What is the meaning of 1 Corinthians 15:55? Where, Paul opens with a pointed question that looks all the way back to Hosea 13:14—“I will redeem them from Death.” The apostle is not genuinely searching for Death’s location; he is taunting a defeated enemy. • 1 Corinthians 15:54 has just declared, “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” • Because Christ is “the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25), Death’s former throne room is now empty for every believer. • The question “Where?” invites us to picture an enemy army routed on the battlefield, its banners toppled and its leader in flight. O Death, By addressing Death directly, Paul personifies the grave as a once-feared tyrant now stripped of power. • Hebrews 2:14-15: Jesus became human so that “through death He might destroy the one who holds the power of death…and free those who were held in slavery.” • Revelation 1:18 presents the risen Christ holding “the keys of Death and of Hades,” leaving Death subject to Him. • This direct address underscores relationship; Jesus’ victory is not abstract but personal—Death once spoke over us, now we speak over it. is your victory? The question exposes the emptiness of Death’s supposed conquest. • Colossians 2:15 pictures Christ “disarming the rulers and authorities,” leading a triumphal procession. • Romans 8:37-39 assures that nothing—“neither death nor life…nor anything else in all creation”—can separate us from God’s love. • Practical implications: – Our mourning carries hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). – Courage replaces fear of the unknown (Philippians 1:21). – The grave becomes a doorway, not a dead end (2 Corinthians 5:8). Where, Paul repeats the challenge, doubling the humiliation of his foe. Repetition drives home finality: Death’s defeat is not partial or conditional—it is total. • Isaiah 25:8 promises, “He will swallow up death forever.” That promise is now fulfilled, not merely anticipated. • Psalm 116:15 shifts perspective: “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints,” because Death can no longer harm them. O Death, The second address reminds us the battle has moved from prophecy to history. • 2 Timothy 1:10: Christ “has abolished death and illuminated life and immortality through the gospel.” • Death is no longer a sovereign monarch; it answers to the risen King who will one day cast it into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14). is your sting? Paul defines that sting in the next verse: “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law” (1 Colossians 15:56). • By bearing our sin on the cross (1 Peter 2:24) and fulfilling the Law (Matthew 5:17), Jesus extracted the venom. • Like a bee that loses its stinger, Death may buzz, but it cannot strike: – The body may return to dust, yet the spirit is “at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). – Resurrection bodies await (1 Colossians 15:52), free from decay, pain, and tears (Revelation 21:4). • The only lasting sting left is for Death itself when it meets its own doom. summary 1 Corinthians 15:55 records a victory shout, not a wish. By repeating “Where?” and addressing Death directly, Paul celebrates Jesus’ finished work: the grave has lost both its triumph and its toxin. Because Christ lives, believers share His conquest—Death is now a defeated, disarmed, and ultimately doomed foe. |
    |