Genesis 23
Sarah’s Burial
1 Now Sarah lived 127 years; these were all the years of her life. 2 Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron a) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites: ▼ 4 “I am a foreign resident among you. c Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.” ▼▼Lit dead from before me
,
e 5The Hittites replied to Abraham, ▼▼Lit Abraham, saying to him
6 “Listen to us, lord. ▼▼Lit my lord
You are God’s chosen one ▼▼Or prince of God, or mighty prince
among us. Bury your dead in our finest burial place. ▼▼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 Hittites, 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 a burial place.” 10 Ephron was sitting among the Hittites. So in the presence ▼▼Lit ears
of all the Hittites who came to the ▼▼gate(s): The center for community discussions, political meetings, and trying of court cases
gate of his city, l Ephron the Hittite 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 presence ▼▼Lit in the eyes of the sons
of my people. Bury your dead.” 12 Abraham bowed down to the people of the land 13and said to Ephron in the presence ▼▼Lit ears
of the people of the land, “Please listen to me. Let me pay the price of the field. Accept it from me, and let me bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham and said to him, 15“My lord, listen to me. Land worth 400 ▼▼shekel(s): In the OT the shekel is a measurement of weight that came to be used as money, either gold or silver.
shekels of silver p – what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham agreed with Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver that he had agreed to in the presence ▼▼Lit ears
of the Hittites: 400 shekels of silver at the current commercial rate. r 17So Ephron’s field s at Machpelah near Mamre – the field with its cave and all the trees anywhere within the boundaries of the field – became 18 Abraham’s possession in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city. 19 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. 20The field with its cave passed from the Hittites to Abraham t as a burial place.
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