Everyday life

Old Age in the Bible

42 passages of the Berean Standard Bible, line by line, from Nave’s Topical Bible.

Sayings

Rise in the presence of the elderly; honor the agedLev 19:32
The verses
Lev 19:32You are to rise in the presence of the elderly, honor the aged, and fear your God. I am the LORD.
Wisdom is found with the elderlyJob 12:12
The verses
Job 12:12Wisdom is found with the elderly, and understanding comes with long life.
Gray hair is a crown of gloryProv 16:31, Prov 20:29
The verses
Prov 16:31Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is attained along the path of righteousness.
Prov 20:29The glory of young men is their strength, and gray hair is the splendor of the old.
Grandchildren are the crown of the agedProv 17:6
The verses
Prov 17:6Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of a son is his father.
Seventy years, or eighty if we are strongPs 90:10
The verses
Ps 90:10The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty if we are strong— yet their pride is but labor and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
“Do not discard me in my old age”Ps 71:9, Ps 71:18
The verses
Ps 71:9Do not discard me in my old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails.
Ps 71:18Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, until I proclaim Your power to the next generation, Your might to all who are to come.
In old age they will still bear fruitPs 92:14
The verses
Ps 92:14In old age they will still bear fruit; healthy and green they will remain,
“I once was young and now am old”Ps 37:25
The verses
Ps 37:25I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.
“Even to your old age … I will bear you up when you turn gray”Isa 46:4
The verses
Isa 46:4Even to your old age, I will be the same, and I will bear you up when you turn gray. I have made you, and I will carry you; I will sustain you and deliver you.
Old age described: the days when you find no pleasureEccl 12:1–5
The verses
Eccl 12:1–5Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of adversity come and the years approach of which you will say, “I find no pleasure in them,” before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is darkened, and the clouds return after the rain, on the day the keepers of the house tremble and the strong men stoop, when those grinding cease because they are few and those watching through windows see dimly, when the doors to the street are shut and the sound of the mill fades away, when one rises at the sound of a bird and all the daughters of song grow faint, when men fear the heights and dangers of the road, when the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper loses its spring, and the caper berry shrivels— for then man goes to his eternal home and mourners walk the streets.
Old men and women will sit in Jerusalem’s streets, staff in handZech 8:4
The verses
Zech 8:4This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Old men and old women will again sit along the streets of Jerusalem, each with a staff in hand because of great age.
When you are old, someone else will dress youJohn 21:18
The verses
John 21:18Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
Older men and older women in the churchTitus 2:2–3
The verses
Titus 2:2–3Older men are to be temperate, dignified, self-controlled, and sound in faith, love, and perseverance. Older women, likewise, are to be reverent in their behavior, not slanderers or addicted to much wine, but teachers of good.

