In the twinkling of an eye

IN THE TWINKLINGOF AN EYE
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
1 Corinthians15:52 52in a flash, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound,
the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be
changed.
'Twinkling' in the Bible
Jer 49:19
See, there comes up one [Nebuchadnezzar] like a lion from [lurking in] the
jungles (the pride) of the Jordanagainstthe strong habitation [of Edom] and
into the permanent pastures; for in a twinkling I will drive him [Edom] from
there. And I will appoint over him the one whom I choose.Forwho is like
Me? And who will appoint for Me the time and prosecute Me for this
proceeding? And what [earthly, national] shepherd can stand before Me and
defy Me?
Jer 50:44
See, there comes up one like a lion from the jungles (the pride) of the Jordan
againstthe strong habitation [of Babylon] and into the permanent pasturage
and sheepfold;for in a twinkling I will drive him [Babylon] from there. And I
will appoint over him the one whom I choose. Forwho is like Me? And who
will challenge Me and prosecute Me for this proceeding? And what [earthly,
national] shepherd canstand before Me and defy Me?
Luk 4:5

Then the devil took Him up to a high mountain and showedHim all the
kingdoms of the habitable world in a moment of time [ in the twinkling of an
eye].
1 Cor 15:52
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet
shall sound, and the dead shall be raisedincorruptible, and we shall be
changed.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
Concluding Argument And Exhortation
1 Corinthians 15:51-58
C. Lipscomb
If "flesh and blood" is "corruption," and cannot inherit "incorruption," what
then? Educate the present body to the offices ofthe mind; let every function
do its legitimate work, and every organbe faithful to the organism; refine,
beautify, ennoble it by all natural and providential agencies;it is,
nevertheless, "fleshand blood," and inherits "corruption." No such corporeal
structure could go to heaven unchanged. The earthly body of Jesus Christ,
which was fully adequate to the pro-resurrection state of humiliation, sorrow,
death, and fitted him to show forth the Father, bad yet to be changedby the
resurrectionbefore he, though "holy, harmless, undefiled," could ascendto
the dominion of the universe. If, then, our "fleshand blood" be so debasedby
its mortality, by its animal connections, by its habits and functions, "Behold, I
show you a mystery," a truth once concealedbut now revealedby the Spirit,

that those who are alive when Christ comes at the last day "shallall be
changed." No graves shallopen to receive and then restore them. Land and
sea shall give up their dead, and, simultaneously therewith, the living shall be
instantly transformed, rising out of their mortality and corruption into
immortality and incorruption. What a scene here for picturesque description!
But the apostle was too wise and reverent to indulge his imagination. The
sublimity gathered no images about itself. Words for its splendid conceptions
were not asked, norwere poetic transports suffered to obtrude on the awful
glory of the hour. Yet there was speech, yet there was rapture, and the
utterance and the feeling partook in full measure of the grandeur of the
occasion. It was not the voice of imagination and its emotions, but the voice of
pure and devout passionthat exclaimed, "O death, where is thy sting? O
grave, where is thy victory?" The battle has been fought, the victory won; and
the victory is most glorious in this, that it is the gift to Godto us, and a gift
"through our Lord Jesus Christ." For what would a deliverance from
mortality and debasementbe to a Christian if won by his own arm, and what
would heaven be if it were an outgrowth and final efflorescenceofearthly
culture and progress? "Throughour Lord Jesus Christ:" this is the joy of the
triumph, and this the heart of heaven. And "therefore" follows withthe
exhortation to his beloved brethren to be constant, enduring, abundant in the
Lord's work, since they were well assuredthat their devotion to this labour,
with its burdens, cares, and sacrifices, couldnot be "in vain in the Lord." It is
a "therefore," indeed, and such a one as he had never bad an opportunity to
use before, nor would ever find just such an occasionto repeat. The
thanksgiving, the tender appeal, the entire outburst, stands alone among all
those effusions with which his grandesthours are imperishably associated. It
has happened againand againthat in some grave crisis of a nation, or when
the fortunes of the human family seemedto be touching an epochalperiod,
there has been some Demosthenes orBurke to plead for the hope of a better
future for the state;or some Savonarola, Luther, Knox, Hilton, to lift up a
prophetic voice in behalf of the Church. But it fell to the lot of St. Paul to
write the fifteenth chapter of the First Corinthians, to make an argument
proof againstevery assault, to setforth the argument with such force and in
such amplitude as to bring nature from the vegetable and animal kingdoms
about us and from the remote heights of the firmament, so as to put her

testimony in alliance with his logic in favour of the most precious of all truths,
the doctrine of a perfectedand immortal humanity in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Nor canit be irreverent in us to borrow the language ofhis ownexultant faith
and say, "Thanks be to God, which giveth" to Christianity the "victory" over
materialism and false spiritualism. Body is the meeting ground of matter and
mind; they have met, they have united; they separate to meet againin a
nearer and holier fellowship, and they meet to be togetherforever. Soul is
spirit in its rudimentary life, in the childhood of thought and beauty and
affection, in a state of trial and discipline, but its instincts, greater
incomparably than its abilities, show their prophetic outreachings towards the
infinite and eternal. So far as our dim reasoncanperceive, a fully developed
spirit could not exist in a mortal body, nor a soul exist in an immortal body.
Soul and body, each"natural" for this life; spirit and a "spiritual body" for
the "kingdomof God." "Thanks be to God." - L.
Biblical Illustrator
Fleshand blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

Fleshand blood cannot enter the kingdom of God
S. Cox, D.D.
I. THE GENERALLAW.
1. This carries with it its own proof: for, obviously, darkness might as well
become light, or death life, as that which is corrupt rise into the incorruptible.
On this point St. Paul is earnestand absolute. The exceptionof ver. 51 is only
an apparent one. Those who are alive when Christ comes will nevertheless be
changed(ver. 52).
2. Note the significance of this law. Fleshand blood is a Scripture term for the
lusts and. passions of our lower nature. Jewishreaders would instantly
apprehend its force. To them "the blood was the life"; and therefore it was
shed in sacrifice. It was the seatof passionand desire, of all that is lawless and
irregular; and therefore they were not permitted to partake of it. Their
conceptionfinds utterance to-day in such phrases as, "His blood is up," or, "A
hot-blooded fellow." St. Pauluses the term here as the symbol of this life,
these lusts, these corruptions, which cannot inherit incorruption.
3. Mark the different use of the phrases "fleshand blood" and "fleshand
bones" in the New Testament. "Fleshand blood" cannotinherit; the
incorrupt and heavenly kingdom, but "fleshand bones" may and do. After
His resurrectionChrist had flesh and bones (Luke 24:37-39);and Christians
are
"members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones" (Ephesians 5:30).
Christ's blood as the symbol of life has been shed for the redemption of the
world: as the symbol of corruption, it is poured out, exhausted. "Fleshand
bones" may still be retained even when the natural becomes a spiritual body;
but the life that pulses through it is that of a higher than mortal existence.
II. THE TRUTHS AND HOPES WHICH UNDERLIE IT.
1. The truth for which St. Paul contends is not the immortality of the soul, but
the resurrectionof the body. Centuries before Christ the Greeks had believed

that the souls of the departed survived the pangs of death. But these souls
were not themselves, they were but their shades. Elysium was as thin and
unsubstantial in its avocations and joys as the poor ghosts that tenanted it.
And as nature shrinks from disembodiment, the Greeks were accustomedto
offer rich garments on the tombs of heroes, if so be that, being thus clothed,
they might not be found naked, and a Corinthian queen is said to have
appearedto her husband after death, entreating him to burn dresses forher
as a covering for her disembodied spirit. We may smile at all this, but none
the less we are touched by this naive childish testimony to the universal dread
of disembodiment, the universal desire to be clothed upon with some vesture
whether of earth or heaven. To men gazing thus sadly into the future St.
Paul's strong hearty words must have been as health to the sick. So, then, they
were not to become disembodied spirits, but to be clothed upon with a body
more exquisitely attuned to the faculties and energies of their spiritual life!
2. In our Lord's risen body we have the express type of the spiritual bodies we
are to wear.(1)The body which His disciples recognisedwas essentiallythe
same although it had undergone a mysterious change. Whatthat change was
St. Paul hints in the phrase, flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of
God." Consequently we find that they did not instantly recognise Him when
He came to them. They knew Him only as He was pleasedto make Himself
known. He was not bound by material laws. He is found present, no one
knows from whence. He passesaway, no one knows whither (John 20:19;
Luke 24:31; Acts 1:9). In the person of Christ we see the whole man — body,
soul, and spirit — raisedfrom the grave. We see all the intelligent and
passionate faculties ofthe soulheld in perfectsubjection to the higher claims
of the spirit. The body is not simply restoredto its pristine vigour and purity,
but lifted To a higher and more spiritual pitch. It is not unclothed, but clothed
upon. "The corruptible has put on incorruption, the mortal has put on
immortality."(2) And this is the change that must pass on us, if indeed "Christ
be in us, the hope of glory." Like Him we are to put on immortality and
incorruption: not to break with the past, nor to lose our identity; not to be
changedbeyond our ownrecognitionor that of our friends, but to be purged
from the corruptible and baser elements of our nature, to be redeemed from
our bondage to sense, and its laws;to be transfigured, that the spirit which

Christ has quickened in us may dwell in a quick spiritual body — a body that
shall not check, northwart, nor dull, but perfectly secondand express, the
untiring energies ofour higher and renewednature. As a man awaking for a
moment from a mortal trance, so we may wake from the sleepof death, and
say, nothing is lost, but, ah, how much gained!
(S. Cox, D.D.)
The change required that we may inherit the kingdom of God
J. Lyth, D.D.
I. THE KINGDOM INTENDED.
1. Notthe kingdom of Christ on earth.
2. But the kingdom of God in glory, which is heavenly and eternal.
II. THE UNFITNESS OF MAN FOR IT.
1. His nature is morally corrupt.
2. Physicallyit is earthly and corruptible.
III. THE CHANGE NECESSARY.
1. A new birth.
2. A resurrection.
(J. Lyth, D.D.)
Corporealtransformation
D. Thomas, D.D.
Paul here speaks ofa bodily transformation that is —

I. INDISPENSABLE (ver. 50). "Fleshand blood," i.e., our mortal nature,
cannot inherit the heavenly world. He does not say why — whether the state
of the atmosphere, or the means of subsistence, orthe force of gravitation, or
the forms and means of vision, or the conditions of receiving and
communicating knowledge, orthe nature of the services required. "Fleshand
blood" canno more exist yonder, than the tenants of the oceancanexist on
the sun-burnt hills. In such corporealtransformations there is nothing
extraordinary, for naturalists point us to spheres of existences where they are
as regular as the laws of nature.
II. CERTAIN (ver. 51). "Mystery" here does not point to the unknowable, but
to the hitherto unknown, viz., that "we shallall be changed." "We shallnot all
sleep."
1. Some will be living when the day dawns. "As in the days of Noah, so shall it
be in the days of the Son of Man, they ate, they drank," etc.
2. Both those who will be living and those who will be sleeping in the dust will
undergo corporealtransformation.
III. INSTANTANEOUS (ver. 52). "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in
the night," etc.
IV. GLORIOUS (vers. 53, 54). The transformation is from mortality to
immortality, from the dying to the undying; "deathwill be swallowedup in
victory." The idea may be takenof a whirlpool or maelstrom that absorbs all
that comes nearit.
(D. Thomas, D.D.)
The necessityofthe believer's resurrectionarises
J. Lyth, D.D.
I. OUT OF THE NATURE OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD, which is —
1. Heavenly.

