“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
“Loud … voice … trumpet call” are three ways of expressing the same calling (or action) of the Lord.
“Voice of the archangel” is only mentioned one other time in the NT (Jude 9). The Lord uses angels to execute His will.
“Dead in Christ” are those who passed away while believing in the Lord, and they will rise first.
“Who are alive and left” are simply believers who remain alive on the earth.
“Caught up together with them” implies a strong sense of a sudden and violent action. The point is that we will be gathered together at the resurrection, the dead as well as the living, when Christ returns. Paul’s teaching here is about the resurrection and not about a secret return of Christ.
“Meet the Lord in the air” … in the ancient world, dignitaries were welcomed officially by people who escorted them. The focus here is the coming together of the Lord and His people. “In the air” is considered to be the abode of evil spirits, so the implication is that all will yield to Him who has all authority in the heavens and on earth.
“With the Lord forever” means what it says … we will be with the Lord in heaven after the resurrection.
God’s richest blessings on your day…