Mark 12:18-27
18 Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) *came to Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying,
19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, his brother is to marry the wife and raise up children for his brother.
20 There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and died leaving no children.
21 The second one married her, and died leaving behind no children; and the third likewise;
22 and so the seven together left no children. Last of all the woman also died.
23 In the resurrection, which one’s wife will she be? For each of the seven had her as his wife.”
24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not understand the Scriptures nor the power of God?
25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.
26 But regarding the fact that the dead rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?
27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.”
Question Concerning Resurrection
Misunderstanding of the Sadducees
Jesus also receives questions from the Sadducees. They were a pro-regime group (pro-Roman) consist of aristocrats and priestly class, and they denied the resurrection of the dead. Now, Deuteronomy 25:5 instructs that if a man dies without leaving a child, his brother is to marry the wife and raise up children for him. The Sadducees, using this teaching as a shield, confront Jesus with a hypothetical scenario. They asked, “If seven brothers, one after the other, married a woman who remained childless and all of them died, in the resurrection, whose wife will she be?” Through this question, they aim to suggest that the Law itself denies the concept of resurrection. Jesus corrects their misunderstanding. (1) The nature of existence is fundamentally different between this world and the next. (2) In the next world, there is no marriage because people cannot die, and there is no need to leave descendants. (3) However, this doesn’t mean the absence of loving relationships. There, a much more blessed human relationship will be achieved. In the next world, we become like “angels” and, in a more fundamental sense, “children of God.” To live better in the present, it is crucial to have not only the perspective of this world but also the perspective of the next world.
Testimony of the Old Testament
The Sadducees recognized authority only in the Pentateuch (Torah). So, Jesus quoted Exodus 3:6 to prove that the doctrine of resurrection exists even in the Torah. (1) God revealed Himself as “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” (2) Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are already dead and no longer exist on earth. (3) God unfailingly fulfills His promises. For the Abrahamic covenant to be fulfilled, the recipients of the promise, namely, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, must be resurrected. In other words, the logic is that the Abrahamic covenant itself guarantees eternal life. Blessed are those who die in the Lord, for the promise of reunion with loved ones in the next world awaits them. Are you content only with your own salvation? Let’s pray earnestly that our beloved family and friends will soon receive this wonderful salvation.
Today's prayer
O God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I believe in the resurrection after death. The day will surely come when we witness the complete fulfillment of your promises. Allow me to walk this earthly life, anticipating that day. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.