“How Well Will You Die?”

Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs!

Numbers 23:10

Having come to the last Sabbath of the year, it is the right time to think about death and ask ourselves the question: How well will I die? None of us wants to face the issue of our own death. We do not like to hear about it or speak of it. But the Bible says it is appointed for a man once to die, and then comes the judgment. There is no way of escaping it. We can play tricks with our mind and avoid thinking about it, but we can never avoid death.

A number of our friends and acquaintances have died this year. Some died well and went to paradise, but others, who did not die well, went to a place of agony and torment. They refused to do the one thing needful-to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and serve him only. They chose to try to gain the whole world and died without hope, still in their sins. They were like the people in the days of Noah, about whom Jesus said, “For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. . . and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away” (Matthew 24:38-39). Occupied with the worries and pleasures of life, and the deceitfulness of riches, they lived for this world that is passing away, serving their master, money, and all that it could buy for them. They refused to think about Jesus Christ or their final end.

The Bible tells us, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12). God spoke to Moses about this matter in Deuteronomy 32: “‘I will hide my face from them,’ he said, ‘and see what their end will be'” (v. 20); “If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!” (v. 29). There is a final end for every person. The question is, what will your final end be?

In Psalm 73 the psalmist envied the wicked and their material prosperity until God revealed their end to him. He says, “I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies” (vv. 17-20). That will be the end of every unbeliever, of every person who trusts in this world and worships money and power.

But in Jeremiah 29:11 God says to his people: “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a good end.'” A good end is in store for the people of God.

Let us now consider the lives of four people and discover their final end.

Balaam

We find the first example in Numbers 22-24. Balaam, whose name appears in the Bible over sixty times, lived on the river Euphrates in Pethor in Aram Naharaim, northwest of Mesopotamia. A pagan sorcerer, he was summoned by Balak king of Moab to curse the mighty hordes of Israel who had entered Moab’s territory. Balak could have avoided war and destruction by believing in the God of Israel and greeting God’s people with water and bread, but he chose instead to fight them. First, though, he asked Balaam to put a curse on them.

Balaam was a greedy man who used sorcery to make money. Nevertheless, the God of Israel spoke to him graciously, saying, “You must not put a curse on those people, because they are blessed” (22:12). This is speaking about eternal election. God chose Abraham and Israel, and the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable. Because Israel was blessed by God, no one could curse her. In fact, to curse Israel is to curse the God of Israel, the Creator of the ends of the earth and the Redeemer of his covenant people. God had spoken about this long before, telling Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse” (Genesis 12:3).

In his mercy, God graciously revealed to Balaam a number of things:

1. Israel is God’s covenant people (Numbers 23:14b).
2. God loves Israel (Deuteronomy 23:5).
3. God is immutable (Numbers 23:19-20).
4. Israel is a holy people (Numbers 23:9).
5. No sorcery will succeed against Israel (Numbers 23:23).
6. Israel is a people blessed by God (Numbers 22:12).
7. Israel’s King is with them. Through the Holy Spirit, Balaam prophesied: “No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them” (23:21); “Their king will be greater than Agag; their kingdom will be exalted” (24:7b). God revealed to Balaam that the king of Israel is greater than every other king, and that Israel will be exalted.
8. Moab is to be crushed for their act of resisting God and God’s people. Another profound prophecy regarding the king of Israel came through the pagan Balaam under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in Numbers 24:17: “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth.” This is a direct revelation that it is God’s plan to destroy Moab through a king who is going to come. That king was David, and then David’s Son, the Lord Jesus.
9. Israel’s end will be good. The Holy Spirit came upon Balaam to give him the profound prophecies revealed in chapters 22 through 24. So in Numbers 23:10 he declared: “Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel?” The idea is that Israel is going to grow and flourish. “Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs.” Balaam understood that Israel was righteous, but he was unrighteous. He knew he deserved destruction, but Israel’s end would be good, and he wanted to share in their destiny.

Through the Holy Spirit, Balaam heard the gospel and received all this revelation from God. Yet he refused to believe in the God of Israel and be saved. Though he wanted to be righteous, he would not believe in the God who graciously revealed to him the way of righteousness. Balaam wanted to die like the believers and go to heaven, not hell. He knew he was cursed and Israel was blessed, that there was one way to be blessed, and that he could not save himself with his sorcery. Yet he would not repent and believe in the God of Israel.

Balaam was like the rich young ruler in the gospel accounts, who also knew he did not have eternal life and came to Jesus to get it. But he refused to obey when Jesus said, “Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Like Balaam, he went away doomed and sad because he loved his money more than God, more than a good eternal destiny.

