And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
Parallel translations
- WEB The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;
- BSB The tombs broke open, and the bodies of many saints who had fallen asleep were raised.
- NKJV and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;
- NASB Also the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;
- NLT and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead.
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
Tombs open and many bodies of departed saints are raised. Jesus' death has power over the grave.
Overview
The earthquake at the crucifixion opens tombs, and the bodies of many holy ones who had died are raised to life. This striking sign anticipates the resurrection that Christ secures for His people. It declares that the death of Jesus breaks the power of death itself and guarantees future resurrection for believers.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Isa 26:19Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.
- 1 Th 4:14For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
- John 5:25–29Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
- 1 Cor 15:20But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
- Dan 12:2And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
- Isa 25:8He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.
- 1 Th 5:10Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
- 1 Cor 15:51Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
- Hos 13:14I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
- 1 Cor 11:30For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
- Acts 7:60And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 27:52 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
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