The Saints’ Slept

And he said, "Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. ... "But you go your way till the end; for you shall rest, and will arise to your inheritance at the end of the days.

(Daniel 12:9-13)

It is important to note in the previous passage Samuel’s displeasure at being summoned by the medium. When the Old Testament saints departed this life to enter Abraham’s bosom, they entered their time of rest. By calling Samuel up, the medium had disturbed his rest, which explains Samuel’s annoyance at being brought forth.

The above quoted passage confirms the rest that the Old Testament saints enjoyed in Abraham’s bosom. The context of the passage is that the angel Gabriel had been revealing to the prophet Daniel what would take place in the latter days. At the conclusion of their conversation, Gabriel informed Daniel that he would rest at the end of his life and rise again at the end of the age.

The key point to emphasize from this passage is Gabriel’s statement that Daniel would rest at the end of his days. This affirms that the Old Testament saints entered into a period of rest when they departed from this life.

It is also significant to note that Gabriel told Daniel he would only receive his eternal inheritance when he was raised from the dead at the end of the age. The reason is that Daniel’s works, like those of all the saints, will be judged at the time of the regeneration, and only then will he be rewarded with his eternal inheritance.

Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying: "I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. … So David rested with his fathers, and was buried in the City of David.

(1 Kings 2:1-10)

 This passage describes David’s death in the following manner: “David rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.” Neither David’s father nor his grandfather was buried in the city of David. Therefore, when the passage declares that David “rested with his fathers,” it refers to his spirit rather than his body.

It is thus evident that David’s spirit rested with his fathers, while his body was buried in the city of David. In other words, David’s forefathers who had gone before him had already entered into their rest, and now David would join them. The point is therefore clear: Abraham’s bosom was a place of rest for the Old Testament saints.

The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous is taken away from evil. He shall enter into peace; they shall rest in their beds, each one who walked in his uprightness.

(Isaiah 57:1-2)

In the passage quoted above, the prophet Isaiah confirms that the Old Testament saints entered into their time of rest when they departed to Abraham’s bosom. Isaiah also speaks of the saints entering into peace, thereby affirming that Abraham’s bosom was a place of tranquillity and comfort.

He further elaborates on this rest by describing the saints as resting on their beds. Some interpret this statement to mean that the saints’ graves were the beds in which their bodies rested. However, the idea of a body being “laid to rest” at burial is a human concept, not a scriptural one.

This passage clearly refers to the saints’ spirits, not their physical bodies. It is therefore evident that the Old Testament saints rested on beds of some kind in Abraham’s bosom.

Come, my people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.

(Isaiah 26:20-21)

The passage quoted above describes the death of the saints as their entering into chambers and shutting the doors behind them. The “chambers” mentioned here refer to what we would call bedrooms in modern terms.

In other words, it is within these chambers that the saints’ rest upon their beds until the Lord calls them forth. As an aside, some saints have been resting in their chambers for thousands of years already, yet this passage describes their rest as lasting only “for a little moment.” Time has no bearing in eternity, for a thousand years in this life is but a single day in eternity (2 Peter 3:8).

Michael E.B. Maher

Resurrection of the Dead

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