Q
When the Bible states that God will wipe away every tear, does that mean, despite dying or being raptured, we will feel sadness and cry until He does this?
A
There are two places in the Revelation where God is said to wipe away the tears of His people. One is in Rev. 7:17 and pertains to Tribulation Martyrs newly arrived in Heaven, and the other is in Rev. 21:4 speaking of believers in the New Jerusalem at the beginning of the Millennium. In both cases, the idea is that once a child of God arrives at his/her eternal home the old order of things passes away and eternal bliss characterizes the future. Once we leave Earth there are no more tears.