Our Hope: He Will Come Back

The Good News · Article 10 of 10 · 2026-10-29 · Key passages: Acts 1:11; 1 Corinthians 15:22–23; Revelation 21:3. Quotations are from the World English Bible (WEB); please check each one in your own Bible.

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For forty days after he rose, Jesus showed himself alive to his apostles, “speaking about God’s Kingdom.” (Acts 1:3). Luke tells what happened on the mountain called Olivet (Acts 1:12):

When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight. While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing, who also said, “You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.”

— Acts 1:9–11

Article 9 asked what it means to follow Jesus now. This last article in The Good News asks what we are waiting for. It speaks of death, of the dead, and of God’s judgment. We will read those passages soberly and without fear. Some readers were taught to dread the end. Others were taught that Christ is already present, unseen, or that only a few believers will be with him in heaven. We ask you to read what Scripture itself promises, and to check every word.

Read These First

• Acts 1:9–11: “This Jesus … will come back” (Acts 1:11).
• 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18: “The dead in Christ will rise first,” (1 Thessalonians 4:16).
• 1 Corinthians 15:20–26: “then those who are Christ’s at his coming.” (1 Corinthians 15:23).
• John 5:24–29: “all who are in the tombs will hear his voice” (John 5:28).
• Acts 17:30–31: the day God has appointed.
• Revelation 21:1–5: “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people;” (Revelation 21:3).

The Same Jesus Will Come Back, and Every Eye Will See Him

What the text says. The two men in white promised that Jesus will come back the same way the disciples saw him go (Acts 1:11). They had seen him go, “as they were looking” (Acts 1:9). On the night he was betrayed, Jesus had promised them:

“Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many homes. If it weren’t so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also.

— John 14:1–3

Jesus told the high priest, “you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of the sky.” (Matthew 26:64). John writes, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, including those who pierced him.” (Revelation 1:7). Hebrews says that Christ “will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” (Hebrews 9:28).

Jesus also said who knows when. “But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew 24:36). So he told his disciples, “Watch therefore, for you don’t know in what hour your Lord comes.” (Matthew 24:42). And: “Therefore also be ready, for in an hour that you don’t expect, the Son of Man will come.” (Matthew 24:44). Passages: Luke 21:27–28; Titus 2:13.

What we conclude. Scripture says plainly that the same Jesus will come back (Acts 1:11). It says plainly that he will come on the clouds, and that every eye will see him (Matthew 24:30; Revelation 1:7). It says plainly that no one but the Father knows the day and hour (Matthew 24:36). Our conclusion is that in the same way means he will come as they saw him go: in his body, visibly, from the sky (Acts 1:9–11; Luke 24:39, 51). Our conclusion is also that his promise to receive his disciples to himself is kept at his coming (John 14:3; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).

“If therefore they tell you, ‘Behold, he is in the wilderness,’ don’t go out; or ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ don’t believe it. For as the lightning flashes from the east, and is seen even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be.

— Matthew 24:26–27

Our conclusion is that Jesus warned ahead of time against reports of a hidden coming, known only to those told of it (Matthew 24:23–26). The coming he describes next is seen like lightning, from the east to the west (Matthew 24:27; see Notes on the Text). Our conclusion is that in the verses they cite the word means being present in person; it does not make a presence unseen (2 Corinthians 10:10–11).

The Noah saying makes a different point, our conclusion. The people “didn’t know until the flood came and took them all away,” (Matthew 24:39). Luke gives the same saying and ends it, “It will be the same way in the day that the Son of Man is revealed.” (Luke 17:30). Our conclusion is that Luke likens the two times by what people were doing until the end came (Luke 17:26–28). He does not say that the Son of Man is present, unseen, in those days. He adds that the flood “destroyed them all.” (Luke 17:27). Luke also says, “so will the Son of Man be in his day.” (Luke 17:24). Our conclusion is that the days of Noah picture ordinary life going on until a sudden day, not a presence begun unseen (Matthew 24:38–39; Luke 17:26–30).

Some ask how a coming that every eye sees could need a sign. The disciples asked, “What is the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matthew 24:3). Others point to Jesus’ words, “Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more;” (John 14:19). Jesus answered the question about the sign: “then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.” (Matthew 24:30). Our conclusion is that the sign is seen in the sky, with him, by all the tribes of the earth (Matthew 24:30). That night Jesus also said, “I will come again” (John 14:3). John writes that every eye will see him (Revelation 1:7). Our conclusion is that the world will see me no more speaks of the time while he is away, not of his coming (John 14:3, 19).

