Will There Be Marriage in Heaven?
THE QUESTION
Will husbands and wives remain married to each other in Heaven and after the resurrection?
SHORT ANSWER
No. Jesus directly taught that people in the resurrection “neither marry, nor are given in marriage” (Matthew 22:30). Earthly marriage is a God-given covenant for this present life, but it ends at death.
This does not mean that spouses become strangers or lose their love for one another. Believers retain their identity and share perfect fellowship in Christ, but the exclusive marital covenant does not continue in the resurrection.
WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS
The Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, tried to trap Jesus with a question about a woman who had been married successively to seven brothers. They asked whose wife she would be in the resurrection. Jesus answered, “Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29).
He then gave the controlling answer: “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” (Matthew 22:30). Jesus did not say that humans become angels. He said that, like the angels, resurrected people do not enter marriage.
Luke records that those who attain the resurrection “neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more” (Luke 20:35–36). Marriage serves important purposes in mortal life, including companionship, family, and the raising of children. In the immortal resurrection state, those purposes do not continue in the same form.
Other passages show that the marriage covenant ends at death. A wife is bound to her husband while he lives, but “but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband” (Romans 7:2). Paul likewise wrote, “The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth” (1 Corinthians 7:39).
Earthly marriage also points beyond itself. Ephesians 5:31–32 connects the union of husband and wife with the greater mystery of Christ and the church. The temporary sign gives way to the perfect reality: the redeemed united forever with their Lord.
Revelation describes “the marriage of the Lamb” and His wife made ready (Revelation 19:7). This is corporate imagery for Christ and His redeemed people. It does not teach that individual earthly marriages continue in Heaven.
KEY SCRIPTURES—KJV
Matthew 22:30: “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.”
Luke 20:35–36: “They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more.”
Romans 7:2: “For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth.”
1 Corinthians 7:39: “The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth.”
Ephesians 5:32: “This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.”
BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES
- Jesus’ answer is decisive. Marriage does not continue in the resurrection.
- Marriage is honorable and temporary. Its ending does not diminish its God-given value in this life.
- Personal identity remains. A former spouse will still be known and loved as a redeemed person.
- Eternal fellowship will be better, not poorer. No relationship in God’s presence will suffer from jealousy, loneliness, selfishness, or loss.
- Christ is the supreme Bridegroom. Earthly marriage points to His everlasting union with the church.
WHERE CHRISTIANS DIFFER
Christians sometimes differ over how the affection and history shared by earthly spouses will be experienced in eternity. Scripture does not describe those details. Some expect uniquely close friendship, while others emphasize that all redeemed relationships will be perfected without exclusive marriage bonds.
What is explicit must govern what is inferred: there will be no marriage in the resurrection, yet nothing God removes will make eternal life less joyful or complete.
THE CONCLUSION
There will not be earthly marriage in Heaven or in the resurrection. Jesus said that the resurrected neither marry nor are given in marriage. Husbands and wives who belong to Christ will still know one another and share perfect fellowship, but their marriage covenant will have fulfilled its earthly purpose. The eternal union of Christ and His redeemed people will surpass every temporary sign.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
- Honor your marriage covenant faithfully while both spouses live.
- Do not fear that Heaven will feel emotionally empty; God’s presence brings complete joy.
- Comfort believing widows and widowers with the hope of resurrection and reunion in Christ.
- Keep Christ at the center of marriage, because earthly marriage ultimately points to Him.
- Do not add speculative details where Jesus gave a clear but limited answer.
RELATED DISCIPLESHIP LESSONS
- Lesson 4: What Is Faith in Christ?
- Lesson 21: Why the Bible Must Be Your Final Authority
- Lesson 96: How to Live with Eternity in View