Resurrection in the Old Testament

This article explores the theme of resurrection in the Old Testament. Since it is already established that there is no evident testimony of the resurrection in the Old Testament except in the Books of Daniel and 2 Maccabees, I just summarize the existing interpretations of these texts. In addition, I observe that some texts such as Hos 6:2, Isa 26:19, Ez 37:1-14, Job 19:25-27, which do not explicitly mention the theme of resurrection, are interpreted with reference to it in the New Testament and in the patristic teachings. I also consider the possibility of interpreting the immortality in the Book of Wisdom in connection with the corporal resurrection. In the case of the Psalms, some texts are interpreted in connection with the resurrection, but the Hebrew texts have no explicit reference to this theme. I examine the possible references to the resurrection in Psalms 1, 16, 49, 73, and 149. These psalms explore the prospects of the future in different contexts, such as the problem of retribution not realized in this life, the prosperity of the wicked, the inevitability of death, and the final judgment, and begin to conceive of hope beyond death. The hope for the resurrection in these texts is not evident, but they approach the hope beyond death. A certain eschatological hope begins to emerge. The Septuagint, the New Testament, and the interpretations of the Church Fathers also read the hope for the resurrection in these psalms. While the hope for the resurrection emerged gradually in the Old and New Testaments, the Psalms constituted moments in which the hope germinated. In later years commentators with more developed beliefs in the resurrection reinterpreted these psalms from their own perspective.