# The dead who rose when Christ died. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 29, 2003, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559 "2003-07-29T00:36:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susma_Rio_Sep)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/1 "2003-07-29T00:36:51Z")
This query is addressed to New Testament scholars and theologians, and also Christians who might be able to satisfy my need to fill in my knowledge of Christianity. According to the account in the New Testament, when Jesus died on the cross, there was an earthquake, tombs broke open and many of the dead rose up and went to Jerusalem and appeared to many. What happened to these risen dead? Did people kill them and bury them again? Did they continue to live, returning to their home and family, and then eventually die again in old age or from disease and accident? When I was much much younger I thought these are the guys who later took on the personas or the characters of werewolves, Draculas, zombies, and all kinds of human creatures from the night of the living dead. Well, all guys here who know better, please give me good enlightenment. Susma Rio Sep ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/2 "2003-07-29T00:52:50Z")
Just for reference, the passage in question is [Matthew 27:52-53](http://bible.gospelcom.net/cgi-bin/bible?passage=MATT+27:52-54&language=english&version=NIV&showfn=on&showxref=on) > [@](#): > > \*\*[sup]52[/sup]The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. [sup]53[/sup]They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. \*\* This doesn’t seem to appear in the other gospels. Good question, **Susma**. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/3 "2003-07-29T02:23:48Z")
Definitely a good question. My bible, which is an annotated study version, says that this appears to be an apocalyptic reference. It only appears in Matthew. As for what happened to the formerly-dead people: well, Lazarus and the little girl and the widow’s son all apparently lived normal lives and eventually died again. Offhand, I would assume that the same thing would apply to our guys here. Incidentally, the Catholic Church makes a distinction between _resuscitation_ (coming back to life) and _resurrection_ (transcending the human form). Christ resurrected. Lazarus was resuscitated. One last thing to keep in mind. “Many” doesn’t necessarily mean a huge army. I asked myself a couple of questions: 1. How many resuscitated people would I have to see before I ran around yelling about “dead people all over the place”? Probable answer: two 🙂 2. If I heard about a friend-of-a-friend whose dead mother came back to life and returned home again, would I believe it? Hell no. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/4 "2003-07-29T02:55:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diceman \* > \*\*As for what happened to the formerly-dead people: well, Lazarus and the little girl and the widow’s son all apparently lived normal lives and eventually died again. \*\* Is this in the Bible, or is this just speculation on the part of the annotator? ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMensch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/5 "2003-07-29T06:03:42Z")
Well. I think Jesus came back and got all of his saints out of the graves and had a very nice second coming doing it. It makes sense. The gospels speak of having the second coming occuring before some of those present in the audience are in the grave. It sort of puts a limit on the time frame for a second coming, don’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/6 "2003-07-29T07:38:24Z")
In any case, I consider it a…_grave_ dereliction of duty that the local Roman officials didn’t report any of this back to the eternal city. ::snicker:: Okay, the “grave” part is a joke. But still… ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMensch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/7 "2003-07-29T08:03:24Z")
I am currently gathering believing souls for my third coming. I’ll be over towards the east next Sunday morning, if y’all interested… ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/8 "2003-07-29T11:43:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MonkeyMensch \* > \*\*I think Jesus came back and got all of his saints out of the graves and had a very nice second coming doing it. It makes sense. The gospels speak of having the second coming occuring before some of those present in the audience are in the grave. > \*\* No, no. Jesus gave a list of signs that would herald the second coming. Masive earthquakes, global warfare, the dead coming back to life, that kind of thing. The SC will occur before “this generation passes away.” The disciples assumed that these things would be happening within the next few years, but of course they didn’t. And in retrospect, how could they? Jesus said to go and make disciples of all nations, and that hasn’t happened yet. And even the “World Wars” weren’t anywhere near to being a world-wide conflict. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/9 "2003-07-29T11:50:29Z")
BTW: my take on this is that the Second Coming will occur when every person on earth has heard of Christ, and has had a chance to accept Him or reject Him. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/10 "2003-07-29T12:32:47Z")
Or just check Snopes. > **[Keep on Noodlin'](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/keep-on-noodlin/)** > > Do photographs show fisherman with giant catfish caught by 'noodling'? Wasn’t doubting you **Diceman** , I rememberthe story from ages ago. Bear in mind, these guys catch them with their bare hands. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/11 "2003-07-29T12:36:16Z")
