I think that they embrace all
saints who have died up to that point in time, although I
know that many restrict them to the Church.
Those who take the view that 1 Thess. 4: 16 is restricted to the
Church point out that the expression “in Christ” is peculiar to the
NT. This is perfectly true. Indeed, the words “in Christ” are only
found in the Acts and the Epistles. It is also true that, by and
large, the teachings of the Epistles have Christians in view. Some
teachings are peculiar to the Church although there are also many
that are true at all times for all saints. The words “For as in the
Adam all die, thus also in the Christ shall all be made alive” (1
Cor. 15: 22) while said to Christians, can hardly be limited to
them. It surely goes without saying that the OT saints will be made
alive by resurrection, and that being so they must be “in the
Christ”. A similar phrase “in the Lord”, with one exception (Ps. 73:
28), is also peculiar to the NT. Yet in Rev. 14: 13 we read of those
“who die in [the] Lord from henceforth” which refers to saints on
the earth after the Church has gone! If a man is not “in the Christ”
he is still “in the Adam” irrespective of when he may live.
The strongest indication that all dead saints will rise together at
the coming of the Lord is found in the three phrases of 1 Thess. 4:
16: “for the Lord himself, with an assembling shout, with
archangel’s voice and with trump of God, shall descend from heaven”.
There are no definite articles before each of these phrases, giving
them a characteristic sense. The Lord comes alone but with three
sounds accompanying His descent. Each sound is of the Lord
Himself—the thought is not that the Lord only utters the assembling
shout while God blows a trumpet, and an angel’s voice is heard. But
why three different sounds? If this coming is for the Church alone,
then why do we have “with archangel’s voice and with trump of God”?
Surely the first phrase “with an assembling shout” would be
sufficient? Furthermore, from what I can gather, the second phrase
in particular (“with archangel’s voice”)
is an enigma to those who limit “the dead in Christ” to the
Church. Indeed it must be, for its usage is actually another strong
indication that 1 Thess. 4: 16 is not just about the Church! With
this in mind, let us examine this particular phrase in more detail.
Angels are representatives. The Lord spoke of little children as
having angels in heaven (see Matt. 18: 10) and if those in the house
of John Mark’s mother were correct (see Acts 12:15), this
representation extends to all men. In Dan. 10 we learn that this
representation goes much further and that certain members of the
angelic host are identified with nations. In Dan. 10: 13 I read of
“Michael, one of the chief princes” who is clearly the same as
“Michael the archangel” of Jude 9. In Dan. 10 the nations Persia and Greece each have their spiritual
princes but Michael was described to Daniel as “Michael your prince”
(Dan. 10: 21). That is, Michael is the prince that represents
Daniel’s people as a nation—Israel.
Both Dan. 10 and Jude 9 are scenes of spiritual conflict—the latter
being Michael’s dispute with the devil over the body of
Moses, Israel’s
first national leader. The inclusion of the phrase “with archangel’s
voice” (1 Thess. 4: 16) therefore suggests that Israel is involved in some way. It
cannot be as part of the Church for there such distinctions between
Jew and Gentile have gone (see Eph. 2: 15).
Looking again at the phrases together, I note that all three have
military connotations. I note also the order as each succeeding
phrase gets less distinctive and more remote: the assembling shout,
the voice and lastly the inanimate trumpet’s blast. I take it that
the Lord’s assembling shout is for the dead in Christ who belong to
the Church. It is the word used for a general’s assembling shout to
his soldiers. The Church is unique, it is the body of Christ, and
accordingly this word is also unique, for this is its only
occurrence in the NT. Secondly, we have the voice of the archangel.
I take it this is for the dead in Christ who were of Israel such as David, Isaiah, John
the Baptist and the like. But what of saints who were not part of Israel such as
Abel, Noah and Job? It is only a suggestion, but I think that the
trump of God is for such.
As already indicated this is a military setting. But who is the
enemy? It is death. For when the “dead in Christ” rise “then shall
come to pass the word written: Death has been swallowed up in
victory” (1 Cor. 15: 54, 55). These are the grounds on which I judge
that at the coming of the Lord every saint that is in the grave will
rise in victory over death.
