The Importance of Jesus’ Resurrection: The Other Resurrections

Michael L. Franklin
08/17/23 - Resurrection Series

The accounts of resurrections throughout the Old and New Testament are evidence of God’s power, but the account of the resurrection of Jesus is of far greater importance and infinitely more powerful than the others. In a series of Bible articles, I will examine some of the reasons that Jesus’ resurrection is far above all the others contained in the Bible.  

Before we get into Jesus’ resurrection, I want to examine the other resurrections found in the Bible and before I look at them individually, we need to look at the miracle of a resurrection in general. 

So, what is a resurrection?  

It is the literal reanimation of a dead human body by God, usually with the interceding of a prophet of God for the purpose of confirming that prophet as being from God. Such occasions were extremely rare, both in the Old and New Testament, and were therefore highly powerful proof of God’s working.  

Without any question, a miraculous resurrection would be an unspeakably joyous blessing to someone who has lost a loved one. It would be much more than a resuscitation; it was a revivification or the reintroduction of life into the whole human body. We can measure death by many different criteria and when I speak of death here, I mean the complete cessation of life. For this reason, when I speak of resurrection I mean the complete restoration of every aspect of life. The brain, heart, lungs, eyes, ears, nose, throat, head, hands, arms, legs, feet and every organ of the body reenergized and activated. The body which had been cold, was instantly warmed, and the limbs, which had likely even gone into rigor, became limber and moved.  

By all these means and more, these events evidenced something which had not been seen or expected by those present. These miracles occurred when someone was confirmed as dead often by multiple witnesses, including family members and other people who knew the deceased well. It would be highly unlikely that another person’s body could have been substituted to fool the onlookers. Certainly, the mother of a son, would know if the dead body and then the living person was her own son. The resurrections which Elijah and Elisha performed involved the only sons of mothers. (Jesus also resurrected several children in the presence of their parents).  

Excluding the resurrection of Jesus, there are approximately nine other occasions found in the Bible where someone was resurrected from the dead. On one of those occasions there were multiple people resurrected from the dead. Look at the list in the chart at the conclusion of this discussion. 

All the Old Testament accounts of resurrection are found in 1 and 2 Kings, and these are attributed either to Elijah or Elisha. They were oral prophets, who were very active and outspoken, but they did not write their messages down. The third account of a resurrection in the Old Testament is singular in nature because it was the resurrection of a man’s dead body by the agency of the prophet Elisha’s bones! Again, he was instantly and completely restored to life. 

New Testament accounts of the miracle of resurrection are found in the Gospels and the Book of Acts and are primarily attributed to Jesus. However, both Peter and Paul performed a miracle of resurrection during their journies preaching the gospel.  

One more resurrection event stands apart from the others. After Jesus had resurrected, several significant signs happened, Matthew records,  

“The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.” (Matthew 27:52,53 ESV)  

This event was unique in that there were numerous bodies being raised from the grave all at once and the one performing the resurrection is not stated (although we know that it must have been God through Christ since it was after his resurrection -MF). 

Regarding the other resurrections, it is important to remember that they were all raised to die again, excepting those saints raised after Jesus’ resurrection, who had died previously as saved ones, and of whom the prophet Daniel prophesied that they would receive the eternal kingdom. 

“But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’” (Dan. 7:18) 

“until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom.” (Dan. 7:22) 

The point of this study is to contrast in a general way, the other resurrections we read of in Scripture with the resurrection of Jesus the Christ and it is notable that these other resurrections were temporary. They experienced death and were awakened from death by God’s power but then at some later time in their lives, they finally died. Their resurrection was merely a reprieve from death, not a complete removal of death. They lived for however many more hours, days, weeks, months or years; then they closed their eyes and finally stepped into eternity after all.  

We could say much more about these other resurrections but this is an introduction to what makes Jesus’ resurrection from the dead the most significant of all and the most powerful single event in human history! 

Study the list of resurrections in the Bible and notice their similarities and differences and share your conclusions and observations with me in a reply email. 

Michael Franklin 

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