2. Spiritual.
3. Incorruptible.
4. Divine.
5. Holy.
II. OUT OF THE IMPERFECTIONOF THE HUMAN BODY, which is —
1. Earthly.
2. Sensual.
3. Corruptible.
4. Sinful.
III. OUT OF THE PURPOSE OF GOD.
1. It is His goodpleasure to give us the kingdom.
2. The body of flesh and blood cannot inherit it.
3. Therefore it must be subjectto a marvellous change.
(J. Lyth, D.D.)
Neither doth corruption inherit incorruption
Corruption cannot inherit incorruption
J. Lyth, D.D.
I. CORRUPTION.
1. Implies dissolution.
2. Is on earth a natural law.
3. Overtakes manin consequence ofsin.
4. Includes decay, disease,death, decomposition.

II. INCORRUPTION.
1. Implies immortality.
2. Is the distinguishing feature of the heavenly world.
3. Results from the immediate presence and powerof God.
4. Secures purity, happiness, immortal vigour, eternal life.
III. THE INCOMPATIBILITYOF THE TWO.
1. Is obvious.
2. Hence the absolute necessityofa change not only in man's moral but
physical condition.
3. To be effectedin the resurrection.
4. That man may inherit eternal life.
(J. Lyth, D.D.)
Behold, I shew you a mystery
The mystery of the resurrectionrevealed
J. Lyth, D.D.
I. THE GREAT CHANGE.
1. Its nature.
(1)The resurrectionof the dead.
(2)The transformation of the living.
2. When and how effected.
(1)At the lasttrump.
(2)In a moment.

(3)By the powerof God.
3. Its absolute certainty.
II. THE TRIUMPH.
1. Deathswallowedup in victory.
2. Hence the exultation of the redeemedover death and the grave.
III. THE MEANS OF PARTICIPATION IN IT. The victory is —
1. The free gift of grace.
2. Through Christ.
3. By the destruction of sin.
IV. THE PRACTICAL LESSON,
1. Steadfastness.
2. Abundant toil.
3. Confident hope.
(J. Lyth, D.D.)
Change
H. J. W. Buxton, M.A.
I. OUR LIFE ON EARTH IS FULL OF CHANGE. Every hour brings
changes and chances. The sun which rises to shine on happy children's faces,
bright with laughter, sets over a desolate home. Have you ever seenthe
famous picture of "The RailwayStation"? That, or the reality, will show you
any day what "a tangle" life is. There you will see youth and age, joyand
sorrow, successand failure, hope and despair, going their severalways in the
greatjourney of life.

II. BUT THE GREATEST CHANGE OF ALL IS YET TO COME. There will
be a change —
1. In our bodies. The poor, worn-out clothing of flesh which was laid in the
grave to decay, will be no longerneeded. As the trees are clad with new
clothing in the spring-time, so will our souls be at the great spring-time of the
Lord's coming. As the beggarforgets his rags when wrapped in soft raiment,
so shall we doubtless forget our poor bodies, or remember them only as a
dream when one awaketh. Here they are constantlygetting out of repair.
When we are changed, we may believe it will be always well with us in body.
2. In our minds and feelings. We shall be improved by the lessons we learn,
just as we see a child altered by wise and careful schooling. The man of
science has a world of knowledge andbeauty open to him which the unlearned
does not dream of. So in the schoolbeyond there must be a still wider world of
which the cleverestmen know nothing. Then our mind, no longerwarped by
prejudice, will understand rightly; then "we shallknow even as we are
known." We shall see clearlywhat seemedso dark and perplexing before. We
shall understand how some of God's dealings with us, which appearedso
strange and hard, were the best of blessings for us.
III. THE CHANGE WILL BE VERY GREAT, BUT WE ,SHALL BE
FITTED FOR IT.
IV. THE CHANGE WILL NOT MAKE US FEELLONELY. In that land
none are strangers. Sometimes whenone is going to emigrate, I have asked
him if he did not expect to feel very strange and lonely, and the answerwas,
"Oh no, I have friends waiting for me there." And so with us.
V. THOUGH THE GREAT CHANGE COMES THEN, THERE MUST BE A
CHANGE IN US NOW. Our most constant, prayer should be, "Give me a
cleanheart, O Lord, and renew a right spirit within me."
(H. J. W. Buxton, M.A.)
The final change

W. Jay.
This is one in which you will be, not merely spectators, but parties concerned.
It is an event the most certain. It is a solemnity that is continually drawing
near. Note —
I. THE UNION THERE IS AMONG THE FOLLOWERS OF THE
REDEEMER. "We shallnot all sleep, but we shall all be changed."
1. Of the number of this universal Church, some "sleep."Deathis often an
alarming subject, and to reduce this dread we should do well to view it;as
Scripture does as a departure — a going home — a sleep. Man is called to
labour, and "the sleepof a labouring man is sweet, whetherhe eat little or
much." So Christians must "work while it is day," etc. But then they will
"restfrom their labours." Sleepis a state from which you may be easily
awakened;and, lo!" all that are in their graves shall hear Christ's voice, and
come forth."
2. Many will be found alive. The earth's inhabitants will not be gradually
consumed till none are left: the world will be full; and all the common
concerns oflife will be pursued with the same eagerness as before. And, "as it
was in the days of Noah," etc. Many of the Lord's people too will be found
alive; and perhaps they will be much more numerous than at any former
period.
II. IN WHAT MANNER WILL THIS BE DISPOSED OF? "We shallall be
changed." We are always varying now. But what a change is here from time
to eternity, from earth to heaven, from the company of the wickedto the
presence ofthe blessedGod: from ignorance to knowledge;from painful
infirmities to be "presentedfaultless before the presence of His glory with
exceeding joy!" But the change principally refers to the body: "for flesh and
blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God," etc. Enochand Elias, though they
did not die, passedthrough a change equivalent to death. The same change
which will be produced in the dead by the resurrectionwill be accomplished
in the bodies of the living by this transformation; and of this we have the
clearestassurance (vers. 42-44).

III. THE EASE AND DESPATCHWITH WHICH ALL THIS WILL BE
PERFORMED. "Ina moment, in the twinkling of an eye." What a view does
this give us of the dominion and powerof God! Think of the numbers that will
be alive — all these metamorphosed in one instant. And "why should it be
thought a thing incredible?" "Is anything too hard for the Lord?"
IV. THE SIGNAL. "At the last trump," etc. When the Lord came down on
Horeb to publish the law, "the voice of the trumpet waxed exceeding loud."
By the sound of the trumpet the approachof kings has been announced.
Judges in our country enter the place of assize precededby the same shrill
sound. And those who have witnessedthe processionwellknow what an awe it
impresses, and what sentiments it excites. Will the lasttrump callyou to
"lamentation, and mourning, and woe"? orwill its language be, "Lift up your
heads with joy, for your redemption draweth nigh"? Conclusion:He who will
then be the Judge, is now the Saviour. He will then say to the wicked,
"Depart" — but He does not say so now to any — His language is, "Come."
(W. Jay.)
For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible
The trumpet shall sound
It is said when Lord Nelsonwas buried at St. Paul's Cathedral, all London
was stirred. As the funeral processionpassedon, it moved amid the sobbing of
a nation. Thirty trumpeters stoodat the door of the cathedral with musical
instruments in hand, and when the illustrious dead arrived at the gates ofSt.
Paul's Cathedral these thirty trumpeters blew one united blast; but the
trumpets did not wake the dead. He slept right on. What thirty trumpets
could not do for one man, one trumpet will do for all nations.
The trumpet of judgment
EbenezerTemple.

The blowing of trumpets at particular seasonswas a statute for Israel. The
trumpet was to be blown on the solemnfeastday, to assemble the people
together, to direct their march when the camp was to be moved, they were to
be sounded over the burnt-offerings, and at the new moons, and when the
year of jubilee arrived to proclaim liberty, also to summon the people to war.
To this St. Paul alludes, when he says, "If the trumpet give an uncertain
sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?" All this was typical of the
trumpet of the gospelwhich is to resound till all are warned to flee from the
wrath to come (Psalm89:15). But there is anothertrumpet we must all hear.
I. THE MANNER OF ITS SOUND.
1. Sudden. Our Lord intimates this (Matthew 24:38, etc.). The destruction of
Jerusalemwas a fit representationof this, it was awfully sudden. When the
trumpet sounds to judgment there shall be the giddy and profane pursuing
their unhallowed pleasures. In a moment! in the twinkling of an eye, the
trumpet shall sound! Oh! to be found watching, waiting, praying, ready.
"Blessedis that servant who, when his Lord cometh, shall be found so doing."
2. Universal. It shall re-echo in heaven, reach every cornerof earth, and
penetrate the dark abyss of hell. Every soul shall hear it that ever lived in the
world from the days of Adam to the period when the lastinfant shall be born,
the king and the peasant, the righteous and wicked, etc. You who dislike the
sound of the gospel;you who neglectthe greatsalvation;you, formal
professor, and self-righteous pharisee;you, hypocrite with the mask of
religion — all must hear it.
3. Final. It is the close of all things the termination of our probation. There is a
period when you shall hear of salvation, when you shall attend the sanctuary,
when you shall read the Bible and surround the sacramentaltable for the last
time.
II. THE IMPORT OF ITS ACCENTS. The Sound shall proclaim —
1. The end of. time. How solemnthe thought! Now we have the seasonsin
regular succession, times of business, recreation, devotion, etc. But soontime
shall be no longer. The river of time will be emptied in the oceanofeternity.

