Proven by resurrection (v 23-31)

“But God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.” (1) Jesus has resurrected from the dead. It is impossible for Christ, who God has testified, to be held by death. (2) Here Peter quotes Psalm 16:8-11 (This is a direct fulfillment of prophecy, which is the first of the four ways of quotation we have learned). David wrote this psalm in first person. “For You will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.” This part is not a prophecy about David himself. He is rather speaking as an agent of the Messiah in first person. “Brothers, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.” (1) David died and was buried (1 Kings 2:10). (2) “His tomb is with us to this day.” The exact location of his tomb is currently unknown. The place known today as “David’s Tomb” is about two kilometers (about a mile) away from the original tomb. Since David was buried in a tomb, it is clear that the “I” in the psalm is not David himself. “So because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay.” (1) David prophesied as a prophet. He understood and believed in the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant. The terms of the Davidic Covenant are outlined in 2 Samuel 7:12-13: (a) One of David’s descendants will sit on the eternal throne. (b) For this to happen, that person must have a resurrected body, not one that decays. (2) David prophesied basing on the Davidic Covenant as he said, “He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay.” “It is this Jesus whom God raised up, a fact to which we are all witnesses.” All the apostles were witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection (ref. Acts 1:22). They risked their lives as witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection. We believe that Jesus has resurrected based on the testimony of the apostles.