Some readers hold that Jesus will first come for believers, unseen by the world, and later come in public. They read “caught up together with them in the clouds” (1 Thessalonians 4:17), and “one will be taken and one will be left.” (Matthew 24:40). Paul says the Lord descends “with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with God’s trumpet.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Jesus gathers his chosen ones “with a great sound of a trumpet,” (Matthew 24:31), “immediately after the suffering of those days” (Matthew 24:29). In Matthew, the field and the mill follow the flood that “took them all away,” (Matthew 24:39–41). Our conclusion is that Jesus gathers his people at the one coming every eye will see, not at a secret coming before it (Matthew 24:29–31; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17). Paul says the dead are raised “at the last trumpet.” (1 Corinthians 15:52). Paul wrote “concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to him,” (2 Thessalonians 2:1). He said that the day of Christ would not come “unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of sin is revealed,” (2 Thessalonians 2:2–3). Our conclusion is that the coming and gathering of verse 1 are the day of verse 2, which follows the rebellion (2 Thessalonians 2:1–3). Others read the promise to the assembly in Philadelphia as a promise to be taken away first: “I also will keep you from the hour of testing” (Revelation 3:10). Jesus also prayed, “I pray not that you would take them from the world, but that you would keep them from the evil one.” (John 17:15). Our conclusion is that God can keep his people through a time of testing without taking them from the world (John 17:15; Revelation 3:10).

When the apostles asked about the time of the Kingdom, Jesus said, “It isn’t for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.” (Acts 1:7). Our conclusion is that Scripture describes one coming, which every eye will see, and gives no date for it (Revelation 1:7; Acts 1:7; Matthew 24:36).

Those Who Are Christ’s Will Be Raised at His Coming

What the text says. Paul wrote to believers who were grieving:

But we don’t want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you don’t grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this we tell you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with God’s trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise first, then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever.

— 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17

He ended, “Therefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). To the Corinthians he wrote, “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s at his coming.” (1 Corinthians 15:22–23). And:

Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. For this perishable body must become imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.

— 1 Corinthians 15:51–53

Jesus said, “the hour comes in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and will come out; those who have done good, to the resurrection of life; and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:28–29). Paul told the governor Felix of his hope “that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.” (Acts 24:15). Daniel had been told, “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2). In his vision John saw that “The rest of the dead didn’t live until the thousand years were finished.” (Revelation 20:5).

When Lazarus died, Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I may awake him out of sleep.” (John 11:11). Then he said plainly, “Lazarus is dead.” (John 11:14). Martha said, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” (John 11:24). Jesus answered, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies.” (John 11:25). He had said of everyone who believes in him, “I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:40). Passages: John 11:23–26; 1 Corinthians 15:42–44.

What we conclude. Scripture says plainly that the dead in Christ will rise at the Lord’s coming (1 Thessalonians 4:16; 1 Corinthians 15:23). In his vision John saw that the rest of the dead did not live until the thousand years were finished (Revelation 20:5). It says plainly that all who are in the tombs will come out, the just and the unjust (John 5:28–29; Acts 24:15). It says plainly that the dead will be raised incorruptible, and the living changed (1 Corinthians 15:52). Our conclusion is that the comfort Paul gives the grieving is the resurrection at the Lord’s coming (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).

Scripture calls the dead those who sleep (1 Thessalonians 4:13; John 11:11). The Preacher wrote, “For the living know that they will die, but the dead don’t know anything,” (Ecclesiastes 9:5). The psalm says of a man, “His spirit departs, and he returns to the earth. In that very day, his thoughts perish.” (Psalm 146:4). Paul wrote that if Christ has not been raised, “Then they also who are fallen asleep in Christ have perished.” (1 Corinthians 15:18). Our conclusion is that the dead know nothing and sleep until the resurrection, when Jesus raises them (Ecclesiastes 9:5; John 5:28–29).

Some ask how the thousand years fit Jesus’ words, “the hour comes in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice” (John 5:28). Three verses earlier he said, “the hour comes, and now is, when the dead will hear the Son of God’s voice;” (John 5:25). Our conclusion is that the hour in John 5 names a time, not a single moment, so it leaves room for the thousand years (John 5:25, 28; Revelation 20:5). Jesus also said of the one who rejects him, “The word that I spoke will judge him in the last day.” (John 12:48). Our conclusion is that the last day is likewise a time, in which Jesus raises those who believe and judges those who reject him (John 6:40; 12:48).

