TRV
Translation
King James Version
And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
American Standard Version
And Jesus said unto them, The sons of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
World English Bible Messianic
Yeshua said to them, ‹“The children of this age marry, and are given in marriage.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Then Iesus answered, and sayd vnto them, The children of this world marry wiues, and are married.
Young's Literal Translation
And Jesus answering said to them, `The sons of this age do marry and are given in marriage,
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In the KJVVerse 25,814 of 31,102
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Commentary on Luke 20 verses 27–38
27 ¶ Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him,
28 Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
29 There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children.
30 And the second took her to wife, and he died childless.
31 And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died.
32 Last of all the woman died also.
33 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife.
34 And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
35 But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
36 Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.
37 Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
38 For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.
I. II. Main points1. 2. Sub-points(1.) (2.) Details
This discourse with the Sadducees we had before, just as it is here, only that the description Christ gives of the future state is somewhat more full and large here. Observe here,
I. In every age there have been men of corrupt minds, that have endeavoured to subvert the fundamental principles of revealed religion. As there are deists now, who call themselves free-thinkers, but are really false-thinkers; so there were Sadducees in our Saviour's time, who bantered the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come, though they were plainly revealed in the Old Testament, and were articles of the Jewish faith. The Sadducees deny that there is any resurrection, any future state, so anastasis may signify; not only no return of the body to life, but no continuance of the soul in life, no world of spirits, no state of recompence and retribution for what was done in the body. Take away this, and all religion falls to the ground.
II. It is common for those that design to undermine any truth of God to perplex it, and load it with difficulties. So these Sadducees did; when they would weaken people's faith in the doctrine of the resurrection, they put a question upon the supposition of it, which they thought could not be answered either way to satisfaction. The case perhaps was matter of fact, at least it might be so, of a woman that had seven husbands. Now in the resurrection whose wife shall she be? whereas it was not at all material whose she was, for when death puts an end to that relation it is not to be resumed.
III. There is a great deal of difference between the state of the children of men on earth and that of the children of God in heaven, a vast unlikeness between this world and that world; and we wrong ourselves, and wrong the truth of Christ, when we form our notions of that world of spirits by our present enjoyments in this world of sense.
1.The children of men in this world marry, and are given in marriage, huioi tou aiōnos toutou - the children of this age, this generation, both good and bad, marry themselves and give their children in marriage. Much of our business in this world is to raise and build up families, and to provide for them. Much of our pleasure in this world is in our relations, our wives and children; nature inclines to it. Marriage is instituted for the comfort of human life, here in this state where we carry bodies about with us. It is likewise a remedy against fornication, that natural desires might not become brutal, but be under direction and control. The children of this world are dying and going off the stage, and therefore they marry and give their children in marriage, that they may furnish the world of mankind with needful recruits, that as one generation passeth away another may come, and that they may have some of their own offspring to leave the fruit of their labours to, especially that the chosen of God in future ages may be introduced, for it is a godly seed that is sought by marriage (Mal 2:15), a seed to serve the Lord, that shall be a generation to him.
2.The world to come is quite another thing; it is called that world, by way of emphasis and eminency. Note, There are more worlds than one; a present visible world, and a future invisible world; and it is the concern of every one of us to compare worlds, this world and that world, and give the preference in our thoughts and cares to that which deserves them. Now observe,
(1.)Who shall be the inhabitants of that world: They that shall be accounted worthy to obtain it, that is, that are interested in Christ's merit, who purchased it for us, and have a holy meetness for it wrought in them by the Spirit, whose business it is to prepare us for it. They have not a legal worthiness, upon account of any thing in them or done by them, but an evangelical worthiness, upon account of the inestimable price which Christ paid for the redemption of the purchased possession. It is a worthiness imputed by which we are glorified, as well as righteousness imputed by which we are justified; kataxiōthentes, they are made agreeable to that world. The disagreeableness that there is in the corrupt nature is taken away, and the dispositions of the soul are by the grace of God conformed to that state. They are by grace made and counted worthy to obtain that world; it intimates some difficulty in reaching after it, and danger of coming short. We must so run as that we may obtain. They shall obtain the resurrection from the dead, that is, the blessed resurrection; for that of condemnation (as Christ calls it, Joh 5:29), is rather a resurrection to death, a second death, an eternal death, than from death.
