Suffering and the Resurrection

For as long as I can remember, I was under the impression that Jesus suffered for our sins. Jacob, however, seems to say that He suffered for even more.

And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day. (2 Ne 9:22)

Jacob seems to be saying that without the suffering Jesus experienced, we would not be resurrected. Or, rather, that a purpose of His suffering was to bring about the resurrection. It seems then that bringing the resurrection into fruition required more than simply dying and raising oneself from the dead. It also brings a whole new perspective on the amount of suffering He endured, considering it was more than just our sins for which He suffered.

In addition, Jacob also says that we must be resurrected to stand before the Christ at the day of judgement. So, having resurrected bodies must somehow be required for us to be judged.

One thought on “Suffering and the Resurrection

  1. One of the definitions of “suffer” is “allow” or “tolerate.”

    It’s used that way several times in the scriptures: Christ told John the Baptist, “Suffer it to be so now…” meaning, permit the baptism to take place. The Lord “suffered” the U.S. Constitution to be established, to help accomplish some of His own purposes. To be “longsuffering” is to be patient and forbearing.

    Here, Christ was allowing something to happen—allowing his execution—in order to bring about the resurrection. That he also suffered in the other sense—by enduring agony—doesn’t seem DIRECTLY relevant to the issue posed here.

Comments are closed.