Examples

Abraham is promised a ripe old age and dies old and contentedGen 15:15, Gen 25:8
The verses
Gen 15:15You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.
Gen 25:8And at a ripe old age he breathed his last and died, old and contented, and was gathered to his people.
Old Sarah laughs at the promise of a sonGen 18:11–12, Gen 21:7
The verses
Gen 18:11–12And Abraham and Sarah were already old and well along in years; Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. So she laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
Gen 21:7She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
Isaac, old and nearly blind, calls for EsauGen 27:1–2
The verses
Gen 27:1–2When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied. “Look,” said Isaac, “I am now old, and I do not know the day of my death.
Jacob before Pharaoh: “My travels have lasted 130 years”Gen 47:9
The verses
Gen 47:9“My travels have lasted 130 years,” Jacob replied. “My years have been few and hard, and they have not matched the years of the travels of my fathers.”
Old Jacob can hardly see Joseph’s sonsGen 48:10
The verses
Gen 48:10Now Israel’s eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly see. Joseph brought his sons to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.
Moses at 120: his eyes not weak, his vitality undiminishedDeut 34:7
The verses
Deut 34:7Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak, and his vitality had not diminished.
Caleb at eighty-five: “still as strong as I was”Josh 14:10–11
The verses
Josh 14:10–11Now behold, as the LORD promised, He has kept me alive these forty-five years since He spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old, still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. As my strength was then, so it is now for war, for going out, and for coming in.
Old Joshua summons all IsraelJosh 13:1, Josh 23:1–2
The verses
Josh 13:1Now Joshua was old and well along in years, and the LORD said to him, “You are old and well along in years, but very much of the land remains to be possessed.
Josh 23:1–2A long time after the LORD had given Israel rest from all the enemies around them, when Joshua was old and well along in years, he summoned all Israel, including its elders, leaders, judges, and officers. “I am old and well along in years,” he said,
Eli, ninety-eight and heavy, falls from his chair1 Sam 4:15, 1 Sam 4:18
The verses
1 Sam 4:15Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and his gaze was fixed because he could not see.
1 Sam 4:18As soon as the ark of God was mentioned, Eli fell backward from his chair by the city gate, and being old and heavy, he broke his neck and died. And Eli had judged Israel forty years.
Samuel grows old and appoints his sons as judges1 Sam 8:1, 1 Sam 8:5
The verses
1 Sam 8:1When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges over Israel.
1 Sam 8:5“Look,” they said, “you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king to judge us like all the other nations.”
Barzillai, eighty, declines to go to court with David2 Sam 19:32–37
The verses
2 Sam 19:32–37Barzillai was quite old, eighty years of age, and since he was a very wealthy man, he had provided for the king while he stayed in Mahanaim. The king said to Barzillai, “Cross over with me, and I will provide for you at my side in Jerusalem.” But Barzillai replied, “How many years of my life remain, that I should go up to Jerusalem with the king? I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king? Your servant could go with the king only a short distance past the Jordan; why should the king repay me with such a reward? Please let your servant return, that I may die in my own city near the tomb of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him what is good in your sight.”
Old King David cannot keep warm under blankets1 Kgs 1:1–4
The verses
1 Kgs 1:1–4Now King David was old and well along in years, and though they covered him with blankets, he could not keep warm. So his servants said to him, “Let us search for a young virgin for our lord the king, to attend to him and care for him and lie by his side to keep him warm.” Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl, and they found Abishag the Shunammite and brought her to the king. The girl was unsurpassed in beauty; she cared for the king and served him, but he had no relations with her.
Rehoboam rejects the advice of the elders1 Kgs 12:6–8
The verses
1 Kgs 12:6–8Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How do you advise me to respond to these people?” he asked. They replied, “If you will be a servant to these people and serve them this day, and if you will respond by speaking kind words to them, they will be your servants forever.” But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders; instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him and served him.
The prophet Ahijah, his eyes dim with age1 Kgs 14:4
The verses
1 Kgs 14:4Jeroboam’s wife did as instructed; she arose and went to Shiloh and arrived at Ahijah’s house. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age.
Jehoiada dies at 130, old and full of years2 Chr 24:15
The verses
2 Chr 24:15When Jehoiada was old and full of years, he died at the age of 130.
Elihu waits to speak because the others are olderJob 32:6–7
The verses
Job 32:6–7So Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite declared: “I am young in years, while you are old; that is why I was timid and afraid to tell you what I know. I thought that age should speak, and many years should teach wisdom.
Job lives to see four generationsJob 42:16–17
The verses
Job 42:16–17After this, Job lived 140 years and saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so Job died, old and full of years.
Naomi’s grandson will sustain her in her old ageRuth 4:15
The verses
Ruth 4:15He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.”
Zechariah and Elizabeth, both well along in yearsLuke 1:7, Luke 1:18
The verses
Luke 1:7But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well along in years.
Luke 1:18“How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years.”
Anna, a widow of eighty-fourLuke 2:36–37
The verses
Luke 2:36–37There was also a prophetess named Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher, who was well along in years. She had been married for seven years, and then was a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
Paul: “I, Paul, am now aged”Phlm 1:9
The verses
Phlm 1:9I prefer to appeal on the basis of love. For I, Paul, am now aged, and a prisoner of Christ Jesus as well.

Sources

From Nave’s Topical Bible (Orville J. Nave, 1896; public domain): subjects chosen, lines shortened and put into modern words, lines of interpretation left out; each verse checked.

Berean Standard Bible · Public domain