Part 15 – Explaining 2 Corinthians 5:9

This Article is part of a multi-part Study Series called Life, Death, and Eternal Life.

“We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. 9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.” (2 Cor.5:8-9)

The above verse is often cited as an objection to the proper understandings of eternal destinies of the saved according to the Bible.

There is no such thing as eternal torment to come for lost souls, and we know that all believers ‘sleep’ in Christ until they are raptured to heaven in their resurrected glorious spirit-bodies, as we’ve already seen in this series.

Only those alive at His coming at the Rapture will be immediately “absent from” their old sin-laden corruptible bodies and proceed directly into “the presence of the Lord” without dying; yet taking on their new glorious incorruptible spirit-bodies in the process of being ‘Raptured.’

The key phrase of objection is this: “absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” (2 Cor. 5:8). From this, it is claimed by most Christians that dead believers are in immediately “the presence of the Lord” with all consciousness of their souls. Thus, they would deny the words “sleep” and “asleep” as used by both Jesus and Paul.

As all proper Bible interpretation demands, 2 Cor. 5:8-9 need to be seen in context as a pre-Acts 28:28 book of Paul’s writing, while he was still going to “the Jew First,” as he did throughout the 30-year time frame of the Book of Acts. In fact, at that time Paul had not yet received or written the full revelation or written of the truth that was yet to come after Acts 28:28, as recorded in his last 6 epistles.

Recall that the Messianic Kingdom was being re-offered during the early Acts period by “the twelve” in response to Jesus’ prayer: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” So, Paul picked up where they left off ministering to the “Jews first” concerning the Lord Jesus being their Messiah and savior for their salvation, now available to indwell them in accord with the prophesy of Ezekiel 36. We see this in Paul’s early (7) epistles that were written during Acts.

But we don’t see “the mystery” of the joint-body of Gentile and Jew, totally without distinction between them until Eph. 3:9, “And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:” This “fellowship of the Mystery” had been kept secret by God until Paul’s latter seven ‘Prison Epistles,’ particularly seen doctrinally in Ephesians and Colossians.

Recall also that Jesus gave a parable to this effect of extending the offer of the Kingdom beyond the cross, as seen in early Acts, saying;

Luke 13:6-9 6 He (Jesus) spake also this parable; A certain man (God) had a fig tree (Israel) planted in his vineyard (world); and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years (of Jesus’ ministry) I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? 8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 9 And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.

The reoffer of the things of the kingdom extended until Acts 28:28 when the Lord had Paul to fully turn from the nation Israel… to the Gentile “body of Christ” which includes “all men” but now… without distinction or racial preference. No longer would there be “the Jew first,” until Christ second coming, after the Tribulation, bringing the long promised Messianic Kingdom on earth.

So, 1st & 2nd Corinthians are Pre-Acts 28:28 and there we find many things peculiar to Israel, marking that time as particularly Jewish. Consider below a few listed things that existed during Acts but don’t apply to us today during “the dispensation of the grace of God.” Yet, Paul consistently preached these things to the Messianic Jewish “church of God” in every synagogue he could throughout the Acts period.

“Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you (Jews): but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. (Acts 13:46)

Beginning in this locality (Salamis, of Cyprus), as seen in Acts 13, the Jews rejected Paul’s words for “the Jews first,” so he went to other synagogues throughout the Acts period to offer the same UNTIL Acts 28:28.

This list below is largely taken from a blog by Wayne Stewart at https://rightdivision.com

Note these things that came AFTER Acts 13:46, but BEFORE Acts 28:28:

  1. Worship in synagogues attended by Paul - Acts 14:1, 17:1, 10, 17, 18:4, 19, 26, 19:8.  

AFTER Acts 28:28 – no worship is mentioned in synagogues; only in the churches.

  1. Abraham, patriarch of Israel - mentioned 31 times. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no mention of Abraham.

  1. Jacob, renamed “Israel” - Genesis 32:28 - mentioned 5 times. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no mention of Jacob

  1. Israel, as a nation - mentioned 21 times. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - 1 time, Ephesians 2:12 – to put a difference between Jew and Gentile.

