Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then they also who are fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
- KJV Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
- NKJV Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
- NASB Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
- NLT In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Without the resurrection, those who died trusting Christ have perished. It matters because Christian hope for the dead depends entirely on the resurrection.
Overview
Paul continues the chain of grim consequences: if there is no resurrection, believers who have died are lost, not asleep awaiting glory. The comforting language of 'fallen asleep' would be a cruel illusion. The argument makes clear that resurrection hope is the only ground for confidence about those who die in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- 1 Th 4:13–14Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope.
- 1 Th 4:16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise.
- 1 Cor 15:6After that, He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.
- Rev 14:13And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Christ crucified is the wisdom and power of God; he is our Passover sacrificed for us, the firstfruits of resurrection, the foundation on which everything is built.
How 1 Corinthians 15:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.