(2.)What shall be the happy state of the inhabitants of that world we cannot express or conceive, Co1 2:9. See what Christ here says of it. [1.] They neither marry nor are given in marriage. Those that have entered into the joy of their Lord are entirely taken up with that, and need not the joy of the bridegroom in his bride. The love in that world of love is all seraphic, and such as eclipses and loses the purest and most pleasing loves we entertain ourselves with in this world of sense. Where the body itself shall be a spiritual body, the delights of sense will all be banished; and where there is a perfection of holiness there is no occasion for marriage as a preservative from sin. Into the new Jerusalem there enters nothing that defiles. [2.] They cannot die any more; and this comes in as a reason why they do not marry. In this dying world there must be marriage, in order to the filling up of the vacancies made by death; but, where there are no burials, there is no need of weddings. This crowns the comfort of that world that there is no more death there, which sullies all the beauty, and damps all the comforts, of this world. Here death reigns, but thence it is for ever excluded. [3.] They are equal unto the angels. In the other evangelists it was said, They are as the angels - ōs angeloi, but here they are said to be equal to the angels, isangeloi - angels' peers; they have a glory and bliss no way inferior to that of the holy angels. They shall see the same sight, be employed in the same work, and share in the same joys, with the holy angels. Saints, when they come to heaven, shall be naturalized, and, though by nature strangers, yet, having obtained this freedom with a great sum, which Christ paid for them, they have in all respects equal privileges with them that were free-born, the angels that are the natives and aborigines of that country. They shall be companions with the angels, and converse with those blessed spirits that love them dearly, and with an innumerable company, to whom they are now come in faith, hope, and love. [4.] They are the children of God, and so they are as the angels, who are called the sons of God. In the inheritance of sons, the adoption of sons will be completed. Hence believers are said to wait for the adoption, even the redemption of the body, Rom 8:23. For till the body is redeemed from the grave the adoption is not completed. Now are we the sons of God, Jo1 3:2. We have the nature and disposition of sons, but that will not be perfected till we come to heaven. [5.] They are the children of the resurrection, that is, they are made capable of the employments and enjoyments of the future state; they are born to that world, belong to that family, had their education for it here, and shall there have their inheritance in it. They are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. Note, God owns those only for his children that are the children of the resurrection, that are born from above, are allied to the world of spirits, and prepared for that world, the children of that family.
IV. It is an undoubted truth that there is another life after this, and there were eminent discoveries made of this truth in the early ages of the church (Luk 20:37, Luk 20:38): Moses showed this, as it was shown to Moses at the bush, and he hath shown it to us, when he calleth the Lord, as the Lord calleth himself, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were then dead as to our world; they had departed out of it many years before, and their bodies were turned into dust in the cave of Machpelah; how then could God say, not I was, but I am the God or Abraham? It is absurd that the living God and Fountain of life should continue related to them as their God, if there were no more of them in being than what lay in that cave, undistinguished from common dust. We must therefore conclude that they were then in being in another world; for God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Luke here adds, For all live unto him, that is, all who, like them, are true believers; though they are dead, yet they do live; their souls, which return to God who gave them (Ecc 12:7), live to him as the Father of spirits: and their bodies shall live again at the end of time by the power of God; for he calleth things that are not as though they were, because he is the God that quickens the dead, Rom 4:17. But there is more in it yet; when God called himself the God of these patriarchs, he meant that he was their felicity and portion, a God all-sufficient to them (Gen 17:1), their exceeding great reward, Gen 15:1. Now it is plain by their history that he never did that for them in this world which would answer the true intent and full extent of that great undertaking, and therefore there must be another life after this, in which he will do that for them that will amount to a discharge in full of that promise - that he would be to them a God, which he is able to do, for all live to him, and he has wherewithal to make every soul happy that lives to him; enough for all, enough for each.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 27–38. Public domain.
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Justin MartyrAD 165
Fragments of the Lost Work of Justin on the Resurrection, Chapter III
And at the same time He foretold that, in the future world, sexual intercourse should be done away with; as He says, "The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage; but the children of the world to come neither marry nor are given in marriage, but shall be like the angels in heaven."
Clement of AlexandriaAD 215
The Stromata Book 3
If anyone ponders over this answer about the resurrection of the dead, he will find that the Lord is not rejecting marriage but is purging the expectation of physical desire in the resurrection. The words “the children of this age” were not spoken in contrast to the children of some other age. It is like saying, “those born in this generation,” who are children by force of birth, being born and engendering themselves, since without the process of birth no one will pass into this life. This process of birth is balanced by a process of decay and is no longer in store for the person who has once been cut off from life here.
