Death is depressing, cold, and unnatural. It robs life of certainty and meaning and abruptly breaks relationships. Dying does not make sense. As humans, we were never meant to die. Only because of sin do we die.
However, in the Garden of Eden in the midst of darkness and despair, God introduced hope. Hope shines where there is no hope, as the moon and stars bring light into darkness. This hope began with God’s search for Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:9) and His announcement that He would send the Promised Seed to defeat Satan (Gen. 3:15). Hope is a gift from God Himself to us. Eve thought that her firstborn son would be that Savior (Gen. 4:1), but death would be defeated only by the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
The Old Testament church (Acts 7:38) lived by this hope, looking forward to the coming of the Messiah and the establishment of His kingdom. The hope of resurrection already is strong in the Old Testament. It starts with Job, culminates with Daniel, and in between, several authors testify to it.
Part II: Commentary
Let’s briefly review the main texts related to the hope of the resurrection in the Old Testament:
Job 19:25–27
It can be argued that there is no more powerful and more outstanding text on the personal certainty of resurrection than that of the patriarch Job. This book is a stunning and an eloquently expressed confession of faith. The verses within contain one of the most beautiful expressions of hope in a bodily resurrection.
Here we find a declaration that one can find engraved on many Christian tombs: Job’s powerful statement that he will see God in his flesh after death is the oldest in the Bible and sets the tone for this incredible hope of what God will do at the end of earth’s history. Job states: “ ‘I know that my Redeemer lives’ ” (Job 19:25, NKJV). He knows his God, who is alive, and he calls Him the “Redeemer” (or goel in Hebrew, meaning kinsman redeemer, defender, vindicator, protector), as Boaz was for Ruth (Ruth 4:14). Job continues with assurance that his Redeemer “lives, and that at the end of time he will stand over the dust” (Job 19:25, EHV) to resurrect him to new life.
Unfortunately, people know and quote usually only verse 25, but what continues is equally crucial: “ ‘And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!’ ” (Job 19:26, 27, NIV). Notice the personal tone of Job’s solemn declaration: my, I, myself, my own. He firmly believes in his heart that in his flesh with his own eyes he will see God even though he will die, and his flesh will be destroyed. This personal assurance of a future resurrection day cannot be expressed in a better and more emphatic way.
Psalm 16:9, 10
“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead [sheol, grave, death], nor will you let your faithful one see decay” (Psalm 16:9, 10, NIV). Here the Hebrew term sheol should be translated as “grave,” as it is in many other passages. This term is found 66 times in the Hebrew Bible and, in the majority of cases, its meaning is synonymous with the grave. Both the wicked and the righteous descend to sheol (Gen. 37:35; Gen. 42:38; Gen. 44:29, 31; Num. 16:30, 33; 1 Kings 2:6, 9; Job 21:13; Ps. 49:17; Ps. 89:48; Eccles. 9:10; Isa. 14:9, 11, 15; Isa. 38:10; Ezek. 31:15–17). In addition, the Lord redeems the faithful from sheol (Hos. 13:14); no one can hide from God in sheol (Ps. 139:8, Amos 9:2), and there is no work or other activity in sheol (Eccles. 9:10).
Nowhere in the Bible is sheol described as the shadowy underworld where the dead live or where human souls or spirits continue their existence. The word sheol is a designation for the grave, the place of the dead (see, for example, the consistency of the NIV translation, where, in the majority of cases, the word sheol is translated as grave [57 times], but also as death [five times], realm of death [once], deepest depths [once], gates of death [once], and depth [once]). David rejoices that after death he will rest in peace and will be not forgotten by the Lord but will be resurrected to a new life and will not experience lasting destruction (shakhat means destruction, corruption, decay, pit).
This text transcends the experience of David and has a deeper Messianic meaning. The Faithful (Hebrew khasid, Devoted, the faithful One, the Holy One, i.e., the Messiah Jesus Christ) will not rot in His tomb, His body will not decay, because He will be resurrected after resting three days (counted inclusively) in the grave (sheol). The New Testament quotes this text as a prophetic announcement of Christ’s resurrection (Acts 2:25–28, Acts 13:35).
