⁷ He said to them, ^(A)“It is not for you to know ^(B)times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive ^(C)power ^(D)when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and ^(E)you will be ^(F)my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and ^(G)Samaria, and ^(H)to the end of the earth.” ⁹ And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, ^(I)he was lifted up, and ^(J)a cloud took him out of their sight. ¹⁰ And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, ^(K)two ^(L)men stood by them in ^(M)white robes, ¹¹ and said, ^(N)“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, ^(O)will ^(P)come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

⁵¹ Behold! I tell you a mystery. ^(A)We shall not all sleep, ^(B)but we shall all be changed, ⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For ^(C)the trumpet will sound, and ^(D)the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. ⁵³ For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and ^(E)this 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:

The Coming of the Lord

¹³ But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, ^(A)that you may not grieve as others do ^(B)who have no hope. ¹⁴ For ^(C)since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him ^(D)those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁵ For this we declare to you ^(E)by a word from the Lord,^[a] that ^(F)we who are alive, who are left until ^(G)the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁶ For ^(H)the Lord himself will descend ^(I)from heaven ^(J)with a cry of command, with the voice of ^(K)an archangel, and ^(L)with the sound of the trumpet of God. And ^(M)the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive, who are left, will be ^(N)caught up together with them ^(O)in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so ^(P)we will always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another with these words.

²⁰ He who testifies to these things says, “Surely ^(A)I am coming soon.” Amen. ^(B)Come, Lord Jesus!

²¹ The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.^[a] Amen.