By Brad Doskocil
In reading OT commentaries, the topic of eternal rewards is rarely, if ever, mentioned. It is as if the OT never taught anything about eternal rewards!
However, as Hebrews 11 reveals, OT believers sought eternal rewards and looked forward to receiving them. They understood that the Lord is a rewarder (Heb 11:6). The OT believers mentioned in Hebrews 11 (Hall of Faithers!) sought a “better resurrection” (Heb 11:35). Since believers receive eternal rewards at their resurrection, these Hall of Faithers looked forward to receiving their eternal rewards and experiencing a better resurrection!
Why, therefore, have commentators ignored OT evidence of eternal rewards even though we have “so great a cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1)? Perhaps it is because many do not actually believe in eternal rewards or that Jesus will one day rule the world as King of kings.
For evidence that OT saints sought and were promised eternal rewards, let’s look at some examples from the book of Daniel.
Judgment is introduced in Dan 7:9-10. God’s court convenes, and the books are opened. This takes place when the Son of Man comes to establish His kingdom (Dan 7:13-14). The judgments of Dan 7:21-27, therefore, happen during the Tribulation and immediately thereafter. While Daniel 7 focuses on Israel and Jewish believers, Gentile believers are also in view since all faithful believers of the Tribulation will be rewarded (cf. Matt 25:33-40).
In Dan 7:18 we are told that faithful believers will receive and possess the kingdom forever. This is a summary statement with details following. Those believers will not only enter the kingdom but will possess it. They will have ownership of it. This is a substantial eternal reward and is understandable in light of the fact that God’s enemies will seek to annihilate all Jewish people during that horrific time (Dan 7:21, 25; Rev 12:13-17). To have helped a Jewish person or a believer during the Tribulation would have been life-threatening (Dan 7:21, Rev 13:15).
In Dan 7:22, the coming of the Lord is announced, judgment is passed in favor of the saints, and they take possession of the kingdom. These Tribulation believers will be approved by Christ and then will take possession of the kingdom. This is ruling and reigning with Jesus (Rev 20:4, 6). These believers earn these rewards by enduring extreme hardship.
In Dan 7:25, the Antichrist opposes God and will wear down believers, particularly Jewish believers. To wear down believers is to persecute and kill them. He will advance his program by changing times, holidays, and laws for the last three-and-a-half years of the Tribulation. In God’s sovereignty and justice, this tyrant is judged, and his dominion taken away forever (Dan 7:26).
Then Jesus’ kingdom will commence, worn-down and Tribulation believers will be rewarded with a share in Jesus’ government (Dan 7:27). What an enormous honor and privilege for these believers who, because of their stand for Jesus, suffered unimaginable hardships during the Tribulation.
Daniel 11:21-35 describes the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (Antiochus), who prefigures the Antichrist of the Tribulation. Antiochus ruled the Seleucid Dynasty from 175 to 164 BC. When Daniel wrote in around 535 BC, the events described in Dan 11:21-35 were yet future. These predictions have now been fulfilled in every detail.
During his reign, Antiochus severely persecuted the Jewish people and nation. He desecrated the temple in Jerusalem by erecting an idol of Zeus in it and offering sacrifices to the image using unclean animals. Daniel called this desecration the “abomination of desolation” (Dan 11:31). Antiochus abolished Jewish sacrifices, corrupted the Jewish priesthood, banned Jewish laws and customs, and persecuted, tortured, and killed those who did not comply with his program of forced Hellenization. What Antiochus did to the Jewish people, the Antichrist of the Tribulation will do to an exponentially greater extent.
Courageous Jewish patriots who knew God’s Word rebelled and waged guerilla warfare against Antiochus. Many, including many Jewish leaders, died fighting Antiochus. But in the end, the Jewish rebels, led by the Maccabees, were successful. They recaptured the temple in Jerusalem and restored it. The Feast of Dedication (John 10:22) was added as a Jewish holiday to memorialize this event.
Some of the brave Jewish leaders who died inspired others to continue the struggle. Many survived. God refined and purified them (Dan 11:35). Their actions made them “refine[d] [and] purif[ied]…[in] white, until the time of the end” (Dan 11:35, cf. Rev 3:4-5; 19:8). Being clad in white is a description of rewards that accompany righteous actions. Their faithful actions in defeating Antiochus and restoring the temple will be rewarded.
In Dan 12:3, Daniel indicated that faithful believers of the Tribulation (Dan 12:1-2) will shine brightly like stars, and those who lead others to righteousness (belief in Jesus) will likewise shine like stars forever. “Shining like a star” is a description of eternal reward. These stars risked death to sow God’s Word and lead others to receive Jesus’ free gift of everlasting life. In Matt 13:43, Jesus quoted from Daniel 12, saying, “The righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” Jesus’ quote comes at the end of His explanation of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares. He is describing eternal reward for showing discernment in distinguishing between Satan’s falsehoods and God’s truth. Jesus is careful to describe the timing as occurring at the end of the Tribulation (Matt 13:39-40).
In Dan 12:13, Daniel is told to go to his grave with the assurance that when he is resurrected at the end of the Tribulation, he will receive his allotted share. This is Daniel’s inheritance. It is his share of the kingdom. Daniel, who faithfully served the Lord as a government official in the empires of Babylon and Medo-Persia, will serve in Jesus’ government in the kingdom. Daniel will have great privilege and abundance in the kingdom, an infinitesimally richer experience that will last forever. It was worth his seventy years in exile.
Daniel got a preview of his value to the Lord. As an old man, Daniel was told three times by angelic messengers that he was greatly beloved (greatly desirable or precious) by God (Dan 9:23; 10:11, 19). This is high praise for a Jewish man who spent most of his life in exile serving Gentile monarchs. This praise is undoubtedly a foretaste of the commendation Daniel will receive when he is judged by the Lord Jesus Christ.
As these examples from the Book of Daniel show, eternal rewards are taught in the OT. Daniel and his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego performed acts of righteousness (Heb 11:33). So did the brave Jewish men who fought against Antiochus and restored the temple. Daniel stopped the mouth of lions (Dan 6, Heb 11:33). He also obtained promises, for he requested and received the announcement of when the Messiah would come (Dan 9, Heb 11:33). All these OT believers wanted a better resurrection (Heb 11:35). So should we!
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Brad Doskocil is a CPA in Long Beach, CA, and the Chairman of the GES Board.
