Genesis 23
23
Sarah Dies
1Sarah lived to be 127 years old. 2She died in Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. Abraham was very sad and cried because of her. 3After a while Abraham got up from the side of his wife’s body. And he went to talk to the Hittites. He said, 4“I am only a stranger and a foreigner here. Sell me some of your land so that I can bury my dead wife.”
5The Hittites answered Abraham, 6“Sir, you are a great leader among us. You may have the best place we have to bury your dead. You may have any of our burying places that you want. None of us will stop you from burying your dead wife.”
7Abraham rose and bowed to the people of the land, the Hittites. 8Abraham said to them, “If you truly want to help me bury my dead wife here, speak to Ephron for me. He is the son of Zohar. 9Ask him to sell me the cave of Machpelah. It is at the edge of his field. I will pay him the full price. You can be the witnesses that I am buying it as a burial place.”
10Ephron was sitting among the Hittites at the city gate. Ephron answered Abraham, 11“No, sir. I will give you the land and the cave that is in it. I will give it to you with these people as witnesses. Bury your dead wife.”
12Then Abraham bowed down before the Hittites. 13He said to Ephron before all the people, “Please let me pay you the full price for the field. Accept my money, and I will bury my dead there.”
14Ephron answered Abraham, 15“Sir, the land is worth ten pounds of silver. But I won’t argue with you over the price. Take the land, and bury your dead wife.”
16Abraham agreed and paid Ephron in front of the Hittite witnesses. Abraham weighed out the full price: ten pounds of silver. They counted the weight as the traders normally did.
17-18So Ephron’s field in Machpelah, east of Mamre, was sold. Abraham became the owner of the field, the cave in it and all the trees that were in the field. The sale was made at the city gate, with the Hittites as witnesses. 19After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave. It was in that field of Machpelah, near Mamre. (Mamre was later called Hebron in the land of Canaan.) 20Abraham bought the field and the cave on it from the Hittites. He used it as a burying place.
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Genesis 23
23
Sarah’s Burial
1Now Sarah lived 127 years; these were all the years of her life. 2Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron#Gn 35:27; Jos 14:15; 15:13; 21:11; Jdg 1:10) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.
3When Abraham got up from beside his dead wife, he spoke to the Hethites: 4“I am an alien residing among you.#Gn 17:8; Lv 25:23; 1Ch 29:15; Ps 39:12; 105:12; Heb 11:9,13 Give me burial property among you so that I can bury my dead.”#23:4 Lit dead from before me#Gn 49:30; Ac 7:16
5The Hethites replied to Abraham,#23:5 Lit Abraham, saying to him 6“Listen to us, my lord. You are a prince of God#23:6 Or a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in our finest burial place.#23:6 Or finest graves None of us will withhold from you his burial place for burying your dead.”
7Then Abraham rose and bowed down to the Hethites, the people of the land. 8He said to them, “If you are willing for me to bury my dead, listen to me and ask Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf 9to give me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me in your presence, for the full price, as burial property.”
10Ephron was sitting among the Hethites. So in the hearing#23:10 Lit ears, also in vv. 13,16 of all the Hethites who came to the gate of his city,#Gn 34:20,24; Ru 4:1 Ephron the Hethite answered Abraham: 11“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 sight#23:11 Lit in the eyes of the sons of my people. Bury your dead.”
12Abraham bowed down to the people of the land 13and said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “Listen to me, if you please. Let me pay the price of the field. Accept it from me, and let me bury my dead there.”
14Ephron answered Abraham and said to him, 15“My lord, listen to me. Land worth four hundred shekels of silver#Ex 30:13; Ezk 45:12 — what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16Abraham agreed with Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver that he had agreed to in the hearing of the Hethites: four hundred standard shekels#23:16 Lit 400 shekels passing to the merchant of silver.#Jr 32:9; Zch 11:12 17So Ephron’s field#Gn 25:9; 49:29–32; 50:13 at Machpelah near Mamre — the field with its cave and all the trees anywhere within the boundaries of the field — became 18Abraham’s possession in the sight of all the Hethites who came to the gate of his city. 19After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20The field with its cave passed from the Hethites to Abraham#Jr 32:10–14 as burial property.
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