Psalm 49:9–15
The psalmist presents a contrast between the general fate of people and the reward of the righteous. On the one hand, people will die and go to their graves (sheol) because they will not “live on forever and not see decay [shakhat_]” (Ps. 49:9, NIV; compare with Ps. 16:10, Ps. 17:15). On the other hand, those who love and obey the Lord will have a different destiny. The poet declares: “God will redeem [_padah, ransom, redeem] me from the realm of the dead [sheol, grave]; he will surely take me to himself [laqakh, receive, take up]” (Ps. 49:15, NIV). The NLT translators interpret the Hebrew text in a powerful way: “He [God] will snatch me from the power of the grave.”
Psalm 71:20
“Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up” (Psalm 71:20, NIV). This psalm is a prayer for God’s help in old age. The Lord was with the psalmist from birth and has done great things for him; so, he asks for God’s protection from his enemies. God not only restores physical strength and health but also has the power to resurrect. The psalmist believes, and hopes, that God will bring him up (Hebrew: ‘alah, go up, ascent) from “the depths [in Hebrew tehom, meaning, literally, “abyss, deep”] of the earth,” which may be a figurative description of the grave. Thus, this poetic imagery hints at a physical resurrection. The rendering of the New Living Translation is infused with this hope: “You will restore me to life again and lift me up from the depths of the earth.”
Psalm 73:24
Asaph, in his existential quest for understanding the puzzles of life regarding the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous, concludes that it is God who holds him and guides him. God secures his future and will resurrect him to eternal life: “You hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory” (Ps. 73:23, 24, NIV). God gives meaning to the present life, but moreover, He secures our future even after death. The verb for being “taken up” is laqakh, and is used in the story of Enoch when God took him up (laqakh; Gen. 5:24), as well as in the narrative of Elijah, who also was taken up to heaven (laqakh; 2 Kings 2:3, 9. Another verb is used, namely ‘alah, go up, such as in 2 Kings 2:1, 11).
Isaiah 26:19
The prophet Isaiah, in the so-called “Little Apocalypse,” presents the hope of resurrection and announces it boldly: “Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead” (Isa. 26:19, ESV). A glorious hope and bright future is thus pictured for those who stay with the Lord. This is a very explicit verse about physical resurrection from death. The prophet Daniel, as we shall see next, roots his statement regarding the resurrection in Isaiah’s proclamation.
Daniel 12:2, 12
Daniel points to a day of resurrection: “ ‘Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt’ ” (Dan. 12:2, NIV). God’s Old Testament revelation culminates with this declaration. Death is compared to sleep, and those who are dead will be resurrected: those who served the Lord will receive eternal life, but the wicked will be condemned to eternal death.
God also assures Daniel that he will be resurrected to new life at the very end: “ ‘As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance’ ” (Dan. 12:13, NIV). Death is similar to a rest from faithful labor. But afterward will come the sweet inheritance: eternal life with the Lord.
Jonah 2:2
The allusion to the resurrection in the story of Jonah is related to his stay for three days in the belly of a big fish. Jonah defines this experience as being in sheol, meaning in a grave (Jon. 2:2). After three days and three nights, he was brought to a new life when he was vomited out of this sheol. In his prayer he states: “ ‘I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God’ ” (Jon. 2:6, ESV). Jesus compared His stay in the grave and resurrection to Jonah’s experience (Matt. 12:40).
Hosea 6:2
The prophet Hosea speaks about Israel’s spiritual revival and return to the Lord in terms of being raised from death to new life. The imagery of resurrection is used to explain this new life of God’s people.
Part III: Life Application
How can you bring hope to those who grieve because of the death of a much-loved person in their family?
How can the biblical view of resurrection transform your attitude toward death and despair?
How may the hope of the Second Coming increase the quality of your relationships, whether in marriage, your neighborhood, or your workplace?
