Psalm 90:10 should not be read as saying that every Israelite in Moses’ time normally lived exactly 70 years.
Psalm 90 is traditionally attributed to Moses, and verse 10 says:
“The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years…” — Psalm 90:10, KJV
That is 70 years, with 80 years for those with exceptional strength.
What did Moses mean?
The Hebrew wording is:
שְׁנוֹתֵינוּ (shenotenu) — “our years”
שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה (shiv'im shanah) — “seventy years”
וְאִם בִּגְבוּרֹת (ve'im bigvurot) — “and if by strength”
שְׁמוֹנִים שָׁנָה (shemoneem shanah) — “eighty years”
The psalm is reflecting on human mortality and the brevity of life, especially in the context of God's judgment and human sinfulness (Psalm 90:7–9), rather than establishing an official Israelite life-expectancy standard.
Was 70 actually the normal lifespan?
Probably not.
We need to distinguish between life expectancy at birth and the age reached by someone who survived childhood. Ancient populations had very high infant and childhood mortality, which pulled the average life expectancy at birth down substantially.
At the same time, ancient Israelites certainly could live into their 70s, 80s and beyond. The Bible gives examples:
Moses — 120 years (Deuteronomy 34:7)
Aaron — 123 years (Numbers 33:39)
Joshua — 110 years (Joshua 24:29)
Abraham — 175 years (Genesis 25:7)
Those exceptional ages also show why Psalm 90:10 shouldn't be interpreted as a biological maximum.
An important point about Moses
If Moses wrote Psalm 90, there's an interesting contrast:
Psalm 90:10:
“The days of our years are threescore years and ten…”
Deuteronomy 34:7:
“And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died…”
So Moses himself lived 50 years beyond the 70 years mentioned in Psalm 90:10.
This strongly suggests that 70–80 is a poetic/general description of ordinary human longevity, not a statement that humans could not live longer.
Why 70?
The context is particularly important. Psalm 90 begins:
“Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.” (v.1)
Then it contrasts God's eternity with human mortality:
“For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday…” (v.4)
And then:
“Thou carriest them away as with a flood…” (v.5)
The psalmist is emphasizing: God is eternal; human beings are temporary.
So verse 10 essentially says, Even if a person has a relatively long life, it is still short compared with God's eternity.
In other words, Psalm 90:10 is more about the brevity and frailty of human life than about establishing that Jews in Moses' day had a 70-year life expectancy.
And the following verse makes the point explicit:
“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” — Psalm 90:12
That is the practical conclusion: because our lives are short and uncertain, we should live wisely before God.
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