My granddaughter Allyssa and I have a regular routine we go through when we say goodbye. We wrap our arms around each other and begin to loudly wail with dramatic sobs for about twenty seconds. Then we step back and casually say, “See ya,” and turn away. Despite our silly practice, we always expect that we will see each other again—soon.

孙女爱莉每次和我道别时，都有个固定的模式。我们会先紧紧相拥，大声哀嚎，戏剧化地啜泣约二十秒，然后分开后退一步，轻松地说“再见”才转身离开。尽管我们的道别方式有点傻气，但我们都很期待很快能再次相聚。

But sometimes the pain of separation from those we care about can be difficult. When the apostle Paul said farewell to the elders from Ephesus, “They all wept as they embraced him . . . . What grieved them most was [Paul’s] statement that they would never see his face again” (Acts 20:37–38).

然而，有时和我们挚爱的人分离却是痛苦难熬的。当使徒保罗向以弗所的长老道别时，“众人痛哭，抱着保罗……。叫他们最伤心的，就是[保罗]说‘以后不能再见我的面’那句话”（使徒行传20章37-38节）。

The deepest sorrow, however, comes when we are parted by death and say goodbye for the last time in this life. That separation seems unthinkable. We mourn. We weep. How can we face the heartbreak of never again embracing the ones we have loved?

最深的哀痛莫过于因死亡而分离，在此生最后一次和对方说再见。这种分离的痛苦是难以想像的，我们哀悼、哭泣，因失去挚爱而心碎。

Still . . . we do not grieve like those who have no hope. Paul writes of a future reunion for those who “believe that Jesus died and rose again” (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18). He declares: “The Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel,” and those who have died, along with those who are still alive, will be united with our Lord. What a reunion!

但我们忧伤，并不像那些没有指望的人一样。保罗告诉我们那些“信耶稣死而复活”的人，将来会再相聚（帖撒罗尼迦前书4章13-18节）。他说：“因为主必亲自从天降临，有呼叫的声音和天使长的声音。”那些早已安息主怀的人和还活着的人，都将一同与我们的主相会。这是多么让人期待的团聚啊！

And—best of all—we will be forever with Jesus. That’s an eternal hope.

而且最棒的是，我们将会永远与耶稣同在。这是永恒的盼望！

Thank You, Lord, for the assurance that this world is not all we have but that a blessed eternity awaits all who trust in You.

主，感谢祢，因祢应许凡相信祢的人，
都有蒙福的永恒等待着我们，
这个世界不是我们的永久居所。

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 New International Version (NIV)

13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 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. 17 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. 18 Therefore encourage one anotherwith these words.

帖撒罗尼迦前书 4:13-18 Chinese Union Version Modern Punctuation (Simplified) (CUVMPS)

13 论到睡了的人，我们不愿意弟兄们不知道，恐怕你们忧伤，像那些没有指望的人一样。 14 我们若信耶稣死而复活了，那已经在耶稣里睡了的人，神也必将他们与耶稣一同带来。 15 我们现在照主的话告诉你们一件事：我们这活着还存留到主降临的人，断不能在那已经睡了的人之先。 16 因为主必亲自从天降临，有呼叫的声音和天使长的声音，又有神的号吹响，那在基督里死了的人必先复活， 17 以后我们这活着还存留的人必和他们一同被提到云里，在空中与主相遇；这样，我们就要和主永远同在。 18 所以，你们当用这些话彼此劝慰。