Luke 23:43 turns on punctuation. The WEB puts the comma before today; some translations put it after, reading I tell you today (see Notes on the Text). The man had asked, “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” (Luke 23:42). On the third day Jesus said, “I haven’t yet ascended to my Father;” (John 20:17). Our conclusion is that he did not go up to his Father on the day he died. Peter says that David “spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that his soul wasn’t left in Hades, and his flesh didn’t see decay.” (Acts 2:31). Our conclusion is that Peter speaks of Hades as the grave, from which God raised him (Acts 2:29–32; Revelation 20:13). Our conclusion is that Jesus’ words “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” (Luke 23:46) entrust his life to the Father, who raised him (Acts 2:32). Our conclusion is that Jesus promised the man a place in the Kingdom he asked for (Luke 23:42–43). On the WEB’s punctuation the verse reads naturally as a promise for that same day, and we say so openly.

The story opens, “Now there was a certain rich man,” (Luke 16:19). Luke calls an earlier story about a certain rich man a parable (Luke 12:16). Jesus told this one to the Pharisees, “who were lovers of money” (Luke 16:14–15). It ends with Abraham’s words: “If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.” (Luke 16:31). Our conclusion is that Luke 16:19–31 is a parable, told to call its hearers back to Moses and the prophets (Luke 12:16; 16:14, 31). Some answer that even a parable would not picture the dead falsely. But Jotham told of trees that “set out to anoint a king over themselves.” (Judges 9:8). Some add that Lazarus and Abraham are named. Ezekiel’s figure of two sisters names them too: “As for their names, Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem Oholibah.” (Ezekiel 23:4). Our conclusion is that a parable’s picture carries its lesson, and is not itself teaching on the state of the dead (Judges 9:7–15; Luke 16:31).

Other texts are read the same way, as showing the dead awake. Some read the first half of Matthew 10:28 so: men “are not able to kill the soul.” (Matthew 10:28). The same verse says God “is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” (Matthew 10:28). Luke gives it, “don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.” (Luke 12:4). Our conclusion is that men cannot end a life God will raise, but God can destroy both soul and body (Luke 12:4–5; John 5:28–29).

The Confession’s words “return to God who gave them” (Westminster Confession of Faith 32.1) echo the Preacher: “the spirit returns to God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). Elihu says that if God “gathered to himself his spirit and his breath,” (Job 34:14), “all flesh would perish together,” (Job 34:15). Our conclusion is that the spirit that returns to God is the life he gave, not a mind that thinks apart from the body (Psalm 146:4; Job 34:14–15). Some answer that the Preacher speaks only of “anything that is done under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 9:6). But he also says, “there is no work, nor plan, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). And Jesus said, “you will be repaid in the resurrection of the righteous.” (Luke 14:14). Our conclusion is that the dead have no knowledge in the grave, and their reward waits for the resurrection (Ecclesiastes 9:10; Luke 14:14).

Jesus said, “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” (Matthew 22:32). He said it “concerning the resurrection of the dead” (Matthew 22:31). Luke gives his words, “But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed at the bush,” (Luke 20:37), and “all are alive to him.” (Luke 20:38). Our conclusion is that Jesus proves from God’s words at the bush that the dead will be raised, not that they are awake now (Matthew 22:31–32; Luke 20:37).

Some point to Moses, who had died (Deuteronomy 34:5). On the mountain, “Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.” (Matthew 17:3). Luke says they “appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,” (Luke 9:31). Just before, Jesus said some would “see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.” (Matthew 16:28). Our conclusion is that the three disciples saw a preview of his Kingdom, not the state of the dead (Matthew 16:28; 17:1–9). Peter later wrote, “For we didn’t follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.” (2 Peter 1:16). He means the mountain: “We heard this voice come out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.” (2 Peter 1:18). Our conclusion is that Peter took what they saw there as a sight of Christ’s power and coming, not of the dead (2 Peter 1:16–18).

In John’s vision the souls under the altar cry, “How long, Master, the holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Revelation 6:10). They are told “that they should rest yet for a while,” (Revelation 6:11). Abel’s blood also cried: “The voice of your brother’s blood cries to me from the ground.” (Genesis 4:10). Our conclusion is that the vision pictures the martyrs’ blood crying for justice while they rest (Revelation 6:9–11).

