06/17/2026
Mortality Swallowed Up by Chris McCann, originally aired at the Virtual Day in the Word, April 26, 2026.
Hello, and welcome to E Bible Fellowship’s Bible study. Today, we are going to look at a passage in 2 Corinthians 5:1-4:
2 Corinthians 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
I will stop reading there. We will look at this passage, piece by piece, so let us go back to verse 1. It says in 2 Corinthians 5:1:
2 Corinthians 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
First, God refers to “…our earthly house of this tabernacle…,” and the word translated as “tabernacle” is skēnos, Strong’s #4636. It can be understood to represent our physical body. I think that has application here, as we do find a related word translated as “tabernacle” in 2 Peter 1:13-14:
2 Peter 1:13 Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;
14 Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.
The Lord moved Peter to write, and speak of being “in this tabernacle” that he must shortly put off, “this my tabernacle” as Christ had showed him. Of course, Christ went to the cross and died, and then He resurrected and went up into heaven.
Here, the word translated as “tabernacle” is a related word, Strong’s #4638, the Greek word skēnōma. The word in 2 Corinthians 5 is the Greek word skēnos. They are related words, but the main teaching of 2 Corinthians 5 and its use of the word “tabernacle” is pointing to the body of Christ, the outward corporate church, and there is also a reference to the eternal church, consisting of everyone truly saved.
Again, it says, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved,” so we know it is referring to an earthly house. The house itself would point to the church. We read in 1 Timothy 3:15:
1 Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church…
God defines for us that the “house of God” is the church, and that is helpful, especially when we read 1 Peter 4:17, where it says that judgment begins at the house of God. Some might say, “Yes, that is the temple in the first century.” No. 1 Timothy 3:15 defines the “house of God” as the church, and judgment begins at the church. And that was God’s end-time judgment plan to first judge the city called by His name, the corporate church, and then the judgment would transition to the world. God has already done that. He has already carried out the full judgment on the churches for 23 years, which concluded on May 21, 2011. And since then, God has been in the process of judging the whole world, and we who are left in the world have been experiencing that judgment.
Going back to 2 Corinthians 5:1, it says, “For we know that if our earthly house…” Notice the emphasis on “earthly.” Remember that there are two churches. There is the earthly church, and there is the eternal church, and people mistake the two all the time. Some people say, “If I become a member, baptized by my local church, then I am a Christian, and my pastor and congregation recognize me as a Christian, so that makes me part of God’s kingdom.” No. The Church Age is now over, but what happened during the Church Age was that people entered into the outward representation of God’s kingdom on the earth. That is, the churches were a figure of the eternal kingdom of God. God illustrated it in the world with the churches on our local street corners; people would enter in, make profession of faith, become baptized, and call themselves Christians, and they would attend church. All that was fine because God wanted people to do those things during the Church Age, but He does not want people to do that now because the Church Age is over. That all involved the “earthly house.” But there is an “eternal house” of God, the eternal church, and only those who are truly saved are part of that church.
God’s people are also typified by Jerusalem, and there is an “earthly Jerusalem,” and there is a “heavenly Jerusalem.” Revelation 21 tells us that “new Jerusalem” came down from above, and that pictures all those who are truly saved. Galatians 4:25-26 speaks of “Jerusalem which now is,” and contrasts it with “Jerusalem which is above,” Just like there are two Jerusalems, there are two houses, and there are two churches.
In 2 Corinthians 5:1, the “earthly house” definitely points to the corporate, external church, the outward representation of God’s kingdom on this earth. Again, it says in 2 Corinthians 5:1:
2 Corinthians 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved…
The house being “dissolved” is another word that directs our attention to the corporate church because the eternal church cannot be dissolved. When we look up this Greek word translated as “dissolved,” we find it says in Matthew 26:61:
Matthew 26:61 And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.
The word “destroy” is a translation of the same Greek word. It is also the word we find in Luke 21:6:
Luke 21:6 As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
The two English words “thrown down” are a translation of the same Greek word for “dissolved.” In Matthew 24, the parallel Gospel account to Luke 21, Jesus answers the disciples’ question, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” It starts off with Matthew 24:1-2:
Matthew 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
The stones are likened to people, according to a verse in 1 Corinthians that speaks of “living stones” that are built up a spiritual house, and we will look at that later to remind us of that.
