Thank you for your good and interesting questions. Regarding those who drowned during the flood, their bodies would have remained in the sea and eventually decomposed. I assume that all who perished in the flood were ungodly men who “died in their sins” (see Genesis 6:5-7) and thus the resurrection of their bodies will occur at the very end of time. We see this truth in Revelation 20:13, “The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them.” This is the resurrection of all unbelievers who died without their sins being forgiven. If they were drowned at SEA, their bodies will rise from the sea. If they were buried in a GRAVE (represented by the word DEATH), their bodies will rise from their grave. HADES is also mentioned here for when a person dies their soul and spirit departs from their body (see James 2:26) and Hades describes this “disembodied state.” At the time of the resurrection of their body Hades will “deliver up their soul/spirit” which will then be reunited with the body. At that time the “whole person” (spirit, soul, and body) will be judged by Jesus Christ and then cast into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:11-12, 15).

Regarding Mary, we believe she is in heaven with all believers in Jesus Christ. In Luke 1:46-47 she confessed to her cousin Elizabeth, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoiced in God MY SAVIOR.” In these few words Mary was acknowledging her faith in God as her Savior, which means she knew she was a sinner in need of the Savior. In the last mention of Mary in Scripture we also see that she was a firm believer in Jesus Christ as her Savior. Jesus had already died and been raised from the dead and was about to ascend to heaven, but before He did, He assembled His disciples together and then “He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4). He was referring to the promise of the Holy Spirit as we see in verse 5, “For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” After speaking to them about the Holy Spirit we read, “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight” (verse 9). The disciples obeyed Jesus and returned to Jerusalem (verse 12) and then we read, “And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS, and with His brothers” (verses 13-14). This is the last we read of Mary and here we learn that she took her place among all the disciples, other women, and the earthly brothers of Jesus who had come to believe in Jesus as their Savior. She was a humble believer, waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit, and praying while she waited.

We read in Acts 2 that the Holy Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost and all the believers “were filled with the Holy Spirit” (verses 1-4). They all hoped Jesus would also come back soon but He never returned in their lifetime, and they all died, including Mary. They are now “absent from the body, and at home with the Lord” (2^nd Corinthians 5:8), waiting for the “resurrection of life” (see John 5:28-29) when their bodies will be reunited with their souls/spirts. This great event will occur when Christ comes to “raise the dead in Christ” and “rapture living believers” to heaven (see 1^st Thessalonians 4:13-17). Mary will be in that happy company! Her “soul/spirit” is currently enjoying the presence of her Savior, but at that time her whole person (spirit, soul and body…see 1^st Thessalonians 5:23) will “be with the Lord.”  (DO)  (512.3)