The Meaning of Matthew 22:32 Explained

Matthew 22:32

KJV: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

YLT: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not a God of dead men, but of living.'

Darby: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not God of the dead, but of the living.

ASV: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I  am  the God  of Abraham,  and  the God  of Isaac,  and  the God  of Jacob?  God  is  not  the God  of the dead,  but  of the living. 

What does Matthew 22:32 Mean?

Context Summary

Matthew 22:23-33 - The Scriptures Teach The Resurrection
The Sadducees professed themselves to be bound by the Pentateuch, and to have searched in vain for evidences of a life beyond. They were greatly startled, therefore, when our Lord proved human immortality from the book of Exodus. He had never passed through their schools and sat at the feet of their great teachers, but He showed them that "at the Bush" the voice of God attested eternal life.
The great I AM would never have spoken of Himself as the God of the patriarchs, centuries after their earthly career had closed, unless they had been living somewhere still. It was certain that they were all alive; otherwise God would have said, "I was their God." Death is not a chamber, but a passage; not an abiding-place, but a crossing over; not a state, but an act, an experience, a crossing of the bar, a going within the veil. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the myriads who have warred and stormed over the earth, are living as intensely as ever. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 22

1  The parable of the marriage of the king's son
9  The vocation of the Gentiles
12  The punishment of him who lacked a wedding garment
15  Tribute ought to be paid to Caesar
23  Jesus confutes the Sadducees for the resurrection;
34  answers which is the first and great commandment;
41  and puzzles the Pharisees by a question about the Messiah

What do the individual words in Matthew 22:32 mean?

I am the God of Abraham and of Isaac of Jacob Not He is of [the] dead but of [the] living
Ἐγώ εἰμι Θεὸς Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ Ἰακώβ οὐκ ἔστιν νεκρῶν ἀλλὰ ζώντων

Θεὸς  God 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: θεός  
Sense: a god or goddess, a general name of deities or divinities.
Ἀβραὰμ  of  Abraham 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Ἀβραάμ  
Sense: the son of Terah and the founder of the Jewish nation.
Ἰσαὰκ  of  Isaac 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰσαάκ  
Sense: the son of Abraham and Sarah.
Ἰακώβ  of  Jacob 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰακώβ  
Sense: was the second son of Isaac.
ἔστιν  He  is 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: εἰμί  
Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.
νεκρῶν  of  [the]  dead 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: νεκρός  
Sense: properly.
ζώντων  of  [the]  living 
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Active, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: ζάω  
Sense: to live, breathe, be among the living (not lifeless, not dead).