his brother must take the wife, and the child to be born will be regarded as the child of the
deceased man.’ Now, there were seven brothers; the first married a wife, but he died without
children; and the second and the third took the wife; in fact all seven died leaving no children.
Last of all the woman died. On the day of the resurrection, to which of them will the woman
be wife? For all seven had her as a wife.”
And Jesus replied, “Taking husband or wife is proper to people of this world, but for those
who are considered worthy of the world to come and of resurrection from the dead, there is
no more marriage.Yes, the dead will be raised, and even Moses implied it in the passage
about the burning bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and
the God of Jacob. For he is God of the living and not of the dead, and for him all are alive.”
Some teachers of the Law then agreed with Jesus, “Master, you have spoken well.”
Reflect
Most people hope to leave a legacy so that they will be remembered when their earthly life
has ended. In the first reading, King Antiochus despairs because the legacy he has
planned was destroyed as his kingdom collapsed. The Sadducees test Jesus with a question
about levirate marriage, a Jewish custom outlined in the Torah that made sure that men who
died childless would still have heirs and leave a legacy.
The legacy that we leave is a legacy of faith. We share the Good News that we have received
from the Lord. We help people encounter Jesus and accompany them as they grow in their
relationship with him. We leave as our legacy our lives of loving service, using our time,
treasure, and talent to help our vulnerable brothers and sisters. The acts of love rendered in
faith that we leave behind us are the greatest legacy we could leave because they honor the
God of the living.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2023