What is it about?
In this article, I show that Matthew 27:52-53 (the raising of the saints at the crucifixion of Jesus and their entry into the holy city) is not an event of the past. The author of the Gospel of Matthew wrote this passage as a "flash forward" to the future analogous to the way modern movie producers create flash forwards in their film narratives. As such, Matthew 27:52-53 is short version of Revelation 21:2-27.
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Why is it important?
Matthew 27:52-53 has been a problem passage for generations, mainly because people think that the passage is about an event in the gospel writer's past. The perceived difficulties of the passage have led some to dismiss it as gospel fantasy. In actuality, the gospel writer Matthew is using a common literary technique to make the reader "leap forward" in time to the apocalyptic future. This article clears up the confusion over this passage so that it ceases to be a problem for readers.
Perspectives
Matthew 27:52-53 is probably the most intriguing and problematic passage in the Gospel of Matthew. My investigation of the passage was a fascinating journey of discovery. I am convinced that the problems posed by this passage to readers have now been solved. I was very pleased to make my research on this passage available through the Journal of Biblical Literature.
Dr. Kenneth L. Waters
Azusa Pacific University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Matthew 27:52-53 as Apocalyptic Apostrophe: Temporal-Spatial Collapse in the Gospel of Matthew, Journal of Biblical Literature, January 2003, JSTOR,
DOI: 10.2307/3268388.
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