But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, 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.

Note the implied rebuke in these words. What honour is there in being the God of dead men? Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead at the time God appeared to Moses before the burning bush. Why would God identify Himself as the God of the patriarchs, except in anticipation of the resurrection? In this same anticipation, by faith, Abraham "looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God" (Heb. 11:10). It has been suggested that Jesus quoted from the Pentateuch (Ex. 3:6, 16) because the Sadducees believed only in the inspiration of the books of Moses -- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, [Matthew 22:31, 32].