παρουσία

This is the last chapter of this book. It is fitting that it should treat the New Testament’s word for Christ’s final coming, because the book’s first chapter treated the New Testament’s word for Christ’s first coming.

Chapter 1 began with John 1:14 — “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The Word (logos) entered the world He had made, took on human flesh, lived among His people, taught, suffered, died, rose, and ascended. The Christ who came as logos accomplished what He came to do — He bore the price for sin, defeated death, established His church, gave the means of grace, ascended to His Father’s right hand to intercede there.

But the Christ who came does not stay away. The same Christ who entered the world as logos will return — as the apostles repeatedly promise, as the church has confessed for two thousand years, as the believer awaits in faith and hope. The word the New Testament most often uses for this final coming is parousia. It appears about twenty-four times in the New Testament — most frequently in the Pauline epistles and 2 Peter — and it gives the New Testament’s eschatology its distinctive shape.

This is the chapter on parousia. It is the last chapter of this book, and it sits at the close of Part VII on hope and last things. The book began with the Word made flesh in His first coming; it ends with the Word who is to come at His final appearing. The bookends are intentional. The same Christ is the subject of both ends of the book. The same Christ who came once will come again. The same Word who took on flesh will return in glory. The faith that holds Him now will see Him then.

The Word

παρουσία (parousia), pronounced pah-roo-SEE-ah. A feminine noun. A compound of para (παρά, “beside, alongside, in the presence of”) and ousia (οὐσία, “being, presence, essence” — the same ousia we encountered in the previous chapter on hypostasis). The word is built from the verb pareimi (πάρειμι, “to be present, to have come, to have arrived”). The literal etymology gives “being beside” or “being present.” The word covers both the act of arriving (becoming present) and the state of being present (having arrived). In actual usage these two senses blend — the parousia is both the coming and the consequent presence.

The family is small:

• pareimi (verb, “to be present, to have arrived, to have come”). Used frequently in the New Testament for ordinary presence.
• parousia (noun, “coming, arrival, presence”).

The Greek classical and Hellenistic background is essential. The word’s most distinctive technical use was for the official arrival of a king, emperor, or high official. Hellenistic monarchs made parousia-tours of their kingdoms. The arrival of the monarch was a major civic event. Coins were struck to commemorate the parousia. Inscriptions recorded the parousia on temple walls and city gates. Cities prepared with gifts, ceremonies, processions, special games, and the suspension of ordinary business. The civic order was reorganized to receive the royal presence. Citizens who had been derelict in their duties hurried to set things right before the king arrived. The word carried the weight of royal authority arriving to be seen and to be obeyed.

This royal-visitation sense is essential to the New Testament use of parousia. When the apostles speak of Christ’s parousia, they are using a word that their Greek-speaking audience would have heard as “royal arrival.” The King is coming. The civic order will be reorganized. Preparations are appropriate. The arrival is a moment of substantial weight, the moment when the rightful ruler comes to set things in order, reward His faithful servants, judge His enemies, and inaugurate His full reign.

The Septuagint background is more limited. Parousia appears occasionally in the LXX but is not a major Old Testament theological term. The New Testament writers draw primarily on the Greek civic-royal background rather than on a developed Hebrew tradition.

The related New Testament vocabulary for the same event is worth knowing because it shows how the apostolic preaching used multiple words to describe Christ’s return from different angles:

• Epiphaneia (ἐπιφάνεια, “appearing, manifestation”). Used six times in the New Testament, mostly in the Pastoral Epistles and Titus. The word emphasizes the visibility of Christ’s appearing. Titus 2:13 — “waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing (epiphaneian) of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” The English word “epiphany” descends from this.
• Apokalypsis (ἀποκάλυψις, “uncovering, unveiling, revelation”). Used in connection with Christ’s return in 1 Corinthians 1:7, 2 Thessalonians 1:7, 1 Peter 1:7, 13, and 4:13. The word emphasizes the unveiling of what has been hidden — Christ’s glory, currently concealed, will be revealed at His coming. The English word “apocalypse” descends from this; the last book of the New Testament is called the Apocalypse of John in Greek.
• Hē hēmera tou kyriou (ἡ ἡμέρα τοῦ κυρίου, “the day of the Lord”). A phrase that draws on Old Testament prophetic language (Joel 2; Amos 5; Isaiah 13; many others) and applies it to Christ’s return. 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10. The phrase emphasizes the decisive moment, the day on which everything is gathered to a head.
• The verbs erchomai and eleusis (“to come, the coming”). The simplest Greek vocabulary for Christ’s return, used throughout the gospels and elsewhere. Matthew 24:30 — “Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming (erchomenon) on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”

All of these refer to the same event from different angles. Parousia emphasizes the arrival and royal presence. Epiphaneia emphasizes the visibility of His appearing. Apokalypsis emphasizes the unveiling of what has been hidden. Hē hēmera emphasizes the day as decisive moment. Erchomai emphasizes the simple fact of Christ’s coming. The various words give the New Testament’s teaching on the return its richness; they do not refer to multiple separate events.

