Jesus’s Resurrection VS. the General Resurrection
“Now if Christ…has been raised from the dead, how do some among you [Corinthians] say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen [either]” (1 Cor. 15:12–13).
Many Christians argue that this passage proves that the general resurrection will be a physical event. Since Christ rose physically—which the Corinthians fully acknowledged—then so too will God’s people at the general resurrection.
But is that really what Paul meant?
To start with, contrary to popular opinion Paul was not trying to prove the general resurrection per se here—that is, whether or not there will one day be a general resurrection. All Paul was trying to prove is the resurrection of a particular group of people, namely, “the dead” (as opposed to the living).[1] Evidently some of the Corinthians believed that only those who are alive at the time of the resurrection would be resurrected (as opposed to both the living and the dead). However, these Corinthians also believed that Jesus had risen from the dead. So Paul used Jesus’s resurrection as proof that the rest of the dead would rise too. After all, Christ was dead, and he rose…so why wouldn’t the rest of the dead?
Keep in mind, though, that Paul was not discussing the nature of the general resurrection in these verses (1 Cor. 15:12–13), that is, whether it will be physical or spiritual—although Paul does discuss this issue later in verses 42–46 (which I’m going to discuss below). But that is not Paul’s focus in this section (vv. 12–13). Here, Paul is simply trying to prove that the dead will be resurrected too, just like the living.
In fact, Paul says exactly this a few verses later in verses 51–52: “Behold, I tell you [Corinthians] a mystery: We shall not all sleep [die], but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we [who are alive] shall be changed” (vv. 51–52, bolding mine).
Paul’s point here is that both the living and the dead would be resurrected; and that’s what he was trying to prove in verses 12–13 too.
By the way, Paul had dealt with this very same issue in Thessalonica. Apparently, some of the Thessalonians weren’t so sure, either, about whether or not their dead relatives would be resurrected; so Paul assured them: “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thess. 4:16–17, bolding mine).
Once again Paul says the living and the dead will rise. This is the same issue Paul is discussing in 1 Corinthians 15. Since Jesus rose from the dead—which the Corinthians fully acknowledged—therefore, the rest of the dead would rise too!
The Nature of the General Resurrection—Spiritual or Physical?
As to the nature of this general resurrection—whether it would be physical or spiritual—Paul goes on to says in verses 42-46:
“The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual” (1 Cor. 15:42–46, bolding mine).
Paul specifically says the resurrection is a spiritual event!
Some commentators try to get around this passage—this rather clear passage, I might add—by claiming that Paul did not really mean that the general resurrection would be a spiritual event (even though he said so four times). What Paul actually meant was that those who are alive spiritually would one day also rise physically.
But is that really what Paul meant? I don’t think so. For one thing, Paul never said that. And there’s nothing in the context to suggest that either. It’s true that God gives a body (1 Cor. 15:38), but the kind of body God gives is spiritual (v. 42–46).
Secondly, Paul specifically defined the “natural man” and the “spiritual man” a few chapters earlier: “The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them…But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one” (1 Cor. 2:14–15, bolding mine).
Just like in chapter 15, Paul contrasts the “natural man” with the “spiritual man”; yet Paul is clearly describing spiritual differences in chapter 2. So this must be what he is doing in chapter 15 too! Neither passage has anything to do with physical corpses rising out of the dirt.
Thirdly, Paul told the Corinthians that some of them would still be alive when this (general) resurrection happened…so it must have happened in the first century:
“Behold, I tell you a mystery: We [Paul’s audience] shall not all sleep [die], but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Cor. 15:51–52, bolding mine).
Paul obviously believed some of the Corinthians would still be alive when this happened. And Paul told the Thessalonians the same thing:
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thess. 4:16–17, bolding mine).
Paul clearly believed that some of the people he was talking to (in the first century) would still be alive when the general resurrection happened—so it must have happened in the first century. And there was no physical general resurrection in the first century. Therefore, it must have been a spiritual event. Timing defines nature!
Fourthly, Paul specifically linked the general resurrection to the passing of the law, and the law passed away in the first century: “‘O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?’ The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory [over the law, sin, and death] through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:56–57, bolding mine).
Paul linked the resurrection to the passing of the law. Yet the law, aka the old covenant, was about to pass away when the book of Hebrews was written around AD 62: “In that He [God] says, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first [covenant] obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away” (Heb. 8:13, bolding mine).
The writer of Hebrews goes on to say that the temple (in that day) symbolized the old covenant age (Heb. 9:8–9), so when the temple fell in AD 70, it meant the law had passed away. And since the resurrection is linked to the end of the law (per Paul), then this is when the resurrection must have happened too.
The Nature of Jesus’s Resurrection
I want to make one final point, just to avoid any possible confusion: While the general resurrection was not a physical event, Jesus’s resurrection was. In fact, Jesus’s physical resurrection was the sign—or proof—that the general resurrection really happened. Anyone can claim to be the resurrection and the life (John 11:25), but Jesus proved it by raising Lazarus and then himself (v. 44; Matt. 26:61). These physical resurrections were the sign—or proof—that the long-awaited general resurrection, which had been prophesied about all throughout the Old Testament (Hosea 6:2; Isa. 25:8; Dan. 12:2), had finally arrived.
In fact, these physical resurrections are specifically called signs. After raising Lazarus from the dead (John 11:44), the Pharisees said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs” (v. 47).
Likewise, after the Scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus for a sign (Matt. 12:38), Jesus said: “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (v. 39–40).
Anyone can claim to be the resurrection and the life, but Jesus proved it by raising Lazarus and then himself. These physical resurrections were the signs that proved that the long-awaited general resurrection had finally arrived.
Peter, too, confirmed this timing in saying in approximately AD 63: “[Jesus] is ready to judge the living and the dead…The end of all things is at hand…The time has come for judgment to begin” (1 Pet. 4:5, 7, 17; bolding mine).
The general resurrection happened in the first century. It was a spiritual event. And Jesus’s physical resurrection proved it!
For more about the topics discussed in this article, get my book The End Is Here: How the New Testament’s Prophecies Were Fulfilled.
By Alex Polyak, Director of The Bible Fulfilled, 12/21/22
[1] Many believe “the dead” specifically refers to the old covenant saints who had died prior to the time of Jesus/atonement for sin.