Oh! then, now seize it, and sailin the ship of the gospel, and you shall be safely
conducted by the Divine Pilot till you glide safely into an oceanofbliss, that
knows not the ruffle of a wave.
2. The resurrection of the dead.
3. The approach of the Judge. It shall be glorious. How unlike His first advent.
The scene will be majestic beyond description. How great the designs of His
coming! Not to present an atoning sacrifice, but to hold the last assize. He
shall come to explain the mysteries of His providence, to display the riches of
His grace, in the consummation of the happiness of His people, to vindicate
His justice in the everlasting destruction of His foes.
III. THE SOLEMNITYOF ITS RESULTS.
1. The final triumphs of the righteous.
2. The eternal punishment of the wicked.
(Ebenezer Temple.)
The resurrection
Bp. Beveridge.
I. WHAT ARE WE TO UNDERSTAND BYTHE SOUNDING OF THE
TRUMPET? Thatthis will announce our Saviour's coming to judgment is
frequently asserted(Matthew 24:31;1 Thessalonians 4:16). As at the giving of
the law, so at the judging of men according to that law, God shall cause some
such sound to be uttered as shall be heard over the whole world, and summon
all men to appearbefore His judgment-seat, and when this sounds then shall
the dead be raised.
II. WHO ARE THOSE DEAD THAT SHALL BE RAISED AT THE SOUND
OF THIS TRUMPET?
1. There is a threefold life: natural, the union of the soul to the body; spiritual,
the union of Christ to the soul; eternal, the communion of the soul with God.

Answerable to this there is a threefold death.(1)Natural, when the soul and
body are divorced from one another.(2)Spiritual, which is the separationof
the soulfrom Christ. Though many by grace are redeemed from this, yet all
by nature are subjectto it. And as all by nature are subject to it, so do most by
practice still lie under it. Deadas to all sense of sin, as to all spiritual graces,
as to all heavenly comforts, as to that life of faith which the children of God
are quickenedwith.(3) Eternal, the separationof the soul from God; and you
that lie under the spiritual death of sin must either getyourselves quickened
by the life of faith in Christ, or else except by eternal death to be separated
from the Lord of Life.
2. Which of these shall be raised? All of them, and yet it is the naturally dead
which are chiefly to be understood here.
III. HOW SHALL THE DEAD BE RAISED? When the trumpet shall sound
by the powerof the most high God, every man's body being made fit to
receive its soul, the soul shall immediately be united to it, and so we, even the
very self-same persons that now we are, shall be raisedto answerfor what we
have done here.
IV. HOW DOTH IT APPEAR THAT THE DEAD SHALL THUS BE
RAISED?
1. From Scripture (Isaiah 26:19;Daniel 12:2; John 5:28, 29;Matthew 22:31,
32).
2. From reason.(1)Christhas been raised.(2)The soul is immortal, and it is
againstall reasonthat one essentialpart of man should be continued in its
being, and the other should be turned to nothing.(3) Justice requires that they
that are co-partners in vice and virtues should be co-partners also in
punishments and rewards. Though a sin would not be a sin without the soul,
yet it would not be committed without the body. The body could not sin unless
the soulconsented;the soul would not sin so often unless the body tempted.
V. HOW SHALL THEY BE RAISED INCORRUPTIBLE? The apostle here
treats of principally the resurrectionof the saints, who shall be raised
incorruptible.

1. In their souls, which being wrought up into an exactconformity to the will
of God, will be emptied of all corruptions, and blessedwith all perfections.
2. In body. As our souls shall be void of all corruptions, so shall our bodies be
of all imperfections, for these our vile bodies shall be made like unto Christ's
glorious body. What is sowna natural shall be raiseda spiritual body; it shall
not any longer be a clog to us in the performance of duties to God; but it shall
be as quick, agile, and subservient as if it was advanced beyond the degree of a
body, and had commenceda soul.
3. In their happiness. There shall be no crossesin their relations, no lossesin
their possessions, no disgrace in their honours, no fears in their preferments,
no irregularities in their affections, no sorrow in their joys, no darkness in
their light, not one drop of misery in the whole oceanof happiness they shall
enjoy.
VI. WHAT IS MEANT BY WE SHALL BE CHANGED? There will be a
change in —
1. Our opinions. We shall think otherwise of most things. Here we are apt to
look upon sin as amiable, and grace as not desirable; but then we that once
esteemedall things before God, shall look upon God as to be esteemedabove
all things.
2. Our conditions. A Dives in this may become a Lazarus in the other world;
and a Lazarus here, a Dives there.
(Bp. Beveridge.)
STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
Adam Clarke Commentary

In a moment - Εν ατομῳ·In an atom; that is, an indivisible point of time. In
the twinkling of an eye;as soonas a man can wink; which expressions show
that this mighty work is to be done by the almighty power of God, as he does
all his works, He calls, and it is done. The resurrectionof all the dead, from
the foundation of the world to that time, and the change ofall the living then
upon earth, shall be the work of a single moment.
At the last trump - This, as well as all the rest of the peculiar phraseologyof
this chapter, is merely Jewish, and we must go to the Jewishwriters to know
what is intended. On this subject, the rabbins use the very same expression.
Thus Rabbi Akiba: "How shall the holy blessedGod raise the dead? We are
taught that God has a trumpet a thousand ells long, according to the ell of
God: this trumpet he shall blow, so that the sound of it shall extend from one
extremity of the earth to the other. At the first blast the earth shall be shaken;
at the second, the dust shall be separated;at the third, the bones shall be
gatheredtogether;at the fourth, the members shall wax warm; at the fifth,
the heads shall be coveredwith skin; at the sixth, the souls shall be rejoined to
their bodies; at the seventh, all shall revive and stand clothed." See Wetstein.
This tradition shows us what we are to understand by the last trump of the
apostle;it is the seventh of Rab. Akiba, when the dead shall be all raised, and,
being clothed upon with their eternal vehicles, they shall be ready to appear
before the judgment seatof God.
For the trumpet shall sound - By this the apostle confirms the substance of the
tradition, there shall be the sound of a trumpet on this greatday; and this
other scriptures teach:see Zechariah9:14; Matthew 24:31;John 5:25; 1
Thessalonians 4:16, in which latter place, the apostle treats this subject among
the Thessalonians,as he does here among the Corinthians. See the notes at 1
Thessalonians 4:16.
Shall be raisedincorruptible - Fully clothed with a new body, to die no more.
We shall be changed- That is, those who shall then be found alive.
Albert Barnes'Notes onthe Whole Bible

In a moment - ( ἐν ἀτόμῳ en atomō). In an “atom,” scil. of time; a point of
time which cannot be cut or divided ( α athe alpha privative (“not”) and τομη
tomēfrom τέμνω temnō“to cut”). A single instant; immediately. It will be done
instantaneously.
In the twinkling of an eye - This is an expressionalso denoting the least
conceivable duration of time. The suddenness of the coming of the Lord Jesus
is elsewhere comparedto the coming of a thief in the night; 2 Peter3:10. The
word rendered “twinkling” ( ῥιπῆ ripēfrom ῥίπτω rhiptō“to throw, cast”)
means “a throw, cast, jerk,” as of a stone;and then “a jerk of the eye,” that is,
“a wink” - Robinson.
At the last trump - When the trumpet shall sound to raise the dead. The word
“last” here does not imply that any trumpet shall have been before sounded at
the resurrection, but is a word denoting that this is the consummation or close
of things; it will end the economyof this world; it will be connectedwith the
last state of things.
For the trumpet shall sound - See the note at Matthew 24:31.
And the dead shall be raised - See the note at John 5:25.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
In a moment,.... Or point of time, which is very short indeed; what a moment
is, according to the Jewishdoctors, See Gill on Matthew 4:8.
In the twinkling of an eye; these two the Jews not only put togetheras here,
but make one to be as the other; so they sayF11,‫גרה‬ si tnemom a" ,‫עין‬ ‫כהרף‬‫ע‬
as the twinkling of an eye". This phrase, as the twinkling of an eye, is
frequently used in JewishwritingsF12, to signify how speedily ard suddenly
anything is done, and which is the design of it here; and the apostle's meaning
is, that the change upon the bodies of living saints will be so quick, that it will
be done in a trice, before a man canshut his eyes and open them again;so that
it will be as it were imperceptible, and without the leastsensationof pain; this

may also be referred to the resurrection, which will be quick, and done at
once;though it seems rather, and chiefly, to respectthe change of the living;
what follows, indeed, favours the other sense also;for all will be quick and
sudden, the coming of Christ, the raising of the dead, and the change of the
living:
at the lasttrumpet, for the trumpet shall sound; or "by the lasttrumpet", as
the Syriac and Arabic versions render it; that is, by means of it, through the
sounding of that:
and the dead shall be raisedincorruptible; free from all frailty, mortality, and
corruption, when the trumpet shall sound:
and at the same time also,
we shall be changed;the saints that will be found alive; the apostle speaks in
the first person, because ofthe uncertainty of Christ's coming, and of the
blowing of the lasttrumpet, he not knowing but it might be in his time; what
this lasttrumpet will be, is not easyto say; it can hardly be thought to be a
material one: the JewsF13have a notion, that a trumpet will be blown at the
time of the resurrectionof the dead, as at the giving of the law on Mount
Sinai; which will quickenthe dead, as they say it then did; and that this will be
blown by Michaelthe archangelF14:it seems very likely to be the same with
the shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God, 1 Thessalonians
4:16 all which may be no other than the voice of Christ; at the hearing of
which, the dead will rise; but whether this will be an articulate one, as at the
raising of Lazarus, or is only expressive of his power, which will then be put
forth, is not material, nor a point to be determined: and what if by all this
should be meant some violent claps of thunder, as at Mount Sinai, which will
shake the whole earth; and when almighty powerwill be put forth to raise the
dead: since such are by the JewsF15calledthe voices of the son of David, and
are expectedby them, a little before his coming? This is calledthe "last"
trumpet, not so much with respectto those that go before, much less to the
seventrumpets in the Revelations, ofwhich as yet there was no revelation
made, but because there will be none after it; see:

"And the trumpet shall give a sound, which when every man heareth, they
shall be suddenly afraid.' (2 Esdras 6:23)
Geneva Study Bible
In e a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet
changed.
(e) He shows that the time will be very short.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
the lasttrump — at the sounding of the trumpet on the last day [Vatablus]
(Matthew 24:31; 1 Thessalonians 4:16). Or the Spirit by Paul hints that the
other trumpets mentioned subsequently in the Apocalypse shall precede, and
that this shall be the lastof all (compare Isaiah 27:13;Zechariah 9:14). As the
law was given with the sound of a trumpet, so the final judgment according to
it (Hebrews 12:19;compare Exodus 19:16). As the Lord ascended“with the
sound of a trumpet” (Psalm 47:5), so He shall descend(Revelation11:15). The
trumpet was sounded to convoke the people on solemnfeasts, especiallyon the
first day of the seventh month (the type of the completion of time; seven being
the number for perfection; on the tenth of the same month was the atonement,
and on the fifteenth the feastof tabernacles, commemorative ofcompleted
salvationout of the spiritual Egypt, compare Zechariah 14:18, Zechariah
14:19); compare Psalm50:1-7. Compare His calling forth of Lazarus from the
grave “with a loud voice,” John11:43, with John 5:25, John 5:28.
and — immediately, in consequence.

Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament
In a moment (εν ατομωι — en atomōi). Old word, from α — a privative and
τεμνω — temnō to cut, indivisible: Scientific word for atom which was
consideredindivisible, but that was before the day of electrons and protons.
Only here in N.T.
In the twinkling of an eye (εν ριπηι οπταλμου — en ripēi ophthalmou). Old
word ριπη — ripē from ριπτω — riptō to throw. Only here in N.T. Used by
the Greeks forthe flapping of a wing, the buzz of a gnat, the quivering of a
harp, the twinkling of a star.
At the last trump (εν τηι εσχατηι σαλπιγγι — en tēi eschatēisalpiggi).
Symbolical, of course. See 1 Thessalonians 4:16;note on Matthew 24:31.
Vincent's Word Studies
Moment ( ἀτόμῳ )
Only here in the New Testament. Atomos from ἀ notand τέμνω tocut, whence
our atom. An undivided point of time. The same idea of indivisibility appears
in ἀκαρής (not in the New Testament), from ἀ notand κείρω toshear;
primarily of hair too short to be cut, and often used in classicalGreek oftime,
as in the phrase ἐν ἀκαρεῖ χρονοῦ ina moment of time.
Twinkling ( ῥιπῇ )
Only here in the New Testament. Originally the swing or force with which a
thing is thrown; a stroke or beat. Used in the classics ofthe rush of a storm,
the flapping of wings;the buzz of a gnat; the quivering of a harpstring; the
twinkling of the stars. Generallyof any rapid movement, as of the feet in
running, or the quick darting of a fish.
Wesley's ExplanatoryNotes

changed.
In a moment — Amazing work of omnipotence! And cannotthe same power
now change us into saints in a moment? The trumpet shall sound - To awaken
all that sleepin the dust of the earth.
Calvin's Commentary on the Bible
52.In a moment This is still of a generalnature; that is, it includes all. For in
all the change will be sudden and instantaneous, because Christ’s advent will
be sudden. And to convey the idea of a moment, he afterwards makes use of
the phrase twinkling (or jerk) of the eye, for in the Greek manuscripts there is
a twofold, reading — ῥοπὣ (jerk,) or ῥιπὣ (twinkling.) (131)It matters
nothing, however, as to the sense. Paulhas selecteda movement of the body,
that surpasses allothers in quickness;for nothing is more rapid than a
movement of the eye, though at the same time he has made an allusion to
sleep, with which twinkling of the eye is contrasted. (132)
With the lasttrump. Though the repetition of the term might seemto place it
beyond a doubt, that the word trumpet is here taken in its proper acceptation,
yet I prefer to understand the expressionas metaphorical. In 1 Thessalonians
4:16, he connects togetherthe voice of the archangeland the trump of God:
As therefore a commander, with the sound of a trumpet, summons his army to
battle, so Christ, by his far sounding proclamation, which will be heard
throughout the whole world, will summon all the dead. Moses tells us, (Exodus
19:16,)what loud and terrible sounds were uttered on occasionofthe
promulgation of the law. Fardifferent will be the commotion then, when not
one people merely, but the whole world will be summoned to the tribunal of
God. Norwill the living only be convoked, but even the dead will be called
forth from their graves. (133)Naymore, a commandment must be given to

dry bones and dust that, resuming their former appearance and reunited to
the spirit, they come forth straightwayas living men into the presence of
Christ.
The dead shall rise What he had declaredgenerallyas to all, he now explains
particularly as to the living and the dead. This distinction, therefore, is simply
an exposition of the foregoing statement — that all will not die, but all will be
changed“Those who have already died,” says he, “will rise again
incorruptible.” See whata change there will be upon the dead! “Those,”says
he, “who will be still alive will themselves also be changed.” You see then as to
both. (134)You now then perceive how it is, that change will be common to
all, but not sleep. (135)
When he says, We shall be changed, he includes himself in the number of
those, who are to live till the advent of Christ. As it was now the last times, (1
John 2:18,) that day (2 Timothy 1:18) was to be lookedfor by the saints every
hour. At the same time, in writing to the Thessalonians, he utters that
memorable prediction respecting the scattering (136)that would take place in
the Church before Christ’s coming. (2 Thessalonians 2:3.)This, however, does
not hinder that he might, by bringing the Corinthians, as it were, into
immediate contactwith the event, associatehimself and them with those who
would at that time be alive.
Scofield's ReferenceNotes
raised
Resurrection, Summary:
(1) The resurrectionof the dead was believed by the patriarchs Genesis 22:5;
Hebrews 11:19; Job19:25-27 and revealedthrough the prophets; Isaiah
26:19;Daniel 12:2; Daniel 12:13;Hosea 13:14 and miracles of the dead
restoredto life are recorded in the O.T.; 2 Kings 4:32-35;2 Kings 13:21.

(2) Jesus Christ restoredlife to the dead Matthew 9:25; Luke 7:12-15;John
11:43;John 11:44 and predicted His own resurrection;John 10:18; Luke
24:1-8.
(3) A resurrectionof bodies followedthe resurrectionof Christ Matthew
27:52;Matthew 27:53 and the apostles raisedthe dead; Acts 9:36-41;Acts
20:9; Acts 20:10.
(4) Two resurrections are yet future, which are inclusive of "all that are in the
graves" John5:28. These are distinguished as "of life"; 1 Corinthians 15:22; 1
Corinthians 15:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17;Revelation20:4 and "of
judgment"; John 5:28; John 5:29; Revelation20:11-13.Theyare separatedby
a period of one thousand years Revelation20:5. The "first resurrection," that
"unto life," will occurat the secondcoming of Christ 1 Corinthians 15:23 the
saints of the O.T. and church ages meeting Him in the air 1 Thessalonians
4:16; 1 Thessalonians4:17 while the martyrs of the tribulation, who also have
part in the resurrectionRevelation20:4 are raised at the end of the great
tribulation.
(5) The mortal body will be related to the resurrection body as grain sownis
related to the harvest 1 Corinthians 15:37; 1 Corinthians 15:38 that body will
be incorruptible, glorious, powerful, and spiritual 1 Corinthians 15:42-44;1
Corinthians 15:49.
(6) The bodies of living believers will, at the same time, be instantaneously
changed1 Corinthians 15:50-53;Philippians 3:20; Philippians 3:21. This
"change" ofthe living, and resurrectionof the dead in Christ, is calledthe
"redemption of the body"; Romans 8:23; Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 1:14.
(7) After the thousand years the "resurrectionunto judgment" John 5:29
occurs. The resurrection-body of the wickeddeadis not described. They are
judged according to their works, and castinto the lake of fire. Revelation
20:7-15.

James Nisbet's Church Pulpit Commentary
THE CHANGE
‘We shall be changed.’
1 Corinthians 15:52
These few but momentous words place before us a mystery, a profound
mystery.
I. What saith the Scriptures?—Threepassagesthere certainly are, all of them
in the writings of St. Paul, in which the fact, and to some extent the
circumstances, ofthe final change are more particularly specified.
(a) The first of these is that portion of the 1 Corinthians 15, from which the
text has been taken. From this portion we derive the following greatspiritual
truth that the nature of the future body will be essentiallydifferent from that
of the present earthly body, both in appearance and in substance.
(b) In 1 Thessalonians 4 the Apostle desired first to reassure his converts that
those who had become Christians, and were now dead, would in no degree be
in a worse position than those who might be alive at that coming of the Lord
which these ThessalonianChristians thought to be very nigh at hand.
(c) In 2 Corinthians 5 the present earthly body is contrastedwith the heavenly
body; and the burdened Christian is representedas longing to be clothed
upon (the expressionis alike remarkable and suggestive)withthe body which
is from heaven.
These three passagesseemto complete all that Scripture has directly revealed
of the final change and its attendant circumstances;and they appearto justify
us in believing—firstly, that all believers will rise with bodies utterly different
as regards appearance and substance from the bodies they wore upon earth,
and that, for the great mass of mankind, the time when this mighty change
will be consummated will be at the SecondComing of our Lord; secondly, we
seemwarranted in believing that they who will then be alive on earth will pass
through the mighty change in a moment of time, and will be caught up, in
company with the risen dead, to meet the Lord in the air; thirdly, we seem

justified in drawing this momentous conclusion, that existence in a bodily or
unclothed state would appear to be repugnant to Christian feeling, as
indicated by the Apostle St. Paul, and that thus we are permitted humbly to
believe that in the waiting and intermediate world the soul will not exist in a
state wholly unclothed or bodiless.
II. Two questions remain.
(a) The first relates to the time when the greatchange of the mortal putting on
immortality will actually take place. Is it in every case to be restrictedto the
time of the SecondComing of the Lord? At that coming, Holy Scripture tells
us that there will be mighty and cosmicalchangesin this earth, purifying fires
and glorifying restorations, new heavens and a new earth, and in the forefront
of all those changes the bodily resurrectionof mankind. This is the general
answer;but it must not be forgottenthat we find in Scripture distinct allusion
to a first resurrection, and the mention of an interval of time betweenit and
the later and generalresurrection. We thus have scriptural warrant for the
belief that, prior to the Advent and all its momentous issues, the electand
speciallychosenwill be clothed with the resurrectionbody, and form a part of
the blessedand holy company that will be with their Lord and reign with Him
till the end come. Such a belief will be found to throw a sidelight on many a
passageofScripture which to the generalreadermay seemdark and difficult
fully to understand.
(b) The secondquestion is, What is the relation betweenthe changing and
mortal body of the presentand the changeless andglorified body of the
future? Is there any connectionat all, and, if so, what is it? All that we really
know is this—that this earthly body and the spiritual or heavenly body with
which we shall hereafterbe clothedwill be garments of the same soulat two
different periods of our existence;but when we think of the one that we know,
and of the other that, in the case ofbelievers, is to be fashionedlike unto
Christ’s glorious body, all idea of any real connectionbetweenthe two seems
beyond our powers to grasp.