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Key Texts: Job 19:25–27, Psalm 73:24, Daniel 12:2
Part I: Overview
Death is depressing, cold, and unnatural. It robs life of certainty and meaning and abruptly breaks relationships. Dying does not make sense. As humans, we were never meant to die. Only because of sin do we die.
However, in the Garden of Eden in the midst of darkness and despair, God introduced hope. Hope shines where there is no hope, as the moon and stars bring light into darkness. This hope began with God’s search for Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:9) and His announcement that He would send the Promised Seed to defeat Satan (Gen. 3:15). Hope is a gift from God Himself to us. Eve thought that her firstborn son would be that Savior (Gen. 4:1), but death would be defeated only by the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
The Old Testament church (Acts 7:38) lived by this hope, looking forward to the coming of the Messiah and the establishment of His kingdom. The hope of resurrection already is strong in the Old Testament. It starts with Job, culminates with Daniel, and in between, several authors testify to it.
Part II: Commentary
Let’s briefly review the main texts related to the hope of the resurrection in the Old Testament:
Job 19:25–27
It can be argued that there is no more powerful and more outstanding text on the personal certainty of resurrection than that of the patriarch Job. This book is a stunning and an eloquently expressed confession of faith. The verses within contain one of the most beautiful expressions of hope in a bodily resurrection.
Here we find a declaration that one can find engraved on many Christian tombs: Job’s powerful statement that he will see God in his flesh after death is the oldest in the Bible and sets the tone for this incredible hope of what God will do at the end of earth’s history. Job states: “ ‘I know that my Redeemer lives’ ” (Job 19:25, NKJV). He knows his God, who is alive, and he calls Him the “Redeemer” (or goel in Hebrew, meaning kinsman redeemer, defender, vindicator, protector), as Boaz was for Ruth (Ruth 4:14). Job continues with assurance that his Redeemer “lives, and that at the end of time he will stand over the dust” (Job 19:25, EHV) to resurrect him to new life.
Unfortunately, people know and quote usually only verse 25, but what continues is equally crucial: “ ‘And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!’ ” (Job 19:26, 27, NIV). Notice the personal tone of Job’s solemn declaration: my, I, myself, my own. He firmly believes in his heart that in his flesh with his own eyes he will see God even though he will die, and his flesh will be destroyed. This personal assurance of a future resurrection day cannot be expressed in a better and more emphatic way.
Psalm 16:9, 10
“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead [sheol, grave, death], nor will you let your faithful one see decay” (Psalm 16:9, 10, NIV). Here the Hebrew term sheol should be translated as “grave,” as it is in many other passages. This term is found 66 times in the Hebrew Bible and, in the majority of cases, its meaning is synonymous with the grave. Both the wicked and the righteous descend to sheol (Gen. 37:35; Gen. 42:38; Gen. 44:29, 31; Num. 16:30, 33; 1 Kings 2:6, 9; Job 21:13; Ps. 49:17; Ps. 89:48; Eccles. 9:10; Isa. 14:9, 11, 15; Isa. 38:10; Ezek. 31:15–17). In addition, the Lord redeems the faithful from sheol (Hos. 13:14); no one can hide from God in sheol (Ps. 139:8, Amos 9:2), and there is no work or other activity in sheol (Eccles. 9:10).
Nowhere in the Bible is sheol described as the shadowy underworld where the dead live or where human souls or spirits continue their existence. The word sheol is a designation for the grave, the place of the dead (see, for example, the consistency of the NIV translation, where, in the majority of cases, the word sheol is translated as grave [57 times], but also as death [five times], realm of death [once], deepest depths [once], gates of death [once], and depth [once]). David rejoices that after death he will rest in peace and will be not forgotten by the Lord but will be resurrected to a new life and will not experience lasting destruction (shakhat means destruction, corruption, decay, pit).
This text transcends the experience of David and has a deeper Messianic meaning. The Faithful (Hebrew khasid, Devoted, the faithful One, the Holy One, i.e., the Messiah Jesus Christ) will not rot in His tomb, His body will not decay, because He will be resurrected after resting three days (counted inclusively) in the grave (sheol). The New Testament quotes this text as a prophetic announcement of Christ’s resurrection (Acts 2:25–28, Acts 13:35).
