1 Corinthians 15:26 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

NIV: The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

NASB: The last enemy that will be abolished is death.

CSB: The last enemy to be abolished is death.

NLT: And the last enemy to be destroyed is death.

KJV: The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

NKJV: The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.

In describing the events of the end times, Paul has written that after Christ returns to earth and all those who belong to Him are resurrected, He will set about defeating every rule, power, and authority until every enemy is defeated. Only then will He turn the conquered kingdom over to the Father.

The final enemy Christ will defeat is death itself. In a sense, Christ's defeat of death began with His own resurrection from the grave. It will continue with the resurrection of all who have believed in Him. It will be final when death is no more (Revelation 21:1–5). At that moment, the victory over death and sin will be complete, and those who have believed in Christ will be free from it for all eternity (1 John 3:2; 1 Corinthians 15:51).

First Corinthians 15:12–34 describes all the implications for Christians if there is no resurrection, at all. Most importantly, that would mean that Christ was not raised from the dead. If Christ was not raised, then Paul's preaching of the gospel was false, and the faith of those who believed it was worthless. All remain in their sins. Christ, though, was raised from the dead, and when He returns for those who are His, all who have died in Christ will be resurrected to new life, as He was after the crucifixion. Finally, Christ will reign on earth before delivering the kingdom to the Father.

Paul provides thorough teaching about the resurrection of Christians from the dead. This is a direct counter to some group of Corinthians who did not believe in such a resurrection. He shows that natural death is not the end of life for Christians; it is the last step before receiving a glorified, resurrected body like that of the risen Christ. That ''spiritual'' body will be as different from our current bodies as a star is from a fish. In that moment, for all who have believed in Christ, living and dead, death will be defeated for good.

In chapters 12, 13, and 14, Scripture focused on the concept of spiritual gifts and how best to use them. This follows several other ideas where Paul corrected errors in the Corinthians' thinking. Chapter 15 contains extensive teaching on one last issue about which some Corinthians were confused or misled. Apparently, they harbored some doubts about the physical resurrection of Christians from the dead. After clearing up these confusions, Paul will address various other items, of a less doctrinal nature, and close out his letter.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.

Accessed 5/5/2024 7:04:18 AM