The End of the Funeral
you will have the Lord for an everlasting light and the days of your mourning will be over. Isaiah 60:20 NASB
Mourning – The prophet Isaiah draws a picture of the time when God will restore heaven and earth to its intended form. He says that we will no longer need the sun by day and the moon by night because the glory of God will replace all these lesser material sources. We will live in the true light of His presence. In that day, our mourning will be finished. This word (‘ebal) is used most often for one specific event – death. Although it is sometimes used figuratively, it is always about the despair and discouragement of the dead. The word describes the intense emotion, often verbalized as a lament, that accompanied a funeral. ‘ebal comes from the root ‘abal, a verb that means “to mourn.” It paints an important picture. Aleph-Bet-Lamed, “the strength of the house controlled.” We might wonder what this has to do with death until we read 2 Samuel 20: 18. There the word ‘Abel designates a place where proper judgment is rendered. The history in Samuel recounts that Sheba fled to this place for refuge, but he was executed for treason against David. Perhaps we are intended to recognize that death renders a proper judgment and mourning the dead only underscores what we all know to be true – life does not belong to us and we are not worthy of its gift.
There is no moment when we face our utter dependency and helplessness in life more pregnant than the moment we see someone die. We are brought face to face with the fragile thread of this life. We are confronted with our own vulnerability, no matter what we have done to protect ourselves. No one is immune and no one escapes. The apparent reality of this life comes to a halt at the grave. But Isaiah sees hope. The day will come when there will never be another death, when not one single redeemed person in God’s family will ever need to mourn again.
Mourning is the wrenching heartache of separation; the confirmation that we did not deserve eternity. We are torn from someone we loved. And there is nothing we can do about it. But the day is coming, a day when God will be all the light we will ever need, when death itself will no longer hold us prisoners. That day will be a day of great rejoicing for mourning will no longer be a human word.
The guarantee of that day is revealed in the resurrection of Yeshua. Because He lives, ‘ebal will end. Because He lives, we have been counted worthy. We wait for that day so that we may rejoice in a promise fulfilled.
Topical Index: mourning, ‘ebal, death, Isaiah 60:20
Thank you. Exactly the right day for you to remind me.
~ Those He redeemed from the hand of the foe, those He gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.” (Psalm 107:2)
Psalm 107
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;
His (blood-covenant) love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say this—
those He redeemed from the hand of the foe,
those He gathered from the lands,
from east and west, from north and south.
Some wandered in desert wastelands,
finding no way to a city where they could settle.
They were hungry and thirsty,
and their lives ebbed away.
Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
and He delivered them from their distress.
He led them by a straight way
to a city where they could settle.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing (blood-covenant) love
and His wonderful deeds for men,
for He satisfies the thirsty
and fills the hungry with good things.
Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom,
prisoners suffering in iron chains,
for they had rebelled against the words of G-d
and despised the counsel of the Most High.
So He subjected them to bitter labor;
they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and He saved them from their distress.
He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom
and broke away their chains.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing (blood-covenant) love
and His wonderful deeds for men,
for He breaks down gates of bronze
and cuts through bars of iron.
Some became fools through their rebellious ways
and suffered affliction because of their iniquities.
They loathed all food
and drew near the gates of death.
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and He saved them from their distress.
He sent forth His word and healed them;
He rescued them from the grave.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing (blood-covenant) love
and His wonderful deeds for men.
Let them sacrifice thank offerings
and tell of His works with songs of joy.
Others went out on the sea in ships;
they were merchants on the mighty waters.
They saw the works of the LORD,
His wonderful deeds in the deep.
For He spoke and stirred up a tempest
that lifted high the waves.
They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths;
in their peril their courage melted away.
They reeled and staggered like drunken men;
they were at their wits’ end.
Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
and He brought them out of their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper;
the waves of the sea were hushed.
They were glad when it grew calm,
and He guided them to their desired haven.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing (blood-covenant) love
and His wonderful deeds for men.
Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the people
and praise Him in the council of the elders.
He turned rivers into a desert,
flowing springs into thirsty ground,
and fruitful land into a salt waste,
because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
He turned the desert into pools of water
and the parched ground into flowing springs;
there He brought the hungry to live,
and they founded a city where they could settle.
They sowed fields and planted vineyards
that yielded a fruitful harvest;
He blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,
and He did not let their herds diminish.
Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled
by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
He who pours contempt on nobles
made them wander in a trackless waste.
But He lifted the needy out of their affliction
and increased their families like flocks.
The upright see and rejoice,
but all the wicked shut their mouths.
Whoever is wise, let him heed these things
and consider the great (blood-covenant) love of the LORD.
Thanks Skip – I needed this at this time. I lost my wife on March 4th. I thank God for the time that she was in my life.
A.W. – I AM SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS – WHICH IS A VERY GREAT ONE I’M SURE…
Thank you. Yes, it truly was/is. Now for the next phase . . . whatever that might be.
I am praying for you during your time of grief.
Prayers are always in order. Thank you – I stand in need.
A.W – you have suffered a great loss. You and your family are in our prayers. May YHVH be close to you and comfort you at this time.
“Mourning is the wrenching heartache of separation; the confirmation that we did not deserve eternity.”.
Skip, what a powerful sentence! Another confirmation that YHWH has truly made you one of His mouth pieces. May He continue to bless you and those who hear and heed His word.
~ O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? ~(1 Corinthians 15.55)
~ But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept ~ (1 Corinthians 15.20)