John Calvin Commentary Acts 9:41

"And he gave her his hand, and raised her up; and calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive." — Acts 9:41 (ASV)

Luke repeats, again, at the end, that she was shown openly to the disciples; from this we gather that she was raised again, more for other people's sake than for her own. Deluded individuals, who dream that the human soul is only a breath that vanishes away until the day of the resurrection, seize upon this passage to support their foolish ideas.

For what purpose was it (they say) to call back Tabitha's soul into the prison of the body, where it would suffer such misery, if it had already been received into blessed rest? As if God were not permitted to regard His glory in death as well as in life; and as if this were not the true blessedness of the godly to live and die for Him, indeed, as if Christ were not a gain to us, both in living and in dying (Philippians 1:21), when we dedicate ourselves to Him.

Therefore, no difficulty arises if the Lord had greater regard for His own glory than for Tabitha, although, since the well-being of the faithful is always connected to the glory of God, her revival turned to her greater good, so that she might be a more excellent instrument of God’s goodness and power.