What Old Testament prophecies connect to "raised on the third day"? Setting the Stage: Paul’s “according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:4) • “He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…”—Paul expects his readers to find Old Testament footing for both the resurrection itself and the timing. • The prophecies come in two forms: – Direct statements about a third-day raising or reviving. – Patterns, types, and promises that tie deliverance to “the third day,” anticipating Christ. Key Text #1: Hosea 6:2—A Direct Third-Day Promise “After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His presence.” • Collective promise to Israel becomes personal in Messiah. • Vocabulary—“revive…raise…live”—mirrors resurrection language. • Early church writers (e.g., Irenaeus) cite Hosea 6:2 as the clearest source behind Paul’s wording. Key Text #2: The Sign of Jonah (Jonah 1:17 with Matthew 12:40) Jonah 1:17: “Jonah spent three days and three nights in the stomach of the fish.” • Jesus Himself ties Jonah’s three-day entombment to His own: “For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.” (Matthew 12:40) • Jonah’s “descent” (Jonah 2:6) and prayer of deliverance foreshadow Christ’s burial and resurrection. Third-Day Foreshadowings That Shape Expectation Though not explicit prophecies, these “third-day” salvation scenes prepare the pattern Paul leans on: • Genesis 22:4—On the third day Abraham sees Moriah; Isaac is as good as dead yet figuratively “received back.” (cf. Hebrews 11:19) • Exodus 19:11—“Be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down.” God’s manifest descent precedes covenant ratification. • Joshua 3:2-4—Israel crosses Jordan “after three days,” entering promise through waters of death. • 2 Kings 20:5—Hezekiah healed and goes up to the temple “on the third day.” Restoration to life and worship linked to third-day timing. Resurrection Foretold, Timing Implied • Psalm 16:10—“You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.” Decay was believed to set in by day four (cf. John 11:39); preserving from corruption hints at a resurrection before then—namely the third day. • Isaiah 53:10-11—The suffering Servant “will see His offspring, He will prolong His days,” after being crushed. Life after death is promised; the third-day motif supplies the timetable. • Psalm 22:21-22—Deliverance from “the horns of the wild oxen” followed by public praise, a pattern fulfilled when Jesus rises and declares God’s name “in the congregation” (Hebrews 2:12). Pulling the Threads Together • Hosea 6:2 supplies the explicit third-day resurrection promise. • Jonah gives the divinely authorized “sign” Jesus points to. • Repeated third-day salvations (Isaac, Sinai, Jordan, Hezekiah) create a theological rhythm: death-like peril resolved on the third day. • Psalms and Isaiah promise resurrection itself; the established rhythm fills in the timing. Therefore, when Paul writes that Christ “was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” he is drawing on Hosea’s prophecy, validated by the Jonah sign, and harmonized with the rich tapestry of third-day deliverances and resurrection promises woven throughout the Old Testament. |
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