Psalm 49:9–15
The psalmist presents a contrast between the general fate of people and the reward of the righteous. On the one hand, people will die and go to their graves (sheol) because they will not “live on forever and not see decay [shakhat_]” (Ps. 49:9, NIV; compare with Ps. 16:10, Ps. 17:15). On the other hand, those who love and obey the Lord will have a different destiny. The poet declares: “God will redeem [_padah, ransom, redeem] me from the realm of the dead [sheol, grave]; he will surely take me to himself [laqakh, receive, take up]” (Ps. 49:15, NIV). The NLT translators interpret the Hebrew text in a powerful way: “He [God] will snatch me from the power of the grave.”
Psalm 71:20
“Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up” (Psalm 71:20, NIV). This psalm is a prayer for God’s help in old age. The Lord was with the psalmist from birth and has done great things for him; so, he asks for God’s protection from his enemies. God not only restores physical strength and health but also has the power to resurrect. The psalmist believes, and hopes, that God will bring him up (Hebrew: ‘alah, go up, ascent) from “the depths [in Hebrew tehom, meaning, literally, “abyss, deep”] of the earth,” which may be a figurative description of the grave. Thus, this poetic imagery hints at a physical resurrection. The rendering of the New Living Translation is infused with this hope: “You will restore me to life again and lift me up from the depths of the earth.”
Psalm 73:24
Asaph, in his existential quest for understanding the puzzles of life regarding the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous, concludes that it is God who holds him and guides him. God secures his future and will resurrect him to eternal life: “You hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory” (Ps. 73:23, 24, NIV). God gives meaning to the present life, but moreover, He secures our future even after death. The verb for being “taken up” is laqakh, and is used in the story of Enoch when God took him up (laqakh; Gen. 5:24), as well as in the narrative of Elijah, who also was taken up to heaven (laqakh; 2 Kings 2:3, 9. Another verb is used, namely ‘alah, go up, such as in 2 Kings 2:1, 11).
Isaiah 26:19
The prophet Isaiah, in the so-called “Little Apocalypse,” presents the hope of resurrection and announces it boldly: “Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead” (Isa. 26:19, ESV). A glorious hope and bright future is thus pictured for those who stay with the Lord. This is a very explicit verse about physical resurrection from death. The prophet Daniel, as we shall see next, roots his statement regarding the resurrection in Isaiah’s proclamation.
Daniel 12:2, 12
Daniel points to a day of resurrection: “ ‘Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt’ ” (Dan. 12:2, NIV). God’s Old Testament revelation culminates with this declaration. Death is compared to sleep, and those who are dead will be resurrected: those who served the Lord will receive eternal life, but the wicked will be condemned to eternal death.
God also assures Daniel that he will be resurrected to new life at the very end: “ ‘As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance’ ” (Dan. 12:13, NIV). Death is similar to a rest from faithful labor. But afterward will come the sweet inheritance: eternal life with the Lord.
Jonah 2:2
The allusion to the resurrection in the story of Jonah is related to his stay for three days in the belly of a big fish. Jonah defines this experience as being in sheol, meaning in a grave (Jon. 2:2). After three days and three nights, he was brought to a new life when he was vomited out of this sheol. In his prayer he states: “ ‘I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God’ ” (Jon. 2:6, ESV). Jesus compared His stay in the grave and resurrection to Jonah’s experience (Matt. 12:40).
Hosea 6:2
The prophet Hosea speaks about Israel’s spiritual revival and return to the Lord in terms of being raised from death to new life. The imagery of resurrection is used to explain this new life of God’s people.
Part III: Life Application
How can you bring hope to those who grieve because of the death of a much-loved person in their family?
How can the biblical view of resurrection transform your attitude toward death and despair?
How may the hope of the Second Coming increase the quality of your relationships, whether in marriage, your neighborhood, or your workplace?