Union with Christ is that which seals and certifies to us the resurrectionof the
body, and all the circumstances andtruths on which we have been dwelling
this morning.
—BishopEllicott.
Illustration
‘When writers as early and as famous as Justin Martyr could assertthat
cripples would rise as cripples, though after their rising they would be
restored—orwhen teachers as conspicuousas Jerome, and even (though less
strongly) as Augustine contended for the reappearance ofthe very hairs on
the head, we see plainly enough how the instructive analogyof the Apostle was
completely ignored and forgotten in the anxious desire to maintain an
absolute identity in appearance and substance betweenthe body that now is
and the body which shall be hereafter.’
John Trapp Complete Commentary
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet
changed.
Ver. 52. The trumpet shall sound] As at the giving of the law it did, Exodus
19:16. If the law were thus given (saith a divine), how shall it be required? If
such were the proclamationof God’s statutes, whatshall the sessionsbe? I see
and tremble at the resemblance;the trumpet of the angelcalled to the one; the
trumpet of the archangelshallsummon us to the other. In the one the mount
only was on a flame; all the world shall be so in the other. To the one Moses
says, Godcame with ten thousands of his saints;in the other thousand

thousands shall minister to him, and ten thousand thousands shall stand
before him.
Greek TestamentCriticalExegeticalCommentary
52.]ἐν ἀτόμῳ, in a point of time absolutelyindivisible, ἐν ῥιπήματι,
Hesych(76)(76) Hesychius of Jerusalem, centy. vi.
ἐν τῇ ἐσχ. σάλπ. at (in, as part of the events of) the last trumpet-blowing. The
word ἐσχ. must obviously not be refined upon as some ( τινές in Theophyl.—
and Olsh.) have done, identifying it with the seventh trumpet of the
Apocalypse;—nor pressedtoo closelyas if there were necessarilyno trump
after it,—but is the trump at the time of the end, the last trump, in a wide and
popular sense. See ref. 1 Thess.
σαλπίσει] impersonal,— ὁ σαλπιγκτής, scil. So Od. φ. 142, ἀρξάμενοι τοῦ
χώρου ὅθεν τέ περ οἰνοχοεύει (scil. ὁ οἰνόχοος):Herod. ii. 47, ἐπεὰν θύσῃ: Xen.
Anab. i. 2. 17, ἐπεὶ ἐσάλπιγξε: iii. 4. 36, ἐκήρυξε:—vi. 5. 25, ἕως σημαίνοι τῇ
σάλπιγγι Kühner, § 414. 2.
σαλπίσω for σαλπίγξω is reprobated by the grammarians: see Wetst.
ἡμεῖς, see above [on 1 Corinthians 15:51].
Heinrich Meyer's Critical and ExegeticalCommentaryon the New Testament
1 Corinthians 15:52. ἐν ἀτόμῳ, ἐν ῥιπῇ ὀφθ.] A double, because a thoroughly
designedand extremely exact descriptionof the suddenness of the ἀλλαγησ.,
which is meant wholly to exclude even the possibility of those still alive having
first, perhaps, to die at the Parousia, in order to come into the resurrection-lif.
ἄτομον, whatis indivisible, an atom (Plato, Soph. p. 229 D), is here a little
indivisible point of time. ἐν ἀτόμῳ·ἐν ῥιπήματι, Hesychius. Comp. the phrase,
current in Greek writers, ἐν ἀκαρεῖ (Lucian, As. 37; Alciphron. iii. 25).

ἐν τῇ ἐσχ. σάλπιγγι] at the lasttrumpet, while it is sounded (by an archangel).
See Winer, p. 361 [E. T. 482]. Comp. ἐν αὐλοῖς, Pindar, Ol. v. 45. Paul might
also have written: ἀπὸ … σάλπιγγος, Polyb. iv. 13. 1. Regarding the subject-
matter, comp. 1 Thessalonians4:16, and Lünemann and Ewaldon that
passage. The lasttrumpet is that sounding at the final moment of this age of
the world. It does not conflict with this statement, if we suppose that Paul
conceivedthe secondresurrectionalso (1 Corinthians 15:24)to take place
with trumpet-sound, for ἐσχ. has its temporal reference in αἰὼν οὗτος. De
Wette (so, too, in the form of a suggestion, Vatablus;and comp. previously,
Theodoretof Mopsuestia)thinks of the last among severaltrumpet-signals,
againstwhich, however, is the simple, not more preciselydefined σαλπίσει γάρ
which follows. This, too, in opposition to Osiander, van Hengel, Maier, and
Hofmann. To understand, with Olshausen, who follows older expositors (
τινές even already in Theophylact), the seventh trumpet, Revelation8:9, with
which, along with the trumpets of Jericho, Hofmann also compares it, is to
place it on the same level with the visions of the Revelation, for doing which
we have no ground, since in 1 Thess. too, l.c., only one trumpet is mentioned,
and that one taken for granted as well known. It is true that the Rabbins also
taught that God will sound the trumpet seventimes, and that in such a way
that the resurrection will develope itself in sevenacts;(94)but this conception,
too, was foreign to the apostle, seeing thathe represents the rising as an
instantaneous event without breaks of development. It may be added, that the
trumpet of the Parousia (see, already, Matthew 24:31)is not to be explained
away, either with Wolf and others: “cum signa apparebunt judicii jam
celebrandi,” or, with Olshausen(comp. Maier), of a startling work of the
Spirit, arousing mankind for a greatend. Comp., too, Theophylact, who
understands by the σάλπιγξ the κέλευσ΄α and νεῦ΄α of God τὸ διὰ πάντων
φθάνον; as in substance also Usteri, p. 356, Billroth, Neander, Hofmann.(95)
As regards the phrase in itself, we might compare the Homeric ἀμφὶ δὲ
σάλπιγξεν μέγας οὐρανός, Il. xxi. 388, where the thunder (as signal for the
onset)is meant. But the connectiongives us no right whateverto assume a
non-literal, imaginative representation. On the contrary, Paul has in fact
carried with him the conceptionof the resurrection-trumpet (resting upon
Exodus 19:16)from the popular sphere of conception, attestedalso in Matt.
l.c. (comp. 4 Esdr. 6:24), into his Christian sphere,(96)as he then himself adds

forthwith by way of confirmation and with solemn emphasis:σαλπίσει γὰρκ.
τ. λ.] for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead (the Christians who have
already died up to that time) shall be raisedincorruptible, and we (who are
still alive then) shall be changed. The paratactic expression(insteadof ὅτε
γάρ, or some other such form of subordination) should of itself have been
sufficient to prevent the divesting the σαλπ. γάρ. of its emphasis by regarding
it simply as an introduction to what follows in connectionwith ἐν τ. ἐσχ. σάλπ.
(Hofmann); comp. Kühner, § 720, 4;Winer, p. 585 [E. T. 785]. A special
attention is to be given to the σαλπίσ. Instead of ἡ΄εῖς ἀλλαγ., Paul might have
written οἱ ζῶντες ἀλλαγήσονται;but from his persuasionthat he should live to
see the Parousia, he includes himself with the rest.(97)Comp. on 1
Corinthians 15:51. Van Hengel is wrong in referring οἱ νεκροί to those now
(when Paul wrote) already dead, and ἡμεῖς to those now still alive, of whom a
part will then be also dead; ἀλλαγ. can apply only to the change of the living.
σαλπίσει (sc. ὁ σαλπιγκτής)has become in its use just as impersonal as ὓει,
νίφει, al. See Elmsl. ad Heracl. 830;Kühner, II. p. 36, and ad Xen. Anab. i. 2.
17. The form σαλπίσω instead of σαλπίγξω is later Greek. See Lobeck, ad
Phryn. p. 191.
Johann Albrecht Bengel's Gnomonof the New Testament
1 Corinthians 15:52. ἐν ἀτόμῳ, in a moment) Lest it should be considered
hyperbolical, he adds a more popular phrase, in the twinkling of an eye. An
extraordinary work of divine omnipotence!Who then can doubt, but that
man even at death may be suddenly freed from sin?— σάλπιγγι, at the
trumpet) The full description of the trumpets is reservedfor the Apocalypse;
yet some things may be gathered from Matthew 24:31;1 Thessalonians4:16,
concerning the last trumpet; and this epithet is expressedhere, as one that
takes for granted the trumpets, that have precededit; either because the
Spirit has inspired Paul with an allusion, which anticipates the Apocalypse, or
because Scripture long before teaches,that some trumpets, though not
definitely enumerated, are before the last. Isaiah 27:13;Jeremiah51:27;
Zechariah 9:14; Hebrews 12:19;2 Esdras 5:4 : or especiallyin relationto the

trumpet at the ascension, Psalms 47:6, comp. Acts 1:11 : for one may be called
the last, where two only are referred to, 1 Corinthians 15:45;not to say, where
there is only one [sounding of a trumpet], without another following,
Revelation10:7.— σαλπίσει γὰρ) for the Lord [Engl. V. the trumpet] shall
sound by His archangel, 1 Thessalonians 4:16. The trumpet was formerly used
on feastdays for the purpose of assembling the people.— καὶ) and
immediately.— ἄφθαρτοι,incorruptible) Strictly speaking, one would think,
that they should have been called immortal; for incorruptibility will be put on
by means of the change, 1 Corinthians 15:53; but incorruptibility includes
immortality.
Matthew Poole's EnglishAnnotations on the Holy Bible
This change will be on the sudden, in a moment; either upon the will and
command of Christ, which shall be as effectualto call persons out of their
graves, as a trumpet is to call persons together;or rather, upon a sound made
like to the sound of a trumpet, as it was at the giving of the law upon Sinai,
Exodus 19:16. We read of this last trump, Matthew 24:31 1 Thessalonians
4:16. There shall (saith the apostle)be such a sound made; and upon the
making of it, the saints, that are dead, shall be raisedout of their graves;not
with such bodies as they carriedthither, (which were corruptible), but with
such bodies as shall be no more subjectto corruption; and those who at that
time shall be alive, shall one way or another be
changed, and be also put into an incorruptible state.
Cambridge Greek Testamentfor Schools andColleges
52. ἐν ἀτόμῳ. The literal meaning of the word here used is, that which is so
small as to be actually indivisible.
ἐν ῥιπῇ ὀφθαλμοῦ. Some MSS. readῥοπῇ for ῥιπῇ, i.e. the downward motion
of the eyelid (literally, the inclination of the scale), forthe rapid movement

suggestedby the word twinkling. The latter suits the context best. Cf. Soph.
El. 106 παμφεγγεῖς ἄστρωνῥιπάς.
ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῃ σάλπιγγι. Some have referred this to the last of the seven
trumpets in Revelation8-11. See especiallyRevelation10:7. But this cannot
be, since the visions recorded in that book had not yet been seen. It must
therefore mean the trumpet which will sound on the lastday. Cf. Matthew
24:31 and 1 Thessalonians 4:16.
σαλπίσει. This form is found also Matthew 6:2; Revelation8:6-13, &c. The
usual classicalform is σαλπίγξει. For the impersonal verb see Winer, § 58.
καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀλλαγησόμεθα.ἡμεῖς is emphatic; we who are alive and remain, 1
Thessalonians 4:17. Therefore the Apostle here expresses once more his belief
that he will be alive at the coming of Christ; for, ‘since the last times were
already come, the saints expectedthat day from hour to hour.’ Calvin.
William Godbey's Commentary on the New Testament
52. “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet: for the
trumpet will sound, and the dead will rise incorruptible, and we shall be
changed.” The case is very clearhere that Paul is speaking ofthe rapture of
the saints, as there is no allusionwhatever to the wicked. In the final
resurrectionthe wickedas well as all the righteous not identified with the
Bridehood will rise about the same time, perhaps even then a short interval
betweenthe righteous and the wicked. Hence we see from this Scripture that
the living saints at the sound of the trumpet will all be translated
instantaneously. This is beautifully corroboratedin 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18;1
Thessalonians 5:1-11, including a large paragraph devoted to this subject.
There we learn that, when the Lord descends with a shout and with the trump
of the archangel, the buried saints will first leap out of their graves all round
the world. Then, “we who are alive, having been left, shall be caughtup to
meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall be forever with the Lord.” Hence
we see that the interval betweenthe resurrectionof the saints and the
translation of the living will be very brief; because the latter will fly right up,