But as far as the corporate church, everyone who entered in was like a “stone,” and when God brought judgment on the churches and congregations, it was thrown down. There was no building up; there was no salvation taking place in the churches. So, that “house of God” was destroyed. If you have a structure and all the stones are flat on the ground and there is not one stone upon another, then there is not even the beginning of a building, and that is God’s point. The “buildings of the temple” would point to the churches and congregations, the external corporate church, that is what we mean by the corporate church, like the Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Catholic, and so forth. They are all temporal, external buildings that were put up, and you can see them with your physical eyes.
On the other hand, the eternal church is invisible because it is spiritual. You cannot see when people become saved, and it is only those who are truly saved who are built up into that eternal church. So, it can only be the external church that is thrown down, or dissolved, and here God is pointing that out.
In Luke 19, Jesus beheld Jerusalem, and this would show the connection between Jerusalem and the buildings of the temple where there would be “not one stone left upon another.” It says in Luke 19:41-44:
Luke 19:41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.
Yes, there is an element of this that applies to historical Jerusalem and Israel, but actually it was never literally fulfilled that there was not left one stone upon another. There is still the building of the temple mount and a wall that stands, so it literally did not happen. For there to be not one stone left upon another, it means that it is all destroyed and leveled. Of course, Christ spoke in parables. But notice that He was looking at the city when He said that it (the city) would not have one stone left upon another. That means it also refers to other places, like the building of the temple, because they are spiritually synonymous, and that is why I mentioned Galatians 4 and what we know about earthly Jerusalem versus heavenly Jerusalem; the earthly church and the eternal, heavenly church; and the visible church and the invisible church. They are all saying the same thing.
Going back to 2 Corinthians 5:1, it says, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved,” or thrown down, And when we look up that word “dissolved,” it takes us right to the end of the churches. Then it goes on to say in 2 Corinthians 5:1:
2 Corinthians 5:1 …we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Here, we see the word “eternal.” It is an eternal building, eternal church, eternal house. So, it says we have a “building of God,” and there are so many verses we could look at, but let us go to the “faith chapter” in Hebrews 11. It says in Hebrews 11:10:
Hebrews 11:10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
It is not the earthly Jerusalem city. No. This is the heavenly city, and God built that. By the way, this verse is speaking of Abraham, and then it says in Hebrews 11:13-16:
Hebrews 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.
15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.
16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
The original Greek text does not say “country,” but that is what is implied. They sought, or they desired, a better country: “…that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.” He built a city, “new Jerusalem,” the city in Revelation 21 that comes down from above. It is the “bride,” if you look at the context; the bride has made herself ready, and the “bride” consists of everyone who is truly saved.
Back in 2 Corinthians 5:1, the earthly house is thrown down, and then it says, “…we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” There are a few places we can go to in the Bible, but let us go the verse I mentioned earlier, in 1 Peter 2:5:
1 Peter 2:5 Ye also, as lively (living) stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
A spiritual house would be an invisible house, eternal in the heavens. It is a definite Biblical truth, that unfortunately, the earthly churches are largely ignorant of, and they take language of the Bible that applies only to the invisible, spiritual, eternal church or house, and they apply it to the earthly church or even to Israel. And they are wrong in both cases. Israel, in its time, was the outward representation of God’s kingdom on earth, as was the (corporate) church in its time. Now they have both been “thrown down.”
And thank God , as it says, “…we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were thrown down, we have a building of God.” We have that residency; we have our citizenship in the heavenly kingdom. We are seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, who is our life, so our life is hid with God in Christ. That is why we have confidence at this time, despite the condition of the churches all over the world. They are in desolation, but we are not members. We are not part of them because God commanded us to come out. But even during the Church Age, the elect held “dual citizenship,” or “dual residency.” We were part of the earthly house and part of the heavenly house. Now at this time God’s elect are only part of the heavenly, eternal church, and we have nothing to do with the earthly church because it is corrupt, apostate, and it has been judged, destroyed, and thrown down. The Church Age is over, and God is the One who finished it.
