Life After Death: An ESL Bible Study on Luke 20:27-40

This Bible study series is for people who are learning English. It is designed for advanced beginner and intermediate learners, but children or adults who prefer simple English may also enjoy it.

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Luke 20:27-40 Printable Discussion Questions

Luke 20:27-40 Printable ERV Passage

Lesson Icebreaker Question

Have you ever wondered what happens after people die? What do people in your country believe about this?

Lesson Highlight

In this lesson, we will learn how some people tried to trick Jesus with a question about what happens after death. We will see how Jesus taught them about life after death and about God’s great power.

Vocabulary Lists for the ERV Bible Translation

Key Vocabulary Words (10 words)

angel: (noun) A messenger from heaven who serves God.
burning bush: (phrase) A bush that was on fire but was not burned up when God spoke to Moses.
dead: (adjective) Not living anymore.
married: (adjective) Having a husband or a wife.
marry: (verb) To become the husband or wife of someone.
Moses: (noun) A great leader of Israel who lived long before Jesus.
rise from death: (phrase) To come back to life after being dead.
Sadducees: (noun) A group of Jewish leaders who did not believe people come back to life after death.
widow: (noun) A woman whose husband has died.
worthy: (adjective) Deserving of respect or a reward.

Important Words to Know (20 words)

angel: (noun) A messenger from heaven who serves God.
believe: (verb) To think that something is true.
brave: (adjective) Not afraid to do things that are difficult or dangerous.
burning bush: (phrase) A bush that was on fire but was not burned up when God spoke to Moses.
child of God: (phrase) A person who is part of God’s family because they believe in him.
dead: (adjective) Not living anymore.
die: (verb) To stop living.
earth: (noun) The world where we live.
life: (noun) The state of being alive.
married: (adjective) Having a husband or a wife.
marry: (verb) To become the husband or wife of someone.
Moses: (noun) A great leader of Israel who lived long before Jesus.
raise: (verb) To lift something up.
rise from death: (phrase) To come back to life after being dead.
Sadducees: (noun) A group of Jewish leaders who did not believe people come back to life after death.
teacher of the law: (phrase) A person who is an expert in the religious rules given to the Jewish people by God.
trick: (verb) To make someone believe something that is not true.
widow: (noun) A woman whose husband has died.
wife: (noun) The woman that a man is married to.
worthy: (adjective) Deserving of respect or a reward.

Complete Lesson Word Bank

Abraham: (noun) The first father of the people of Israel who trusted God.
after: (preposition) Later than another time or event.
again: (adverb) One more time.
angel: (noun) A messenger from heaven who serves God.
another: (adjective) One more of the same kind.
because: (conjunction) For the reason that.
believe: (verb) To think that something is true.
brave: (adjective) Not afraid to do things that are difficult or dangerous.
brother: (noun) A man or boy who has the same parents as another person.
burning bush: (phrase) A bush that was on fire but was not burned up when God spoke to Moses.
came: (verb) To have moved toward a person or a place.
child of God: (phrase) A person who is part of God’s family because they believe in him.
clearly: (adverb) In a way that is easy to see or hear.
dead: (adjective) Not living anymore.
each other: (phrase) Two or more people doing the same thing to one another.
earth: (noun) The world where we live.
enough: (adjective) As much as you need.
God: (noun) The creator and ruler of everything.
God of Abraham: (phrase) A name for God that shows he is the same God who made promises to a man named Abraham.
God of Isaac: (phrase) A name for God that shows he is the same God who cared for Abraham’s son, Isaac.
God of Jacob: (phrase) A name for God that shows he is the same God who led Isaac’s son, Jacob.
happen: (verb) To take place.
Isaac: (noun) The son of Abraham and Sarah.
Jacob: (noun) The son of Isaac.
Jesus: (noun) The Son of God and the Savior of the world!
Lord: (noun) A name that shows someone has power or authority.
married: (adjective) Having a husband or a wife.
marry: (verb) To become the husband or wife of someone.
Moses: (noun) A great leader of Israel who lived long before Jesus.
must: (verb) To need to do something.
question: (noun) A sentence used to ask for information.
raise: (verb) To lift something up.
rise from death: (phrase) To come back to life after being dead.
Sadducees: (noun) A group of Jewish leaders who did not believe people come back to life after death.
show: (verb) To let someone see something.
still: (adverb) Continuing until now.
teacher of the law: (phrase) A person who is an expert in the religious rules given to the Jewish people by God.
trick: (verb) To make someone believe something that is not true.
try: (verb) To make an effort to do something.
widow: (noun) A woman whose husband has died.
worthy: (adjective) Deserving of respect or a reward.
wrote: (verb) To have made letters or words on paper.

