Meeting the Lord in the Air

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In this translation, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 says:

‘We the living that have remained until the Lord is near definitely won’t go ahead of those that are sleeping [in death]. Because, the Lord himself will descend from the sky and give the command in the voice of the highest messenger [of God] and with God’s trumpet.
Then those that have died in the Anointed One will be resurrected first.
And we the living that remain will be snatched away with them at that time into the clouds for a meeting with the Lord in the air, so we’ll always be with the Lord.’

If you look closely here, you will see that the wording raises some serious questions about what Paul was really saying. For note:

1. Why are they spoken of as being taken into the clouds (gr. en nephalais) and meeting with the Lord in the air (gr. eis aera), which is all down here in earth’s atmosphere?

2. If they are being taken into heaven (the presence of God), then why is the word that is commonly translated as heaven in English (gr. ourano) specifically left unmentioned as the place where they are taken?

3. Who are these ones that have died in the Anointed One (gr. nekroi en Christo)?

4. Will they thereafter ‘always be with the Lord’ in the air, in heaven, or here on the earth?

For an in-depth discussion of the possible answers to these questions, see the commentary, The Rapture.