1481 Hallelujah! Praise Jehovah from the heavens; praise him in the heights. 2 Praise ye him, all his angels; praise ye him, all his hosts. 3 Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all ye stars of light. 4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that are above the heavens. 5 Let them praise the name of Jehovah, for he it is that commanded, and they were created: 6 And he established them for ever and ever; he made [for them] a statute which shall not pass.
7 Praise Jehovah from the earth, ye sea-monsters, and all deeps; 8 Fire and hail, snow and vapour, stormy wind fulfilling his word; 9 Mountains and all hills, fruit-trees and all cedars; 10 Beasts and all cattle, creeping things and winged fowl; 11 Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all judges of the earth; 12 Both young men and maidens, old men with youths,— 13 Let them praise the name of Jehovah: for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above the earth and the heavens. 14 And he hath lifted up the horn of his people, the praise of all his saints, [even] of the children of Israel, a people near unto him. Hallelujah!
1491 Hallelujah! Sing unto Jehovah a new song; [sing] his praise in the congregation of the godly. 2 Let Israel rejoice in his Maker; let the sons of Zion be joyful in their King. 3 Let them praise his name in the dance; let them sing psalms unto him with the tambour and harp. 4 For Jehovah taketh pleasure in his people; he beautifieth the meek with salvation. 5 Let the godly exult in glory; let them shout for joy upon their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand: 7 To execute vengeance against the nations, [and] punishment among the peoples; 8 To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; 9 To execute upon them the judgment written. This honour have all his saints. Hallelujah!
1501 Hallelujah! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in the firmament of his power. 2 Praise him in his mighty acts; praise him according to the abundance of his greatness. 3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet; praise him with lute and harp; 4 Praise him with the tambour and dance; praise him with stringed instruments and the pipe; 5 Praise him with loud cymbals; praise him with high sounding cymbals. 6 Let everything that hath breath praise Jah. Hallelujah!
29 Since what shall the baptised for the dead do if [those that are] dead rise not at all? why also are they baptised for them? 30 Why do we also endanger ourselves every hour? 31 Daily I die, by your boasting which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If, [to speak] after the manner of man, I have fought with beasts in Ephesus, what is the profit to me if [those that are] dead do not rise? let us eat and drink; for to-morrow we die. 33 Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. 34 Awake up righteously, and sin not; for some are ignorant of God: I speak to you as a matter of shame.
35 But some one will say, How are the dead raised? and with what body do they come? 36 Fool; what thou sowest is not quickened unless it die. 37 And what thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that shall be, but a bare grain: it may be of wheat, or some one of the rest: 38 and God gives to it a body as he has pleased, and to each of the seeds its own body. 39 Every flesh [is] not the same flesh, but one [is] of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another [flesh] of birds, and another of fishes. 40 And [there are] heavenly bodies, and earthly bodies: but different is the glory of the heavenly, different that of the earthly: 41 one [the] sun's glory, and another [the] moon's glory, and another [the] stars' glory; for star differs from star in glory. 42 Thus also [is] the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruptibility. 43 It is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body: if there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual [one]. 45 Thus also it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul; the last Adam a quickening spirit. 46 But that which is spiritual [was] not first, but that which is natural, then that which is spiritual: 47 the first man out of [the] earth, made of dust; the second man, out of heaven. 48 Such as he made of dust, such also those made of dust; and such as the heavenly [one], such also the heavenly [ones]. 49 And as we have borne the image of the [one] made of dust, we shall bear also the image of the heavenly [one]. 50 But this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit God's kingdom, nor does corruption inherit incorruptibility.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in an instant, in [the] twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must needs put on incorruptibility, and this mortal put on immortality. 54 But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruptibility, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the word written: Death has been swallowed up in victory. 55 Where, O death, [is] thy sting? where, O death, thy victory? 56 Now the sting of death [is] sin, and the power of sin the law; 57 but thanks to God, who gives us the victory by our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 So then, my beloved brethren, be firm, immovable, abounding always in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in [the] Lord.
