1 Thessalonians 4:17 also says that the translated living saints will be caught up together with the resurrected saints in clouds "to meet the Lord in the air." Some argue that the saints will meet Christ in the air because there will be a seven year delay before Christ finishes His descent to earth.
There is a better explanation based on a special meaning of the Greek word here translated "meet." This word "is to be understood as a technical term for
a civic custom of antiquity whereby a public welcome was accorded by a city to important visitors" (
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT),I.3 80). This word was "
the ancient expression for the civic welcome of an important visitor or the triumphal entry of a new ruler into the capital city and thus to his reign" (
The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology,I.325).
In other words, when a king of antiquity approached his capital city to begin his reign from that location, citizens of the city went out to meet him and to escort him into the city. It was the ancient equivalent of rolling out the red carpet.
This word is found two other places in the New Testament. It occurs in Matthew 25 in the parable of the foolish virgins:
And at midnight a cry was heard: "Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!" Then all the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. ... the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding and the door was shut. (vv. 6-7,10b).
This word also occurs in Acts 28[:15a] in the account of Paul's arrival at Rome:
And from there, when the brethren heard about us, they came to meet us as far as the Appii Forum and the Three Inns.
A second Greek word (υπαντησις
, closely related in both form and sense to the one already mentioned (απαντησις
, is also used to refer to this ancient civic custom (
TDNT,I.3 80). These two related Greek words are used interchangeably in the parable of the foolish virgins to refer to meeting the bridegroom (Matt. 25:1,6). This second Greek word is used in John 12:12-13 to refer to those in Jerusalem who poured out of the city with palm branches to meet Jesus at His Triumphal Entry into the city:
The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and
went out to meet Him, and cried out: "Hosanna! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' The King of Israel!"
This Triumphal Entry meeting does appear to be a significant parallel to the Rapture meeting of 1 Thessalonians 4:17. In both events, people rush forward to acclaim Jesus as Messianic King and to accompany Him on the remainder of His journey.
Notice that in all of these usages, there is no hint of any significant delay in the journey.
The use of the Greek word translated "meet" in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 indicates that
the resurrected saints will meet the Lord in the air to honor Him with an escort for the remainder of His descent to earth. Thus, the saints will meet Christ in the air at His Second Coming to give Him the "red carpet treatment" when He comes to earth to renew it and to rule over it for eternity.