The pyramids were built as tombs for Pharaohs. There are 111 pyramids still standing today. Read Joshua 24:29-33.  Our group of 15 stood and gazed upon the Great Pyramids of Giza. They were already in place 800 years before God called Abraham from Ur to go to the Promised Land. Abraham and Sarah went to Egypt as refugees when a famine struck Canaan. Although there is no biblical record that they went by the pyramids, they could not have missed them since they interacted with the Pharaoh. Not just the pharaohs, but all the people of Egypt lived their lives anticipating the afterlife. Every tomb, whether it was a pyramid for a pharaoh or a simple tomb for a commoner, was prepared with the afterlife in mind. We went to the Grand Egyptian Museum of Cairo, where the contents of King Tut’s tomb were on display. The contents were so vast it took up a large section of the museum. There were chariots, beds, baskets, jewelry, and everything you would need in the next life. Jacob, the grandson of Abraham, would eventually take his family to Egypt to escape a famine. Joseph, son of Jacob, who was sold into slavery by his brothers, rose to power under the Pharaoh and lived as an Egyptian. When it was time for Joseph to die, he told his family, “One day God will deliver you from this land and take you to the Promised Land. When that happens, take my bones and bury me there.” Genesis 50:25 says that Joseph was embalmed and buried in Egypt. This simple sentence communicates that Joseph would have been given a proper Egyptian burial, complete with mummification and surrounded by all the things he would need in the afterlife. Over four hundred years later, Moses led the people out of Egypt. Forty years after that, Joshua led the people into the Promised Land. The book of Joshua ends with the account of Joseph being buried at Shechem by the descendants of his son Ephraim. Each of us is faced with the reality of death and burial. If you want to be buried in a certain place with certain people in a certain way, you need to communicate that by either making arrangements with a funeral home and/or letting your family know your wishes. However, we have more to live for than just a spot in the ground. When we put our faith in Jesus, we have a place being prepared for us by Jesus in his Father’s house, where there are many rooms.

Holy God, help us to face death as those who have the promise of eternal life. Our faith is in you. Our life and our death are in your hands. Amen.