Summary of the Passage

This passage tells a story about Jesus and a group called the Sadducees. The Sadducees were leaders who did not believe that people rise from death. They tried to trick Jesus with a hard question.

They told Jesus a story about seven brothers. The first brother married a woman, but then he died. Because of an old law from Moses, the next brother married her to take care of her. This happened until all seven brothers had married her and died. The Sadducees asked Jesus whose wife the woman would be when people rise from death.

Jesus gave a very wise answer. He explained that life in heaven is different from life on earth. In the next life, people will not marry. Instead, they will be like angels and will never die again. They are children of God because they have been raised to a new life.

Jesus also talked about Moses and the burning bush. The burning bush was a plant that was on fire, but it did not burn up! At that bush, God called himself the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. These three men were the grandfathers of the Jewish people. They had died a long time before Moses was born. Jesus said that God is not the God of the dead. He is the God of the living! This means that to God, these men are still alive.

Some of the teachers of the law were very happy with this answer. They thought it was a very good answer. After this, no one was brave enough to try to trick Jesus with more questions.

This passage teaches us that God is powerful. He has a plan for us to live with him forever.

Read The Passage

Most English learners should use the Easy-to-Read Version (ERV), the New International Reader’s Version (NIRV), or the Good News Translation (GNT). If you want to try something harder, you can read one of the other Bible versions.

Some Sadducees Try to Trick Jesus
27 Some Sadducees came to Jesus.
(Sadducees believe that people will not rise from death.)
They asked him,
28 “Teacher, Moses wrote that if a married man dies and had no children, his brother must marry his widow.
Then they will have children for the dead brother.
29 One time there were seven brothers.
The first brother married a woman but died.
He had no children.
30 Then the second brother married the woman, and he died.
31 And the third brother married the woman, and he died.
The same thing happened with all the other brothers.
They all died and had no children.
32 The woman was the last to die.
33 But all seven brothers married her.
So when people rise from death, whose wife will this woman be?”
34 Jesus said to the Sadducees,
“On earth, people marry each other.
35 Some people will be worthy to be raised from death and live again after this life.
In that life they will not marry.
36 In that life people are like angels and cannot die.
They are children of God, because they have been raised from death.
37 Moses clearly showed that people are raised from death.
When Moses wrote about the burning bush, he said that the Lord is ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’
38 So they were not still dead, because he is the God only of living people.
Yes, to God they are all still living.”
39 Some of the teachers of the law said,
“Teacher, your answer was very good.”
40 No one was brave enough to ask him another question.
Luke 20:27-40 (ERV)

Very Easy: Easy-to-Read Version: Luke 20:27-40 (ERV)
Very Easy: New International Reader’s Version: Luke 20:27-40 (NIRV)
Easy: Good News Translation: Luke 20:27-40 (GNT)
Medium: New Living Translation: Luke 20:27-40 (NLT)
Hard: New International Version: Luke 20:27-40 (NIV)
Very Hard: English Standard Version: Luke 20:27-40 (ESV)

Luke 20:27-40 Printable ERV Passage

Comprehension Questions

Who came to talk to Jesus in this story?
What did the Sadducees believe about life after death?
What story did the Sadducees tell Jesus?
Why did they ask Jesus whose wife the woman would be?
What did Jesus say about marriage in the next life?
What did Jesus say about people who rise from death?
What did Jesus remind them about God and the burning bush?
What did Jesus mean when he said God is the God of the living?
How did the teachers of the Law respond to Jesus’ answer?
Did anyone ask Jesus more tricky questions after this?

Application Questions

What do you believe happens after people die?
Why is it good to know that God is the God of the living?
How can we trust God’s promise of life after death?
How does it feel to know God loves and cares for his people forever?
What can we learn from how Jesus answered hard questions with wisdom and kindness?

Theological Insights

God has power over life and death.
God’s people will live forever with him after death.
God knows and loves his people even after they die.
Jesus taught about heaven and life after death with truth and care.
It is good to trust God’s promises, even when we do not understand everything.

Closing Prayer

Dear Father, Thank you for teaching us about life after death. Help us to trust you and believe your promises. Please fill our hearts with peace and hope. Amen.