David, in Psalm 49:9–15 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 [Heb – 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 me from the realm of the dead [sheol, grave]; he will surely take me to himself” (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.”

In Psalm 71:20 (NIV) the poet says, “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” 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.”
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).

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). A glorious hope and bright future are thus pictured for those who stay with the Lord. This is a very explicit verse about physical resurrection from death.

Consider this: There are an estimated two trillion galaxies out there, each made of billions and billions of stars. And some of these stars have planets orbiting them, just as the planets in our solar system orbit the sun. Now, think about the incredible power of God, who not only created all these stars, but who also sustains them and knows them by name it says in Psalm 147:4). Though this amazing reality does not prove that this same God can or will raise the dead, it does reveal to us this same awesome power that He does have and why, certainly, something like the resurrection would not be beyond His power?

Hebrews 11 highlights the faithfulness and expectations of many of the “heroes of faith” of ancient times. This chapter enriches our understanding of the hope that the characters in the Old Testament had, even before the resurrection of Jesus?