In Mark 12:18-27, the Sadducees, a group who denied the concept of resurrection, approach Jesus with a trick question. They present a hypothetical scenario where a woman is married to seven brothers in succession, each dying childless. They then ask whose wife she will be in the afterlife.
Jesus responds by pointing out two flaws in their question. Firstly, he says they misunderstand the nature of the afterlife, stating that those who are resurrected “neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.” Secondly, he argues that their misunderstanding stems from a misreading of scripture. He reminds them of the story of Moses and the burning bush, where God identifies himself as the “God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Jesus emphasizes that God is the God of the living, not the dead, implying that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are still alive in a spiritual sense. He concludes by stating that the Sadducees are “badly mistaken.”
This passage offers a glimpse into the theological debates of the time and Jesus’ perspective on the afterlife and the interpretation of scripture.