Clement of AlexandriaAD 215
The Instructor Book 1
And those whose life is common, have common graces and a common salvation; common to them are love and training. "For in this world," he says, "they marry, and are given in marriage," in which alone the female is distinguished from the male; "but in that world it is so no more." There the rewards of this social and holy life, which is based on conjugal union, are laid up, not for male and female, but for man, the sexual desire which divides humanity being removed.
TertullianAD 220
On Exhortation to Chastity
God; who have restored the honour of their flesh, and who have already dedicated themselves as sons of that (future) age, by slaying in themselves the concupiscence of lust, and that whole (propensity) which could not be admitted within Paradise! Whence it is presumable that such as shall wish to be received within Paradise, ought at last to begin to cease from that thing from which Paradise is intact.
TertullianAD 220
Against Marcion Book IV
He had nobody to fear; that it should seem advisable for Him either to evade their questions, or to make them the occasion of indirectly mooting a subject which He was not in the habit of teaching publicly at any other time. He therefore gave His answer, that "the children of this world marry." You see how pertinent it was to the case in point.
Origen of Alexandria (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 253
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
But because the Lord says in Matthew, which is here omitted, Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, (Mat. 22:29.) I ask the question, where is it so written, They shall neither marry, nor be given in marriage? for as I conceive there is no such thing to be found either in the Old or New Testament, but the whole of their error had crept in from the reading of the Scriptures without understanding; for it is said in Esaias, My elect shall not have children for a curse. (Isai. 65:23.) Whence they suppose that the like will happen in the resurrection. But Paul interpreting all these blessings as spiritual, knowing them not to be carnal, says to the Ephesians, Ye have blessed us in all spiritual blessings. (Eph. 1:3.)
CyprianAD 258
Treatise XII Three Books of Testimonies Against the Jews
Of the benefit of virginity and of continency. In Genesis: "Multiplying I will multiply thy sorrows and thy groanings, and in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children; and thy turning shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." Of this same thing in the Gospel according to Matthew: "All men do not receive the word, but they to whom it is given: for there are some eunuchs who were born so from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who have been constrained by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He who can receive it, let him receive it." Also according to Luke: "The children of this world beget, and are begotten. But they who have been considered worthy of that world, and the resurrection from the dead, do not marry, nor are married: for neither shall they begin to die: for they are equal to the angels of God, since they are the children of the resurrection. But, that the dead rise again, Moses intimates when he says in the bush, The Lord, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. He is not the God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto Him." Also in the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "It is good for a man not to touch a woman. But, on account of fornication, let every man have his own wife, and every woman have her own husband. Let the husband render what is due to the wife, and similarly the wife to the husband. The wife hath not power over her own body, but the husband. And in like manner, the husband hath not power over his own body, but the wife. Defraud not one the other, except by agreement for a time, that ye may have leisure for prayer; and again return to the same point, lest Satan tempt you on account of your incontinency. This I say by way of allowance, not by way of command. But I wish that all men should be even as I am. But every one has his proper gift from God; one in one way, but another in another way." Also in the same place: "An unmarried man thinks of those things which are the Lord's, in what way he may please God; but he who has contracted marriage thinks of those things that are of this world, in what way he may please his wife. Thus also, both the woman and the unmarried virgin thinketh of those things which are the Lord's, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit; but she that hath married thinks of those things which are of this world, in what way she may please her husband." Also in Exodus, when the Lord had commanded Moses that he should sanctify the people for the third day, he sanctified them, and added: "Be ye ready, for three days ye shall not approach to women." Also in the first book of Kings: "And the priest answered to David, and said, There are no profane loaves in my hand, except one sacred loaf. If the young men have been kept back from women, they shall eat." Also in the Apocalypse: "These are they who have not defiled themselves with women, for they have continued virgins; these are they who follow the Lamb whithersoever He shall go."
CyprianAD 258
Treatise II. On the Dress of Virgins 22
Virgins, persevere in what you have begun to be. Persevere in what you will be. A great reward, a glorious prize for virtue, and an excellent reward for purity are reserved for you. Do you wish to know from what misery the virtue of continence is free and what advantage it provides? “I will multiply,” said God to the woman, “your sorrows and your groans, and in sorrow you will bring forth your children, and your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall have dominion over you.” You are free from this sentence. You do not fear the sorrows of women and their groans. You have no fear about the birth of children, nor is your husband your master, but your master and head is Christ, in the likeness of and in place of the man. Your fortune and condition are in common. The voice of the Lord says, “The children of this world give birth and are born. Those who will be found worthy of that world and of the resurrection from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage. They will not die anymore, for they are equal to the angels of God since they are the children of the resurrection.” What we shall be, you already have begun to be. You already have in this world the glory of the resurrection. You pass through the world without the pollution of the world. While you remain chaste and virgins, you are equal to the angels of God.
