Genesis 23 – Death and Burial of Sarah
Timeline: 2030 BC
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It seems that Abraham lived in Beersheba for some time but then moved to Hebron. The Bible does not state how long he lived at either place or if he lived anywhere else in between. Genesis 23:1-2 Now Sarah lived to be 127 years old. She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her. Sarah was the mother of the Jewish nation. She is the only woman in the Bible where her age and her burial place are mentioned. This is the first time tears are mentioned. Genesis 23:3-4 Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and said to the Hittites,"I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead." After the traditional 30 days of mourning, Abraham was ready to bury Sarah. Normally, when a loved one dies, it was customary to bring them back to where they came from. So Abraham would have brought Sarah back to Ur of the Chaldeans. But this was the Promised Land so he chose to bury her in here. Genesis 23:5-6 The Hittites replied to Abraham, "Listen to us, sir. You are God's chosen one among us. Bury your dead in the finest of our tombs. None of us will withhold his tomb for burying your dead." It was frowned upon to sell any of your land to a foreigner. Although God has granted Abraham and his descendants the land, he insists upon purchasing a piece. Abraham lived in tents and never owned any land until now. When Abraham asked for a burial place, he wasn’t asking them to give it to him for free. He intends to purchase it so they negotiated the price. Abraham was very wealthy and powerful and they knew it. Genesis 23:7-9 Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites."If you are willing for me to bury my dead," he said to them, "listen to me, and approach Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf to sell me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him sell it to me in your presence for full price, so that I may have a burial site." Abraham had earlier lived in this area and here built an altar to God. Genesis 23:10-11 Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham, "No, my lord. Listen to me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead." Ephron the Hittite followed the cultural customs of bargaining. First, the seller offered to give the item – confident that the buyer would refuse the ceremonial offer. When the buyer refused to receive it as a gift, the seller suggested a price, which he claimed was modest but was really very high. This was understood to be the starting point, and from there the bargaining began. Genesis 23:12-16 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land and said to Ephron in their presence, "If you will please listen to me, I will pay you the price of the field. Accept it from me, so that I may bury my dead there." Ephron answered Abraham, "Listen to me, my lord. The land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead."Genesis 23:16 Abraham agreed to Ephron's terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the standard of the merchants. Four hundred Shekels = More than lbs of silver. This was a very high price for this piece of property! When David purchased the threshing floor from Araunah, he only paid 50 shekels for the land where the temple was built. Ephron expected to negotiate the price and was probably surprised to get the entire price. Genesis 23:17-20 So Ephron's field at Machpelah near Mamre, the cave that was in it, and all the trees within the boundaries of the field were deeded over to Abraham's possession in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. So the field and its cave were deeded by the Hittites to Abraham as a burial site. In those communities, the men of authority sat at the gate of the city. If there was formal business to be approved they would do it there. This ends up being a family burial plot. In addition to Sarah, Abraham, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob and Leah will all be buried with her. |
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