Death is a final, heartbreaking end. Everything in this world hurtles toward death. All of creation heads toward that moment of non-life. Scientifically, we call this entropy. Everything grows old, decays, and dies. Nothing we build will last. No structure, no organization. Nothing.
This includes each individual. We will all die one day. Even though this is a fact of our existence, death is often a surprise. At our very core, we feel it is unfair. Death depresses us, discourages us, and makes us feel hopeless. Like nothing we do matters.
Why is that? If every moment of our experience teaches us that nothing matters, why do we want it to matter? If every part of our existence tells us we will die, why do we feel it is unfair… somehow unjust?
Maybe we weren’t originally designed for death. The Bible teaches that sin entered the world and led to death. The original design was immortal life in an intimate relationship with God, living according to his redemptive purpose. We desire immortality because that’s exactly what we were created for.
The old adage says we can’t avoid “death and taxes.” However, some people (rich and poor) find ways to get out of taxes. But death? Despite how much we desire immortality, that seems pretty impossible.
Unless it’s not. Unless there is a way to escape death. That’s exactly what God did through his Son on the cross.
The crucifixion might have been 2,000 years ago in historical, linear time. However, the event also happened outside of time, transcending this reality into the heavens. The lamb was slain at the foundation of the world (Romans 13:8). Jesus’ death and resurrection proved he was God; however, he didn’t need to prove it. The goal of the crucifixion and resurrection was to make a way for us to escape death and have that intimate life of purpose with God. Forever.
And then… this strange verse in Matthew about people raised to life at Jesus’ death.
Where Does the Bible Mention People Raised to Life at Jesus’ Death?
All four Gospels include the crucifixion narrative, each with unique details of that day. Taken together, they give us a full, mosaic picture of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Matthew 27:51-53 gives us one of the oddest details, not included in the other three. While the world shakes and the sky goes dark, “the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.”
In context, Jesus had just “cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit” (Matthew 27:51). After being whipped until he almost died and a few hours of pure agony nailed to the cross through his hands and feet, Jesus yelled and then died. Matthew clearly expressed the death of Jesus as something he chose: he “yielded up His spirit.”
The apostle John records Jesus saying that no one can take his life; he had the power to give it and take it back again (John 10:8). In other words, he did not die enslaved to death but by choice. He was already free from death before the cross. He submitted to it willfully out of love and obedience to God the Father.
Again, the death and resurrection allowed us to be reconciled to God, free from a hopeless end.
Death rules all of creation. So beating death on behalf of us and all creation was a traumatic event. We see the trauma in the Gospels: the earth shakes, the sky goes black in the middle of the day, and rocks split. And a few “saints who had fallen asleep” were raised from the dead.
Who Are the “Saints Who Had Fallen Asleep”?
The Bible isn’t clear as to the people who rose from the dead. But in context, we can safely make a few assumptions.
First, these were graves close to Jerusalem. Not in the city but outside—likely in the same area where Jesus was interred after his death on the cross. The Jewish law instructed that dead bodies be removed from the camp or the city. While the graves being opened was a big deal, it happened in a remote place, relatively unnoticed. The graves had to be close enough that they walked into Jerusalem.
Second, these were people that had recently died. Yes, it’s unclear, but the scripture suggests they were recognized. They weren’t legends of faith like Abraham or Isaac; their graves weren’t close to Jerusalem, and if they had been, that would have been mentioned.
Third, these were likely people of faith known for being good Jews and followers of God, hence the term “saints.” Saints means “holy ones,” first used in the Old Testament as a label for angels. In Daniel, people were first regarded as saints in the context of God’s coming kingdom. The New Testament writers used saints exclusively for people who were born again.
Did Bodies Literally Rise at Jesus’ Death?
These people rising from the dead is such an odd verse, and nothing more is said about it. There, we are left to speculate beyond the text.
We aren’t the only people who have found this passage strange and mysterious. There are three main theories regarding this verse.
1. The saints were apparitions or ghosts. However, the text states that graves opened, and people got up and walked around, much like Lazarus or other biblical resurrections. Ghosts seem a stretch.
2. The saints were bodily resurrections like Lazarus. These saints lived again, but not in glorified, immortal bodies. They lived and died again.
3. The saints were glorified resurrections. They were given new bodies and ascended after a time, as Jesus did.
Most scholars and historical writers like Thomas Aquinas choose the second option. Aquinas differentiated between perfect and imperfect resurrection. Perfect (meaning “complete”) meant a resurrection into an immortal new body, which we will have in heaven. Imperfect meant incomplete, still in this mortal flesh that would grow old and die. Aquinas and others believed these people mentioned in Matthew were raised in the imperfect sense.