Some read 1 Peter 3:19 as Christ preaching to the human dead, awake in prison. Peter writes that Christ, “made alive in the Spirit,” (1 Peter 3:18), also “went and preached to the spirits in prison,” (1 Peter 3:19). He says they “before were disobedient when God waited patiently in the days of Noah” (1 Peter 3:20). In his second letter he writes of angels who sinned, “to be reserved for judgment;” (2 Peter 2:4), and then of Noah (2 Peter 2:5). Our conclusion is that Peter places this preaching after Christ was made alive (1 Peter 3:18–19). Hebrews calls angels “serving spirits,” (Hebrews 1:14). Jude writes of angels kept “in everlasting bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day.” (Jude 6). Our conclusion is that Peter does not show these spirits to be the human dead; his second letter sets angels who sinned beside Noah (2 Peter 2:4–5). Peter also writes, “the Good News was preached even to the dead,” (1 Peter 4:6). The verse before speaks of him “who is ready to judge the living and the dead.” (1 Peter 4:5). Our conclusion is that it was preached to them while they lived, and that they are among the dead he will judge (1 Peter 4:5–6). The good news was preached to this end, that they might “live as to God in the spirit.” (1 Peter 4:6). Our conclusion is that they will live to God as Christ does, by being raised (1 Peter 3:18; 4:6).

John writes, “I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded” (Revelation 20:4), and then, “They lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4). The next verse says, “The rest of the dead didn’t live until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.” (Revelation 20:5). Our conclusion is that the souls John saw were among the dead until they lived again, when they were raised (Revelation 20:4–5). Paul says God “will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 4:14). Two verses later he says how: “The dead in Christ will rise first,” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Our conclusion is that God brings them with Jesus by raising them (1 Thessalonians 4:14–16).

Hebrews speaks of “the spirits of just men made perfect,” (Hebrews 12:23). The sentence begins, “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,” (Hebrews 12:22). The readers were still living (Hebrews 12:4), and the writer says, “For we don’t have here an enduring city, but we seek that which is to come.” (Hebrews 13:14). Our conclusion is that they had come to the city in hope, not yet in fact (Hebrews 12:22; 13:14). Hebrews also says of the faithful of old, “apart from us they should not be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11:40). Our conclusion is that they are made perfect together with us (Hebrews 11:39–40). Our conclusion is also that Hebrews 12:23 does not show them made perfect before the resurrection (Hebrews 11:40).

God Will Judge the World by the Man He Raised

What the text says. In Athens, Paul told the council what God has done:

The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent, because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.”

— Acts 17:30–31

Jesus said, “For the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son,” (John 5:22). He said the Father “also gave him authority to execute judgment, because he is a son of man.” (John 5:27). Paul writes of “the day when God will judge the secrets of men, according to my Good News, by Jesus Christ.” (Romans 2:16). And: “For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ that each one may receive the things in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Jesus told what will happen when he comes: “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.” (Matthew 25:31). He will say to those on his right, “Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;” (Matthew 25:34). He ended, “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:46). Later in his vision, after the thousand years, John saw the dead judged (Revelation 20:7, 11):

I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and they opened books. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works. The sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them. They were judged, each one according to his works. Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. If anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.

— Revelation 20:12–15

Jesus also said this: “Most certainly I tell you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and doesn’t come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” (John 5:24). Paul wrote, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,” (Romans 8:1). Passages: Matthew 16:27; John 3:17–18; Romans 2:5–7.

What we conclude. Scripture says plainly that God has appointed a day to judge the world, by the man he raised (Acts 17:31). It says plainly that God has given all judgment to the Son (John 5:22). It says plainly that each one will be judged according to what he has done (2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:12). It says plainly that the one who believes has eternal life and does not come into judgment (John 5:24). Our conclusion is that believers stand before Christ’s judgment seat, but not to be condemned (2 Corinthians 5:10; John 5:24; Romans 8:1).

Paul writes that the Lord Jesus Christ “will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his Kingdom:” (2 Timothy 4:1). Our conclusion is that his judgment begins when he comes in glory and ends after the thousand years, when the dead are judged (Matthew 25:31–32; Revelation 20:5, 12).

Scripture names the end of the unrepentant in plain words. Paul wrote that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Jesus said, “fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” (Matthew 10:28). Paul says that those who do not obey the good news “will pay the penalty: eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might,” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). John calls the lake of fire “the second death” (Revelation 20:14). Our conclusion is that the lost are destroyed in the second death, a final end (Matthew 10:28; Revelation 20:14). The punishment is eternal because its result never ends, our conclusion (Matthew 25:46).

We teach this soberly, never as a threat. God says, “For I have no pleasure in the death of him who dies,” (Ezekiel 18:32). Peter writes that the Lord is “not wishing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9). And Jesus said, “For God didn’t send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through him.” (John 3:17).

