The Resurrection and The Law in the Old Testament

Before looking at how the New Testament relates the resurrection to the Law, I want to make sure we have the right understanding of the resurrection in mind. To do so I want to go back into the Old Testament and see what was expected by the resurrection of the dead. Before I get to that however, I want to look at this promise of “life” in the Old Testament that comes by doing Yahweh’s commandments.

We start with Moses and Leviticus 18:1-5 (NET),

1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘I am the Lord your God! 3 You must not do as they do in the land of Egypt where you have been living, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan into which I am about to bring you; you must not walk in their statutes. 4 You must observe my regulations and you must be sure to walk in my statutes. I am the Lord your God. 5 So you must keep my statutes and my regulations; anyone who does so will live by keeping them. I am the Lord.

Here Yahweh is admonishing Israel via the preaching of Moses against living like the Egyptians, the paganism they have been delivered from, and the Canaanites, the paganism they will soon confront. Israel no doubt remembers what God did to Egypt and can see that the same awaits for Canaan. Thus God offers a different story to walk in than those who surround Egypt, the way of life. Israel will live if she will follow Yahweh’s commandments, which in the context of Leviticus 18 is sexual relationships. To walk in the story of Egypt or Canaan is to walk in the story of judgment.

Now, to borrow from the TV show Lost, flash forward to the days when God is about to bring Babylon against Judah, having already brought Assyria against Israel. Ezekiel 20 is Yahweh’s recount of Israel’s history from her exodus from Egypt to her judgment concluding with her restoration. And in that redemptive-historical sermon, three times Ezekiel declares that if one would but observe Yahweh’s Torah that person would have life. And each time he brings it up it is an indictment against Israel for her disobedience and resulting judgment. To follow Torah is to be rewarded with life. The nation would not be destroyed. She would not go into exile. The temple would still stand. Jerusalem would not be overran by pagan, uncircumcised Gentiles.

Finally, flash forward to when Yahweh has brought the exiled community back from Medo-Persia. Geographically the exile has ended. But, no Messiah has come from the house of David to re-establish the Davidic monarchy. Israel is still under the rule of foreign, Gentile nations (Nehemiah 9:35-37). Yahweh has not fully ended the exile. In Nehemiah 9, Nehemiah retells Israel’s history in his prayer of repentance to God on behalf of the restored community. Again in Nehemiah 9:26-29 we see Leviticus 18:5 restated. God had promised Israel life through observing Torah. However, they refused to walk in the path of Torah. Even when God would redeem them from his wrath they still did not listen. So then Israel died. She did not experience life. Exile came and Israel was enslaved to Gentile nations, again.

The Torah promised life to Israel if she would walk the path that Yahweh put before her. But Israel did not. That’s the recurring theme one finds throughout the story told in the Old Testament. So the question for Israel has been, how does one get to that promised life for the nation if she cannot walk the path Yahweh put before her?