(Read 1 Corinthians 15:20-34)
All that are by faith united to Christ, are by his resurrection assured of their own. As through the sin of the first Adam, all men became mortal, because all had from him the same sinful nature, so, through the resurrection of Christ, shall all who are made to partake of the Spirit, and the spiritual nature, revive, and live for ever. There will be an order in the resurrection. Christ himself has been the first-fruits; at his coming, his redeemed people will be raised before others; at the last the wicked will rise also. Then will be the end of this present state of things. Would we triumph in that solemn and important season, we must now submit to his rule, accept his salvation, and live to his glory. Then shall we rejoice in the completion of his undertaking, that God may receive the whole glory of our salvation, that we may for ever serve him, and enjoy his favour. What shall those do, who are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Perhaps baptism is used here in a figure, for afflictions, sufferings, and martyrdom, as Matthew 20:22,23. What is, or will become of those who have suffered many and great injuries, and have even lost their lives, for this doctrine of the resurrection, if the dead rise not at all? Whatever the meaning may be, doubtless the apostle's argument was understood by the Corinthians. And it is as plain to us that Christianity would be a foolish profession, if it proposed advantage to themselves by their faithfulness to God; and to have our fruit to holiness, that our end may be everlasting life. But we must not live like beasts, as we do not die like them. It must be ignorance of God that leads any to disbelieve the resurrection and future life. Those who own a God and a providence, and observe how unequal things are in the present life, how frequently the best men fare worst, cannot doubt as to an after-state, where every thing will be set to rights. Let us not be joined with ungodly men; but warn all around us, especially children and young persons, to shun them as a pestilence. Let us awake to righteousness, and not sin.
(Read 1 Corinthians 15:35-50)
1. How are the dead raised up? that is, by what means? How can they be raised? 2. As to the bodies which shall rise. Will it be with the like shape, and form, and stature, and members, and qualities? The former objection is that of those who opposed the doctrine, the latter of curious doubters. To the first the answer is, This was to be brought about by Divine power; that power which all may see does somewhat like it, year after year, in the death and revival of the corn. It is foolish to question the Almighty power of God to raise the dead, when we see it every day quickening and reviving things that are dead. To the second inquiry; The grain undergoes a great change; and so will the dead, when they rise and live again. The seed dies, though a part of it springs into new life, though how it is we cannot fully understand. The works of creation and providence daily teach us to be humble, as well as to admire the Creator's wisdom and goodness. There is a great variety among other bodies, as there is among plants. There is a variety of glory among heavenly bodies. The bodies of the dead, when they rise, will be fitted for the heavenly bodies. The bodies of the dead, when they rise, will be fitted for the heavenly state; and there will be a variety of glories among them. Burying the dead, is like committing seed to the earth, that it may spring out of it again. Nothing is more loathsome than a dead body. But believers shall at the resurrection have bodies, made fit to be for ever united with spirits made perfect. To God all things are possible. He is the Author and Source of spiritual life and holiness, unto all his people, by the supply of his Holy Spirit to the soul; and he will also quicken and change the body by his Spirit. The dead in Christ shall not only rise, but shall rise thus gloriously changed. The bodies of the saints, when they rise again, will be changed. They will be then glorious and spiritual bodies, fitted to the heavenly world and state, where they are ever afterwards to dwell. The human body in its present form, and with its wants and weaknesses, cannot enter or enjoy the kingdom of God. Then let us not sow to the flesh, of which we can only reap corruption. And the body follows the state of the soul. He, therefore, who neglects the life of the soul, casts away his present good; he who refuses to live to God, squanders all he has.
(Read 1 Corinthians 15:51-58)
All the saints should not die, but all would be changed. In the gospel, many truths, before hidden in mystery, are made known. Death never shall appear in the regions to which our Lord will bear his risen saints. Therefore let us seek the full assurance of faith and hope, that in the midst of pain, and in the prospect of death, we may think calmly on the horrors of the tomb; assured that our bodies will there sleep, and in the mean time our souls will be present with the Redeemer. Sin gives death all its hurtful power. The sting of death is sin; but Christ, by dying, has taken out this sting; he has made atonement for sin, he has obtained remission of it. The strength of sin is the law. None can answer its demands, endure its curse, or do away his own transgressions. Hence terror and anguish. And hence death is terrible to the unbelieving and the impenitent. Death may seize a believer, but it cannot hold him in its power. How many springs of joy to the saints, and of thanksgiving to God, are opened by the death and resurrection, the sufferings and conquests of the Redeemer! In verse 58, we have an exhortation, that believers should be stedfast, firm in the faith of that gospel which the apostle preached, and they received. Also, to be unmovable in their hope and expectation of this great privilege, of being raised incorruptible and immortal. And to abound in the work of the Lord, always doing the Lord's service, and obeying the Lord's commands. May Christ give us faith, and increase our faith, that we may not only be safe, but joyful and triumphant.