It goes on to say in 2 Corinthians 5:2:
2 Corinthians 5:2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
It is a spiritual house. Right? You can see that truth.
Also, there is another reference to the house that Christ built, in Hebrews 3:4-6:
Hebrews 3:4 For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.
5 And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;
6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
Christ is a Son over His own house, whose house are we, and that plural pronoun “we” does not apply to all so-called Christians or all churches, but it is the plural pronoun “we” that applies to the elect children of God, the ones God predestinated; the ones Christ died for in paying for our sins. We are the world of the elect, “the nations of them which are saved.” We, the elect, are the only ones that are part of that spiritual house, the house of Christ, and it is made up one hundred percent of those who are truly born again. There are no “tares” there, but all “wheat.” There are no “Esau’s” among the “Jacob’s,” and we are all “Jacob’s,” as it were.
So again, God says, in 2 Corinthians 5:2-3:
2 Corinthians 5:2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
Now it is significant that there is the plural pronoun “we” throughout the first 10 verses of this chapter. If you look at it, the first 10 verses can only apply to God’s elect, and that includes 2 Corinthians 5:10:
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ…
This applies to the elect, just as it says in 2 Corinthians 5:7-8:
2 Corinthians 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
Does that describe the (unsaved) people of the world? Of course, not! We, the elect, walk by faith, not by sight. We, the elect, are confident that if we die, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
So, in verse 2 it says, “For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven.” The plural pronouns refer not to the corporate body of churches, but to the collective body of Christ that is made up of everyone who became saved. These words “clothed upon” is a translation of the same word translated as “clothed” in verse 3. (Note: This misstatement regarding the word translated as “clothed” being the same Greek word is corrected later on in the study.)
The word translated as “clothed upon” is Strong’s #1902. And it is related to John 21, which I think helps us to understand this verse, and that is why I want us to go there. Peter and other apostles had been fishing all night, and they had caught nothing. Then Christ appeared and told them where to cast the net, and they caught a great catch of fish, representing the great multitude. It says in John 21:6-7:
John 21:6 And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.
7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.
The word translated as “fisher’s coat” is Strong’s #1903. It is found once, only here in verse 7. How do we understand this? He was naked, and that is what we are told in 2 Corinthians 5:2-3:
2 Corinthians 5:2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
And with the plural pronoun “we,” it is looking at the whole body of Christ. In the Bible, what is “clothing” often a figure of, especially as it concerns those God has saved? It is the covering of Christ’s righteousness. Prior to salvation, the sinner is spiritually naked. In the Bible, nakedness identifies with exposed sin; God can see it, according to Hebrews 4:13:”…all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” He can see our sins. He can see every bit of them. That is why after Adam and Eve had sinned, they realized they were “naked.” They tried to clothe themselves with fig leaves, which identify with Israel, or with the churches, as they attempt to become righteous through religion. But that is not sufficient clothing; it has to be the covering of the Lord Jesus, and that is why God clothed Adam and Eve with animal skins, as a figure, because He had to kill the animal to provide the covering. The sacrificial animal pointed to the shedding of blood of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Then they were “clothed” in a figure, but we are clothed, in reality, with the deep truth that Christ paid for the sins of His people at the foundation of the world. He shed His blood and gave His life to cover our sin.
