Chapter 23

1 The age and death of Sarah. 3 The purchase of Machpelah, 19 where Sarah was buried.

1. The life of Sarah. As the mother of all believers (Isa. 51:2; 1 Peter 3:6) Sarah is the only woman whose age at death is mentioned in Scripture. Isaac was 37 years old at the time of her death (Gen. 17:1, 17; 21:5).

2. Kirjath-arba. Abraham had moved back to his former place of abode, near Hebron (chs. 13:18; 18:1). Having lived for almost 40 years in the land of the Philistines (chs. 20:1; 21:31–34; 22:19), he now returned to Canaan proper, a fact Moses specifically notes. Kirjath-arba (Joshua 14:15; 15:13; 21:11), meaning “city of Arba,” was named for one of the giant Anakim, who apparently founded it. The name Hebron was given to the city at a later time.

Mourn for Sarah. Seemingly the only burial rite observed by Abraham. This probably refers to formal mourning—sitting on the ground and weeping in the presence of the dead. Mourning later developed into an elaborate ritual, including such ceremonies as rending the garments, shaving the head, wearing sackcloth, and covering the head with dust and ashes (2 Sam. 3:31; Job 1:20; 2:12).

3. Spake unto the sons of Heth. The inhabitants of the region are here called the sons of Heth, or Hittites (v. 10). During Abraham’s first period of residence the Amorites had been in possession of Hebron (see on ch. 20:1). Critical objection to the presence of Hittites in southern Palestine at this early period is not confirmed by the latest archeological findings.

In fact it is in the light of the Hittite laws that some details connected with this story can best be explained. (See vs. 11, 17, and M. R. Lehmann in Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 129 [Feb., 1953], pp. 15-18.

4. I am a stranger. Abraham’s courteous approach to the Hittites, the “people of the land,” is noteworthy (vs. 7, 12, 13). He frankly admitted his status as a sojourner and made no claim to any of the land by right (see Heb. 11:13). God had promised him all of Canaan. With hundreds of retainers he had defeated the allied expeditionary force from Mesopotamia (Gen. 14). These very Hittites recognized him as a “mighty prince” (ch. 23:6). Yet, in humility, Abraham did not present his neighbors with a demand; he requested permission to secure title to a piece of land, not by right, but as a favor and for a price.

A buryingplace. This is the first grave mentioned in Scripture. Cremation was practiced by many pagan nations of antiquity, but the Hebrews preferred interment. The desire to be buried on one’s own land is common to people of all ages, races, and levels of culture.

6. Thou are a mighty prince. The Hittites replied obligingly to Abraham’s request, reflecting his courtesy. Declining to accept his own appraisal of his status among them, “a stranger,” they acknowledged him as a “mighty prince.” Literally, “prince of God,” which according to a familiar Hebrew idiom may legitimately be translated “mighty prince,” as in the KJV. In Hebrew, similarly, the “great mountains” of Ps. 36:6 are literally the “mountains of God,” and the “goodly cedars” of Ps. 80:10, the “cedars of God.” In designating Abraham as “a mighty prince,” the Hittites voiced their recognition of Abraham as a man whom God had favored.

None of us shall withhold. They heartily approved of Abraham’s request. To begin with they offered to make their own burial grounds available to him—a truly courteous gesture.

7. Abraham stood up. Oriental courtesy, tact, and bargaining procedure are obvious in the arrangements between Abraham and the sons of Heth. Abraham expressed his appreciation by bowing, a common Oriental gesture of gratitude. Meeting no opposition to his rather vague suggestion, Abraham next advanced a concrete proposal.

8. Intreat for me. In typical Oriental fashion, Abraham did not direct his petition to Ephron himself, but requested the elders of the city to use their influence in securing the desired property. They were to be his go-betweens in conducting the transaction. Such a procedure would result in concluding the agreement with greater dispatch, and would also avoid misunderstandings that might otherwise arise. The good name of the entire community would ensure a fair deal, and would protect both Abraham and Ephron from criticism.

