Luke 20:38

38 He is not God of the dead but of the living, because all are living to [a] Him."

Luke 20:38 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 20:38

For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living
(See Gill on Matthew 22:32) for all live unto him.
The Persic version, reads, "all these live unto him"; namely, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for though they are dead to men, they are not to God; their souls live with him, and their bodies will be raised by him: he reckons of them, as if they were now alive, for he quickens the dead, and calls things that are not, as though they were; and this is the case of all the saints that are dead, as well as of those patriarchs. The Ethiopic reads, "all live with him"; as the souls of all departed saints do; the Arabic version reads, all live in him; so all do now, ( Acts 17:28 ) .

Luke 20:38 In-Context

36 For they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are sons of God, since they are sons of the resurrection.
37 Moses even indicated [in the passage] about the burning bush that the dead are raised, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
38 He is not God of the dead but of the living, because all are living to Him."
39 Some of the scribes answered, "Teacher, You have spoken well."
40 And they no longer dared to ask Him anything.

Footnotes 1

Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.