Genesis 25.7-11-The Death of Abraham
Wednesday May 3, 2006
Genesis: Genesis 25:7-11-The Death of Abraham
Lesson # 138
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 25:1.
This evening we will study Genesis 25:7-11, which records the death of Abraham and completes the sixth book in Genesis.
The sixth book in Genesis is contained in 11:27-25:11 presenting the account of Terah’s line and has three sections: (1) Introduction (11:27b-32) (2) Main body (12:1-22:19) (3) Transition to the next section of the book of Genesis and generation (22:20-25:11).
Therefore, Genesis 25:7-11 completes the third and final section of the sixth book, which prepares the reader for a shift from Abraham’s leadership to Isaac’s and from Sarah to Rebekah.
Genesis 25:1, “Now Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah.”
Genesis 25:2, “She bore to him Zimran and Jokshan and Medan and Midian and Ishbak and Shuah.”
Genesis 25:3, “Jokshan became the father of Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim and Letushim and Leummim.”
Genesis 25:4, “The sons of Midian were Ephah and Epher and Hanoch and Abida and Eldaah. All these were the sons of Keturah.”
Genesis 25:5-6, “Now Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac, but to the sons of his concubines, Abraham gave gifts while he was still living, and sent them away from his son Isaac eastward, to the land of the east.”
Genesis 25:7, “These are all the years of Abraham's life that he lived, one hundred and seventy-five years.”
Abraham lived one hundred years in the Promised Land, the land of Canaan since Abraham according to Genesis 12:4, Abraham departed Haran and arrived in Canaan when he was seventy-five years of age.
Genesis 12:4, “So Abram went forth as the LORD had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.”
Even though Abraham lived one hundred years in the land of Canaan, the only piece of land he owned was a burial plot.
Since Abraham was one hundred and seventy-five years old when he died, Isaac therefore, was seventy-five years of age since Abraham was one hundred years of age when Isaac was born.
Also, Abraham lived to see his grandchildren Esau and Jacob grow up to be fifteen years of age since Isaac was sixty years of age when Rebekah gave birth to Esau and Jacob according to Genesis 25:26 and he was seventy-five when his father Abraham died.
Genesis 25:8, “Abraham breathed his last and died in a ripe old age, an old man and satisfied with life; and he was gathered to his people.”
“Breathed his last” is the verb gawa (uw^G*) (gaw-vaw), which pictures the act of drawing one’s last breath.
“Died” is the verb muth (tWm) (mooth), which denotes the general act of dying.
“Old age” is the noun sevah (hb*yc@), which denotes that Abraham enjoyed an abundant “quantity” of life.
“Old man” is the noun zaqen (/q@z*) (zaw-cane), which denotes that Abraham enjoyed an abundant “quality” of life.
“Satisfied with life” is the adjective savea (u^b@c*) (saw-vay-aw), which means, “satiated, full of days” and denotes the fact that all Abraham’s needs and expectations had been satisfied as a result of living a life that was pleasing to the Lord.
The fact that Abraham is said to have “died in a ripe old age; an old man satisfied with life” was a fulfillment of the Lord’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 15:15.
Genesis 15:15, “As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.”
The statement that Abraham “died in a ripe old age, an old man satisfied with life” emphasizes that Abraham not only lived a long life but that he lived a life full of contentment and was fulfilled.
The statement emphasizes that Abraham died not only at an elderly age but in a frame of mind filled with inner peace and contentment and satisfaction.
The fact that Abraham was said to be “gathered to his people” does “not” refer to his death and burial because he was not buried with his ancestors.
But rather the statement “gathered to his people” refers to his life after death with those who before him died in faith such as Adam, Abel, Enoch, and Noah in a compartment of Hades called “Paradise,” which the Lord Jesus Christ referred to as “Abraham’s bosom” in Luke 16.
