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How many people were raised from the dead in the Bible?
Great question! Here's the answer:
At least ten people were raised from the dead in the Bible.
There were many people raised from the dead in the Bible. Another word for this is "resurrection." God's power shines through resurrections. The most well-known resurrection in the Bible is Jesus' resurrection. The Lord died for our sins, was buried, and rose three days later (Mark 16:1–8). Jesus' resurrection is unique among other resurrections, as He is the only person to have been resurrected and not die again at a later time.
Everyone else who was resurrected by Jesus, Elijah, Elisha, or one of the apostles did pass away eventually. Elijah raised the widow of Zarephath's son when there was a severe drought over the land (1 Kings 17:17–24), and Elisha raised the Shunammite woman's son (2 Kings 4:18–37). Neither of these resurrections were by the prophet's own power. Rather, they were by the hand of God working through Elijah and Elisha.
There was a man's body who touched the dead body of Elisha, and this caused the man to rise from the dead (2 Kings 13:20–21). Peter resurrected Tabitha, and Paul brought Eutychus back from the dead. Once again, these resurrections were by God's power, not by the power of the prophets or the apostles.
Jesus raised many people from the dead, including the widow of Nain's son (Luke 7:11–17), Jairus' daughter (Luke 8:40–56), and Lazarus of Bethany (John 11). Various saints in Jerusalem were also raised to life after Jesus' death (Matthew 27:50–53). This demonstrated how Jesus defeated death, and by placing our faith in Him, we too can conquer the grave.
Bible Truth
“Before long, the world will not see me anymore. But you will see me. Because I live, you will live also” (John 14:19).
“During this time, all the people were crying and sobbing loudly over the child. ‘Stop crying!’ Jesus said. ‘She is not dead. She is sleeping.’ They laughed at him. They knew she was dead. But he took her by the hand and said, ‘My child, get up!’ Her spirit returned, and right away she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat” (Luke 8:52–55).
“After Jesus cried out again in a loud voice, he died. At that moment the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook. The rocks split. Tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs. After Jesus was raised from the dead, they went into the holy city. There they appeared to many people” (Matthew 27:50–53).