and along with the former meet the Lord in the air. The most inspiring
privilege of the Lord’s people, is to be living on the earth when He returns,
and thus honored with the translation. Hence we have here the two distinct
methods by which the Lord’s saints will enter the glorified state, i. e.,
translation and resurrection. In either case we pass into the transfiguration
glory of our risen and ascendedLord.
Whedon's Commentary on the Bible
52. In a moment— εν ατομω. In an atom of time; in an indivisible instant. In
the twinkling (literally, stroke)of the eye. Quick as a jerk of the eyelash.
The lasttrump—See note, 1 Thessalonians4:6.
We… changed—St. Paul’s present we conceptuallyincludes not quite the
same as the first we of 1 Corinthians 15:51, but all the living in the body at the
parousia.
Expository Notes ofDr. Thomas Constable
This transformation will not be a gradual process but instantaneous. The
Greek word translated"moment" or "flash" (atomos)refers to an indivisible
fragment of time. The blinking of an eye takes only a fraction of a second.
This trumpet blast will summon Christians home to heaven (cf. 1
Thessalonians 4:16). It is the last trumpet that connects with our destiny, the
one that signals the end of our present existence and the beginning of our
future existence. [Note:See Barnabas Lindars, "The Sound of the Trumpet:
Paul and Eschatology,"Bulletin of the John Rylands University Library of
Manchester67:2 (Spring1985):766-82.]

"We need not suppose that St Paul believed that an actualtrumpet would
awakenand summon the dead. The language is symbolical in accordance with
the apocalyptic ideas of the time. The point is that the resurrectionof the dead
and the transformation of the living will be simultaneous, as of two companies
obeying the same signal." [Note:Robertsonand Plummer, p377.]
Some posttribulationists equate this trumpet with the seventh or last trumpet
of Revelation11:15-18. [Note:E.g, Alexander Reese, The Approaching Advent
of Christ, p73.] This does not seemto me to be valid. Other trumpets will
sound announcing various other events in the future (cf. Matthew 24:31;
Revelation8:2; Revelation8:6; Revelation8:13; Revelation9:14; et al.).
However, Christians, believers living in the church age, will not be on the
earth then, and those trumpets will not affect us. This lasttrumpet is not the
very last one that the Bible speaks of. [Note:Renald E. Showers, Maranatha:
Our Lord, Come!A Definitive Study of the Rapture of the Church, pp259-69.]
The fact that Paul included himself in the group living at the time of the
Rapture shows that he expectedthat event to take place imminently (i.e, at
any moment; cf. 1 Thessalonians 4:15;1 Thessalonians 4:17). If he had
believed the Tribulation precedes the Rapture, it would have been natural for
him to mention that here. [Note: For more evidence that the Rapture takes
place before the Tribulation, see J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come, pp193-
218;John F. Walvoord, The Rapture Question;idem, The BlessedHope and
the Tribulation; and Ryrie, Basic Theology, pp482-87.]
"Christ"s return is always imminent; we must never cease to watchfor it. The
first Christians thought it so near that they facedthe possibility of Jesus"
return in their lifetime. Paul thinks he too may perhaps be alive when it
happens." [Note: GastonDeluz, A Companion to I Corinthians, p248. See also
Gerald B. Stanton, Kept from the Hour, ch6: "The Imminency of the Coming
of Christ for the Church," pp108-37.]

"The simple factis that Paul did not know when Christ would return. He was
in the exactposition in which we are. All that he knew, and all that we know,
is that Christ may come at any time." [Note: Lenski, p737.]
Paul did not answerthe interesting questions of who will blow or who will
hear this trumpet probably because the trumpet appears to be a metaphor for
God"s summons. Throughout Israel"s historyGod announced His working
for the nation and He summoned His people to Himself with the blowing of
literal trumpets ( Exodus 19:16; Exodus 19:19;Exodus 20:18;Leviticus 25:9;
Numbers 10:2; Numbers 10:8-10;et al.). So He may use a literal trumpet for
this purpose at the Rapture as well.
Schaff's Popular Commentary on the New Testament
1 Corinthians 15:52. in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye—a sublime
expressionof all but instantaneousness. There will, indeed, be an interval
betweenthe “resurrection” ofthe dead and the “changing” ofthe living
saints—for“the dead in Christ shall rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16), but so
brief as to be but as the “twinkling of an eye,”—atthe last trump (“the trump
of God,” 1 Thessalonians4:16), for the trumpet shall sound—audibly, it
would seem, as the signalfor the winding up of all presentthings,—and we
(the living) shall be changed.
George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary
In a moment, &c. By the power of the Almighty all shall rise againin their
bodies, either to a happy or a miserable resurrection. (Witham)

Mark Dunagan Commentary on the Bible
1 Corinthians 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump:
for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raisedincorruptible, and
we shall be changed.
"in a moment"-"something that cannot be cut or divided" (Lenski p. 738)"an
indivisible fragment of time" (F.F. Bruce p. 155)
"twinkling of an eye"-"The change will be as instantaneous as the moving of
an eyelid." (Erdman p. 167)"The split-secondspeedof the transformation"
(F.F. Bruce p. 155)
Point to Note:
This would indicate that Matthew 24:1-51, especiallyverses 3-34 cannotrefer
to the SecondComing of Christ. For in those verses Christians are
commanded to flee (24:16). In this chapter there is no time to flee. Which also
infers, that the wickedwill have no time to repent. (1 Thessalonians 5:1-3)
This verse also offers reveals that God candestroy the earth, and transform
ALL THE DEAD, in a split second. Now if God can bring the whole created
universe to an end IN A SPLIT SECOND,then certainly He could have
createdit in six days.
"at the last trump"-"This tells us when the change will occur" (Willis p. 586)
"It is the last trumpet not because it is the final in a series, but because it
signals the End." (Fee p. 802)(1 Thessalonians 4:16)
"and we shall be changed"-(1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes
moment. Greek. atomos, literallythat which cannot be out or divided. Hence
"atom". Only here.
twinkling. Greek. ripe. Only here.
incorruptible. Greek. aphthartos. See Romans 1:23.

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged
changed.
The lasttrump - at the sounding of the trumpet on the lastday (Matthew
24:31;1 Thessalonians 4:16). Or, the Spirit hints that the other trumpets
mentioned subsequently in the Apocalypse shall precede, and that this shall be
the last(cf. Isaiah 27:13;Zechariah 9:14). As the law was given with the sound
of a trumpet, so the final Judgment according to the law (Hebrews 12:19 : cf.
Exodus 19:16). As the Lord ascended"with the sound of a trumpet" (Psalms
47:5), so He shall descend(Revelation11:15). The trumpet convokedthe
people on solemn feasts, especiallyonthe first of the seventhmonth (the type
of the completion of time: sevenindicating perfection): on the tenth was the
atonement, and on the fifteenth the feastof tabernacles, commemorative of
completed salvationout of spiritual Egypt (cf. Psalms 50:1-7; Zechariah
14:18-19). Compare, His calling Lazarus from the grave "with a loud voice,"
John 11:43, with John 5:23; John 5:28.
The trumpet shall sound, and - immediately, in consequence.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(52) The lasttrump.—The trumpet was used to summon an assembly(Exodus
20:18;Psalms 81:3; Isaiah 18:3; Isaiah27:13) or to sound a warning. The last
trumpet is the one which concludes a series which have already been sounding
at intervals in notes of warning to the nations (Psalms 47:5; Isaiah27:13;
Jeremiah51:27). This verse states with reiteratedemphasis that this change
shall not be a protracted process, but a sudden and momentary alteration in
the condition of our bodies.

Hodge's Commentary on Romans, Ephesians and First Corintians
changed.
The change in question is to be instantaneous;in a moment, literally, an atom,
i.e. in a portion of time so short as to be incapable of further division. It is to
take place at the last trump, i.e. on the last day. As the trumpet was used for
assembling the people or marshaling a host, it became the symbol for
expressing the idea of the gathering of a multitude. So, in Matthew 24:31,
Christ says, "He will send his angels with a greatsound of a trumpet; and
they shall gatherhis electfrom the four winds, from one end of heaven to
another." Comp. Isaiah 27:13;1 Thessalonians 4:16. This trumpet is called
the last, not because severaltrumpets (the Jews sayseven)are to sound in
succession, but because it is the lastthat ever is to sound. In other words, the
resurrectionis to take place on the lastday. Forthe trumpet shall sound. This
is a confirmation of the preceding. That day shall surely come — the voice of
the archangel, the trump of God, shall certainly resound as it did from Sinai,
Exodus 19:16. And, i.e. and then, in consequence ofthe summons of God, the
dead shall be raised in the manner describedin 1 Corinthians 15:42, 1
Corinthians 15:43, incorruptible, glorious and powerful. And we shall be
changed. This is in exactaccordancewith 1 Thessalonians4:15. Those who
are alive when Christ comes "shallnot prevent them which are asleep." The
dead in Christ shall rise first, and then the living shall undergo their
instantaneous change. As remarked on the preceding verse, it is not necessary
to understand the apostle as including himself and fellow believers in Corinth,
when he says We shall be changed. The connectionindeed is different here
from what it is there. There he says, "We shall not all die." If that means that
the men of that generationshould not all die, it is a positive assertionof what
the event has proved to be false. But here he simply says, all who are alive
when Christ comes shallbe changed. If he hoped that he might be of the
number there would be nothing in that expectationinconsistentwith his
inspiration. Calvin, therefore, so understands the passage.‹29›Considering,
however, his express teaching in 2 Thessalonians 2:2-12 onthe subject, it is far
more natural to understand him as contemplating the vastcompany of

believers as a whole, and saying ‘Those of us who are dead shall rise, and all
who are alive shall be changed.'
The Bible Study New Testament
As the blinking of an eye. The change will be instantaneous!Notice this clearly
shows the time factorin 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. Whenthe lasttrumpet
sounds. Compare Hebrews 12:18-21.
END OF STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
In the twinkling of an eye … we will be changed(1 Corinthians 15:52-53)
Postedon July 11, 2017
Suddenly[823. atomos], in a moment, an instant, a flash, the blink of an eye,
the twinkling of an eye, fasterthan an eye can blink, a split second, we will be
changed, we will be transformed, for our mortal, decaying, dying, perishable,
corruptible bodies must put on immortal, imperishable, incorruptible,
indestructible bodies that cannot decay, bodies that will never die, bodies that
will live forever. (1 Corinthians 15:52-53)And, so shall we ever be with the
Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:17)
823. atomos
(from 1 /A “not” and 5114 /tomṓteros,“to cut”) – properly, not able to cut
(divide) because too small to be measured, like a “split second”;an “instant;
an indivisible moment of time, too short to measure”
(HELPS™ Word-studies)
This is less than a nanosecond—a billionth of a second—the time it takes light
to travel about 1 foot. This is less than a yoctosecond(1 trillionth of a