Hades (NT) or Sheol (OT) contains four compartments:
(1) Paradise: the place of the departed souls of believers before the resurrection of Christ (Lk. 23:39-43; Eph. 4:8-9) who were transferred to heaven after the resurrection and ascension of Christ (Eph. 4:10).
(2) Torments: the temporary fire for the souls of unbelievers from all dispensations (Lk. 16:19-31) who will be transferred to the Great White Throne Judgment that concludes human history and from there will be cast in the Lake of Fire forever (Rev. 20:11-15).
(3) Tartarus: the abode of the fallen angels of Genesis 6 who had sex with woman in order to corrupt the human race and prevent the incarnation of the Son of God (1 Peter 3:18-22; 2 Peter 4; Jude 6).
(4) The Abyss: the place of imprisonment for the demons who violated certain rules for angelic creation and will be released during the Tribulation (Lk. 8:30-31; Rom. 10:7; Rev. 20:1-3).
Prior to the resurrection, ascension and session of the Lord Jesus Christ, Old Testament saints when they died did not go to the third heaven but rather to Paradise.
These Old Testament saints such as Abraham ascended with Jesus Christ into heaven as part of our Lord’s triumphal procession as victor in the angelic conflict and were part of the booty from our Lord’s victory that was accomplished through His death and resurrection.
Ephesians 4:8, “Therefore it says, ‘WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH, HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES, AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.’”
“He led host a host of captives” refers to Old Testament saints that were temporarily residing in the second compartment of Hades called Paradise (Lk. 16; 23:43).
Genesis 25:9-10, “Then his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, facing Mamre, the field which Abraham purchased from the sons of Heth; there Abraham was buried with Sarah his wife.”
Genesis 25:9 records that Isaac and Ishmael buried their father indicating that the two officiated at their father’s funeral.
The presence of Ishmael at the funeral indicates also that whatever animosity if any there was between the two was over.
Also, Genesis 25:5-6 records that Abraham made Isaac his sole heir but also took care of the children of his “concubines,” Hagar and Keturah, which indicates that Ishmael was taken care of by Abraham before his death, thus, insuring that there would not be any animosity between Ishmael and Isaac.
Genesis 23 records that for four hundred shekels of silver, Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite “the cave of Machpelah” as a burial plot for Sarah, himself and his descendants.
The name “Machpelah” means, “double” or “split cave.”
“Machpelah” is located west of modern Hebron on the outskirts and the city is situated on the eastern slope of a narrow valley, which runs north and south and is surrounded by rocky hills.
Hebron was located nineteen miles southwest of Jerusalem, on the way to Beersheba and was 3,040 feet above sea level, dominating a beautiful and fruitful area and ancient oaks (terebinths) filled the area.
The cave itself was located at the end of a field and Josephus mentioned a “monument of the patriarchs,” which stood in Hebron in the days of Jesus.
The cave of Machpelah is the world's most ancient Jewish site and the second holiest place for the Jewish people, after Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
The double cave, a mystery of thousands of years, was uncovered several years ago beneath the massive building, revealing artifacts from the Early Israelite Period (some 30 centuries ago).
The structure was built during the Second Temple Period (about two thousand years ago) by Herod, King of Judea, providing a place for gatherings and Jewish prayers at the graves of the Patriarchs.
This uniquely impressive building is the only one that stands intact and still fulfills its original function after thousands of years.
Foreign conquerors and invaders used the site for their own purposes, depending on their religious orientation: the Byzantines and Crusaders transformed it into a church and the Muslims rendered it a mosque.
About 700 years ago, the Muslim Mamelukes conquered Hebron, declared the structure a mosque and forbade entry to Jews, who were not allowed past the seventh step on a staircase outside the building.
Upon the liberation of Hebron in 1967, the Chief Rabbi of the Israel Defense Forces, the late Major-General Rabbi Shlomo Goren, was the first Jew to enter the cave of Machpelah.
Since then, Jews have been struggling to regain their prayer rights at the site, still run by the Muslim Waqf (Religious Trust) that took control during the Arab conquest.