The Westminster Confession joins everlasting destruction to eternal torments (Westminster Confession of Faith 33.2). As they read it, destruction can be a ruin that never ends. Some ask why, then, we read perished in 2 Peter 3:6 as an end the earth itself outlived. Our conclusion is that Peter shows the difference in the next verse, where the fire is reserved for “the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” (2 Peter 3:7). In the flood the earth remained, but the flood “destroyed them all.” (Luke 17:27). Paul sets the two ends side by side: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23). Our conclusion is that the eternal punishment Jesus sets against eternal life is the death Paul sets against it (Matthew 25:46; Romans 6:23).

Revelation 14:11 takes up the words of Isaiah about the land of Edom (Isaiah 34:5–6), a canonical connection by shared wording. Isaiah wrote, “It won’t be quenched night or day. Its smoke will go up forever. From generation to generation, it will lie waste. No one will pass through it forever and ever.” (Isaiah 34:10). Yet the next verse says, “But the pelican and the porcupine will possess it.” (Isaiah 34:11). Our conclusion is that John’s day and night and forever and ever take up Isaiah’s words, and mark a judgment never undone (Revelation 14:11; Isaiah 34:10–11). On its face Revelation 14:11 reads as torment without rest, and we say so openly.

Mark 9:48 quotes Isaiah, a canonical connection by quotation. Isaiah says the people “will go out, and look at the dead bodies of the men who have transgressed against me; for their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched,” (Isaiah 66:24). Our conclusion is that the worm and the fire consume the dead, a picture of complete destruction (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9:48).

Our conclusion is that the beast and the false prophet of Revelation 20:10 are figures in John’s vision, as Daniel’s beasts were (Revelation 13:1; 19:20). Daniel was told of his beasts, “These great animals, which are four, are four kings,” (Daniel 7:17). John also sees Death and Hades thrown into the same lake, and calls it “the second death” (Revelation 20:14). Paul says, “The last enemy that will be abolished is death.” (1 Corinthians 15:26). John says that the devil, the beast and the false prophet will be tormented day and night forever and ever (Revelation 20:10). In the verse before, the nations the devil gathered (Revelation 20:8) meet God’s fire: “Fire came down out of heaven from God and devoured them.” (Revelation 20:9). Our conclusion is that the lake of fire pictures the second death, the end of all that opposes God, the devil and death included (Revelation 20:14; 21:4). Our conclusion is also that forever and ever marks that end as final (Revelation 20:10). On its face Revelation 20:10 reads as torment without end for the devil; it is the hardest text for our answer, and we say so.

God Will Dwell with His People, and Death Will Be No More

What the text says. Next in his vision, John saw:

I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people; and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more. The first things have passed away.”

— Revelation 21:1–4

He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5). John writes of the city, “There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.” (Revelation 22:3–4). And: “They will reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 22:5).

The prophets and apostles spoke of the same hope. God said through Isaiah, “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;” (Isaiah 65:17). Peter writes, “But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.” (2 Peter 3:13). Paul writes “that the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of decay into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.” (Romans 8:21). Jesus said, “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5).

Paul tells how it ends: “Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God the Father, when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power.” (1 Corinthians 15:24). “When all things have been subjected to him, then the Son will also himself be subjected to him who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all.” (1 Corinthians 15:28). Passages: Isaiah 25:8; 65:17–25; Acts 3:19–21; Romans 8:18–23.

What we conclude. Scripture says plainly that God’s dwelling will be with people, and that death will be no more (Revelation 21:3–4). It says plainly that the holy city comes down out of heaven from God (Revelation 21:2). It says plainly that we look for new heavens and a new earth (2 Peter 3:13). Our conclusion is that Scripture’s hope is not leaving the earth for heaven, but God dwelling with his people on a new earth (Revelation 21:2–3; Matthew 5:5).

Paul writes that believers were “called in one hope of your calling,” (Ephesians 4:4). John saw “a great multitude which no man could count, out of every nation and of all tribes, peoples, and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb,” (Revelation 7:9). Our conclusion is that all God’s people share the one hope, the city where God dwells with them (Ephesians 4:4; Revelation 21:3). Who the 144,000 are is answered under Questions Answered. Some read Luke 12:32 and John 10:16 as two classes of believers. That question is taken up in Every Believer Is God’s Child, in Test the Teaching.

