Six Separate Resurrections

But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

(Revelation 20:5-6)

The doctrine under discussion in this series is the resurrection of the dead, and it is important to note that Scripture speaks of more than one resurrection event. In fact, two resurrections have already taken place.

The first resurrection was that of Christ Himself, which has already been discussed. The second resurrection occurred when the Lord led the Old Testament saints from Abraham’s bosom into heaven. During that event, the Lord allowed an undisclosed number of saints to be raised from the dead. It is important to note, however, that not all Old Testament saints were included in that resurrection, for Scripture declares that “many”—not all—were raised. Those who were raised had recently died, as the passage records that they entered the city of Jerusalem and appeared to people who had known them before their deaths (Matthew 27:52–53).

The next resurrection in sequence will be the resurrection of the church, which will take place at the Lord’s second coming (1 Corinthians 15:22–23). This resurrection is more commonly known as the rapture.

In the passage from Revelation quoted above, this resurrection of the saints (the rapture) is referred to as “the first resurrection.” This clearly implies the existence of a second resurrection, which raises the question: What is the second resurrection, and when will it occur?

And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth." These are the two olive trees and the two lamp stands standing before the God of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies. And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner. These have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire. When they finish their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. Then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations will see their dead bodies’ three-and-a-half days, and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves. And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them, make merry, and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth. Now after the three-and-a-half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." And they ascended to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies saw them. In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.

(Revelation 11:3-13)

In the interest of being thorough, I have included this separate resurrection, which occurs between the first and second resurrections. The resurrection in question is that of Moses and Elijah, recorded in the passage above.

The context of this event is that Moses and Elijah will minister on the earth during the same forty-two-month period of the Antichrist’s reign. At the end of their ministry, they will confront the Antichrist and the False Prophet in the city of Jerusalem. However, because the Antichrist and the False Prophet are immortal beings, Moses and Elijah will not prevail in that encounter. Both will be killed, and their bodies will lie in the streets of Jerusalem for three-and-a-half days.

At the end of those three-and-a-half days, the Lord will raise His two witnesses from the dead, and they will ascend into heaven.

For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth-- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.

(John 5:26-29)

In this passage, the Lord Jesus spoke of two distinct resurrections—the resurrection of life and the resurrection of condemnation. It is evident that the resurrection of life refers to the resurrection of the saints, while the resurrection of condemnation refers to the resurrection of unbelievers.

We have already identified the resurrection of the saints as the first resurrection, which means that the resurrection of condemnation must be the second resurrection. According to Revelation 20, this second resurrection will occur after the Lord’s millennial reign; for Scripture declares that “the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished.”

There is, however, one final resurrection that must also be mentioned—the resurrection of children. The statement that “the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished” implies that this resurrection will take place at the same time as the resurrection of condemnation. Although both occur simultaneously, they will have entirely different outcomes.

In summary, Scripture identifies six separate resurrections:

1.       The resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

2.      The partial resurrection of the Old Testament saints.

3.      The resurrection of the church (the rapture).

4.      The resurrection of Moses and Elijah.

5.      The resurrection of the unbelievers.

6.      The resurrection of children.

Michael E.B. Maher

Resurrection of the Dead

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