Any hint of what happened to the saints raised from the dead when Jesus died on the cross? — S.S.
Interesting question! Here’s the passage in view:
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people (Matt 27:51-53).
What happened next?—how did they make use of their extra days no earth? I have no idea! Yet the destiny of those raised to life doesn’t seem to be the thrust of the passage. The theological point is more important: Jesus' death affects all humans, present, future, and past. All are redeemed through his atoning death. They are not “zombies,” as I have sometimes heard. (Besides, zombies aren’t alive, as any fan of the genre knows.) In case you want to go deeper, here are three pieces that may be of interest:
