In a quiet moment of reflection that returns each year, I notice how “He Is Risen” and “He Has Risen” shapes how people understand faith, tradition, language, and meaning. The single phrase can guide an expression across many places, especially Easter mornings, when bells rang through an old church and I sat quietly, listening to a familiar line that still resounds today.
“He Is Risen” or “He Has Risen” reveals how one phrase can connect grammar, tradition, faith, and historical usage in meaningful ways for modern readers. Its strength comes from a strange mix of older English forms, past participles, and sacred history. The wording connects linguistic history with spiritual memory, something I explored through its etymological roots as a young Christian, guided by a former teacher.
These phrases survived centuries of worship, debate, and cultural expression, while different traditions preserved them in sacred writing. The number 145, associated here with manuscript variations, also points toward the slow evolution of nuances linked to the resurrection.
Quick Answer
“He has risen” is the standard choice in modern English.
It uses the present perfect tense:
He + has + risen
Here, risen is the past participle of rise. The sentence means that he has completed the act of rising and that the result remains relevant now.
However, “He is risen” is not simply an incorrect version of “He has risen.” It’s a traditional English construction with historical roots. The phrase became firmly established in Christian language through Bible translations, worship, hymns, liturgy, and Easter traditions.
The easiest way to remember the distinction is:
- He has risen → standard contemporary English
- He is risen → traditional religious English
- He rose → simple past
- He was raised → passive construction emphasizing that someone raised him
If you’re writing ordinary modern English, “He has risen” is usually the better choice. If you’re giving a traditional Easter greeting or intentionally using historic Christian language, “He is risen” is perfectly appropriate.
Comparison Overview
| Expression | Grammar | Modern English? | Common Context | Main Focus |
| He is risen | Historical/traditional be construction | Uncommon | Easter, worship, traditional Bible language | Resulting state |
| He has risen | Present perfect | Yes | Modern speech and writing | Completed action with present relevance |
| He rose | Simple past | Yes | Historical narration | Past event |
| He was raised | Passive voice | Yes | Theology and explanatory writing | The person who raised him |
The important point is that these sentences aren’t four interchangeable grammatical clones.
Each one puts the spotlight somewhere slightly different.
“He rose” tells you that the action happened.
“He has risen” tells you the action happened and connects it to the present.
“He was raised” focuses on the fact that someone raised him.
“He is risen” belongs to a traditional construction that emphasizes the risen condition while preserving an older form of English.
That last distinction explains much of the confusion.
Main Differences Between “He Is Risen” and “He Has Risen”
The biggest difference involves the auxiliary verb used with risen.
Modern English normally forms the present perfect with has or have. Older English could use forms of be with certain verbs, particularly verbs associated with movement or a change of state.
That historical difference is why “He is risen” doesn’t follow the pattern most modern speakers expect.
“He Has Risen” Uses the Modern Present Perfect
The construction “he has risen” follows a familiar modern English pattern:
Subject + has/have + past participle
For example:
- He has arrived.
- She has gone home.
- The sun has risen.
- The temperature has risen.
- The water level has risen.
The verb rise has three important forms:
| Form | Verb |
| Base form | rise |
| Simple past | rose |
| Past participle | risen |
Therefore:
- He rises every morning.
- He rose early.
- He has risen already.
You wouldn’t normally say “He has rose.” That’s a common grammatical error because rose is the simple past form, while risen is the past participle required after has.
“He Is Risen” Comes From Older English Usage
The phrase “He is risen” makes more sense once you understand older English grammar.
Historically, English sometimes used forms of be with past participles of verbs that described movement or a change of state. Expressions such as “he is come” and “they are gone” reflect this older pattern.
Over centuries, English increasingly favored have in perfect constructions.
Modern speakers therefore expect:
He has come.
rather than:
He is come.
They expect:
He has risen.
rather than:
He is risen.
Yet older expressions didn’t simply vanish overnight. Some survived in fixed phrases, literature, religious language, and formal traditions.
“He is risen” became one of the most recognizable survivors.
That survival matters. A phrase can sound old-fashioned without being an accidental grammatical error.
“Risen” Is Not the Same as “Rose”
Another source of confusion is the difference between rose and risen.
The verb rise is irregular:
rise → rose → risen
The three forms serve different grammatical functions.
Consider these examples:
- He rose from the dead.
Simple past. - He has risen from the dead.
Present perfect. - He is risen.
Traditional construction.
The sentence “He has rose” is incorrect in standard English because has requires the past participle risen, not the simple past rose.
Likewise, “He is rose” doesn’t express the intended meaning.
This small distinction explains why “He has risen” is the natural modern form.
Why Does the Bible Say “He Is Risen”?
The Bible is one of the main reasons the expression remains familiar today.
The resurrection accounts in the New Testament have been translated into English many times. Different translations make different grammatical and stylistic choices.
Traditional English translations frequently use “He is risen.” Modern translations often use “He has risen.”
That doesn’t mean the underlying resurrection message has changed.
It means the translators have chosen different ways to represent the original text in English.
The Phrase in Matthew 28:6
Matthew 28:6 contains one of the best-known resurrection declarations:
“He is not here: for he is risen, as he said.”
That’s the wording found in the King James Version.
You can read the passage at
Modern translations may render the same basic statement with “has risen.”
For example, the New International Version gives:
“He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.”
You can compare translations of
The difference illustrates an important point: Bible translations aren’t frozen versions of English grammar.
English changes.
A translation that sounded natural several centuries ago may sound formal or archaic today.
The Phrase in Mark 16:6
Mark’s resurrection account also contains the famous declaration.
The King James Version reads:
“He is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.”
Modern translations commonly use “has risen.”
This parallel is useful because it shows how deeply the traditional wording became associated with the resurrection story.
It wasn’t merely a phrase invented by modern churchgoers. It appears in major historic English Bible traditions.
You can compare translations
The Phrase in Luke 24:6
Luke also records the resurrection announcement:
“He is not here, but is risen.”
That’s the traditional King James wording.
Modern translations again frequently choose “has risen.”
See
to compare the traditional rendering with other English translations.
These repeated examples help explain why “He is risen” became embedded in Christian vocabulary.
Why Bible Translations Don’t All Use the Same English
Different Bible translations have different goals.
Some deliberately preserve traditional or formal language. Others aim to communicate the biblical message in contemporary English.
That creates differences such as:
- He is risen
- He has risen
- He has been raised
These aren’t necessarily contradictory statements.
They can represent different ways of expressing the resurrection in English.
For example, a translation that says “He has risen” follows the normal modern English perfect construction. A traditional translation that says “He is risen” preserves an older English form that became strongly associated with Christian worship.
Read More: Impatient vs Inpatient: What’s the Difference?
Is “He Is Risen” Grammatically Correct?
Yes, with an important qualification.
“He is risen” is grammatically established in historical and traditional English, particularly in religious usage. It isn’t best understood as a random grammatical mistake.
However, that doesn’t mean modern writers should use “is risen” as a normal replacement for “has risen.”
Modern English has largely abandoned the old auxiliary pattern.
That’s why a sentence such as:
“The athlete is risen from his seat.”
sounds strange to most modern readers.
A contemporary writer would probably say:
“The athlete has risen from his seat.”
The religious expression survives because fixed phrases have staying power.
Language isn’t a perfectly clean machine. Some expressions become cultural landmarks.
Why Modern Readers Think It Sounds Wrong
Most modern speakers learn a straightforward rule:
have/has + past participle
So we naturally recognize:
- has eaten
- has arrived
- has gone
- has fallen
- has risen
When we encounter “is risen,” our modern grammatical instincts may immediately flag it as unusual.
That instinct isn’t unreasonable.
The construction is unusual in contemporary general English.
The mistake comes when unusual gets confused with historically incorrect.
Those aren’t the same thing.
Why It Wasn’t Simply a Grammar Error
English has changed considerably over the centuries.
Older forms of English used be as an auxiliary with certain intransitive verbs that described movement or changes of state. Other European languages retain similar patterns more extensively.
As English developed, have became increasingly dominant in perfect constructions.
Religious language didn’t always follow that change at the same speed.
Church texts tend to be conservative. Once a memorable phrase becomes embedded in prayers, songs, Scripture readings, and annual celebrations, people continue repeating it.
That gives phrases an unusually long shelf life.
“He is risen” is a classic example.
Is “He Is Risen” Passive Voice?
Not necessarily.
This is an important distinction.
Modern English frequently uses the structure be + past participle for passive voice:
The window was broken.
The letter was written.
The building was constructed.
However, “is + past participle” doesn’t automatically mean passive voice.
In the traditional expression “He is risen,” the construction comes from an older perfect-like use of be rather than functioning simply as the ordinary modern passive construction.
Compare it with:
He was raised.
That sentence is passive. It focuses on the fact that someone raised him.
Now compare:
He has risen.
That’s active present perfect.
And:
He is risen.
