and ^cimmortality to light through the gospel,

42 And ^ahe commanded us to preach to the people and to testify ^bthat he is the one appointed by God to be judge ^cof the living and the dead.

49 So it will be at ^ethe end of the age. The angels will come out and ^fseparate the evil from the righteous

37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is ^kthe sons of the kingdom. The weeds are ^lthe sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. ^mThe harvest is ⁿthe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds ^oare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at ⁿthe end of the age. 41 ^pThe Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all ^qcauses of sin and ^rall law-breakers, 42 ^sand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^tthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then ^uthe righteous will shine like the sun ^vin the kingdom of their Father. ^wHe who has ears, let him hear.

30 Then ^rwill appear in heaven ^sthe sign of the Son of Man, and then ^tall the tribes of the earth will mourn, and ^uthey will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven ^vwith power and great glory. 31 And ^whe will send out his angels with a loud ^xtrumpet call, and they will ^ygather ^zhis elect from ^athe four winds, ^bfrom one end of heaven to the other.

The Final Judgment

31 ⁱ“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, ^jthen he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him ^kwill be gathered ^lall the nations, and ^mhe will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates ⁿthe sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then ^othe King will say to ^pthose on his right, ‘Come, you ^qwho are blessed by my Father, ^rinherit ^sthe kingdom ^tprepared for you ^ufrom the foundation of the world. 35 For ^vI was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you ^wgave me drink, ^xI was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 ^vI was naked and you clothed me, ^yI was sick and you ^zvisited me, ^aI was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And ^bthe King will answer them, ^c‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these ^dmy brothers,¹ you did it to me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ^e‘Depart from me, you ^fcursed, into ^gthe eternal fire prepared for ^hthe devil and his angels. 42 For ⁱI was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, ^jyou did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away ^kinto eternal punishment, but the righteous ^kinto ^leternal life.”

11 ^uLet the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.”

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous¹ will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: ^xneither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,² 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

43 ⁿAnd if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to ^ohell,¹ to ^pthe unquenchable fire.² 45 ^qAnd if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into ^ohell. 47 ^rAnd if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into ^shell, 48 ‘where ^ttheir worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’

9 then ^ethe Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials,¹ and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment,

7 just as ^qSodom and Gomorrah and ^rthe surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and ^spursued unnatural desire,¹ serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

19 ^yTheir end is destruction, ^ztheir god is their belly, and ^athey glory in their shame, with ^bminds set on earthly things.

23 ^dFor the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

10 For ^wwe must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, ^xso that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

11 Therefore, knowing ^ythe fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But ^zwhat we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.

36 Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that ^qsower and ^rreaper ^smay rejoice together.