Abstract

This paper explores the biblicist understanding of the theme of nakedness in Scripture—both physical and spiritual—as it relates to human accountability before God and the doctrine of resurrection. Drawing upon Old and New Testament texts, it argues that nakedness symbolizes both vulnerability and truth before divine judgment. The paper contends that the biblical teaching of all things being “naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13) should be interpreted not as literal exposure alone, but as a profound moral and spiritual unveiling where all deceit, pretense, and concealment are stripped away before the Creator. The discussion concludes that the resurrection—whether unto life or condemnation (John 5:29)—reveals the total transparency of every human being before divine justice.

I. Introduction: Naked Before God

From the earliest pages of Genesis to the final visions of Revelation, the Bible presents nakedness as a profound metaphor for the state of humanity before God. Adam and Eve’s nakedness in the Garden (Genesis 2:25) was originally a state of innocence, unmarred by shame. Only after sin entered did nakedness become associated with guilt and exposure (Genesis 3:7–10).

The Biblicist perspective treats this as an emblematic pattern: what was once pure and unashamed becomes tainted through sin, requiring covering—first by fig leaves, later by divine provision through animal sacrifice, and finally through the righteousness of Christ (Genesis 3:21; Romans 13:14). Nakedness, then, is not merely a bodily condition but a theological symbol of being fully known.

II. Nakedness as Spiritual Reality

A. The Eye of God and the Transparency of All Things

Hebrews 4:13 declares:

“Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.”

This verse portrays God’s omniscience as total exposure—nothing can be hidden. From a biblicist view, this means human self-deception is futile; God perceives motives as well as actions (1 Samuel 16:7). The metaphor of nakedness in this passage connects directly to divine judgment, where inner thoughts and intentions are “dissected” by the Word of God (Hebrews 4:12).

B. The Uncovering of Secrets

Paul reaffirms this in Romans 2:16:

“God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.”

The resurrection, therefore, is not merely the reanimation of bodies but the unveiling of truth. All pretenses—religious, political, and personal—fall away. The biblicist stance emphasizes that this unveiling is part of God’s righteous order: every hidden thing will be revealed (Ecclesiastes 12:14; Luke 12:2–3).

III. Resurrection and the State of Nakedness

A. Physical Resurrection and Spiritual Meaning

The question of whether people will be resurrected naked arises from the literal and symbolic uses of nakedness in Scripture. In Job 1:21, Job says, “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither.” This expresses human mortality and dependence, not immorality. Similarly, the resurrection of the dead, as described in 1 Corinthians 15, involves the transformation of the perishable body into one incorruptible.

Paul uses clothing metaphors to describe this:

“For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven… that mortality might be swallowed up of life” (2 Corinthians 5:2–4).

The Biblicist understanding reads this as implying that though the dead are raised in a state of total exposure before God, they are not left “naked” in shame but are clothed by His righteousness if they are in Christ. Those outside of Christ, however, face resurrection in the full exposure of guilt (Revelation 16:15).

IV. The Restoration of Innocence

A. The Garment of Righteousness

In Revelation 3:18, Christ counsels the Laodicean church to “buy white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear.” The biblicist view understands this raiment as symbolic of justification and sanctification—the imputed and imparted righteousness of Christ (Isaiah 61:10).

In the resurrection unto life, believers will be restored not only to immortality but to the unashamed transparency of Eden, now made permanent by divine holiness. Nakedness before God ceases to be shameful because sin has been removed (Revelation 19:8). The resurrected saints’ purity allows for perfect communion with God without concealment or fear.

V. The Nakedness of the Wicked

For the unrepentant, the same divine exposure that redeems the righteous becomes condemnation. In Nahum 3:5, God says to Nineveh:

“Behold, I am against thee… I will discover thy skirts upon thy face, and I will shew the nations thy nakedness.”

This language of unveiled shame parallels prophetic judgment scenes (e.g., Ezekiel 16, Hosea 2). Biblically, the exposure of the wicked’s nakedness is the revelation of hypocrisy and rebellion. Their spiritual nakedness is a public testimony of unrepented sin, laid bare at the final judgment.

VI. Nakedness and the Cross

At Calvary, Christ Himself was stripped and crucified naked (John 19:23–24). From a biblicist standpoint, this event is deeply symbolic: the innocent One bore the ultimate shame and exposure of sin on behalf of humanity. By enduring nakedness before men, He restored humanity’s right to be unashamed before God.

Thus, the resurrection of believers clothed in righteousness is inseparable from Christ’s own resurrection, in which shame was conquered by glory (Hebrews 12:2). The nakedness of the cross becomes the covering of the redeemed.

VII. Eschatological Implications: Nothing Hidden

The eschaton brings universal unveiling:

“There is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known” (Luke 12:2).

In the final resurrection, all will stand exposed—not for humiliation’s sake, but for truth’s vindication. Those clothed in Christ will shine as the sun (Matthew 13:43), while those who reject Him will face the “shame of everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2).

A biblicist interpretation therefore sees resurrection nakedness as the revelation of ultimate truth, not primarily a physical condition. It represents the stripping away of falsehood and pretense before the omniscient gaze of God.

VIII. Conclusion

In summary, the Biblicist perspective on resurrection and divine omniscience holds that:

Nakedness in Scripture symbolizes spiritual transparency and moral exposure. All things are naked before God because He alone perceives the inner truth of every heart. Resurrection reveals the full reality of each person’s life, unmediated by deceit or disguise. The righteous will be clothed in Christ’s righteousness, transforming nakedness into glory. The wicked will remain naked in shame, exposed by their own works.

Thus, the final resurrection manifests the ultimate justice and truth of God’s character: no false covering remains, no secret escapes His sight, and every soul stands either justified or condemned by what is revealed in the light of His holiness.

Key Biblical References

Genesis 2–3; Job 1:21 Ecclesiastes 12:14 Isaiah 47:3; 61:10 Nahum 3:5 Luke 12:2–3 John 5:28–29; 19:23–24 Romans 2:16; 13:14 1 Corinthians 15; 2 Corinthians 5:1–5 Hebrews 4:12–13; 12:2 Revelation 3:18; 16:15; 19:8