Note 2 at Lk. 9:60: Since a dead person cannot literally bury another dead person, Jesus is here speaking of the spiritually dead burying the physically dead. This somewhat harsh response of Jesus to someone who said "suffer me first to go and bury my father" was meant to reveal this man's heart.

Had his father truly died, this man would already be occupied with funeral and burial arrangements which often took place within a day or two of the death. The words "bury my father" more likely meant that he wanted to delay following after Jesus until such time as his father died. Then he would be free to follow Jesus.

Jesus made it perfectly clear that putting any person or thing "first" before following Him was unacceptable (see refs. c and d at Lk. 9:59, p. 247). This man was being called into ministry by Jesus Himself! Temporal affairs could be handled by the spiritually dead (Prov. 21:16; Eph. 2:1,5; 5:14; Col. 2:13; 1 Tim. 5:6; Rev. 3:1).