READING: Genesis 25:1-4; 1 Chronicles 1:32-33; Genesis 25:5-6, 12-18; 1 Chronicles 1:28-31, 34; Genesis 25:19-26, 7-11
Abraham died at age 175, at a “good old age, old and contented” (or, in the NLT, “at a ripe old age, having lived a long and satisfying life” — Gen 25:7). The words are simple ones, but they carry much power: Abraham died in contentment, his having lived the life God intended him to live. What peace there must be when a God-follower can lay down his or her head in death without regret or fear! In fact, some of my sweetest moments as a pastor have been with contented believers who closed their eyes for the last time on this earth. . . only to wake up in eternity.
The text also uses the same phrase for both Abraham and Ishmael when they died: he “breathed his last and joined his ancestors in death” (Gen 25:8, 17). As long as the Lord delays His coming, none of us will avoid this ending stage of life. All of us will follow the path of our ancestors who, too, passed away—and those who come after us will follow in our steps, too. That truth gives us all the more reason to make sure we’re telling the good news of Jesus to everyone around us!
PERSONAL REFLECTION: If the Lord were to call you home today, would you die in contentment?
PRAYER: “God, help me to live well today—and every day You give me.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Genesis 25:27-28:5