How does this verse connect with other teachings on resurrection in Scripture? Setting the Scene in Mark 12:23 • “In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For all seven were married to her.” (Mark 12:23) • The Sadducees rejected resurrection (Acts 23:8), so their scenario aimed to discredit Jesus by making bodily resurrection look absurd. • Jesus’ response (vv. 24-27) affirms that resurrection is certain and that earthly institutions like marriage will give way to a new order of life. Old-Testament Roots of Resurrection • Job 19:25-26 — “I know that my Redeemer lives, and in the end He will stand upon the earth. Even after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God.” • Psalm 16:10 — “You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.” (Quoted of Christ in Acts 2:31.) • Isaiah 26:19 — “Your dead will live; their bodies will rise.” • Daniel 12:2 — “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, and others to shame and everlasting contempt.” These passages lay the groundwork that Jesus confirms in Mark 12. Jesus’ Consistent Teaching on Resurrection • Mark 12:26-27 — God identifies Himself as “the God of Abraham… He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” • John 5:28-29 — “An hour is coming when all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come out.” • John 11:25 — “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” • Luke 20:36 — “In the resurrection… they can no longer die; they are like the angels.” Mark 12:23 sits squarely within this unified testimony from Jesus that resurrection is real, bodily, and guaranteed. Apostolic Confirmation • Acts 4:2 — The apostles “were proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.” • Acts 23:6 — Paul identifies himself as on trial “concerning the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” • 1 Corinthians 15:20-22 — “Christ has indeed been raised… so in Christ all will be made alive.” • 1 Thessalonians 4:14-16 — “The dead in Christ will rise first.” The early church preached exactly what Jesus affirmed against the Sadducees’ skepticism. What Mark 12:23 Adds • Highlights bodily resurrection: “when they rise again.” • Reveals relational transformation: earthly marriage ends (v. 25), emphasizing that our ultimate union is with the Lord. • Exposes unbelief: the Sadducees’ hypothetical underscores that denying resurrection leads to confusion about God’s power and Scripture’s meaning (v. 24). Living in Light of Resurrection • Confidence: Our future is as certain as Christ’s empty tomb. • Perspective: Temporal blessings (including marriage) are precious yet provisional. • Motivation: Knowing we will rise spurs holy living (1 Corinthians 15:58) and hopeful grieving (1 Thessalonians 4:13). |
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