Ephrem the SyrianAD 373
COMMENTARY ON TATIAN’S DIATESSARON 16.22
“The Sadducees came and were saying to him, ‘There is no resurrection of the dead.’ ” They are called Sadducees, that is “the just,” because they say, “We do not serve God for the sake of reward.” They do not await the resurrection, and for this reason they call themselves “the just,” since they say, “We should love God without a reward.”
Ambrose of Milan (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 397
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
According to the letter of the law, a woman is compelled to marry, however unwilling, in order that a brother may raise up seed to his brother who is dead. The letter therefore killeth, but the Spirit is the master of charity.
Mystically, this woman is the synagogue, which had seven husbands, as it is said to the Samaritan, Thou hadst five husbands, (John 4:18.) because the Samaritan follows only the five books of Moses, the synagogue for the most part seven. And from none of them has she received the seed of an hereditary offspring, and so can have no part with her husbands in the resurrection, because she perverts the spiritual meaning of the precept into a carnal. For not any carnal brother is pointed at, who should raise seed to his deceased brother, but that brother who from the dead people of the Jews should claim unto himself for wife the wisdom of the divine worship, and from it should raise up seed in the Apostles, who being left as it were unformed in the womb of the synagogue, have according to the election of grace been thought worthy to be preserved by the admixture of a new seed.
John Chrysostom (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 407
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
(de Anna, Serm. 4.) As the saints claim as their own the common Lord of the world, not as derogating from His dominion, but testifying their affection after the manner of lovers, who do not brook to love with many, but desire to express a certain peculiar and especial attachment; so likewise does God call Himself especially the God of these, not thereby narrowing but enlarging His dominion; for it is not so much the multitude of His subjects that manifests His power, as the virtue of His servants. Therefore He does not so delight in the name of the God of heaven and earth, as in that of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now among men servants are thus denominated by their masters; for we say, 'The steward of such a man,' but on the contrary God is called the God of Abraham.
Augustine of Hippo (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 430
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
(de Quæst. Ev. l. ii. cap. 49.) For marriages are for the sake of children, children for succession, succession because of death. Where then there is no death, there are no marriages; and hence it follows, But they which shall be accounted worthy, &c.
(de Quæst. Ev. ubi sup.) As our discourse is made up and completed by departing and succeeding syllables, so also men themselves whose faculty discourse is, by departure and succession make up and complete the order of this world, which is built up with the mere temporal beauty of things. But in the future life, seeing that the Word which we shall enjoy is formed by no departure and succession of syllables, but all things which it has it has everlastingly and at once, so those who partake of it, to whom it alone will be life, shall neither depart by death, nor succeed by birth, even as it now is with the angels; as it follows, For they are equal to the angels.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
SERMON 362.18-19
What did the Lord say to the Sadducees? He said, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures or the power of God. For in the resurrection they marry neither husbands nor wives; for neither do they start dying again, but they will be equal to the angels of God." The power of God is great. Why do they not marry husbands or wives? They will not start dying again. When one generation departs, another is required to succeed it. There will not be such liability to decay in that place. The Lord passed through the usual stages of growth, from infancy to adult manhood, because he was bearing the substance of flesh that still was mortal. After he had risen again at the age at which he was buried, are we to imagine that he is growing old in heaven? He says, "They will be equal to the angels of God." He eliminated the assumption of the Jews and refuted the objection of the Sadducees, because the Jews did indeed believe the dead would rise again, but they had crude, fleshly ideas about the state of humanity after resurrection. He said, "They will be equal to the angels of God." …It has already been stated that we are to rise again. We have heard from the Lord that we rise again to the life of the angels. In his own resurrection, he has shown us in what specific form we are to rise again.
Cyril of AlexandriaAD 444
COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 136
Let us also see what Christ said to them. He says, "The children of this world that lead worldly, fleshly lives full of fleshly lust marry and are married for the procreation of children. Those who have maintained an honorable and chosen life, full of all excellence, and have been accounted worthy of attaining to a glorious and marvelous resurrection, certainly will be raised far above the life which people lead in this world. They will live as is suitable for saints who already have been brought near to God. They are equal with the angels and are the children of God. Since all fleshly lust is taken away and no place whatsoever is left in them for bodily pleasure, they resemble the holy angels, fulfilling a spiritual and not a material service suitable for holy spirits. They are at the same time counted worthy of a glory like the angels enjoy.