trillionth of a second)the time it takes light to cross an atomic nucleus. Even
less than that. This is a quantum unit of time, the smallest possible increment.
Only God knows how short it is, but we canbe confident that it’s really,
really, really, short.
Becauseit is a unit of time, we will be able to measure time from our birth up
to this point as dying mortal bodies. And, then in a single click of God’s clock,
we will be transformed! Foreverafter that, we will be immortal. Wow!
“I can guarantee this truth: A time is coming (and is now here) when the dead
will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who respond to it will live. The
Father is the source of life, and he has enabled the Sonto be the source of life
too. “He has also given the Son authority to pass judgment because he is the
Son of Man. Don’t be surprised at what I’ve just said. A time is coming when
all the dead will hear his voice, and they will come out of their tombs. Those
who have done goodwill come back to life and live. But those who have done
evil will come back to life and will be judged. (John 5:25-29 GWT)
Brothers and sisters, this is what I mean: Flesh and blood cannotinherit the
kingdom of God. What decays cannot inherit what doesn’t decay. I’m telling
you a mystery. Not all of us will die, but we will all be changed. It will happen
in an instant, in a split secondat the sound of the lasttrumpet. Indeed, that
trumpet will sound, and then the dead will come back to life. They will be
changedso that they can live forever. This body that decays must be changed
into a body that cannotdecay. This mortal body must be changed into a body
that will live forever. When this body that decays is changedinto a body that
cannot decay, and this mortal body is changedinto a body that will live
forever, then the teaching of Scripture will come true: “Deathis turned into
victory! Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?” Sin gives
death its sting, and God’s standards give sin its power. Thank Godthat he
gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:50-57
GWT)
Brothers and sisters, we don’t want you to be ignorant about those who have
died. We don’t want you to grieve like other people who have no hope. We

believe that Jesus died and came back to life. We also believe that, through
Jesus, Godwill bring back those who have died. They will come back with
Jesus. We are telling you what the Lord taught. We who are still alive when
the Lord comes will not go [into his kingdom] aheadof those who have
already died. The Lord will come from heaven with a command, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet [call] of God. First, the dead who
believed in Christ will come back to life. Then, togetherwith them, we who
are still alive will be taken in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. In this
way we will always be with the Lord. So then, comfort eachother with these
words! (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 GWT)
But, brothers and sisters, you don’t live in the dark. That day won’t take you
by surprise as a thief would. You belong to the day and the light not to the
night and the dark. Therefore, we must not fall asleeplike other people, but
we must stayawake and be sober. People who sleep, sleepat night; people
who getdrunk, getdrunk at night. Since we belong to the day, we must be
sober. We must put on faith and love as a breastplate and the hope of
salvationas a helmet. It was not God’s intention that we experience his anger
but that we obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so
that, whether we are awakein this life or asleepin death, we will live together
with him. Therefore, encourage eachotherand strengthen one anotheras you
are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:4-11 GWT)
There are many different groups who have divided and split and separated
from eachother over exactinterpretations of these scriptures (and some
would quibble with the translation I have chosento use). But, the most
important thing is are you ready? If we could answeryour question, is there
anything keeping you from accepting the free gift of salvationfrom the Lord
Jesus Christ? As Mark Twainsaid, “It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I
can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.”
https://www.bibletruths.org/in-the-twinkling-of-an-eye-we-will-be-changed/

What is the Last Trump of 1Cor15:52?
changed. (1Cor15:52)
The question of what exactly is the lasttrump has puzzled many. Some have
concluded that it is the seventh trumpet spokenof in Revelation8:2, 10:7 and
11:15. Others believe that the last trump is the trumpet of Matthew 24:31.
However, these explanations cannot be right for a number of reasons.
First, the last trump of 1Corinthians 15 plainly refers to the Rapture of the
body of Christ. If the last trump corresponds to the seventh trumpet of
Revelationor the trumpet of Matthew 24:31, then the body of Christ must
endure through the majority of the tribulation. However, the body of Christ
cannot be subject to the tribulation because Godhas not appointed the body
of Christ to wrath.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvationby our
Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake orsleep, we
should live togetherwith him. (1Thess 5:9-10)
Second, since the body of Christ is a mystery hid from ages andgenerations
(Col 1:25-27, Romans 16:25-26), its ultimate fulfillment cannotbe found in the
prophetic program that has been spokenof since the world began (Acts 3:20-
21). Moreover, Paulspecificallysays in the verse immediately prior to the
discussionof the last trump that he is referring to a mystery (1Cor 15:51).
Third, for those who believe in a literal interpretation of the scriptures, it
cannot be ignored that a "trump" is not the same thing as a "trumpet." The
difference is not simply one of spelling but of meaning. While the word
"trump" can be a variant of trumpet, it can also be used in an archaic sense to
refer to the blast of a trump (CompactOxford English Dictionary).
It should not be overlookedthatscripture uses the word "trump" only twice.
Both uses are in Paul's epistles (1Cor15:52, 1Thess 4:16), and both contexts
refer to the catching awayof the body of Christ in the air, commonly called
the Rapture. Therefore, to understand how the word trump is used in

1Corinthians 15:52, a careful study of the parallel passagein 1Thessalonians 4
is helpful.
1Thessalonians4:16 indicates that the Lord descends from heaven with a
shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God.
For the Lord himself shall descendfrom heavenwith a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: (1Th 4:16)
When the Lord descends, he brings with him the deceasedsaints who were
savedduring the dispensation of grace.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which
sleepin Jesus will God bring with him. (1Th 4:14)
In 1Thessalonians 4, Pauldivides the body of Christ into two categories:(1)
saints who are deceasedatthe time of the Rapture and (2) saints who are alive
and remain. It is clearthat the first category, those saints who are dead in
Christ, shall rise before the secondcategory, those saints who are alive on the
earth at the time of the Rapture.
For the Lord himself shall descendfrom heavenwith a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: (1Th 4:16)
After the dead in Christ are risen, then the saints who are alive are caughtup
togetherwith the deceasedsaints in the clouds.
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caughtup togetherwith them
in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the
Lord. (1Th 4:17)
This order of events is entirely consistentwith the use of the word "prevent"
in 1Thess 4:15.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive
and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are
asleep. (1Th4:15)

Paul uses the word "prevent" in its original sense ofmeaning "to come
before." 1Thessalonians 4:15 indicates that those who are alive shall not come
before them which are asleep, whichis consistentwith the passage's indication
that the dead in Christ shall rise first and then those which are alive and
remain.
In short, 1Thessalonians 4 clearlyestablishes the following order of events:
The Lord descends with the trump of God bringing with him those who sleep
The dead in Christ rise first
Those which are alive and remain are caught up
With this chronologyin mind, let us review 1Corinthians 15:52:
changed. (1Cor15:52)
One way to read this verse is that at the time of the last trump, three things
occur:(1) the trumpet shall sound, (2) the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and (3) we shall be changed. However, it is clearfrom 1Thessalonians 4 that
these three events do not occursimultaneously. The proper way to read this
verse is that it follows and confirms the exactorder of events set forth in
1Thessalonians4:
1Corinthians 15
1Thessalonians4
the trumpet shall sound
The Lord descends with the trump of God

the dead shall be raisedincorruptible
the dead in Christ shall rise first
we shall be changed
those which are alive and remain are caught up
With this understanding of the proper order, 1Corinthians 15:51-52 becomes
clear:
Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be
changed,
changed. (1Cor15:52-52)
When Paul says "we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed," he is
plainly referring to the categoryofsaints which are alive and remain. Since it
is clearfrom the order of both 1Corinthians 15 and 1Thessalonians4 that the
last event to take place is the catching up of those who are alive, it naturally
follows that such event would correspondwith the "lasttrump," i.e. the last
sounding of the trumpet that begins to blow when Christ descends to Rapture
the body of Christ. Thus, the last trump is simply the lastsounding of the
trumpet that blows when Christ returns for his church.
https://columbusbiblechurch.org/study-documents/what-is-the-last-trump-of-
1cor-1552/

What does 1 Corinthians 15:52 mean? [⇑ See verse text ⇑]
"Behold!" Paul has declared. He is revealing the mystery of how corrupt,
temporary human bodies can possibly enter eternity with God. The short
answeris they can't, evenif those bodies belong to believers who are
guaranteedsalvationthrough faith in Christ. Instead, every born-again
Christian will be transformed from their natural body to their glorified
heavenly body. This will all happen when Christ returns for His people, as He
said he would in John 14:2–3. Notonly will the dead be resurrectedwith
transformed, glorified bodies, but those believers who have not died when He
returns will be transformed, as well.
The change will be instant: "in the twinkling of an eye." This is translated
from the Greek phrase en rhipē opthalmou, which most literally means
"flicking the eye" and was the ancient reference to "the blink of an eye." This
depicts not only the rapid movement of the eyelid, but the speedat which the
eye turns from one direction to another. The underlying point is something so
rapid, so instantaneous, that it defies measurement. Paul says it will be
accompaniedby the blast of a trumpet, something that often accompaniedthe
appearance ofGod in Scripture. This is the final trumpet blast, because God's
people will never be separatedfrom Him again.
Paul, speaking ofthe living, says "we shallbe changed." This should not be
takento mean Paul necessarilyexpectedto be alive when Christ returns. For
example, he used "we / us" language to included himself among those who will
be resurrectedafter death in 1 Corinthians 6:14. Paul did not claim to know
specificallywhen Christ would return (Matthew 24:36).
This passagelines up almost exactly with what Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians
4:15–17. Manychurches and denominations describe this event as the rapture
of the church.

https://www.bibleref.com/1-Corinthians/15/1-Corinthians-15-52.html
What Does 1 Corinthians 15:52 Mean? ►
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet
will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
1 Corinthians 15:52(NASB)
Verse Thoughts
The most comprehensive and informative treaties on the rapture of the
Christian Church and the physical resurrectionof believers, who have died in
Christ is found in this fiftieth chapterof Corinthians.
Paul found it necessaryto confirm the certainty of our bodily resurrection
and refute sceptics who refuse to believe in a physical resurrection. He
detailed Christ’s own glorious resurrectionfrom the dead and meticulously
describedwhat will take place when the dead in Christ rise from their grave
at the return of the Jesus Christ for His Church.
We discoverthat the foundational laws of God’s universe, where the spiritual
follow the natural, is maintained at the resurrection of the dead. Just as a
physical being comes before a spiritual being, and a natural birth must
precede a spiritual birth, so our bodily resurrectionmust take place before
our spiritual resurrection.
Just as the first Adam, was a terrestrial man who came from the physical dust
of the ground, so the last Adam (Jesus Christ the righteous)was the spiritual
Lord Who came from heaven above. Jesus was the first-fruit from the dead.