Wrong thread, scuse me. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/12 "2003-07-29T15:01:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ranchoth \* > **In any case, I consider it a…_grave_ dereliction of duty that the local Roman officials didn’t report any of this back to the eternal city.** Interesting point. It should’ve made Pilate’s report. > [@](#): > > All appropriate measure are being taken in re the zombie problem and members of the 5th Palastinian Legion are currently involved in mopping up operations in East Jerusalem. All of the undead are expected back in their graves by week’s end. However, the question of who will bear the costs of re-interment has not been settled. The Sadducees agree with me that all costs should be borne by the families of the redeceased while the Pharisees claim that, as the families had already buried their loved ones once with the understanding that it would be forever, costs should be covered with public funds. A vocal minority claims that the followers of Jesus of Nazareth should be responsible for all expenses, though their extreme poverty would suggest that payment will not be immediately forthcoming. As the city has begun to stink to low Tartarus a decision will have to be made quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/13 "2003-07-29T16:31:01Z")
LOL 😃 ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/14 "2003-07-29T16:50:42Z")
There’s a New Testament problem with regard to what happens to a believer (or any righteous person) upon death. It mostly revolves around these three questions: 1. What happened to all the souls of the just before Christ’s salvific death and resurrection? 2. What happens to a believer’s soul who dies after Christ’s resurrection but before the final judgement? 3. Where was Jesus’ soul while in the tomb? (Or for that matter, where was Lazarus’ soul after death but before resuscitation?) All these questions deal with the larger question: Is the state of everlasting bliss from resurrection into the Kingdom of God (Heaven) immediate upon death? Or, is there a delay? (And if there is a delay, what are you doing during that delay? And the New Testament problem is that there are conflicting answers and/or silence with regard to these questions. The orthodox Christian answer is: resurrection, judgment, and entrance into heaven is immediate. The scriptural basis is found in: [ul] [li]Jesus during his earthly ministry appears to Peter, Andrew, and John with Elijah and Moses. So, obviously, Elijah and Moses are alive and well in heaven (otherwise, they were resurrected for a just a ten minute appearance).[/li][li]Jesus’ story of the beggar Lazarus (no relation to the resuscitated Lazarus of Bethany) is that he went to heaven into the bosom of Abraham. Notice that the story does not depend on the final judgment at some later time, but that the beggar simply went to Abraham who was already in heaven).[/li][li]In the debate with the Sadducees (who did not believe in an afterlife), the Sadducees pose a theoretical question about the afterlife. Jesus’ response seems to assume immediate resurrection.[/li][/ul] And one more point of data: from the very beginning of Church history, the veneration of martyrs presumed that the were already in heaven, and not waiting for the last judgment at the end of time. Now, against this position of immediate resurrection, there is the contrary arguments: [ul] [li]that entrance into heaven can not happen until Jesus’ death and resurrection. And therefore, all those who lived before Christ had to wait. [/li][li]And then there is Christ’s talk about the final judgment of all people. That talk makes it sound like everyone has to wait until The End of Time, at which point then there will be resurrection to a judgment which will determine one’s final destination. But, where are the souls of the dead until that final judgment?[/li][li]And there is Paul’s assumption, found mostly in his early letters, that Christ is coming back in their lifetimes. But since a few of their numbers have died, Paul claims that they will rise when Christ comes back in glory. Until then, they ‘sleep in death.’[/ul][/li] The theology of modern mainline Christian denominations (RCC, Lutheran, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, etc… – the fundamentalists are on their own in trying to reconcile these contradictions) responds to the delayed resurrection thusly: Christ’s death and resurrection was once for all. This means all people at all times. While Christ’s death and resurrection was experienced by us time-bound people as happening in time, it is also part the eternal now of God outside time, and, being outside time, can be applied to all people throughout time. From our point of view, that means retroactively. From God’s point of view, the timing is irrelevant. So, even those born before the time of Christ could have experienced immediate resurrection. Jesus’ stories of the final judgment are parables told in human language to time-bound humans. It was not meant to be a timeline of resurrection, but a warning to those who reject the Kingdom of God on earth that they will find themselves outside the Kingdom for ever after death. Paul’s ‘sleeping in death’ awaiting Christ’s coming again in glory was a mistake on his part (the part about it going to happen in their lifetimes). Paul’s later letters drops this language as he is now realizing it might be generations until the second coming. And now, onto where was Jesus and Lazarus in between their death and resurrection/resuscitation? We don’t know for sure. Christian tradition