Genesis 23:1-20 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Genesis 23:1-20. Let’s go!
Genesis 23:1-2 (NIV)
1 Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old.
2 She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.
On verses 1-2: For some reason the first time a person in the Bible is recorded as weeping, it’s in a situation where Abraham lost his wife Sarah. The two had been together for many decades. Together they had moved to and lived in many different places, experienced so many ups and downs, trusted in God’s promises and saw God work powerfully in their lives. Other than the presence of God, there was no one whose presence was more constant in Abraham’s life than Sarah’s. And now Abraham and Sarah were saying goodbye. No doubt even in their old age, this was a very difficult thing to do.
To me in part it’s a reminder that God sees us as His bride. Because He never wanted to lose us to death, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins, so that we could be with Him forever.
Genesis 23:3-20 (NIV)
3 Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites. He said,
4 “I am an alien and a stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”
5 The Hittites replied to Abraham,
6 “Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”
7 Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites.
8 He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf
9 so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”
10 Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city.
11 “No, my lord,” he said. “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.”
12 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land
13 and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”
14 Ephron answered Abraham,
15 “Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between me and you? Bury your dead.”
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 weight current among the merchants.
17 So Ephron’s field in Machpelah near Mamre–both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field–was deeded
18 to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city.
19 Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah near Mamre (which is at Hebron) in the land of Canaan.
20 So the field and the cave in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.
On verses 3-20: Even though Abraham called himself “an alien and a stranger” (v4) among the Hittites living in the land of Canaan, Abraham believed God’s promise that one day His own descendants would take possession of the land of Canaan. So in faith Abraham makes arrangements to bury Sarah in the land of Canaan, specifically in Hebron (which centuries later would become the capital of Judah under David’s reign – 2 Samuel 2:11).
Sarah was in many ways the seed that gave rise to the nation of Israel, so it was appropriate that she be the first in Abraham and Sarah’s family to be buried in Canaan. The process by which Abraham negotiated to buy Ephron’s field was apparently the customary way that people in that culture would negotiate for property.
What can we learn from this? Even as we go about the logistics of life, such as finding property to bury our deceased loved ones, may we do so with faith, making decisions that are in line with God’s vision and promises for our lives.
Jesus, thank You for the life of Sarah, for the faith she exhibited, and how through her life and faith all of us today are blessed. Thank You that just as Sarah was Abraham’s bride, we the church are Your bride and You made a way so that not even death will ever need to separate us from Your presence. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
