Resurrection as Theme of Old Testament

Preamble

In 1 Corinthians 15:4, Paul says that Jesus was buried and that he has been raised according to the scriptures.  The Gospel of John, too, is clear that Jesus' resurrection is to be understood in reference to scripture (John 20:9; cf. Luke 24:46).  It is true that there are passages in the Old Testament that refer to resurrection (Psalm 16:8-11, 49, 73; Hosea 6:2, 13:4; Ezekiel 37; Isaiah 26:19; 53; Daniel 12:2), but the references are rare.  It may seem strange then to claim that resurrection is a main theme in the Old Testament.  However, I want to argue that if one pays attention to the overall story-line of the Old Testament, then it make good sense in the end to claim that resurrection is a main theme.  It is not the quantity of verses but their location and their relative importance that make the case.

The Story-line of the Old Testament

David Noel Freedman has written that the Hebrew Bible is a product of the exile.  This claim ought not to be passed over.  The primary history of Israel (from Genesis to 2 Kings) ends in exile and was compiled by learned Israelites while in exile in Babylon.  The last paragraph of 2 Kings discusses the release of King Jehoiachin of Judah from prison while in exile.  Robert Alter has pointed out that the exile theme is even in the book of Genesis (Adam is exiled from the Garden of Eden and Cain is exiled from the soil).  The theme of exile is also a preoccupation of the three great prophets (Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Isaiah).  The stories in the book of Daniel, a key for Jesus and the early Christian church, is set in the exile.  This is important because even when the exile was "over", Israel was in some sense still in exile because ruled by foreigners (in Daniel's case by the Greeks, especially Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and in Jesus' case by the Romans).  Freedman argues too that at the time of the exile, at least the first nine of the minor prophets had been written.

Cause of Exile

I'm not sure what most evangelicals would say is/are the main theme(s) of the Old Testament, but I'm sure Israel's sinfulness would be on any shortlist.  I think there is a truth here, even if it is commonly misunderstood.  The whole drift of the Old Testament is that the exile is the result of sin and disobedience.  In this sense, there is a kinship between exile and death, both are the result of sin.

Exile is not the Last Word

The Old Testament is clear that the exile is not the last word concerning Israel.  After exile there is the new age.  Joseph Blenkinsopp writes that the road from Babylon to Judah in Isaiah 40:3 (a passage of some importance for Christianity) has been eschatologized in Isaiah 35:8-10 and is now a metaphor for passage to the new age.  But it is precisely at this juncture that the Old Testament verses on resurrection raise their head.  For example, in Ezekiel 37, the great passage on resurrection is about the rebirth of the nation of Israel with reference to their end of exile and passage to the land of Israel.  The Old Testament describes the end of exile as the second Exodus.  Daniel, whose prayer which mentions exile (9:7), ends with the great deliverance of chapter 12 (12:2 being a classic resurrection passage.)  The earlier stories in Daniel have hinted at resurrection.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego are saved from death in the furnace and Daniel is saved from death in the Lion's den by the same sort of divine intervention that resurrection requires.  Obedience pays off.  In Ezekiel and Jeremiah, the obedience that brings life is a God-given new heart.

N.T. Wright has noted that the forgiveness of Israel's sins, the ushering in of the new age, the renewing of the covenant, the restoration of creation, and resurrection are all of the same piece.  In Jesus' resurrection, the new age has broken in.  This is why those passages from the Old Testament, especially Jeremiah (31), Ezekiel (36) and Isaiah (40-66) are so important for Christianity.  The new heart for obedience is available.  The real exile is from sin/death.

Paul

I have argued Paul interprets Habakkuk 2:4 and Leviticus 18:5 Christologically and that the reference to "live" in both verses refers to Jesus' (and our) resurrection.  This is huge because Habakkuk 2:4 is truly one the the most famous Old Testament passages.  It is by faithfulness that we gain eternal life.  That is exactly the lesson of the Old Testament.

Theological Upshot

Resurrection is huge.  It is huge in the Old Testament and it is huge in the New Testament.  It is about the new age and its availability in the here and now (Paul!).  We have no excuse to be sinners.  We are called to be "resurrected" saints and that is exactly the lesson of the New Testament.