But there was the matter of the application of that sacrifice over the course of human history since creation, spanning thousands of years in which generations of men were born. God sent forth the Gospel and saved the elect, building up the spiritual house, or building the bride of Christ. Earlier I mentioned Revelation 21 about “new Jerusalem,” but let us just look at that so we can see the relationship. The Apostle John saw the new heaven and new earth, and then it says in Revelation 21:2:
Revelation 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem…
Based on everything we have been discussing, what is that heavenly city of new Jerusalem? It is everyone who is truly saved. That city will not be cast down because it is an eternal city. Again, it says in Revelation 21:2:
Revelation 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
There is a relationship and agreement with the new earth, the heavenly city, and the bride. In other words, they are interchangeable. We, the elect, are all those things, and that can be shown from the Bible. We are the “new earth.” We are the heavenly Jerusalem. We are the bride of Christ. So, over the course of human history, God could use any of those figures. He has been building the city by saving people. He has been building up His spiritual house, adding “living stones” every time He saved someone until that house’s completion. Or, we could say that the bride has made herself ready, finally, as we are told in Revelation 19:8, and she is clothed with “fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” And that is an important tie-in to this “fisher’s coat,” and to the elect being “clothed upon with our house which is from heaven.” It says in Revelation 19:7-8:
Revelation 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
I am sure you are familiar with what it says in Romans 5:19:
Romans 5:19 …so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Christ is the One; it is His righteousness that has made us righteous. It is imputed to us. He paid for our sins. He cleansed us and He washed us with the water of the Word. As He saved us, we individually became righteous. At the time you became saved, you had the fine, white linen, the righteousness of the saints, and you are a child of God.
But collectively, the house was slowly being built, and it was getting closer and closer until, finally, God finished the house. God completed the city, “new Jerusalem,” coming down from above in Revelation 21, and we read again, and again, of the number 12 in the description of that “city.” There were 12 gates, and 12 foundations, and we also read of 144 cubits, which is 12 x 12. Why? The number 12 is the number for “fullness.” The city is full; everyone to be saved has been saved, and now the city “descends.” As we have learned, once everyone has become saved, it is not yet the end of all things because there is the matter of the prolonged Day of Judgment on the earth to be worked out. But the spiritual picture is the fullness of the city, and everyone to be saved has been saved, and the bride has made herself ready, finally. Once someone became truly saved, they were commissioned to go forth with the Gospel in order that others become truly saved. So, they became part of the bride, and then they went forth with the Word of God, and God blessed that Word to save others who also became part of the bride. In that way, the bride made herself ready until the point that all that were predestined to be saved were saved; the bride, as it were, is formed, and the fine, white linen is now not just for the individual child of God, but it is for the whole house; it is for the whole city; it is for the whole bride of Christ. That is what God is saying in 2 Corinthians 5:2-3:
1 Corinthians 5:2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
The pronoun “we” means anyone God had predestinated to be saved. Any one of those elect will no longer be found “naked” because all have been saved. That is why when Peter was fishing, he was naked until they had caught all the fish, the great multitude of fish. (That is the spiritual significance.) And we know the fish represent the great multitude saved out of Great Tribulation, which filled up the salvation of God to the point of completion. God saved “the best for last,” as the expression goes, and that “last hour” of Great Tribulation; the Bible uses the figure of the eleventh to twelfth hour of the 12-hour workday, the Day of Salvation. So, when the great multitude was saved during that “last hour,” there were no more hours in the workday. Jesus said in John 9:4:
John 9:4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
The Bible also says in John 6:29: “…This is the work of God, that ye believe…” The work must be done because, as Jesus said, “The night cometh, when no man can work.” Christ is the man who does the work in the day; Christ is the man who cannot work in the night, in the time of judgment.
So, the last effort of the Gospel going forth (unto salvation) was the worldwide proclamation of the coming of Judgment Day, May 21, 2011, and that message went forth leading up to that day during the second part of the Great Tribulation.
Let us go back to John 21 and the account of Peter and that fishing expedition. It says in John 21:6-7:
John 21:6 And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.
7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.
It says, “for he was naked,” which is in the past tense. That is because Peter is a picture of the whole body of Christ at this point until the last fish was caught. (Remember, the Bible says, “I will make you fishers of men.” The fish represented men.) So, it could not be said that the whole body of Christ was “clothed upon” until the great catch of fish, which numbered 153. But now they had caught them all, and now Peter put on his fisher’s coat. He covers his nakedness, symbolizing that all to be saved had now become saved; the house is built; the city is fully constructed; and the bride has made herself ready.
