Genesis 25:7-11

Genesis 25:7-11

[7] And these are the days  of the years  of Abraham's  life  an hundred  threescore and fifteen  years.  [8] Then Abraham  gave up the ghost,  and died  in a good  old age,  an old man,  and full  of years; and was gathered  to his people.  [9] And his sons  Isaac  and Ishmael  buried  him in the cave  of Machpelah,  in the field  of Ephron  the son  of Zohar  the Hittite,  which is before  Mamre;  [10] The field  which Abraham  purchased  of the sons  of Heth:  there was Abraham  buried,  and Sarah  his wife.  [11] And it came to pass after  the death  of Abraham,  that God  blessed  his son  Isaac;  dwelt  by  the well Lahairoi. 

What does Genesis 25:7-11 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Isaac would have been75 years old and Jacob15 when Abraham died ( Genesis 25:7; cf. Genesis 21:5; Genesis 25:26). [1] Abraham lived100 years in the Promised Land (cf. Genesis 12:4).
"It is one thing to live a long life. It is another thing to live a long life that is also a happy life. This obituary notice about Abraham draws attention to the fact that Abraham died not only at an elderly age but in a frame of mind filled with inner shalom and satisfaction. That is the thrust of the phrase full of days or "contented."" [2]
The phrase "gathered to his people" ( Genesis 25:8) implies reunion in Sheol, the place of departed spirits, with ancestors who had died previously. It presupposes continued personal existence after physical death (cf. Genesis 15:15; Hebrews 11:13). Abraham was buried in the Cave of Machpelah near Mamre, the old site that later became a part of Hebron ( Genesis 25:9).
God"s dealings now focus on Isaac who then lived near Hagar"s well at Beer-lahai-roi ( Genesis 25:11; cf. Genesis 16:14; Genesis 24:62). Archaelolgists have yet to find this site. It was evidently somewhere south of Beersheba in the Negev.
God"s servants should do all in their power to ensure the continuation of God"s program to bless from one generation to the next.