Philoxenus of MabbugAD 523
ON THE INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 1
The prophet’s words are applicable to those who sin without perceiving their sin. A sinner who has received baptism, although he may be dead toward his soul because he does not perceive his sin, he is alive to God because of the grace of baptism that he possesses. This agrees with the words “God is not of the dead but of the living, for they are all living in him.”
Bede (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 735
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
There were two heresies among the Jews, one of the Pharisees, who boasted in the righteousness of their traditions, and hence they were called by the people, "separated;" the other of the Sadducees, whose name signified "righteous," claiming to themselves that which they were not. When the former went away, the latter came to tempt Him.
(ut sup.) They devise this story in order to convict those of folly, who assert the resurrection of the dead. Hence they object a base fable, that they may deny the truth of the resurrection.
Or these seven brothers answer to the reprobate, who throughout the whole life of the world, which revolves in seven days, are fruitless in good works, and these being carried away by death one after another, at length the course of the evil world, as the barren woman, itself also passes away.
Which must not be taken as if only they who are worthy were either to rise again or be without marriage, but all sinners also shall rise again, and abide without marriage in that new world. But our Lord wished to mention only the elect, that He might incite the minds of His hearers to search into the glory of the resurrection.
Or they are equal to the angels, and the children of God, because made new by the glory of the resurrection, with no fear of death, with no spot of corruption, with no quality of an earthly condition, they rejoice in the perpetual beholding of God's presence.
Or He says this, that after having proved that the souls abide alter death, (which the Sadducees denied,) He might next introduce the resurrection also of the bodies, which together with the souls have done good or evil. But that is a true life which the just live unto God, even though they are dead in the body. Now to prove the truth of the resurrection, He might have brought much more obvious examples from the Prophets, but the Sadducees received only the five books of Moses, rejecting the oracles of the Prophets.
And since they had been defeated in argument, they ask Him no further questions, but seize Him, and deliver Him up to the Roman power. From which we may learn, that the poison of envy may indeed be subdued, but it is a hard thing to keep it at rest.
BedeAD 735
On the Gospel of Luke
And Jesus said to them: The children of this age marry, and are given in marriage. When the Lord says: Do not give what is holy to dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine (Matthew 7), because He is found to have said certain things either here about the glory of the resurrection, or elsewhere about the mystery of His dispensation or even His divinity, which many who were present either by resisting or by scorning did not receive, He is not to be thought as having given what is holy to dogs, or cast pearls before swine. For He did not give to those who could not grasp it, who, due to the impurity of others, ought not to be neglected. Indeed, when the tempters were questioning Him, and He was responding to them in such a way that they had nothing to contradict, even though they would rather languish in their own venom than be satisfied with His food, yet others who were able to grasp it heard many things usefully because of them.
Theophylact of Ohrid (as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)AD 1107
Catena Aurea by Aquinas
This was their main object, to rebuke Him before the people, which they were unable to do because of the wonderful wisdom of His answer.
Now the Sadducees resting upon a weak foundation, did not believe in the doctrine of the resurrection. For imagining the future life in the resurrection to be carnal, they were justly misled, and hence reviling the doctrine of the resurrection as a thing impossible they invent the story, There were seven brothers, &c.
But our Lord shows that in the resurrection there will be no fleshly conversation, thereby overthrowing their doctrine together with its slender foundation; as it follows, And Jesus said unto them, The children of this world marry, &c.
As if He said, Because it is God who worketh in the resurrection, rightly are they called the sons of God, who are regenerated by the resurrection. For there is nothing carnal seen in the regeneration of them that rise again, there is neither coming together, nor the womb, nor birth.
Or to the reason above given the Lord added the testimony of Scripture, Now that the dead are raised, Moses also showed at the bush, (Exod. 3:6.) as the Lord saith, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. As if he said, If the patriarchs have once returned to nothing so as not to live with God in the hope of a resurrection, He would not have said, I am, but, I was, for we are accustomed to speak of things dead and gone thus, I was the Lord or Master of such a thing; but now that He said, I am, He shows that He is the God and Lord of the living. This is what follows, But he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. For though they have departed from life, yet live they with Him in the hope of a resurrection.