Therefore, Peter cast himself into the sea, immediately thereafter. What does the sea represent? It represents the wrath of God. You see, you would not want to cast yourself into the sea if you are naked. Remember what God tells us, in Revelation 16:15:
Revelation 16:15 Behold, I come as a thief…
On May 21, 2011, Christ came as a thief in the night, and He caught the world and the corporate church by surprise. He came suddenly, “unawares,” and He brought “unawares” destruction with Him, Judgment Day. Again, it says in Revelation 16:15:
Revelation 16:15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth…
God’s people are the watchmen. We watched, and we saw the “storm” of Judgment Day coming, and we blew the trumpet so that others would be warned. It goes on to say in Revelation 16:15:
Revelation 16:15 …Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
We are blessed at the time that Christ comes in Judgment Day when He comes as a thief, if we have “garments,” or if we are covered, “clothed upon.” But if we are naked, then God will see our shame, and the shame of man is his sin: “…all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” He looks upon the heart. Nobody can fool Him. No outward exterior can fool God, who can see our heart condition.
But, if we are “clothed upon,” and no longer naked, then we are prepared. Or, again, we could look at the example of a house. Remember the Matthew 7 parable of the wise man who built his house upon a rock, and that rock is Christ. In Matthew 16:18, Christ said, “…upon this rock I will build my church…” And “house” and “church” are synonymous. The Rock is Christ, and the house is the eternal house because the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The gates of hell represent death. It is death and hell. Once God built the house, the storm came, as we read in the parable of Matthew 7. And there was another house that the fool built upon the sand, and the storm destroyed that house. It leveled that house, and we could relate that, to some degree, to “not one stone left upon another.” But the house built by the wise man, the Lord Jesus Christ, withstands the storm.
We read of the armor of God in Ephesians 6. It applies to the individual believer, but it also applies collectively to the whole body of Christ being “clothed” with that armor. It says in Ephesians 6:11-13:
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
The word “ye” is the plural pronoun. It goes on to say in Ephesians 6:14-15:
Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
And all the pieces of the armor are Christ, just like the clothing we are clothed with, or “clothed upon,” is the righteousness of Christ. Again, it says in Ephesians 6:13:
Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
The “evil day” is Judgment Day. The ungodly will not stand in the judgment, but the godly, the elect children of God, will stand; the house (of Christ) will stand, and it will glorify God through its endurance to the end, withstanding against the forces of Judgment Day. You tell me: Are there powerful forces at work in this world coming against the unsaved inhabitants of the earth? Yes, most definitely.
And here we are, the children of God, alive and remaining on the earth until that day when we will be lifted up in the Rapture, if we are still physically alive. But we can feel those “forces.” We can see them. We are witnessing them, as evil is going forth from nation to nation. And we expect that to continue, but we are “standing.” We are enduring because we are “clothed upon,” and because we have the armor of God, and because we are built upon the Rock, which means everything! That is the reason we stand, and that is why God gets the glory.
You know, we do not read that the two houses are made of different materials in the parable of Matthew 7. But we read only that the wise man built his house upon a rock. That is the key.
It says in Matthew 16:18:
Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
That “rock” is the Lord Jesus Christ. What has been our understanding of this verse? I think we need to add to what we had understood because as soon as the house (church) was built, the storm came. As soon as the eternal church, consisting of all the truly saved, the elect, was built, then “hell” came to earth. God opened the “bottomless pit,” and the condition of the pit rose to the earth; the sun was darkened, spiritually, and the door to heaven was shut on May 21, 2011. And here we, the elect, are on the earth, and we are experiencing it; we are experiencing the nations that have been turned into “hell.”