The one on the throne says, “Behold, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5). In the verse before, the voice says that death, mourning, crying and pain will be no more, and “The first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4). Our conclusion is that the first things are the old order of death and pain, which ends (Revelation 21:4). Our conclusion is also that the first earth passes away in that sense, as the old world did, and is made new (Revelation 21:1, 5; 2 Peter 3:6). Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away,” (Matthew 24:35). Hebrews says of the heavens, “They will perish,” (Hebrews 1:11), and then, “they will be changed;” (Hebrews 1:12). Our conclusion is that pass away and perish here speak of change, not of an end with nothing after (Hebrews 1:12). Peter sets that change in the day of judgment, as the old world perished and yet remained, our conclusion (2 Peter 3:6–7).

Our conclusion is that the other texts point to the city that comes down. Jesus said he would come again and receive his disciples, “that where I am, you may be there also.” (John 14:3). John writes of the city that comes down out of heaven, “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it,” (Revelation 22:3). Paul writes that our citizenship is in heaven, “from where we also wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,” (Philippians 3:20). Our conclusion is that their citizenship is in heaven because their Savior is there, and they wait for him to come from it (Philippians 3:20–21). Hebrews says of the men of faith, “he has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:16). Our conclusion is that the place Jesus prepares is the city God prepares (John 14:2; Hebrews 11:16). John saw “the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,” (Revelation 21:2). Our conclusion is that the heavenly country is the city God prepares, and that it comes down, so that God dwells with people (Hebrews 11:16; Revelation 21:2–3).

Questions Answered

These questions touch this article. Each is answered from Scripture and labeled. The Statement of Faith, section 15, gives the same answers.

The day of the return, and an unseen presence. Jesus will come again, once, publicly and visibly, and every eye will see him. No one knows the day or hour, so we set no date and teach no hidden coming.

Jesus said: “But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew 24:36).

Read the other way: 1 Thessalonians 4:17. Confidence: Strong. Jesus said in plain words that the Father alone knows the day. That is the definite answer.

Whether the dead are conscious before the resurrection. Our conclusion: the dead know nothing and sleep until the resurrection, when Jesus raises them.

The Preacher wrote: “For the living know that they will die, but the dead don’t know anything, neither do they have any more a reward; for their memory is forgotten.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5).

Read the other way: Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Luke 16:19–31; Matthew 22:32; Revelation 20:4; 1 Samuel 28:11–19. Confidence: Solid. The plain statements are on our side; Luke 23:43 turns on punctuation, which we say openly, and in 1 Samuel 28 Samuel speaks after he was brought up, which presses against us.

The thousand years. Our conclusion: after his return, Christ reigns with his raised people for the thousand years Revelation states. We take the number as given and count no dates from it.

John saw: “I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and such as didn’t worship the beast nor his image, and didn’t receive the mark on their forehead and on their hand. They lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4).

Read the other way: Revelation 20:4. Confidence: Solid for the order: return, then reign. Narrow for whether the number is exact, which Scripture does not settle.

Whether the lost suffer forever or are destroyed. Our conclusion: the lost are destroyed in the second death, a final end. The punishment is eternal because its result never ends.

Jesus said: “Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” (Matthew 10:28).

Read the other way: Matthew 25:46; Revelation 14:11; 20:10; Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:48. Confidence: Solid. Destroy, death and destruction are plain; Revelation 14:11 and 20:10 are vision language, answered above.

Whether the new earth is this earth renewed. Our conclusion: God will set this creation free and renew it through judgment, as the old world perished in the flood and yet remained.

Paul wrote: “that the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of decay into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.” (Romans 8:21).

Read the other way: 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 21:1. Confidence: Solid. Romans 8:21 and Acts 3:21 speak of this creation set free and restored.

The 144,000. Our conclusion: the 144,000 are sealed from Israel’s tribes, as John heard. They belong to God’s people, beside a great multitude which no man could count.

John wrote: “I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the children of Israel:” (Revelation 7:4).

Read the other way: Revelation 7:9 with 5:5–6, read as one group first heard and then seen; and readings that limit heaven to the 144,000. Confidence: Narrow. The text names Israel’s tribes, but Revelation 5:5–6 shows a heard-then-seen pattern.

Whether salvation depends on these questions. Our conclusion: salvation depends on believing the good news about Jesus and remaining in his teaching. It does not depend on settling every question in this document.

Jesus said: “I said therefore to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.” (John 8:24).

Read the other way: John 8:24; 1 John 2:23; Galatians 1:9. Confidence: Solid. John 8:24 and 2 John 9 name what is required; Romans 14:1 shows that not every question divides.

