Embracing our Days
- Bishop Keith Butler
- Dec 23, 2024
- 2 min read
The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. (Psalm 90:10)
Most people don’t count this way anymore, but in ancient England, when the King James Version of the Bible was written, scores were lengths of time. A score is defined as twenty. Therefore, this Psalm refers to 70 years when it says three score years and ten and 80 years when it says four score years.
In the denomination I grew up in, I was taught that this Psalm defined how long any individual should expect to live, about 70 - 80 years. However, that is a gross misinterpretation of this verse. The psalmist was referencing Israel, who had disobeyed God. The people referred to in this Psalm were the people of Numbers 13 and 14, who gave a bad report about the promised land that God told them to go into and rebelled against His commandments. Only two spies followed and believed God - Joshua and Caleb. The generation who did not believe or follow lived only 70 - 80 years, and as the Psalmist wrote, connected to those years was much labour and sorrow. Joshua and Caleb lived another 40+ years and were strong in their old age because they trusted God.
The children of the unbelieving Israelites lived much longer than 80 years after this. You are not restricted to the length of life your mother or father had, either. You are only limited in how long you can live based on your trust in and obedience to God.
Practical Application
Although we are called to live long, strong, fulfilling lives, we must also consider what we want to leave behind when we leave this physical body. How do you want to be remembered, and what seeds do you want to have sown? Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to ways you can intentionally sow into others and leave a legacy of faith.
