What does the Bible say about people’s life expectancy?
Psalm 90 says that our life here on earth lasts 70 to 80 years (Psalm 90:10). We all know that this is the average length of life. The Bible states that we are dust and our life is like a vapor. Therefore, we should spend our time wisely.
It wasn’t that way at the beginning of ages, at the dawn of human history and creation. The Bible tells us in the book of Genesis that human life used to reach from 800 to 900 years. This is difficult to imagine today, but those times were different, and even the atmospheric conditions were different. Until Noah’s time, no rain had fallen; many aspects were different from what we know now. There were giants on the earth.
At that time, God said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” (Genesis 6:3)
He did that with a purpose. He knew that every intent of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil. In fact, that was the time when the flood came upon the earth, and the only ones who survived were Noah and his family. The lifespan of the generation after Noah changed, becoming what we know today. What was the reason for this decision of the Lord?
We must know that the more someone explores sin, the more he succumbs to deceit and hardens his heart against God. The Lord does not want us to live in such conditions. Just imagine how much a person could explore sin and evil if they lived for 800 years. That was the condition of humanity before the flood. They lived long, growing in sin and apart from the Lord. It is not that the Lord cannot break and penetrate any heart, no matter how sinful and hard it is. The matter is that the longer someone lives in that condition, the more deceived and blinded they become by the enemy. The enemy wants us to live in obscurity toward God’s truth. He doesn’t want people to hear about the Lord. The more a person is deceived, the less they would like to hear about the Lord and pay attention. That’s the enemy’s purpose – he wants us to live a life separate from God, believing that we are independent and strong, and that we can make it without Him.
The Lord doesn’t want us to live in that condition. He knows better than we do that eternity is far more valuable than all the time we have in life. He promised to provide for us in this life and help us through it, but still, eternity is more important. Psalm 84:10 says that one day in the Lord’s courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
“For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” (Psalm 84:10)
This indicates that being in His presence is much more valuable than anything else, even if it comes in abundance. Having the opportunity to know Him and to be eternally with Him is more valuable than enjoying a life of abundance and ease. That’s why people’s lifespan has changed. The Lord wanted to preserve us from pride and sin. It is better to be this way, but to have an opportunity to accept the Lord and be eternally with Him.
This, however, is not the ultimate solution, because we know that sin lives in us and no matter how a person has advanced into it, they are a sinner and fall short of God’s glory. A person needs, above all, to believe in the sacrifice on the cross, which was done by the Son of God. God sent His Son to die for our sins on the cross, and that is the message we need to pay attention to. That is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Accepting and believing in this sacrifice brings us eternal life.
Even though the situation we live in today is different, there are similarities when talking about our sinful condition. The Bible compares the present with the days of Noah.
37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (Matthew 24:37-39, emphasis added)
Sin and immorality have increased significantly in recent times. We know that today a man doesn’t have the time opportunity to explore sin as in the time prior to the flood when they used to live longer, but today the immorality in itself has increased, and it is easily transmitted. Even though sin is always the same, we have other ways of sinning today. With the overflowing information, it is easy for a person to learn what is evil without making much effort. The way we can learn something wrong is much quicker and accelerated than before. For a shorter time than before, people can harden their hearts. That’s why, just as in the times of Noah, the Lord’s patience will eventually run out, the end will come, when everyone will be judged for their sins. Second epistle of Peter chapter 3 verse 9 says that the Lord is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
That is the reason why He hasn’t come back yet to bring an end to all evil and establish His perfect justice. On that day, all men will have to face the consequences of their sins. He doesn’t want people to pay for their sins. That's why He sent His son, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. That’s why He is patient now. Sadly, not everyone will believe in Him for the forgiveness of their sins, and the judgment and the end will eventually come.
God invites us to repent through His word and exhorts us to act in time.
Second Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 6, verse 2, says that now is the day of salvation. This means that we must not postpone acting on God’s word to another time. If God has been patient with people until today, it is because of His mercy. Let us not receive His grace in vain and be among those wise people who listen and pay attention to God’s word.
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