Genesis 23
Sarah dies at age 127 in Hebron. Abraham mourns for her and negotiates with the Hittites to purchase the cave of Machpelah as a burial site.
GenesisChapter 23 of 5020 versesBerean Standard Bible
In this passage: AbrahamHethEphronMachpelahCanaan
Read Genesis 23 and keep notes on it in Doxa's Daily Faith Steps.
Now Sarah lived to be 127 years old.
She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her.
Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and said to the Hittites,
“I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.”
The Hittites replied to Abraham,
“Listen to us, sir. You are God’s chosen one among us. Bury your dead in the finest of our tombs. None of us will withhold his tomb for burying your dead.”
Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 48: Why does Genesis call Ishmael's sons princes?
Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites.
“If you are willing for me to bury my dead,” he said to them, “listen to me, and approach Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf
to sell me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him sell it to me in your presence for full price, so that I may have a burial site.”
Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham,
“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 of my people. Bury your dead.”
Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land
and said to Ephron in their presence, “If you will please listen to me, I will pay you the price of the field. Accept it from me, so that I may bury my dead there.”
Ephron answered Abraham,
“Listen to me, my lord. The land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”
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 standard of the merchants.
So Ephron’s field at Machpelah near Mamre, the cave that was in it, and all the trees within the boundaries of the field were deeded over
Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 22: Why did God tell Abram to walk the length and breadth of the land?
to Abraham’s possession in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city.
Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 39: What did an oath and seven lambs mean in Abraham's world?
Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 46: What did it mean to possess the gates in the ancient world?
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.
So the field and its cave were deeded by the Hittites to Abraham as a burial site.
Read next
How to Hear God’s Voice: A Practical Guide for BelieversScripture is the record of a God who speaks. This guide covers how to hear Him today and keep what He says.Cross-references for Genesis 23
Genesis 23:41 Chronicles 29:15
“For we are foreigners and strangers in Your presence, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope.”
“By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.”
““The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become rich. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys.”
“His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite.”
“They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site.”
Cross-references from OpenBible.info, licensed CC BY.
Genesis 23 on Doxa
- Genesis 23: The Only Land Abraham Ever Owned Was a Grave · Daily Lift, day 42
- Cave of Machpelah: Why Abraham Paid 400 Shekels for a Tomb · Deeper Dive, day 42
- Twelve Princes Before Twelve Tribes: Ishmael's Line (Genesis 25:12–18) · Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 48
- Why God Told Abram to Walk the Land He Didn't Own (Genesis 13) · Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 22
- El Olam: Why God Was First Called Eternal at a Disputed Well (Genesis 21) · Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 39
- The Second Time the Bible Says 'Love' (Genesis 24:50–67) · Quoted in the Deeper Dive, day 46
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