Daniel 12:2

"Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt"

The big problem with this verse is the word "many," construed by some as an indication that "some" or a "major number" of the dead shall rise, with the conclusion that the general resurrection of all the dead is not in view in this passage. We disagree with that. It is undeniable that in Scripture the word "many" is often used as a reference to all. Note this passage:

"For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the one shall the many be made righteous" (Romans 5:19).

A comparison with verse 18 in that same passage indicates positively that "many" in both of the references here actually means "all." Therefore, it is a gross error to fasten a limited denotation upon the use of "many" in Daniel's reference to the general resurrection. Thus the principal idea to be derived from the use of many in this verse 2 is the great multitudes that shall rise from the dead. "No one can doubt that the word 'many' is used to denote all."[8] Thomson and many other dependable scholars have mentioned this same thing. "We cannot, therefore, deduce that 'many' here excludes 'all'; the idea suggested is rather multitudinousness."[9]

The Resurrection of the Dead

There are a number of important revelations connected with this verse. The resurrection of both wicked and righteous persons shall occur simultaneously. Here is the only reference in the Old Testament to "everlasting life."[10] Note also that "everlasting contempt" for the wicked appears in the same verse.

Although a number of other Old Testament passages speak somewhat ambiguously of the resurrection, these being: Ezekiel 37:11; Isaiah 55:10ff; 26:19; Ecclesiastes 3:18-22,

Isaiah 53:10ff; Psalms 17:39,49,73; Hosea 6:2; Job 19:26, etc, nevertheless this is the most forthright promise of the resurrection to be found in the Old Testament.

The denials of most critical scholars that the general resurrection is here promised should be set aside. The passage cannot possibly refer to anything else. To deny this is to assert that Daniel made a false prophecy, because there has never been even until this day such a resurrection as is promised here. Some of course would get around this by declaring this to be the "first resurrection"; however, Jesus Christ left no doubt at all that "the first resurrection" is a resurrection from the deadness in sins by hearing and obeying the gospel (John 5:25-29). Still others have tried to make it out that the saints who came out of their graves upon the occasion of the resurrection of Christ constituted the resurrection mentioned here; but that cannot be true, because only "the saints" were raised on that occasion (Matthew 27:53).

Therefore, in this second verse we have a prophecy of the general resurrection of all the dead, and also the assignment of his true destiny to every man. Thus Daniel, as did our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 25, made the Final Judgment and the general resurrection of the dead to be concurrent events coming at the end of the age.

That our Lord Jesus fully approved of this chapter is demonstrated by his use of it in the prophecies which he himself uttered. If men would heed their Saviour's words instead of following the wild speculations of Biblical enemies they would find little difficulty in believing every word of this prophecy.