Bible Questions and Answers

What does the Bible say about cremation? Does cremation affect resurrection?

The word ‘cremation’ is not found in the Bible.

We die because we sin. Sin is the disobeying of God’s commandments. Following his disobedience God told Adam:

Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return."

In death then, we corrupt back into dust – the chemical elements from which we are constructed.

The process of corruption begins at death and continues in the grave. Cremation merely accelerates the process.

The certain hope of those who believe and obey the Gospel preached by Jesus Christ and his apostles is that of resurrection from the dead to eternal life at a future time of God’s choosing.

1 Corinthians 15:20-23 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming.

God will reconstruct us from the dust. So, it does not matter what happens to our body after death. If we are lost at sea, eaten by wild animals, burned to ash by a volcanic eruption (like Pompeii), or vapourised by a nuclear explosion, our resurrection will not present a problem to God.

Burial is the usual way to dispose of the dead, but there is no prohibition on cremation in the Bible.

I hope you find this helpful.

God bless,
Glenn