And yet, again, the gates of hell will not prevail against God’s eternal church, even though we are in the place that has been turned into the condition of hell. There will be deliverance for us. We trust God. We wait patiently upon God. We have confidence as it says in our verse in 2 Corinthians 5:1-4:
2 Corinthians 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
(By the way, this word translated as “clothed upon” is the same word as the word “clothed upon” in verse 2, not the word “clothed” in verse 3.) What does it mean to be “clothed upon”? Being “clothed upon” means “that mortality might be swallowed up of life” and this is true, collectively, for the whole body of Christ. The Greek word “mortal” or “mortality” is Strong’s #2349 and it comes from #2348, which is a word translated to mean “to be dead,” or “to die.” In Romans 8, God uses this word “mortal” in Romans 8:9-11:
Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
The word “quicken” is an Old English word meaning “to live,” or to “bring to life.” If the Spirit of Christ is in us, that Spirit will quicken, “make alive” our mortal bodies, and we will be raised up and live forever in our new spiritual bodies in the new heaven and new earth in God’s presence, with life for evermore. It is absolutely the greatest thing possible, without a doubt, that we would live in that blessed condition for all eternity future. That is what the Bible tells us, and that is our expectation, and God tells us in Proverbs 23:18, “For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.” It will come to pass. It will happen.
So, we will be “clothed upon,” as it says at the end of the verse in 2 Corinthians 5:4:
2 Corinthians 5:4 …not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
This is an important statement, and we do not have much time left in this study, but this has to do with the resurrection. And it is not just one man’s resurrection but the resurrection of all the people of God. It is only then that what we read in 1 Corinthians 15:53-54 can come to pass:
1 Corinthians 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
Death is swallowed up. Every word there is so important. God is victorious, triumphant over death; Christ slew death. Death “died” when it swallowed up Christ. Jonah was swallowed by the whale in Jonah 1, and Jesus said in Matthew 12:40, “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
The words “swallowed up” are used there, and with every other man, death swallows them, and they are done. Death is the mighty foe. Death is the enemy of God, who is life. The Lord Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. So, the enemy of life is death. They are complete foes.
Also, we read in 1 Corinthians 15:21:
1 Corinthians 15:21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
That is, by man, Adam, came death; by man, Christ, came also the resurrection of the dead. Then it says in 1 Corinthians 15:22:
1 Corinthians 15: 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
All men died in Adam, but in Christ, all (the elect) shall be made alive. (That is the only way we can understand the second use of the word “all.”) Then it says in 1 Corinthians 15:23-24:
1 Corinthians 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father…
Once He saved the great catch of fish, the great multitude, He delivered up all who were to become saved. The house was built, the bride was ready, and so forth. Then comes the end when He has delivered up the kingdom. We, the elect, are that kingdom.
Then it goes on to say in 1 Corinthians 15:24:
1 Corinthians 15:24 …when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
Satan was the principality and power of this world, and he was put down on May 21, 2011, and deposed from rule. Then it says in 1 Corinthians 15:25:
1 Corinthians 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
Christ is reigning on the earth. He put down Satan. He has already delivered up the kingdom; everyone to be saved has been saved. Christ is reigning “until,” and “till” is a time reference that will go from May 21, 2011, until the end of all things in the year 2033, according to Biblical evidence.
Finally, it says in 1 Corinthians 15:26:
1 Corinthians 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
Death is the last enemy to be destroyed, and death is swallowed up in victory, as it says in 1 Corinthians 15:55:
1 Corinthians 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
Christ wrought that victory from the foundation of the world, but, of course, time had to unfold; Christ had to demonstrate what He had done in time, in 33 AD. He had to complete the salvation of His people.
And now He is manifesting His victory over death in the Day of Judgment by leaving His elect people on the earth in a world that has been turned into an enormous “graveyard,” into “hell.” He will show forth His triumph by delivering His people, by having them endure through it and come out of it. Death will not have swallowed us up, as we read in this incredibly glorious statement in 2 Corinthians 5:4:
2 Corinthians 5:4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
Again, what does it mean to be mortal? It means to be liable to die, subject to death. You could die today. I could die today. We are mortal. But then it says, “that mortality might be swallowed up,” not of death, but of life for evermore. And that is how we know this is telling us about the very end of all things; that is the point when the last enemy is destroyed. When death is destroyed, and what happens to death and hell in Revelation 20? They are cast into the lake of fire. Death is destroyed. Hell is destroyed. The grave is destroyed. It is the “death of death,” when God ends this world and burns it out of existence with all the cursed creation. He will have slain the last enemy, and death will be no more, as it says in Revelation 21:4: “…and there shall be no more death…”
