Genesis 23
23
The Burial of Sarah
1When Sarah was 127 years old, 2she died at Kiriath-arba (now called Hebron) in the land of Canaan. There Abraham mourned and wept for her.
3Then, leaving her body, he said to the Hittite elders, 4“Here I am, a stranger and a foreigner among you. Please sell me a piece of land so I can give my wife a proper burial.”
5The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6“Listen, my lord, you are an honored prince among us. Choose the finest of our tombs and bury her there. No one here will refuse to help you in this way.”
7Then Abraham bowed low before the Hittites 8and said, “Since you are willing to help me in this way, be so kind as to ask Ephron son of Zohar 9to let me buy his cave at Machpelah, down at the end of his field. I will pay the full price in the presence of witnesses, so I will have a permanent burial place for my family.”
10Ephron was sitting there among the others, and he answered Abraham as the others listened, speaking publicly before all the Hittite elders of the town. 11“No, my lord,” he said to Abraham, “please listen to me. I will give you the field and the cave. Here in the presence of my people, I give it to you. Go and bury your dead.”
12Abraham again bowed low before the citizens of the land, 13and he replied to Ephron as everyone listened. “No, listen to me. I will buy it from you. Let me pay the full price for the field so I can bury my dead there.”
14Ephron answered Abraham, 15“My lord, please listen to me. The land is worth 400 pieces#23:15 Hebrew 400 shekels, about 10 pounds or 4.6 kilograms in weight; also in 23:16. of silver, but what is that between friends? Go ahead and bury your dead.”
16So Abraham agreed to Ephron’s price and paid the amount he had suggested—400 pieces of silver, weighed according to the market standard. The Hittite elders witnessed the transaction.
17So Abraham bought the plot of land belonging to Ephron at Machpelah, near Mamre. This included the field itself, the cave that was in it, and all the surrounding trees. 18It was transferred to Abraham as his permanent possession in the presence of the Hittite elders at the city gate. 19Then Abraham buried his wife, Sarah, there in Canaan, in the cave of Machpelah, near Mamre (also called Hebron). 20So the field and the cave were transferred from the Hittites to Abraham for use as a permanent burial place.
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Genesis 23: NLT
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Genesis 23
23
The Death of Sarah
1Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years. These were the years of the life of Sarah. 2#Ge 23:19; 13:18Then Sarah died in Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.
3#Ge 10:15Then Abraham stood up from before his dead and spoke to the Hittites,#From the Septuagint, a cloak with long sleeves, a full-length cloak, or an embroidered cloak, showing favoritism. saying, 4#Ge 17:8; 1Ch 29:15“I am a stranger and a foreigner among you. Give me property for a burying place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”
5So the Hittites answered Abraham, 6#Ge 24:35; 14:14“Hear us, my lord. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place that you may bury your dead.”
7Then Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, the Hittites. 8He spoke with them, saying, “If it be your wish that I bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat Ephron the son of Zohar for me, 9that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns, at the end of his field. Let him give it to me in your presence for the full price for a burial site.”
10#Ge 34:20; 34:24Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the presence of all the Hittites, all who went in at the gate of his city, saying, 11“No, my lord. Hear me: I give you the field and the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of the sons of my people. Bury your dead.”
12Then Abraham bowed before the people of the land. 13Then he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, “Indeed, if you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.”
14Then Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, 15#Eze 45:12“My lord, listen to me. The land is worth four hundred shekels of silver.#About 10 pounds, or 4.6 kilograms. What is that between me and you? So bury your dead.”
16#Jer 32:9; Zec 11:12Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham weighed out for Ephron four hundred shekels of silver, the price that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, according to the standard commercial measure.
17#Ge 25:9; 50:13So the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave that was in it, and all the trees that were in the field that were within all the surrounding borders were deeded 18to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city. 19After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20#Ru 4:7–10So the field and the cave that was in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as property for a burial place.
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