How Do Bodies Rising Connect to the Other Good Friday Events?
Much of the description given by the Gospel writers surrounding the death of Jesus were things that people would have remembered. A major earthquake would have been memorable, especially if rocks split. The sky darkening in the middle of the day was described as a frightening moment. The spiritual breaking of the chains of sin and death is connected to the physical world and redemption. Creation knows this, waiting and longing for the sons and daughters of God to be revealed (Romans 8:22). As Revelation describes, the return of Jesus will be accompanied by violent, worldwide events.
The torn veil in the temple would have also been notable. That veil was supposed to protect humanity from God’s presence, to keep God from breaking out of the holy of holies in judgment. It was a thick veil, and a spontaneous rip in half would surely cause a stir.
Notably, while the veil and holy of holies existed in the temple, the ark of the covenant did not. Without the ark of the covenant, there was no presence of God in that little room. All that happened before that holy of holies was a show, acting like God was there. But he was gone.
The torn veil spoke of two things. First, the old system was already broken and lifeless, seeing the emptiness behind the curtain like the Wizard of Oz. Humanity had been propping it up for a while. Second, there was now free and unhindered access to God through a different covenant, a different priest, and a different king. Jesus. Mercy and forgiveness paved the way for reconciliation.
That new covenant was spoken of in the Old Testament. The new covenant would be one of the heart, a radical change from within. Related to the new covenant’s announcement, there was another prophecy in Ezekiel 37:12-13 that literally says, “You will know that I am the Lord when I open your graves and bring you forth from them.”
Matthew is telling us that this prophecy was fulfilled. And in that fulfillment, Jesus proved that he was God in the flesh and that the new covenant had come.
Death had been defeated. On the cross, all enmity and division were destroyed by Jesus in his body, and now we have free access to God, hence the veil being torn (Ephesians 2:14-18). Since God alone is immortal and life, and we have access to intimacy and oneness with the Father through the Son, we enter that same eternal life in Christ (Romans 6:5-11), hence the graves literally opening and people rising from the dead.
The death of Jesus gave others life at that very moment. Interestingly, the text suggests that the graves opened at his death, but the people didn’t get out and walk around in Jerusalem until his resurrection. Think about that visual. As Jesus got up and walked out of that grave, so did they. They acted and followed his work, what he accomplished.
In other words, their walking in new life symbolized Christ’s work on the cross and his resurrection.
It also meant that the work of Christ was retroactive. These people were faithful to God under the old covenant and died before Jesus, yet they were raised to life by his death and resurrection. All the Old Testament scriptures were part of the story of Christ, testified of him (John 5:39-40), and those of faith are a legacy to the heavenly, redemptive story (Hebrews 11).
Additionally, these saints walked around in Jerusalem, the Holy City, the city that symbolized Heaven on Earth through David and the Temple. The New Jerusalem is the church, the Jerusalem “from above” (Galatians 4:26; Revelation 22).
What Do the Bodies Raised to Life Mean for Us Today?
In the same way, our new life is a mirror of the work of Christ. His finished, eternal work expressed through death and resurrection is the basis for our ability to walk in the newness of life through forgiveness and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Our stories, while lived in mortal flesh, should speak of a greater reality, a spiritual life and power that has already overcome death. We do this locally, with people we know, and as part of the church.
We can live in victory and hope, not based on our circumstances or temporary situations but because of his work. The work of Christ transcends all. It is a gift allowing us to give hope to others, showing through our lives that death isn’t the end. It’s not final. There’s a way to be reconciled to God, escape death, and be part of a story that shakes the foundations of all Creation. We have found it and invite others along for the great adventure.
Peace.
Further Reading:
10 Spooky Stories in the Bible for Halloween
What's the Meaning of the Temple Veil Ripping?
The Significance of Jesus' Resurrection: Why It Matters Today
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/thanasus
Learn more about the meaning and significance behind the Easter holiday and Holy Week celebrations:
What is Lent? and When Does Lent Start?
What is Ash Wednesday? and When is Ash Wednesday?
What is Palm Sunday?
What is Maundy Thursday?
What is Good Friday? and When is Good Friday?
What is Holy Saturday?
What is Easter? and When is Easter Sunday?
Easter Bible Verses
The Resurrection of Jesus
Easter Prayers