developed a story that Christ went to the land of the dead to free them from that place. But this presumes the Jewish understanding of death being a shadowy semi-life in the netherworld. (Later tradition uses the term ‘hell’ {"…he descended into Hell, and on the third day, rose again…"} for this underworld, but it is not the ‘hell’ we think of with devils, fire, and pitchforks.) This is just fancy imagery for saying that Christ died, just like any human being would die, and then by rising from the dead, was able to raise all from the dead. It is trying to put a time-bound timetable (complete with geographical postitioning) on the sequence of events that get us into trouble. As mentioned above, once you leave this world, time (and space) is meaningless. And so, Jesus’ and Lazarus’ period of death could have been just a blink of an eye from their point of view (or an eternity, or both). Which now gets us to the OP’s question about the dead being seen in Jerusalem: We presume that they appeared like Jesus did, as post-resurrectional appearances in glorified (heavenly) bodies, and not as resuscitated people like Lazarus (or like zombies). Just like any story about one seeing a loved-one appear after their death. Maybe the saints of Jerusalem were just having a big resurrection party. ## Peace. How about an easy question next time, like the meaning of life? ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/15 "2003-07-29T17:01:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Susma Rio Sep \* > \*\* > When I was much much younger I thought these are the guys who later took on the personas or the characters of werewolves, Draculas, zombies, and all kinds of human creatures from the night of the living dead. > \*\* The first story I ever wrote that I completed was a vampire novella that had the biblical Lazarus as the first vampire. If I had known about these other resurrections, I could have worked those into the story too. Actually, maybe I should rewrite it and use that somehow. Only with your permission, though. Do you have any objections? ---
**Author:** ![Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susma_Rio_Sep)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2003, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/16 "2003-07-30T13:16:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Revtim \* > \*\*The first story I ever wrote that I completed was a vampire novella that had the biblical Lazarus as the first vampire. If I had known about these other resurrections, I could have worked those into the story too. > > Actually, maybe I should rewrite it and use that somehow. Only with your permission, though. Do you have any objections? \*\* No objections whatsoever. You’re perfectly welcome! Susma Rio Sep ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2003, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/17 "2003-07-30T13:50:41Z")
Hey, the Bible’s full of dead people coming back to life. See [http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/contra/death.html](http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/contra/death.html) . The Skeptics Annotated Bibile is an interesting place to browse, if you don’t have time to actually read the Bible and notice all the inconsistencies yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2003, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/18 "2003-07-30T20:05:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Jesus during his earthly ministry appears to Peter, Andrew, and John with Elijah and Moses. So, obviously, Elijah and Moses are alive and well in heaven (otherwise, they were resurrected for a just a ten minute appearance). You have to die to be resurrected. Apparently, Elijah never died but ascended bodily to heaven in a flaming chariot (UFO). Tim ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2003, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/19 "2003-07-30T20:48:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by moriah \* > **Which now gets us to the OP’s question about the dead being seen in Jerusalem: We presume that they appeared like Jesus did, as post-resurrectional appearances in glorified (heavenly) bodies, and not as resuscitated people like Lazarus (or like zombies). Just like any story about one seeing a loved-one appear after their death.** So why does Matt. 27:52 specifically say **“The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.”** Seems pretty unambiguous to me; their bodies that were in the tombs were raised to life. Your heavenly body explanation just doesn’t fit. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2003, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559/20 "2003-07-30T21:22:04Z")
> [@](#): > > No, no. Jesus gave a list of signs that would herald the second coming. Masive earthquakes, global warfare, the dead coming back to life, that kind of thing. I’m pretty sure that Jesus never said that these were signs to herald the second coming. He said that they would happen, but that the end would **not** follow soon after. It’s always seemed to me that he was saying “Yeah, things like that happen all the time, but they don’t mean anything”. Further, there are a lot of statements to the effect of “You will know not the day nor the hour”, suggesting that there are no signs at all preceeding the End Times. As for “before this generation passes from the Earth”, or whatever, you can also reconcile that by supposing that one or more people alive then still haven’t died. No, I’m not claiming that’s so, but there are numerous legends to that effect. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dead-who-rose-when-christ-died/191559.md?page=2)