That’s the traditional construction associated with the resurrection proclamation.
The surface pattern can look similar, but grammar depends on the history and function of the construction rather than just two words sitting next to each other.
What Does “He Is Risen” Mean?
At its heart, “He is risen” announces the resurrection as an established reality.
The phrase isn’t merely reporting an event like a newspaper headline.
It’s a proclamation.
That’s one reason the traditional wording has such force during Easter. The expression is short, rhythmic, memorable, and closely connected with centuries of Christian worship.
When someone says:
“He is risen!”
the listener generally understands the intended meaning immediately:
Jesus has risen from the dead and is alive.
The traditional construction also gives the phrase a solemn, ceremonial quality.
It sounds different from ordinary conversation.
That difference is part of its appeal.
What Does “He Has Risen” Mean?
“He has risen” communicates the same central resurrection claim using contemporary English grammar.
The present perfect connects a completed event with the present.
Consider:
“The sun has risen.”
The rising happened, but its consequence is visible now.
Similarly:
“He has risen.”
presents the resurrection as an event that has happened with continuing significance.
The wording feels natural to contemporary English speakers because has + past participle remains a productive grammatical pattern.
For modern articles, essays, educational material, websites, and general explanations, “He has risen” is usually the clearest choice.
“He Is Risen” vs. “He Has Risen”: Does the Meaning Change?
The meanings overlap substantially.
Both expressions communicate that the resurrection has occurred.
Still, their grammatical flavor differs.
“He has risen” places clearer emphasis on the completed action and its present relevance.
“He is risen” has a traditional character and can foreground the resulting condition: he stands as one who has risen.
That distinction shouldn’t be exaggerated.
It would be misleading to claim that the two expressions represent completely different theological ideas. They don’t.
The difference is primarily one of English grammar, historical usage, style, and emphasis.
Think of it like two paths leading to the same destination.
One is a modern highway.
The other is an old road that has become famous because generations of travelers have used it.
When Should You Use “He Is Risen”?
There are several situations where “He is risen” makes perfect sense.
Use “He Is Risen” for Traditional Easter Greetings
The classic Easter greeting is:
“He is risen!”
The traditional response is:
“He is risen indeed!”
This wording has become part of Christian Easter tradition in many communities.
Changing it to “He has risen indeed!” isn’t grammatically wrong in modern English. However, it loses some of the familiar traditional character.
If the goal is to sound ceremonial and traditional, “He is risen” is the obvious choice.
Use It in Traditional Religious Writing
The phrase works naturally in:
- Sermons
- Easter services
- Church bulletins
- Devotional writing
- Hymns
- Liturgical material
- Religious artwork
- Traditional Easter cards
- Quotations from older Bible translations
In these settings, the historical flavor is an advantage rather than a problem.
Use It When Preserving a Traditional Phrase
Some phrases survive because they carry cultural meaning beyond their literal grammar.
For example, people don’t usually modernize every familiar expression simply because another wording would sound more contemporary.
“He is risen” has become an established Easter proclamation.
Its traditional character is part of what makes it recognizable.
FAQs:
1. Is “He Has Risen” grammatically correct?
Yes. “He has risen” is the standard form in modern English. It uses the present perfect tense, with has as the auxiliary verb and risen as the past participle.
2. Why do people say “He Is Risen”?
“He is risen” is an older or archaic English construction. It remains familiar because it appears in traditional religious language, hymns, formal quotations, and Easter expressions.
3. What is the difference between “He Is Risen” and “He Has Risen”?
The main difference is the auxiliary verb. “He has risen” follows the modern English pattern using has, while “He is risen” reflects an older construction using is.
4. Should I use “He Is Risen” in formal writing?
It depends on the context. If you are discussing a traditional religious phrase, quotation, hymn, or historical text, “He is risen” can be appropriate. For ordinary modern English writing, “He has risen” is the usual grammatical form.
5. Is “He Is Risen” wrong?
Not necessarily. It is understandable and established in religious tradition, but it is archaic rather than the normal modern-English construction. The appropriate choice depends on whether you are preserving traditional wording or using contemporary grammar.
Conclusion:
The distinction between “He Is Risen” and “He Has Risen” comes down largely to the development of English grammar and the survival of traditional religious language. “He has risen” follows the standard modern present-perfect pattern, while “He is risen” belongs mainly to older, fixed, and religious expressions.
Understanding this difference makes it easier to choose the wording that fits your context. Use “He has risen” for standard modern English, while recognizing “He is risen” as a traditional form that continues to carry historical and religious significance.
