As the place names indicate, it is in the place of "fatness" of soul and richness of fellowship with the Lord that Sarah, this woman of beauty and faith, dies.Īs was customary in those days, the body of Sarah was placed in a tent all by itself and into that tent goes Abraham alone to weep and mourn. In one respect this was a wonderful place to die. By this time the little family of Abraham, Sarah and Isaac had moved back from Beer-Sheba to Hebron, under the oak of Mamre, where they had first lived when they came into the land of Canaan - rather like going back to their honeymoon cottage - and here Sarah died. Sarah was one hundred and twenty-seven years old when she died, and her son Isaac is now thirty-seven. These accounts of Abraham's trials follow consecutively in the sacred record, but they are separated by many years of blessing, tranquility and peace. Probably about seventeen years have passed between Chapter 22 and Chapter 23. And Sarah died at Kiriatharba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. Sarah lived a hundred and twenty-seven years these were the years of the life of Sarah. The first two verses of Chapter 23 bring us into the shadow of heartache and death: As we sometimes sing in the old hymn, "There is a light in the valley of death now for me, since Jesus came into my heart." He is walking through the valley where death has cast its shadow, but we shall see as we read this chapter that there is a light which always shines in the dark shadows in the life of a man of faith. In Genesis 23 we stand beside Abraham now, as he weeps at the grave of Sarah. ( W) 20 So the field and the cave in it were deeded ( X) to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.What a bitter day it is when a man buries his wife! It is perhaps the lowest point ever reached by the human spirit, and the sunset for him of all earth's hopes and expectations. 19 Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah ( U) near Mamre (which is at Hebron ( V)) in the land of Canaan.
( O)ġ7 So Ephron’s field in Machpelah ( P) near Mamre ( Q)-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 ( R) in the presence of all the Hittites ( S) who had come to the gate ( T) of the city. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”ġ4 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “Listen to me, my lord the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, ( M) but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”ġ6 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, ( N) according to the weight current among the merchants. Bury your dead.”ġ2 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 give it to you in the presence of my people. “Listen to me I give ( L) you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”ġ0 Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites ( J) who had come to the gate ( K) of his city. 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 ( H) on my behalf 9 so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, ( I) which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”ħ Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. ( F)”ĥ The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6 “Sir, listen to us. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead. ( D) He said, 4 “I am a foreigner and stranger ( E) among you. ( C)ģ Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites.
2 She died at Kiriath Arba ( A) (that is, Hebron) ( B) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.
23 Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old.