What Scripture does not say. Scripture does not give the day of his return, so we set no date. It does not say whether the thousand years are an exact count.

“The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” (Deuteronomy 29:29).

Where We Stand

Scripture says

• “This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.” (Acts 1:11).
• “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him,” (Revelation 1:7).
• “But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew 24:36).
• The dead in Christ will rise first, at the coming of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:15–16; 1 Corinthians 15:23).
• All who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, the just and the unjust (John 5:28–29; Acts 24:15).
• God “has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained;” (Acts 17:31).
• He who hears Jesus’ word and believes him who sent him “has eternal life, and doesn’t come into judgment,” (John 5:24).
• “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23).
• “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people;” (Revelation 21:3). “Death will be no more;” (Revelation 21:4).
• We look for “new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.” (2 Peter 3:13).

We conclude

• Our conclusion: in the same way means he will come as they saw him go: in his body, visibly, from the sky (Acts 1:9–11; Luke 24:39, 51).
• Our conclusion: Scripture describes one coming, which every eye will see, and gives no date for it (Matthew 24:26–27; Revelation 1:7; Acts 1:7).
• Our conclusion: the days of Noah picture ordinary life going on until a sudden day, not a presence begun unseen (Matthew 24:38–39; Luke 17:26–30).
• Our conclusion: Jesus gathers his people at the one coming every eye will see, not at a secret coming before it (Matthew 24:29–31; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17).
• Our conclusion: the dead know nothing and sleep until the resurrection, when Jesus raises them (Ecclesiastes 9:5; John 5:28–29).
• Our conclusion: Paul longs for what departing leads to, being with Christ, and Scripture places it at the Lord’s coming (Philippians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17; 2 Timothy 4:8).
• Our conclusion: believers stand before Christ’s judgment seat, but not to be condemned (2 Corinthians 5:10; John 5:24; Romans 8:1).
• Our conclusion: his judgment begins when he comes in glory and ends after the thousand years, when the dead are judged (Matthew 25:31–32; Revelation 20:5, 12).
• Our conclusion: the lost are destroyed in the second death, a final end, and the punishment is eternal because its result never ends (Matthew 10:28; 25:46; Revelation 20:14).
• Our conclusion: the eternal punishment Jesus sets against eternal life is the death Paul sets against it (Matthew 25:46; Romans 6:23).
• Our conclusion: Scripture’s hope is not leaving the earth for heaven, but God dwelling with his people on a new earth (Revelation 21:2–3; Matthew 5:5).
• Our conclusion: God will set this creation free and renew it through judgment, as the old world perished in the flood and yet remained (2 Peter 3:6–7, 13; Romans 8:21).

Hope

Jesus spoke to troubled disciples: “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me.” (John 14:1). He told them why: “I will come again and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also.” (John 14:3). Paul wrote to grieving believers so that they would not grieve “like the rest, who have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). He ended that passage, “Therefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:18).

The last enemy will not have the last word. Paul writes that when this mortal puts on immortality, what is written will happen: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15:54). “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57). John writes, “Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be; but we know that when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him just as he is.” (1 John 3:2).

And the voice from heaven gives God’s promise:

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more. The first things have passed away.”

— Revelation 21:4

Near its close, the Bible gives an invitation and a prayer:

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” He who hears, let him say, “Come!” He who is thirsty, let him come. He who desires, let him take the water of life freely.

— Revelation 22:17

He who testifies these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen! Yes, come, Lord Jesus!

— Revelation 22:20

Living It Out

These are applications, offered as invitations.

• If you are grieving, you might read 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 slowly, and then read it with someone else who grieves (1 Thessalonians 4:18).
• Jesus said, “Watch therefore,” (Matthew 24:42). You might ask what being ready would look like in your life this week.
• If you were taught a date, or taught to fear the end, consider reading Matthew 24:36–44 and Acts 1:6–8 together. Notice what Jesus gives his disciples to do while they wait.
• John writes, “Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure.” (1 John 3:3). You might ask how this hope could shape one choice you face.
• You might pray the prayer Jesus taught, “Let your Kingdom come.” (Matthew 6:10), and the prayer near the Bible’s close, “Yes, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).

Questions for Reflection

1. What did the two men in white clothing say to the disciples as they looked into the sky? (See the opening.)
2. In Matthew 24:26–27, what reports does Jesus tell his disciples not to believe, and why? (See the answer under The Same Jesus Will Come Back, and Every Eye Will See Him.)
3. Why does Paul tell the Thessalonians not to grieve like those who have no hope, and what should they do with his words? (See Those Who Are Christ’s Will Be Raised at His Coming.)
4. How do John 5:24 and 2 Corinthians 5:10 fit together? (See God Will Judge the World by the Man He Raised.)
5. How does 2 Peter 3:6 help you read 2 Peter 3:10? (See the answer under God Will Dwell with His People, and Death Will Be No More.)
6. In Revelation 21:4, what does God promise his people, and what does that promise mean to you? (See Hope.)

