He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to Him all are alive.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Now he is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for all are alive to him.”
- KJV For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.
- NKJV For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.”
- NASB Now He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to Him.”
- NLT So he is the God of the living, not the dead, for they are all alive to him.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God is the God of the living, not the dead, for all the faithful are alive to Him.
Overview
Since God remains in covenant relationship with the patriarchs, they must live in His presence, awaiting bodily resurrection. The covenant bond God makes is not severed by death. This assures believers that in Christ, who conquered death, their life with God is unending.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- John 11:25–26Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.
- Col 3:3–4For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
- Rom 6:10–11The death He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God.
- Rom 14:7–9For none of us lives to himself alone, and none of us dies to himself alone.
- John 14:19In a little while the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you also will live.
- 2 Cor 13:4For He was indeed crucified in weakness, yet He lives by God’s power. And though we are weak in Him, yet by God’s power we will live with Him to serve you.
- 2 Cor 6:16What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”
- Ps 145:1–2A Psalm of praise. Of David. I will exalt You, my God and King; I will bless Your name forever and ever.
- Rev 7:15–17For this reason, they are before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.
- Rom 6:22–23But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life.
- Ps 22:23–26You who fear the LORD, praise Him! All descendants of Jacob, honor Him! All offspring of Israel, revere Him!
- Ps 16:5–11The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; You have made my lot secure.
- Rev 22:1Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
- Heb 11:16Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.
- John 6:57Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 20:38 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.