  1. Paul continued to preach on the Sabbath - Acts 15:21, 16:13, 17:2, 18:4. 

AFTER Acts 28:28, “sabbath days” are mentioned in a negative manner, and to negate their importance (Col 1:16), even though The Sabbath is one of the Decalogue for the Jews.

  1. Paul continued his ministry to the synagogues - Acts 14:1, 17:2, 18:4, 19:8.

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no mention.

  1. Paul endorsed and delivered four commandments to Gentiles - Acts 15:20, 28-29, 16:4. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - never mentioned.

  1. Paul endorsed and performed ‘water’ baptisms - Acts 16:15, 33, 18:8. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - never mentioned except to negate its importance.

  1. Gift of tongues, miracles and healing still operative - Acts 14:10, 19:6, 11, 28:8-9. 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no spiritual gifts of any kind mentioned; Paul left friends sick (Philip. 2:26-30; 2 Timothy 4:20) and never later speaks of “tongues.”

  1. Paul kept Jewish feasts (Acts 18:21) or Holy Days and practiced in Judaism by taking vows and shaving his head (18:19, 21:23-26).

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no mention, except to negate their importance (Col 1:16)

  1. Paul handled snakes as per Jesus’ words in Mark 16:18 (Acts 28:5.) 

AFTER Acts 28:28 - no mention.

  1. Paul taught nothing new to the Jews at Rome, no mention of the “the Mystery” of the joint body of Eph 3:9, until AFTER (Acts 28:20, 23.) 

The “mystery” mentioned in Romans 16:25 refers to the one he spoke of in Romans 11:12-25.  The “wild olive tree” (Gentile) is grafted into the “good olive tree” (Israel) and nourished by the fatness of the root. Here the Gentile is graft into the olive tree but still dependent upon Israel first.  This is the new covenant for Israel, which Christ, Israel’s Lamb and High Priest brought to Israel through His death, burial and resurrection. It doesn’t make sense that Paul would explain a “mystery” regarding an olive tree and then refer to an entirely different one pertaining to Christ’s joint-body (Ephesians 1:22-23, 3:9.) In Romans, the Jew was still first (Romans 1:16; 3:1-2; 9:1-5; 11:12-25. So, we know we are reading a Pre-Acts 28 book when we read Romans.

  1. The saved Messianic believers are compared as unto a human body (1 Corinthians 12:12-27) and as a bride (2 Corinthians 11:2.) 

AFTER Acts 28:28, the saved are described specifically as Christ’s ‘own body,’ masculine, not a bride. Ephesians 1:22-23, 4:13.

  1. Gifts are different in their importance in the New Covenant (1 Corinthians 12:28-31.)

AFTER Acts 28:28, there are less gifts and all are equal in importance (Ephesians 4:11-12.)

If you believe in mid-Acts (9 or 13) as the start of the church for which Christ is “the head,” ask yourself:

  1. Do we today go to “the Jew first”? Paul said the gospel should go first to the Jew during the entire Acts period. Paul shared the cross and the new customs of the New Covenant for Israel 18 times in synagogues. About keeping the “custom(s),” “But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.” (1Corinthians 11:16) Paul was guarding the new customs of the New Covenant for Israel.

Then Paul speaks specifically about of the new “custom” of the Lord’s supper, among others, which Jesus gave His Jewish followers (not “the body of Christ”). The “cup” of the Lord’s supper was one of those new customs of remembrance. It was a new tradition for the New Covenant Jesus introduced to Israel. “When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper. 21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken. (1Corinthians 11:20-21). During Acts, Paul often was correcting the abuse “customs.”

