What does Titus 2:13 mean?

[Strefanash]

(05-12-2009 07:46 PM)sheep wrecked Wrote:  

(05-12-2009 07:24 PM)Strefanash Wrote:  No, for the dead in Christ shall rise first. Being dead does not exclude one from the rapture, which, BTW I now take to be the first resurrection, happening AT the second coming not before it

In reference to the discussion, and curious as to your thoughts - what to you is the "blessed hope"?

The NIV translation puts it as "while we wait for the blessed hope - the glorious appearance of our great God and Saviour" which reading implies quite directly that the blessed hope IS the appearance of the Lord of Hosts. This is the translation I use, this is the passage as I remember it, but the NIV has its known flaws, so I checked the Greek

The Greek has an "and" where the NIV puts a dash,thus: "expecting the blessed hope and appearance of . . . . ."

Does this imply that the blessed hope and the appearance are different things? On reflection I suggest maybe not, to think so is to read the passage too tightly and so to miss the point of the thing.

So after a little thought I may return to the idea that the blessed hope is in fact the glorious appeartnace of the King of Kings, the Great Sovereigjn etc etc