Jewish tradition accorded no legal validity to the testimony of women, children, or slaves. This may account for the absence of women in Paul’s list. Here he mentions Christ’s appearance to five hundred brothers at one time,
an appearance that is not mentioned in any of the Gospels.
In a Jewish court case the testimony of two or three eyewitnesses was enough to decide a matter (Deuteronomy 19:15). By appearing to five hundred brothers at the same time, Christ provided the world with ample proof of his resurrection.
Most of these witnesses were still alive at the time of Paul’s writing (more than twenty years after Christ’s resurrection). Paul was probably acquainted with many of them. It is as if he is inviting the skeptics in the Corinthian church to find some of these eyewitnesses and investigate the matter for themselves.
The expression fallen asleep
was often used by the early Christians when they spoke of the death of a fellow believer. The expression suggests that there will be a time of waking up
—the resurrection of the body.
6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.