The Resurrection and Judgment

In the resurrection our spirits and bodies will be reunited eternally. Jesus Christ was the first person to be resurrected. Jesus opened the door for everyone, both the wicked and the righteous, to receive his/her body by means of the resurrection.

“Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, then all shall be raised from this temporal death…Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous….” 1

Condition of the body in the resurrection

That a resurrected person has a body of flesh and bones is demonstrated by the Lord’s appearance to his disciples after his death and resurrection. He said, “Behold my hands and feet, that it is I myself: handle me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.” 2

A Book of Mormon prophet, Amulek, further explained,

“The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame…and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost…I say unto you that this mortal body is raised to an immortal body…that they can die no more; their spirits uniting with their bodies, never to be divided; thus the whole becoming spiritual and immortal, that they can no more see corruption.” 3

Times of the resurrection and the judgment

The resurrection happens at different times for different people according to the judgment of God--celestial people first, then terrestrial, then telestial, then those who are damned forever. The results of that judgment also determine the resurrection glory of each person's body. These varying degrees of glory are celestial, terrestrial and telestial, according to their faithfulness in life.

The first resurrection began at the time of Jesus Christ, when all the righteous people that had lived up until that time received a celestial judgment and a celestial resurrection. That resurrection has continued until the present day, but the majority of the people who died between the time of Jesus Christ and today will receive their judgement and resurrection in the morning of the first resurrection. This is a designation for the time of Christ’s Second Coming, when the righteous people that died between Christ’s resurrection and his Second Coming will be resurrected with celestial bodies and caught up to meet him, “and they shall descend with him to reign as kings and priests during the millennial era.” 4

The afternoon of the first resurrection will follow. Those coming forth at that time will have been given a judgment that they receive a terrestrial resurrection, and are thus destined to inherit a terrestrial glory in eternity. 5

At the end of the millennium, the second resurrection begins. This is the judgment and resurrection of the unjust--those who were wicked and carnal in mortality: “these are the rest of the dead…the spirits of men who are to be judged, and are found under condemnation…and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither again, until the end of the earth.” 6 Those wicked people who are destined to come forth in the forepart of the second resurrection will be those who earn telestial bodies. 7.

Finally, in the latter end of the second resurrection comes the resurrection of damnation or the resurrection of the sons of perdition. Those who “remain filthy still” 8 shall come forth from their graves. 9

The final judgment after the resurrections

The final judgment follows. Every son and daughter of God, now resurrected, must “be brought and be arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, which is one Eternal God, to be judged according to their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil….” 10 Mercifully, we will also be judged according to the desires and the intents of [our] hearts.” 11

If we have repented, we will receive mercy. The atonement of Jesus Christ is so deep and so vast that it can reclaim repentant souls from enormous distances, if they so desire. In the end, Jesus will make every effort to extend mercy to any repentant, desirous soul. Nevertheless, we must make an accounting of our life and take responsibility for our actions: “…we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt.” 12

Then, at that day of reckoning

“…when all men shall stand to be judged of him, then shall they confess that he is God; then shall they confess, who live without God in the world, that the judgment of an everlasting punishment is just upon them; and they shall quake, and tremble, and shrink beneath the glance of his all-searching eye.” 13 Then “the righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the Vengeance. He [Jesus] shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked. And men shall say, surely there is a reward for the righteous. Surely there is a God that judgeth the earth.” 14

In the final judgment after the resurrections, they who received Jesus Christ, fully obeyed his commandments, and endured in faith to the end of their lives will inherit eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God. 15

“They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized…and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power; and who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true…They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things--They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory; and are priests of the Most High….Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God--Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall overcome all things…These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. These are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign on the earth over his people…These are they whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of all. These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus…These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all….” 16

Questions about 'The Resurrection and Judgment'

• What is the definition of the resurrection?
• Who was the first person in the resurrection?
• How many people will receive a resurrection? Only the good?
• The resurrection happens at different times for different people according to the judgment of God. What are the four categories of judgment and degrees of glory of the resurrection?
• What are the five times for the resurrection of all men?
• After all men have received a resurrection what happens?
• In the final judgment, all men and women will be judged according to the intents of their hearts and their deeds. To whom must we make an accounting?
• What will be the reactions of the wicked and the righteous at the final judgment?
• In the final judgment after the resurrections, what will the righteous inherit and what will be their eternal condition?