Balaam even called the God of Israel “the Lord my God,” (22:18) and confessed, “I have sinned” (22:34). But it was phony. There are people in the church who do this all the time. They confess, “Jesus is Lord,” get baptized, and participate in many church activities. Such people pretend they are on their way to experiencing a good end in heaven. But it is all phony.

Balaam did not mean a word of what he proclaimed; he did not forsake his sin and follow Israel’s God. Why? Second Peter 2:15 tells us Balaam “loved the wages of wickedness.” Remember what Jesus taught: “No man can serve two masters.” Balaam served only one master-money.

Despite all these prophetic utterances and despite having received such profound revelation from God about Israel and her enemies, Balaam’s goal was still to make some money. Balak had not given him anything because he was angry with Balaam for not cursing Israel. So Balaam went to the Midianite women and counseled them to seduce the men of Israel (31:16). He reasoned that since the God of Israel is holy, he would not tolerate sin; therefore he would put an end to Israel by destroying them if they sinned. But that is incorrect reasoning. Yes, God will punish his people if they sin, but he will not destroy them, because the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable. God is faithful to his covenant of love. Israel did commit great sin with the Midianite women, and many people were killed. But God did not utterly destroy them or put an end to his covenant with them.

Balaam got his money, but the man who said, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs,” was then killed by the God of Israel for his wickedness (31:8). He died in the battlefield with money in his pocket, fighting against the God he knew. He had desired to be righteous and to have a good end, but he died as a wicked man because he would not repent and forsake his sin and believe in the one true God who revealed himself graciously to him. Though the Holy Spirit had come upon him and he prophesied great things concerning Israel’s Messiah and the destruction of Israel’s enemies, he remained an enemy of Israel and Israel’s God.

Balaam did not profit from his knowledge of God. As Jesus himself asked, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” Balaam experienced a terrible and bitter end.

Judas

The second example is Judas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. Judas heard the way of salvation and saw the miracles performed by Jesus. Judas himself received the Holy Ghost, preached the gospel, performed miracles, and was fascinated because even the spirits were subject to him. Yet he was not saved. Though he was the treasurer, he stole money from the bag because he was greedy and loved money more than Jesus or the gospel. Ultimately he sold Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, betraying him with a kiss.

But that money did not benefit Judas in any way. Matthew 27:3-10 tells us Judas became very remorseful and threw the money away, but he could not repent and believe in Jesus for salvation. Instead, he committed suicide. What a terrible end for an apostle of Jesus Christ! He became a son of perdition, bound for hell. The thief on the cross who repented went to paradise, but Judas went to a place of torment and agony.

Like Balaam, Judas was surrounded by the gospel, surrounded by grace, revelation and truth. But he did not profit from it. The highest title Judas ever bestowed on Jesus was “Rabbi,” or “Teacher”-not Savior, not King of Israel, not Christ the Son of the living God. In his final days, Judas became a tool of Satan. We are told Satan entered into him and controlled his every move.

This is what happens to those who live for money and the pleasures of this world. In the end, their money cannot save them. Acts 1:18 tells us, “With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.” A terrible, bitter end awaits those who serve money.

Demas

We are introduced to Demas in Colossians 4:14, 2 Timothy 4:10, and Philemon verse 24. Not much is known of him except that he was a fellow worker of the apostle Paul for some time; therefore, we may assume that he was a preacher of the gospel with Paul, possibly even suffering imprisonment at some time because of the gospel. Yet, the truth is, his heart was not in the gospel. He did not love Jesus Christ or the kingdom of God, as we are told in 2 Timothy 4:10. When he became fed up with suffering, persecution, and poverty, he decided to leave the gospel ministry, go out to make money, and strive to be somebody in this world.

Demas left Paul in Rome and went to Thessalonica. Paul flatly states, “Demas . . . has deserted me.” We can translate that, “He left me in the lurch.” Then Paul gives the reason: “because he loved this present world.”

Here is a man who was a preacher of the gospel. I am sure Demas believed that gospel, confessed Jesus Christ as Lord, and was baptized. He probably was a scholar in the Scriptures. But his heart was never in it. Rather, he fell in love with the world-not the unseen, eternal world, but the world that is passing away-this present world, this evil age, this world that lies in the control of the evil one.

Demas had some rationale for his actions. By becoming a friend of the world, he concluded that the world would no longer hate and persecute him; instead, it would love him. But by becoming the friend of the world, Demas became an enemy of God. I suppose he was able to make quite a bit of money in Thessalonica, as it was a place of business for many Jewish people.

