1 Thess 5:16-17 is not what you quoted. 1 thess 5:16-17 is
“ 16 Rejoice always. 17 Pray without ceasing
You probably mean 1 thess 4
St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonian Christians because they were worried about those who died before Christ’s return. Many in the ancient world believed that a person simply ceased to exist upon death, as do many modern unbelievers. There seems to have been a rumor in Thessalonica that the dead Christians had lost out on any chance of a physical resurrection. St. Paul assures them that it was not so. In fact, “the dead in Christ will rise first” to meet Christ, and those still alive at the second coming will immediately follow them. But all will meet Christ at that time.
Rapturists make a point of the fact that we will “meet the Lord in the air”—the Lord who has come “in the clouds.” They infer from this that Christ will not actually touch down on terra firma and that we will go back to Heaven with Christ for the duration of a seven-year Great Tribulation. If so many people did not accept this explanation, I would dismiss it immediately as silly. The word St. Paul uses for meeting the Lord “in the air” is aer, the Greek word for atmosphere. This same word is used to describe Satan as “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2). Yet no one would claim that, because of this word, Satan has no influence over people who keep their feet firmly planted on earth. A consistent rapturist reading of this word here would mean that only astronauts, balloonists, pilots, and airplane passengers are influenced by Satan’s power. No, when Christ returns to the earth’s atmosphere, He has returned to earth. Read the verses again! We will meet Christ, but it will be at His second coming to earth. Any other use of the language stretches credibility.
Furthermore you are conflating the Revelation of john with the writings of Paul.
Slip of the number...but 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 is a good verse to remember when discussing these issues.