Vault 5 · Topical Studies · Section VII
The Program of Resurrections
Scripture does not teach a single general resurrection of all the dead at the end of history. Rather, it presents resurrection as a program unfolding in stages across multiple events — ordered, purposeful, and tied to the prophetic calendar. Paul’s agricultural metaphor in 1 Corinthians 15 captures this: firstfruits, then the full harvest, then the final gleaning.37,4
| Group | Event | Timing | Scripture |
|---|
| Christ the Firstfruits | Resurrection of Jesus | Easter Sunday, AD 33 | 1 Cor 15:20–23 — the prototype and guarantee of all future resurrection |
| OT saints at crucifixion | "Many holy ones" raised | Immediately after resurrection (Matt 27:52–53) | A preview or firstfruits of the OT resurrection; appeared to many in Jerusalem |
| Church-age believers | Rapture resurrection | At the Rapture (pre-Trib) | 1 Thess 4:16; 1 Cor 15:51–52 — dead raised, living transformed |
| OT saints + Trib martyrs | First resurrection completed | At the Second Coming | Dan 12:2; Rev 20:4–6 — "blessed and holy is the one who has part in the first resurrection" |
| All unsaved of all ages | Second resurrection (of the wicked) | End of Millennium | Rev 20:11–15 — resurrected to face the Great White Throne Judgment |
A. The First Resurrection — The Resurrection of the Righteous (Luke 14:14; Rev 20:5–6)
The “first resurrection” is not a single event but a category — the resurrection of all who belong to Christ. It occurs in multiple installments across redemptive history.37
- Christ as Firstfruits (1 Cor 15:20–23): His resurrection is the prototype, guarantee, and first installment of all future resurrection. “As in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.”32
- The “many holy ones” at the crucifixion (Matt 27:52–53): a preview resurrection immediately after Christ’s death; they appeared to many in Jerusalem. A foretaste of what is coming.
- Church-age believers at the Rapture (1 Thess 4:16; 1 Cor 15:51–52): the dead raised; the living transformed. This completes the Rapture and begins the glorified Church’s time in heaven.
- Old Testament saints and Tribulation martyrs at the Second Coming (Dan 12:1–2; Rev 20:4–6): “Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power.”
NoteRyrie Study Bible note on Dan 12:2: "The resurrection described here is that of OT and Tribulation saints at the time of the Second Coming… bringing to completion the first (righteous) resurrection. Some to everlasting life (the saved); some to disgrace and everlasting contempt (the unsaved — but this is the second resurrection, which occurs after the Millennium)."
B. The Second Resurrection — The Resurrection of the Unrighteous (John 5:29; Rev 20:11–15)
- All unsaved of all ages — from Cain to the last rebel at the end of the Millennium — are resurrected in physical bodies37
- This resurrection occurs at the end of the Millennium, 1,000 years after the First Resurrection is completed
- Its sole purpose: to bring the unsaved before the Great White Throne for judgment
- The result is the second death — the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:14–15) — eternal, conscious, punitive separation from God
- Between the first and second resurrections stretches the Millennium — a 1,000-year interval the Bible calls “blessed and holy” for all who participate in the first resurrection
Scripture does not teach a single general resurrection of all the dead at the end of history. Rather, it presents resurrection as a program unfolding in stages across multiple events — ordered, purposeful, and tied to the prophetic calendar. Paul’s agricultural metaphor in 1 Corinthians 15 captures this: firstfruits, then the full harvest, then the final gleaning.37,4
A. The First Resurrection — The Resurrection of the Righteous (Luke 14:14; Rev 20:5–6)
The “first resurrection” is not a single event but a category — the resurrection of all who belong to Christ. It occurs in multiple installments across redemptive history.37
Ryrie Study Bible note on Dan 12:2: "The resurrection described here is that of OT and Tribulation saints at the time of the Second Coming… bringing to completion the first (righteous) resurrection. Some to everlasting life (the saved); some to disgrace and everlasting contempt (the unsaved — but this is the second resurrection, which occurs after the Millennium)."
B. The Second Resurrection — The Resurrection of the Unrighteous (John 5:29; Rev 20:11–15)