  1. Do we preach a ‘millennial hope to the Gentiles’ as seen in Paul’s words in Acts 13? Paul did until after Acts 28:28.
  2. Do we have the powers of the miraculous age to come (the Millennial kingdom on earth)? Paul did and so did the Acts church, indeed that body of Messianic believers of 1Cor. 12 was made on the basis of these miraculous gifts (See the early Acts miracles.).
  3. Do we make a collection for those Jewish believers who are poor and do you do so BECAUSE you are participating in the Jews spiritual things? Paul did this among the Romans and Corinthians, but never in the Prison Epistles.
  4. Do we still have women cover their heads when praying or prophesying as Paul instructed (1Cor 11:5)?
  5. Do we recommend men Not to marry because the time is short unto the coming of the Lord as Paul instructed young men in 1Cor 7:26-29?

You will note that Paul’s pure “body of Christ” Prison Epistles appear in sequence in our Bible following his early 7 epistles that went “to the Jew First” and then the Gentiles. The seven Prison Epistles are; Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. Ephesians and Colossians. They present “the mystery” of the Joint-Body consisting of Jew and Gentile, totally without preference or distinction as to any race being first. The Jew-First is distinguished from “the Mystery” of “Christ in you the hope of glory” as applies to Gentile believer’s total sufficiency in “the body of Christ,” coming after Acts 28:28.

Having the preceding context, we can now explain 2 Cor. 5:1-10, among Paul’s earlier epistles.

“For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle (our body) were dissolved (decayed), 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. 5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. 6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: 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. 9Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:1-10 (KJV)

Since words matter, we need to look at these verses in detail and note them in the context of all Paul’s epistles. This below is mostly taken from “Asleep in Christ” by Helaine Burch.

“These verses (2 Corinthians 5:1-10, above) may seem to indicate a faithful man will be consciously present with the Lord immediately upon death.

But it’s important to remember that at the time 2 Corinthians was written, the kingdom was being reoffered to Israel by the twelve Apostles (during Acts) and therefore was still “at hand.” Thus, the church in existence at that time was living with the expectation of the imminent return of the Lord (the 2nd coming) and therefore hoped to be transformed or changed… rather than see death (cf. 1Cor 15:51). Thus, 2Cor 5:1-10 and all others penned between the Ascension and the postponement of “the Kingdom” at Acts 28:28 (cf. Rom. 11:10-11, 11:25) should be read with this hope in mind.

So, Paul’s earnest prayer was to be clothed upon with “the house (spirit-body) which is from heaven,” his spiritual body that is fitted for eternity. Paul hoped to be transformed from his earthly body to his heavenly body, thus avoid “being found naked.” (2Cor. 5:3). This “naked” or unclothed state is the state of death, in which Paul would have neither an earthly house (body) nor yet his “house from heaven.” (2Cor 5:2), which obviously is not desired. Read Paul’s words carefully.

Paul did not wish to sleep, or die, but he obviously hoped to remain alive until the 2nd coming of the Lord, and then to be “changed” as “in the twinkling of an eye” (1Cor. 15:51-52), into his new, glorious spirit-body, and so avoid “the sting of death” entirely.

He referred to this “change” or transformation, as being “clothed upon that mortality might be swallowed up of life.” And because of his great confidence in this promise of God, he was ready and “willing” to “be absent from the body, and be present with the Lord.” He longed for (“groaned” for) the return of Jesus Christ and the transformed heavenly body that would be his at that very moment.

But “whether present or absent,” he labored and sought to be pleasing to the Lord, knowing that when his earthly house was “dissolved” (or “changed”) into the spiritual “house which is from heaven,” judgement would follow soon after. While this passage does not specifically state that man will be with the Lord immediately upon death, it does inform us that Paul desired to be absent from his earthly body, and present with the Lord in his new body fitted for eternity.”

Paul’s word “naked” in the text above means to bodyless. We know from Daniel’s, Jesus’, Luke’s, and Paul’s words, the soul “sleeps” when the body is dead. One without his spirit is physically dead in body (Eccl. 12:7). Then being spiritless and bodyless the soul is “naked” and “asleep,” we await our glorified body in the resurrection (rapture), then with our spirit and soul in it.

Note that when Lazarus was raised from the dead the text says;

“And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.” (John 11:44).

Note here that it is “he that was dead came forth” – not his body only, but the “he” of Lazarus’ person – Lazarus’ soul-self!