Range of Meaning

In its New Testament usage, parousia covers:

• Ordinary presence of a person. Paul refers to his own parousia with the Corinthians and Philippians in this sense (1 Cor 16:17; 2 Cor 7:6, 7; 10:10; Phil 1:26; 2:12). The non-technical sense — someone being there.
• The arrival of an official representative or visitor in an official capacity. 1 Corinthians 16:17 borders on this sense.
• The future return of Christ in glory — the dominant New Testament theological usage. The royal-arrival sense of parousia shapes this technical usage decisively.
• The coming of the lawless one (Antichrist) — 2 Thessalonians 2:9, in parallel to and contrast with Christ’s parousia. Even Antichrist’s coming is described as a parousia — a royal arrival, but a counterfeit one, a deceitful arrival in opposition to Christ’s true coming.

The dominant theological usage is Christ’s return. About fifteen of the twenty-four New Testament occurrences refer specifically to Christ’s parousia in glory. The chapter focuses there.

Where You’ll Meet It

“As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’” (Matthew 24:3, ESV)

The disciples’ question in the Olivet Discourse. “Your coming” is tēs sēs parousias — “your parousia.” The discourse that follows is one of the longest New Testament treatments of the events leading up to Christ’s return, the signs that will accompany it, and the appropriate posture of the believer in the meantime. Christ uses parousia four times in Matthew 24 (verses 3, 27, 37, 39), each time referring to His own future return in glory.

“For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” (Matthew 24:27, ESV)

The vivid image. Parousia is paired with erchetai and the comparison to lightning. The Son of Man’s coming will be sudden, visible across the heavens, unmistakable. The image rules out a secret coming or a coming visible only to some. The parallel with lightning is that everyone sees lightning — it cannot be missed.

“For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man… For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” (Matthew 24:37, 38–39, ESV)

The Noah comparison. The world will be carrying on with ordinary business when the parousia comes. Eating, drinking, marrying. The arrival will not be predictable through standard observation. The point is not that no warning will be given (Christ has given the warning Himself); the point is that those who are not watching will not be ready. The Christian’s responsibility is to be ready, to live in the means of grace, to await Christ’s coming with appropriate alertness.

“But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:23, ESV)

The resurrection chapter. “At his coming” is en tē parousia autou. Paul connects the parousia directly to the resurrection of the dead. Christ is the firstfruits (1 Cor 15:20); those who belong to Christ will be raised at His parousia. The two events — Christ’s return and the believer’s resurrection — are not separable. The believer’s body will be raised when the Lord returns. The order is fixed: Christ first, then those who belong to Him at His coming.

“For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15–17, ESV)

The most extensive Pauline treatment of the parousia. “Coming of the Lord” is parousian tou kyriou in verse 15. The structure is striking. The Lord Himself descends from heaven. A cry of command. An archangel’s voice. The trumpet of God. The dead in Christ rise first. Those still alive are caught up together with them. The gathering meets the Lord in the air. The result: “so we will always be with the Lord.”

The verb “caught up” in verse 17 is harpagēsometha — from harpazō, “to seize, snatch, catch up.” The Latin Vulgate translates this with rapiemur — “we will be caught up, raptured” — and from this Latin word the English term “rapture” derives. This is the only New Testament passage that uses harpazō in this specifically eschatological connection, and it describes what happens at the parousia itself — not a separate event preceding the parousia. The Lutheran reading: the “rapture” of 1 Thessalonians 4:17 is the gathering of believers at Christ’s one return, not a separate event that occurs years before His final coming.

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1–2, ESV)

Paul to the Thessalonians on the parousia. The Thessalonian believers were apparently being unsettled by claims that the day of the Lord had already arrived. Paul addresses this directly. The parousia has not yet come. Christ’s return is still future. The believer is not to be shaken by false claims about the timing of the parousia — neither by spirit-claims (alleged prophetic revelations), nor by spoken word, nor by forged letters claiming apostolic authority. The signs of the parousia are real; the parousia itself has not occurred.

“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” (James 5:7–8, ESV)

James’s pastoral application. The farmer’s patience is the analogy. The believer awaits the parousia with the patient confidence of a farmer awaiting the harvest. The work has been done; the seed is in the ground; the patient waiting is appropriate. James connects this directly to “establishing your hearts” — the firm standing (hypostasis of the previous chapter) that the believer maintains as he awaits the Lord’s return.

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.” (2 Peter 1:16, ESV)

Peter on the parousia. The “power and coming” — dynamin kai parousian — is what Peter’s apostolic preaching announced. The basis is not myth but eyewitness testimony, particularly the Transfiguration experience that follows in verses 17–18. The apostles saw Christ’s glory in advance at the Transfiguration; that glimpse is the pledge of the full revelation of glory at the parousia.

“Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.’” (2 Peter 3:3–4, ESV)

Peter on the scoffers. “His coming” is tēs parousias autou. The scoffers’ argument is essentially: the parousia has been promised for a long time and has not come; the promise must therefore be unreliable. Peter’s response in the following verses appeals to God’s patience (verse 9 — “not slow… but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish”) and to the certainty of the day of the Lord coming “like a thief” (verse 10). The delay is not denial; the delay is divine patience, giving more time for repentance, before the inevitable parousia.

“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.” (1 John 2:28, ESV)

John on the parousia. “At his coming” is en tē parousia autou. The believer is exhorted to “abide in him” so that he may have parrhēsia (the very word treated in Chapter 41) and not shrink in shame at Christ’s coming. Christ’s return is the believer’s final test of whether his life has been spent in the One in whom he claimed to abide. The exhortation is positive: abide in Christ now, and the parousia will be a moment of welcome, not of fear.