But when the Sadducees were silenced, the Scribes commend Jesus, for they were opposed to them, saying to Him, Master, thou hast well said.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
In Jesus begins His profound rebuttal to the Sadducees' challenge regarding the resurrection, setting the stage for a critical distinction between the present earthly existence and the nature of life in the age to come. He asserts that marriage, a fundamental institution for "the children of this world," is a characteristic of the temporal realm, thereby laying the groundwork for explaining why such customs will not persist in the resurrected state.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Jesus employs several literary devices in this concise statement. Contrast is the most prominent, as the verse immediately sets up a stark distinction between "the children of this world" and those who belong to "that world" (the age to come), implicitly highlighting the differing realities of each. This contrast is central to His entire argument against the Sadducees. The phrase "the children of this world" is an idiom, a common Semitic expression (like "sons of light" or "sons of disobedience") that characterizes individuals by their dominant nature or allegiance to a particular sphere—in this case, the temporal, earthly realm. Furthermore, Jesus' response demonstrates a masterful rhetorical strategy. Instead of directly refuting the Sadducees' premise about the resurrection, He first establishes a foundational truth about the present age, thereby dismantling their flawed assumptions about the continuity of earthly customs in the eternal state. This indirect approach effectively disarms their argument by revealing their fundamental misunderstanding of God's power and the nature of the resurrection.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Luke 20:34 serves as a crucial theological pivot, establishing that marriage, while a sacred and divinely ordained institution for human society in this present age (Genesis 2:24), is intrinsically linked to the temporal necessities of procreation and the continuation of humanity within a mortal framework. Jesus' teaching here clarifies that the purposes for which marriage was instituted in this world—such as companionship, mutual support, and the raising of children—are fulfilled within the confines of our earthly existence. In the resurrected state, where there is no death and believers are like angels, the biological and social imperatives that necessitate marriage no longer apply. This understanding encourages believers to hold a balanced perspective: valuing marriage as a divine gift for this life, while simultaneously fixing their ultimate hope and identity on the eternal realities of God's kingdom, which transcend all earthly institutions.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Jesus' words in Luke 20:34 offer a profound perspective on the temporary nature of many earthly institutions and relationships, including marriage, when viewed from an eternal vantage point. While marriage is a beautiful and divinely blessed covenant designed for this life, fulfilling crucial roles in human society and personal flourishing, Jesus teaches us that its purposes are confined to "this world." This truth invites us to re-evaluate our priorities, encouraging us to invest our ultimate hope and allegiance not in the transient structures of this age, but in the enduring realities of God's eternal kingdom. It challenges us to live with an eternal perspective, recognizing that while we are called to faithfully steward our earthly relationships and responsibilities, our ultimate citizenship and destiny lie beyond this present world. This understanding should free us from the anxiety of clinging too tightly to what is temporary, enabling us to embrace the transformative power of the resurrection and the boundless possibilities of life with God in the age to come.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Does Jesus' statement mean that marriage is not important or sacred?
Answer: No, Jesus' statement does not diminish the importance or sacredness of marriage in this life. Rather, it clarifies its purpose and duration. Marriage is a divine institution established by God in creation (Genesis 2:24) for companionship, procreation, and the ordering of human society. It is a profound covenant that reflects God's faithfulness and love. Jesus' point is that the purposes for which marriage exists—such as continuing the human race and providing a framework for family life in a mortal world—will no longer be necessary in the resurrected state, where there is no death and believers live in a transformed, eternal reality. The spiritual union with God and with fellow believers in the new heavens and new earth will transcend the earthly forms of relationship.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Luke 20:34, while seemingly a straightforward statement about marriage, finds its profound Christ-centered fulfillment in Jesus' own person and work, particularly His resurrection. The "children of this world" are those who live under the dominion of death and the limitations of the fallen creation, where marriage serves the purpose of procreation to continue a mortal lineage. However, Jesus, by His resurrection, inaugurates the "age to come" and becomes the "firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Corinthians 15:20). He is the prototype of the resurrected life, a life no longer subject to death or the need for earthly institutions like marriage. In Christ, believers are "children of the resurrection" (Luke 20:36), partakers of a new, eternal reality where the ultimate union is with God Himself. The Church, as the Bride of Christ, anticipates a perfect, eternal communion with Him that transcends any earthly marital bond, fulfilling the deepest longings for intimacy and belonging. Thus, Jesus' words not only answer the Sadducees but also point to the radical transformation brought about by His redemptive work, ushering in a new creation where He is all in all (Colossians 3:11).