There was another fellow who abandoned Paul named John Mark. The Bible says he repented and returned. But we hear nothing about Demas repenting or being restored; thus, we can conclude that he died in utter misery and hopelessness.

Paul

Finally, let us examine the life of the apostle Paul. In 2 Timothy 4:6-7 Paul says, “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

Paul here is looking back over thirty years of his ministry, and he concludes that he has completed the task God has appointed him. (PGM) He says he fought the good fight and won it. Paul fought against Satan and all his agents, against the Judaizers and the Gnostics; he fought against the philosophers and against false brothers. He always stood firm for the gospel.

Then Paul says he has completed the race given to him. In Acts 20:22-24, Paul defines this race: “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.” Now, having finished that task, Paul is ready to die.

Third, Paul says he has kept the faith. This means he lived by the gospel, placing his entire hope in it, proclaiming it without error, and teaching it to reliable men who, in turn, might teach others. Finally, he concludes, “Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8).

If you examine that verse in the Greek text you will notice something important. The latter part of verse 8 actually reads, “and not only to me, but also to all who love(agapaô) his appearing.” The same word is used in verse 10 in reference to Demas: “For Demas, because he loved this world. . . .” The people of God love God and his word; they love Christ; they love the kingdom of God; they love heaven and the world to come. They are in this world, but not of this world, because their citizenship is in heaven. But Demas loved this present world.

In contrast to Demas, Paul loved Christ to the last moment of his life. When he realized he was going to die before the appearing of Christ, he declared, “I am already being poured out as a drink offering,” as wine at last was poured out upon a burnt offering (Numbers 15:1-10). As his final act, Paul was going to pour out his blood in the service of Christ. He said the time for his departure had come. The Greek word he uses is analusis, which means the anchor is weighed, the ropes are slipped, the boat is about to set sail for another shore. Paul knew his lifeblood was about to be shed and his little boat was about to set sail for the shore of eternity. And Paul knew he was going to experience a good death.

Paul spoke of his death earlier, in 2 Corinthians 5:8, stating he “would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” His words demonstrate how much he loved heaven, God, and Jesus Christ. He also states in the first chapter of Philippians, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (v. 21), and “I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far” (v. 23). What a perspective! What a love for God and God’s kingdom! Death is profitable because it ushers us into the presence of God to experience God in a greater manner than before.

Can we claim with Paul that to die is gain? If not, then we should pray, “O God, the truth is, I cannot say that because I love this world too much. Help me to desire you above all things.”

In 1 Thessalonians 4:14, Paul likens death to falling asleep in Jesus. We are told in Luke 16:22 that when the poor beggar died he was carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom, to the very presence of God. And in Luke 23:43 Jesus says to the repenting thief, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” In Psalm 116:15 we read, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” And Revelation 14:13 says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.” For God’s people, to die is definitely gain.

Balaam desired to die the death of the saints, but he did not so die. Judas and Demas also failed to die the death of the righteous. But here Paul is waiting for that glorious moment, without fear, with great hope and joy. He is waiting to receive a crown of righteousness, a crown of life (Revelation 2:10), a crown of rejoicing (1 Thessalonians 2:19), a crown of glory (1 Peter 5:4). Balaam, Judas and Demas all fell in love with this present world. They fell in love with money and served money. But Paul knew differently. He declared, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). That is a mighty revelation that only comes to us when God opens our eyes.

What Will Be Your Eternal End?

Here we are, then, at the last Sabbath of the year. People we know have died this year. Some went to paradise, but many more to a place of everlasting torment. We do not like to think about this, but it is the truth. I hope we will think about these things now while we are still alive. We have not yet reached our final end. Know for sure, friends, that this world is passing away. It is temporary. Only the world to come is eternal. The question is: What eternity you are going to come into-the eternity of everlasting happiness, or the eternity of everlasting misery and torment?

The Bible says man’s life is just a vapor. Thus, only one thing is needful, only one book is needful, only one person is needful. Eternal life is in the Son. Jesus came into this world that we may have abundant life; he has brought life and immortality to light. He who has the Son has life; it is he who can die well.

When John Knox, the great reformer of Scotland, lay dying, he could no longer speak, so his faithful servant asked him, “If the gospel you preached is your only comfort in death, then give proof to it by raising your hand toward heaven.” John Knox immediately raised his hand to heaven, not once or twice, but three times. Then he brought it down and died. That, I think, is a pretty good end.

I counsel you to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved forever. Only the believer will sleep in Jesus and have a good end-an eternity of everlasting happiness in the presence of God. To be ready to die well, it is very important to live well. Do not love this world and live for money. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. Then at life’s end you can say with Paul, “To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Amen.