9. Machpelah. This name has been explained in various ways. Some have taken it as a proper name, others as descriptive of some peculiarity of the cave. It is from the root kaphal “to double,” suggesting that it may have been a double cave, or perhaps one with two entrances. The first interpretation seems preferable. In this cave were deposited, successively, the remains of Sarah, Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, Leah, and Jacob. (chs. 25:9; 49:31; 50:13). Rachel alone, of the great patriarchal family, was absent (ch. 35:19). Machpelah has been identified with two caves, one above the other, beneath a Mohammedan mosque on a slope near Hebron. Access was forbidden for centuries, but an exception was made in 1882 for the future George V of England and his brother. Since the first world war several Christians have had the opportunity of visiting the upper cave, which contains stone markers bearing the names of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Rebekah, and Leah. These slabs are supposed to mark their actual tombs, in the rock-hewn cave below. Whether this very ancient tradition agrees with the facts cannot be determined until scientific study is permitted in the lower cave.

11. The field give I thee. All such transactions were made at the city gate (see Gen. 34:20; Ruth 4:1). Ephron, who was obviously one of the nobility present, and was now mentioned by name, spoke. He offered Abraham the field containing the cave, ostensibly as an outright gift. This offer follows a good Eastern custom that has been kept alive in some places to the present day. Everyone knew, of course, that this offer was not meant seriously. Ephron was unwilling to sell the cave without the field.

The reason for Ephron’s eagerness to sell the whole property and not simply part of it, lies in the Hittite laws (Nos. 46, 47), which allow a release of feudal service only if a whole field is sold, but not if it is disposed of in pieces. Hence, if Abraham had bought only the cave Ephron’s tax burden would not have been lightened, whereas Abraham’s eventual purchase of the whole property transferred Ephron’s feudal obligations to the purchaser Abraham.

I will give thee money. Recognizing in Ephron’s answer his willingness to let him have the cave if he would purchase the field containing it, Abraham bowed again in gratitude. He, of course, declined to accept Ephron’s property as a gift, but asked the price by stating his desire to pay for it.

15. Four hundred shekels. About $116 (see on ch. 20:16). Ephron now named his price, implying that it was a mere trifle for a rich man like Abraham. Although the price appears most reasonable in terms of modern values, in the time of Abraham it must have seemed exorbitant. Babylonian records reveal that average fields were then sold at 4 shekels an acre, and the most fertile gardens at 40 shekels an acre. According to the Babylonian standard Abraham should have been able to buy a field of 100 acres for his money. Though we do not know how large Ephron’s field was, Moses seems to leave the impression that Ephron took advantage of Abraham’s predicament to make a good profit for himself. Otherwise Ephron would not have offered Abraham the field in addition to the cave (see on v. 11).

16. Abraham weighed. Desiring to avoid any feelings of enmity, Abraham as a Semite at the mercy of the Hittites, paid without question rather than bargain over the price. Then as now such a procedure was customary throughout the Orient, and Ephron undoubtedly expected Abraham to do accordingly. As a “mighty prince,” a wealthy nomad chief, Abraham may have felt that bargaining was beneath his dignity, or, perhaps, he deliberately chose to avoid a reputation for sharp dealing. He paid in full on the spot, according to customary commercial standards, as the phrase, “current money with the merchant,” indicates.

17. The field. Some stipulations of the contract, no doubt found in even greater detail in a written deed, are here given. Numerous such contracts of that time from Abraham’s old home, Ur, and elsewhere in Mesopotamia, present a clear picture of the form of such a contract. Abraham’s title deed no doubt contained an exact description of the property and its location, and listed the trees and other accessory items on it, in this case including the cave. If, for instance, the trees had not been specifically included, Ephron could have specifically included, Ephron could have claimed the harvest from them every year.

This is once more an interesting detail proving that Hittites were involved in the transaction, since the listing of the exact number of trees at each real estate sale is a characteristic trait in Hittite business documents.

Before Mamre. That is, “to the east of Mamre” (RSV).

19. Abraham buried Sarah. The cave was situated near Mamre, where Abraham had lived before the birth of Isaac. In sight of the grove that had been their home for so many years, where they had shared their joys and their sorrows, their disappointments and their hopes, Abraham laid his beloved wife to rest.

Before Mamre. The Hebrew expression here translated “before” is at times to be understood as “to the east of.” In giving directions a Hebrew customarily thought of himself as facing the east, which was thus “before” him (see Zech. 14:8; Joel 2:20; Deut. 11:24). Mamre was not another name for Hebron, but was simply in that vicinity (see Gen. 13:18).

In the land of Canaan. To emphasize, as in v. 2, that Sarah found her last resting place in a piece of ground belonging to Abraham in the promised land of Canaan.

Ellen G. White comments

7 ML 192

17-20PP 169