He was the very first member of a new race of people Who would rise to life
immortal.
Paul explains that the physical resurrection of the "dead in Christ", whose
decomposing bodies are lying in the cold, dank earth, are returned to life in a
split-second- in a moment of time, which the apostles describe as ‘the
twinkling of an eye’ At that very moment, dead Christians will be raisedwith
incorruptible bodies, which will be like the resurrectedbody of the Lord
Jesus.
Christ was raisedwith a body of flesh and bone, because His blood was shed
at Calvary to pay the price for our sin and in like manner we will also be
raisedwith bodies of flesh and bone – for when we see Him we shall be like
Him. However, insteadof blood pulsing through our bodies to energise us
with life, it is the Spirit of God Who will enliven our resurrectedbodies with
His eternal, inbreathed life-breath.
We have been told exactly what to expect when this Church age closes, andwe
reachthat moment when Christians will go to be with the Lord. God had
designated, that those in their graves will be raise into life-immortal first, and
immediately thereafter the living saints will also be changedinto eternal
beings - and together, both living and resurrectedsaints will be raptured into
the heavens.. together. Pauldescribes this progressionofevents as a
"mystery", and indeed it is wonderful.
Although physical death is an inevitable consequenceoffallen man, the
astonishing truth is that not all Christians will die – for at the return of Christ
for His Church, the trump of God will sound, and the physical bodies of living
saints will be changedinto immortal bodies, while the decomposing corpsesof
those who have died in Christ – will be raised-up with an incorruptible body.
All this will take place quickly - in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the
last trump of God – Praise His holy name.
My Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your wonderful plan of redemption. Thank
You that by faith in Christ I am part of that new creation, who will be

changedin a moment - in the twinkling of an eye, when the last trump of God
wakes the dead in Christ and we are all clothed with incorruptible bodies.
Thank You that Jesus is the First-fruit from the dead and because He lives –
we too shall live. Thank You that by His sacrificialdeath and glorious
resurrectiondeath is swallowedup in victory. Thanks be to God, Who always
gives us resurrectedvictory, through Jesus Christour Lord, AMEN.
https://dailyverse.knowing-jesus.com/1-corinthians-15-52
by Grant | Feb10, 2003 | 1 Corinthians | 2 comments
ReadIntroduction to 1 Corinthians
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. Forthe
trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be
changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal
must put on immortality.
15:52
in a moment,
The word “moment” means flash in the Greek, a fragment of time. The
transformation of the glorified body will take place in a flash (literally, in an
atom). An atom is an undivided point of time; this time is indivisible. Change
from the presentbody to the glorified body is instantaneous.
in the twinkling of an eye,

The “twinkling of an eye” refers to a very quick action. The transformation
from the corruptible body to the glorified body will not be a long drawn-out
process but an instantaneous actionby God.
at the lasttrumpet.
There will be a trumpet call at the Rapture to summon Christians to heaven.
This will signalthe end of our present existence in corruptible human bodies.
1 Th 4: 16Forthe Lord Himself will descendfrom heaven with a shout, with
the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in
Christ will rise first.
For the trumpet will sound,
This trumpet is not the same trumpet of Revelation11:15-18, forChristians
will have been raptured before the trumpets of the Tribulation. Paul viewed
himself as possibly participating in the Rapture (1 Th 4:15, 17). The Rapture
is an imminent event, which means there is nothing that needs to be fulfilled
before the event occurs. Pauldid not know the time of the Rapture so he was
in the same position as we are – waiting for the imminent coming of Christ.
The first trumpet in the Roman army was a signal to strike tents and get
ready to depart. The secondtrumpet meant, “Fallin line.” The third and last
trumpet meant, “Forwardmarch.” The last trump for the Christian is a call
to heaven, a change of residence.
and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
Both dead Christians and living Christians will rise with bodies that will not
corrode. Godwill transfigure, transform, and translate these bodies, making
them fit for heaven.
15:53
For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
The New Testamentuses the words “put on” for putting on clothes. The dead,
corruptible body will put on incorruptible clothes. Notonly will Christians not
die againbut also they cannot die again.

2 Co 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have
a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2
For in this we groan, earnestlydesiring to be clothed with our habitation
which is from heaven, 3 if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found
naked. 4 For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we
want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowedup
by life.
and this mortal must put on immortality.
The “mortal” is subject to death. The word “immortality” only occurs in this
verse and 1 Timothy 6:16 in the New Testament. The glorified body will be
immortal, that is, not subject to death.
PRINCIPLE:
The Rapture will transpire in the twinkling of an eye.
APPLICATION:
There is no sign that needs to be fulfilled before the Lord comes atthe
Rapture. In a moment of time we will be translatedfrom a state of corruption
to that of incorruption. https://versebyversecommentary.com/1-corinthians/1-
corinthians-1552-53/
What Does In the Twinkling of an Eye Mean?
Home » Phrase and Idiom Dictionary » What Does In the Twinkling of an Eye
Mean?
In the Twinkling of an Eye Meaning
Definition: In a very short amount of time.

People use this as a poetic wayto describe something that happened extremely
quickly.
Origin of In the Twinkling of an Eye
The idiomatic meaning is closelyrelated to the literal meaning of this
expression. Imagine looking into someone’s eyes, andseeing a flash of light
reflectoff of them. This twinkle would occurquite rapidly.
The reference to this idea of the blink or twinkle of an eye comes from the
Bible. Writing of the Last Judgment, he says,
Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—
in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will
sound, the dead will be raisedimperishable, and we will be changed. (1
Corinthians 15: 51-52)
Shakespeare laterusedit in 1596 in The Merchantof Venice:
I’ll take my leave of the Jew in the twinkling of an eye.
Examples of In the Twinkling of an Eye
In the conversationbelow, two friends are discussing a fight that one of them
had with his brother.
Scott:You seemstressed. What’s up?
Tony: I had a huge argument with my brother. I’m not sure what happened,
but he just startedyelling at me out of nowhere.
Scott:Are you sure you didn’t do something to make him angry?
Tony: I’m pretty sure. We were just sitting quietly eating lunch, and he was
totally calm. Then he gota text, and in the twinkling of an eye, his entire
attitude became aggressive.
Scott:I guess he learned something bad about you in the text.
Two co-workersuse the expressionwhile talking about their children.

Richard: I’m so exhausted. I tried to put my son to bed at his normal bedtime,
but he just wouldn’t fall asleep.
Miranda: That’s too bad. I don’t have that problem with my daughter. She
has really high energy, but then right around her bedtime, in the twinkling of
an eye, she’ll fall right asleep. I was worriedshe was narcoleptic for a bit, but
the doctors assuredme that she just falls asleepquickly.
More Examples
This quote is from how immigrants to America had their names changed
without their permission.
Immigrants JosephDobrjan and Aniele Slezak’s Euro-Americanassimilation
has little to do with American exceptionalism. Baldwin(“The Price of the
Ticket”)writes:“Theycome through Ellis Island, where Giorgio becomes Joe,
Pappavasiliubecomes Palmer, Evangelos becomesEvans, Goldsmithbecomes
Smith or Gold, and Avakian becomes King. So with a painless change of
name, and in the twinkling of an eye, one becomes a white American.–Press
Citizen
The secondexample is about gun control.
“At that moment, in the twinkling of an eye, everyone’s lives, some of their
destinies were interrupted,” Taylor Jones said. Breonnever got to have her
first boyfriend or attend her prom. The gunmen who shot into the party, who
were 16 and 19 at the time, were eventually sentencedto a combined 400 years
in prison. –LA Times
https://writingexplained.org/idiom-dictionary/in-the-twinkling-of-an-eye
View all Sermons
In The Twinkling Of An Eye

Contributed by Leo Launio on Oct15, 2003
based on 50 ratings
(rate this sermon)
| 6,815 views
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58
Denomination: Adventist
Summary: Is there life after death? Is there hope beyond the grave? Is there a
possibility that I will see my lost loved ones again?
1 2 3 4 5
Next
November 8, 2002
I. Introduction:
A. Today’s topic—In the twinkling of an eye
1) Questions:
a) Is there life after death?
b) Is there hope beyond the grave?
c) Is there a possibility that I will see my lostloved ones again?
2) Answers:

a) The answers to these questions will have significantimplications how we
live right now.
b) It will determine how we are going to conduct our lives
c) It will determine how we are going to relate to one another
d) It will impact how we reactand respond to tragedies and pain.
B. We will begin our study with the life of Job
II. Body:
A. The seventrials of Job
1) First messenger—the oxenwere plowing and the donkeys were grazing
nearby, and the Sabeans attackedand carriedthem off. They put the servants
to the sword.
2) Secondmessenger—the fire of God fell from the sky and burned up the
sheepand the servants.
3) Third messenger—the Chaldeans formedthree raiding parties and swept
down on job’s camels and carried them off. They put the servants to the
sword
4) Fourth messenger—Job’s sons anddaughters were feasting and drinking
wine when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desertand struck the
four corners of the house. It collapsedonyour children and they died.
5) Fifth calamity—Painful sores from the soles ofhis feetto the top of his
head.
6) Sixth—a disheartening wife
7) Seventh—Three friends who blamed him for all his troubles.
B. Job reaction
1) Job 3:1-4, “After this opened Jobhis mouth, and cursed his day. And Job
spake, and said, let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which

it was said, there is a man child conceived. Letthat day be darkness;let not
God regard it from above, neither let the light shine upon it.”
2) Job 3:11, “Why died I not from the womb? why did I not give up the ghost
when I came out of the belly? Why did the knees prevent me? or why the
breasts that I should suck? Fornow should I have lain still and been quiet, I
should have slept: then had I been at rest, with kings and counselors ofthe
earth, which built desolate places forthemselves;or with princes that had
gold, who filled their houses with silver: or as an hidden untimely birth I had
not been; as infants which never saw light. There the wickedceasefrom
troubling; and there the weary be at rest. There the prisoners rest together;
they hear not the voice of the oppressor. The small and greatare there; and
the servantis free from his master. Wherefore is light given to him that is in
misery, and life unto the bitter in soul; which long for death, but it cometh
not; and dig for it more than for hid treasures;which rejoice exceedingly, and
are glad, when they can find the grave? Why is light given to a man whose
way is hid, and whom God hath hedged in? Formy sighing cometh before I
eat, and my roarings are poured out like the waters. Forthe thing which I
greatly fearedis come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto
me. I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble
came.”
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3) Job 6:1, “But Job answeredand said, Oh that my grief were thoroughly
weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances together!For now it would be
heavier than the sand of the sea:therefore my words are swallowedup.”
C. David’s Pain
1) Psalm 69:3, “I am wearyof my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail
while I wait for my God.”

In the twinkling of an eye

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