References for 'The Judgment and Resurrection'

1. (Alma 11:42, 45)
2. (Luke 24:39)
3. (Alma 11:43-45)
4. (Mormon Doctrine, p. 640)
5. (D&C 76:71-80; Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640) – And again, we saw the terrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are they who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church of the Firstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that of the moon differs from the sun in the firmament. Behold, these are they who died without law; And also they who are the spirits of men kept in prison, whom the Son visited, and preached the gospel unto them, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh; Who received not the testimony of Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it. These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These are they who receive of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father. Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun. These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God. And now this is the end of the vision which we saw of the terrestrial, that the Lord commanded us to write while we were yet in the Spirit (D&C 76:71-80). "And after this another angel shall sound, which is the second trump; and then cometh the redemption of those who are Christ's at his coming; who have received their part in that prison which is prepared for them, that they might receive the gospel, and be judged according to men in the flesh." (D. & C. 88:99.) This is the afternoon of the first resurrection; it takes place after our Lord has ushered in the millennium. Those coming forth at that time do so with terrestrial bodies and are thus destined to inherit a terrestrial glory in eternity" (Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640).
6. (D&C 88:100-101) – And again, another trump shall sound, which is the third trump; and then come the spirits of men who are to be judged, and are found under condemnation; And these are the rest of the dead; and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither again, until the end of the earth.
7. (D&C 76:81-112; D&C 76:81-112; Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640) – And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the moon in the firmament. These are they who received not the gospel of Christ, neither the testimony of Jesus. These are they who deny not the Holy Spirit. These are they who are thrust down to hell. These are they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work. These are they who receive not of his fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through the ministration of the terrestrial; And the terrestrial through the ministration of the celestial. And also the telestial receive it of the administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who are appointed to be ministering spirits for them; for they shall be heirs of salvation. And thus we saw, in the heavenly vision, the glory of the telestial, which surpasses all understanding; And no man knows it except him to whom God has revealed it. And thus we saw the glory of the terrestrial which excels in all things the glory of the telestial, even in glory, and in power, and in might, and in dominion. And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all things—where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever; Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever. They who dwell in his presence are the church of the Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known, having received of his fulness and of his grace; And he makes them equal in power, and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of the celestial is one, even as the glory of the sun is one. And the glory of the terrestrial is one, even as the glory of the moon is one. And the glory of the telestial is one, even as the glory of the stars is one; for as one star differs from another star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial world; For these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas. These are they who say they are some of one and some of another—some of Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch; But received not the gospel, neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the everlasting covenant. Last of all, these all are they who will not be gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the Firstborn, and received into the cloud. These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie. These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth. These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work; When he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the Father, spotless, saying: I have overcome and have trodden the wine-press alone, even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of his power to reign forever and ever. But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore; And heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever; For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared; And they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end (D&C 76:81-112). "At the end of the millennium, the second resurrection begins. In the forepart of this resurrection of the unjust those destined to come forth will be "the spirits of men who are to be judged, and are found under condemnation; And these are the rest of the dead; and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither again, until the end of the earth." (D. & C. 88:100-101.) These are the ones who have earned telestial bodies, who were wicked and carnal in mortality, and who have suffered the wrath of God in hell "until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work." (D. & C. 76:85.) Their final destiny is to inherit a telestial glory" (D. & C. 76:81-112; Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640).
8. (D&C 88:102)
9. (2 Ne 9:14-16; (Alma 12:17-18; Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640) – Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness. And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. And assuredly, as the Lord liveth, for the Lord God hath spoken it, and it is his eternal word, which cannot pass away, that they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still; wherefore, they who are filthy are the devil and his angels; and they shall go away into everlasting fire, prepared for them; and their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever and has no end (2 Ne 9:14-16). "Finally, in the latter end of the resurrection of damnation, the sons of perdition, those who "remain filthy still" (D. & C. 88:102), shall come forth from their graves. (2 Ne. 9:14-16.) "Then is the time when their torments shall be as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever; and then is the time that they shall be chained down to an everlasting destruction, according to the power and captivity of Satan, he having subjected them according to his will. Then, I say unto you, they shall be as though there had been no redemption made; for they cannot be redeemed according to God's justice; and they cannot die, seeing there is no more corruption" (Alma 12:17-18; Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., p.640).
10. (Alma 11:44)
11. (Bruce R. McConkie, Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, Vol 1, p.394)
12. (Alma 11:43)
13. (Mosiah 27:31)
14. (Psalm 58)
15. (D&C 14:7) – And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God.
16. (D&C 76:51-70)