Check It Yourself

• Opening: Acts 1:1–12.
• He will come back: Acts 1:9–11; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Luke 24:39, 50–51; John 14:1–3; Matthew 26:64; 24:30; Revelation 1:7; Hebrews 9:28; Matthew 24:36, 42–44; Luke 21:27–28; Titus 2:13; Matthew 24:3, 23–31, 37–41; John 14:19; Philippians 2:12; 2 Corinthians 10:10–11; Luke 17:24–30; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17; 1 Corinthians 15:52; 2 Thessalonians 2:1–3; Revelation 3:7–10; John 17:15; Acts 1:6–7; 2 Thessalonians 1:7–8.
• The dead raised: 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18; 1 Corinthians 15:18, 20–23, 42–44, 51–53; John 5:25–29; 12:48; Acts 24:15; Daniel 12:2; John 11:11–14, 23–26; 6:40; Ecclesiastes 9:5; Psalm 146:3–4; Revelation 20:4–6; Philippians 1:21–24; 2 Corinthians 5:1–8; 2 Timothy 4:6–8; Matthew 10:28; Luke 12:4–5; Ecclesiastes 9:5–10; 12:7; Job 34:14–15; Luke 14:14; Luke 23:39–46; John 20:17; Acts 2:29–32; Luke 12:16; 16:14–15, 19–31; Judges 9:7–15; Ezekiel 23:1–4; Matthew 22:31–32; Luke 20:37–38; Deuteronomy 34:5; Matthew 16:28; 17:1–9; Luke 9:28–36; 2 Peter 1:16–18; Revelation 6:9–11; Genesis 4:10; 1 Peter 3:18–22; 4:5–6; 2 Peter 2:4–5; Hebrews 1:14; Jude 6; Hebrews 11:39–40; 12:4, 22–23; 13:14.
• The judgment: Acts 17:30–31; 2 Timothy 4:1; John 5:22–29; Romans 2:5–7, 16; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Matthew 25:31–46; Revelation 20:7–15; Romans 8:1; Matthew 16:27; John 3:16–18; Romans 6:23; Matthew 10:28; 2 Thessalonians 1:6–10; Ezekiel 18:23, 32; 2 Peter 3:9; Revelation 14:9–11; 20:10; Mark 9:47–48; Jude 7; 2 Peter 2:6; Luke 17:27–29; 2 Peter 3:7; Isaiah 34:5–11; 66:24; Revelation 13:1; 19:20; Daniel 7:17; 1 Corinthians 15:26.
• God with his people: Revelation 21:1–5; 22:1–5; Isaiah 65:17–25; 2 Peter 3:3–14; Romans 8:18–23; Matthew 5:5; 1 Corinthians 15:24–28; Ephesians 4:4; Revelation 7:4, 9; Luke 12:32; John 10:16; Acts 3:19–21; Genesis 8:13–19; Matthew 24:35; Hebrews 1:10–12; John 14:2–3; Philippians 3:20–21; Hebrews 11:10, 13–16.
• Answered: Statement of Faith, section 15; Matthew 24:36; Ecclesiastes 9:5; Revelation 20:4; Matthew 10:28; Romans 8:21; Revelation 7:4; John 8:24; Deuteronomy 29:29.
• Hope: John 14:1–3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13, 18; 1 Corinthians 15:54–57; 1 John 3:1–3; Revelation 21:4; 22:17, 20.

Notes on the Text

The Greek word (SBLGNT) for coming in Matthew 24:3, 27, 37 and 39 is Paul’s word for presence in Philippians 2:12.

The New World Translation renders that word presence in Matthew 24.

In Luke 23:43 the WEB puts the comma before today; the New World Translation puts it after, reading I tell you today.

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This is the last article in The Good News. The next series, Days and Feasts, begins with The Feasts God Gave, and What They Point To: what were Israel's feasts, and what does the New Testament say they point to?

Previous article: Following Jesus
Study guide: Study Guide: Our Hope: He Will Come Back
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© 2026 Elvis Lucas, Open the Text. Original: https://openthetext.com/series/the-good-news/10-our-hope-he-will-come-back/
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