Jesus Comforts His Disciples

14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled.^(A) You believe^(B) in God^[a];^(C) believe also in me. ² My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there^(D) to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back^(E) and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.^{(F) 4} You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Jesus the Way to the Father

⁵ Thomas^(G) said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

⁶ Jesus answered, “I am^(H) the way^(I) and the truth^(J) and the life.^(K) No one comes to the Father except through me.^(L)

²³ Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit,^(A) groan^(B) inwardly as we wait eagerly^(C) for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.^(D)

The Resurrection Body

³⁵ But someone will ask,^(A) “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”^{(B) 36} How foolish!^(C) What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.^{(D) 37} When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. ³⁸ But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body.^{(E) 39} Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. ⁴⁰ There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another. ⁴¹ The sun has one kind of splendor,^(F) the moon another and the stars another;^(G) and star differs from star in splendor.

⁴² So will it be^(H) with the resurrection of the dead.^(I) The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;^{(J) 43} it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory;^(K) it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; ⁴⁴ it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.^(L)

If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. ⁴⁵ So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”^[a];^(M) the last Adam,^(N) a life-giving spirit.^{(O) 46} The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.^{(P) 47} The first man was of the dust of the earth;^(Q) the second man is of heaven.^{(R) 48} As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.^{(S) 49} And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man,^(T) so shall we^[b] bear the image of the heavenly man.^(U)

⁵⁰ I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood^(V) cannot inherit the kingdom of God,^(W) nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.^{(X) 51} Listen, I tell you a mystery:^(Y) We will not all sleep,^(Z) but we will all be changed^(AA)— ⁵² in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound,^(AB) the dead^(AC) will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. ⁵³ For the perishable^(AD) must clothe itself with the imperishable,^(AE) and the mortal with immortality. ⁵⁴ When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”^[c](AF)

⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin,^(AH) and the power of sin is the law.^{(AI) 57} But thanks be to God!^(AJ) He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.^(AK)

⁶ Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord.

⁷ For we live by faith, not by sight.^(A)

²¹ For to me, to live is Christ^(A) and to die is gain. ²² If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! ²³ I am torn between the two: I desire to depart^(B) and be with Christ,^(C) which is better by far; ²⁴ but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

Believers Who Have Died

¹³ Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed^(A) about those who sleep in death,^(B) so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.^{(C) 14} For we believe that Jesus died and rose again,^(D) and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.^{(E) 15} According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,^(F) will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.^{(G) 16} For the Lord himself will come down from heaven,^(H) with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel^(I) and with the trumpet call of God,^(J) and the dead in Christ will rise first.^{(K) 17} After that, we who are still alive and are left^(L) will be caught up together with them in the clouds^(M) to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord^(N) forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another^(O) with these words.