Many restrictions are imposed on Jewish prayers and customs at the Tomb of the Patriarchs despite the site's significance, primacy and sanctity in Jewish heritage and history.
Over 300,000 people visit the cave annually and is divided into three rooms and presently Jews have no access to the largest room, with the exception of ten days a year.
With this purchase of the cave in the field of Machpelah facing Mamre in Hebron in the land of Canaan, Abraham was renouncing Paddan Aram, that is, northwest Mesopotamia (cf. 25:20), which was brought to the readers attention indirectly by mentioning the relatives of Abraham in Genesis 22:20-24.
Abraham bought this gravesite in the land of Canaan in the confident expectation of God fulfilling His promise to give the land of Canaan to himself and his descendants as a permanent possession.
Not only was Sarah buried at this site but so also were Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah were buried there as well (See Genesis 25:9; 35:27, 29, 49:31; 50:13) and all of these demonstrated their faith in God’s promises by being buried with Sarah.
This little piece of land gives promise of the whole land and makes clear that Abraham and Sarah were aliens and strangers seeking a homeland, which they will receive at the resurrection of Old Testament believers.
With this purchase of land in Hebron facing Mamre, Abraham wanted his descendants to know that he had believed in the Lord’s promises.
The presence of the grave site among his descendants in later years would be mute but eloquent testimony to them all that Abraham was sure that God would fulfill His promises.
Genesis 25:11, “It came about after the death of Abraham that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac lived by Beer-lahai-roi.”
“Beer” refers to a well dug close to the spring (Hebrew `ayin, “spring”) for convenience and “Lahai-roi” means, “belonging to the living one, my seeing one.”
“Beer-lahai-roi” was the fountain by which the Lord rescued Hagar as recorded in Genesis 16:7, 14 and was located between Kadesh and Bered, about fifty miles southwest of Beersheba.
The mention of “Beer-lahai-roi” forms a transition to the account of the descendants of Ishmael, which is recorded in the seventh book of Genesis, in Genesis 25:12-18 and suggests that Isaac will displace him.
The statement “God blessed Isaac” anticipates the next major section in the book of Genesis, namely, the eighth book of Genesis, which gives us the record of the account of the line of Isaac that appears in Genesis 25:19-35:29 and ends the story of Abraham.
The statement “God blessed Isaac” demonstrates that God as He did with Abraham was making His covenant with Isaac and thus fulfills the Lord’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:19 and 21.
Genesis 25:11, “It came about after the death of Abraham that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac lived by Beer-lahai-roi.”
“Bless” is the verb barakh (Er^B*), which means, “to endue with power for success, prosperity, fecundity, longevity, etc.”
Therefore, the verb barakh indicates that Isaac was endued with power by the Lord for success, prosperity, fecundity (offspring in great numbers) and longevity.”
Like Abraham, the Lord blessed Isaac in the sense that the Lord multiplied his descendants so that his posterity was great in number both, racially and spiritually.
Also, like Abraham, the Lord blessed Isaac in the sense that the Lord multiplied his possessions and livestock and prospered him financially.
Like Abraham, the Lord blessed anyone who was associated with Isaac.
The “piel” stem of the verb barakh is “real factitive” meaning that Isaac would experience the blessings that the Lord would bring upon him.
At this particular time in the narrative, Isaac was the only surviving link in the Messianic line.
He was Abraham’s heir and just as God blessed Abraham so He would now begin to prosper Isaac materially, financially and spiritually.
Although Abraham was gone, God’s program would continue.
No leader of the covenant is indispensable for God’s program to bless the world will continue to grow and expand from generation to generation.
Each of God’s servants must do all that he can to ensure the perpetuation of God’s work.
No individual leader is bigger than God’s plan for the work is bigger than any individual.
Therefore, with the death of Abraham the torch has been passed to Isaac to carry on the work of God on planet earth.
