Contributor: Alex Alajiki
INTRODUCTION
In our last study before the chapters review last week, we studied Genesis 21 and 22. In Genesis 21, God fulfils His promise to Abraham and Sarah by enabling Sarah to give birth to Isaac, but also leads to the banishment of Hagar and Ishmael due to Sarah's concerns about Isaac's inheritance. God will ever be faithful to His promises according to Numb. 23:19
In Genesis 22, God tests Abraham's faith by commanding him to sacrifice his son Isaac, but ultimately provides a ram as a substitute, demonstrating the power of obedience and God's provision.
We shall be looking at Genesis 23 today, which will give us insight about the character of Abraham during the death and burial of his wife, Sarah.
1. Sarah’s death (Verses 1-2)
Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. 2 So Sarah died in Kirjath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.
In Vs 1, Sarah died at the age of 127, when Isaac was 37 years old, and Abraham was 137 years old. She was the only woman in the bible whose age was recorded at the time of her death. She was a Godly woman of faith and the bible encourage women to emulate he according to 1 Pet. 3:3-6
3 Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— 4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. 5 For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror. Isa. 51:1-2 encourage us to look to them.
In vs 2, Abraham was weeping and mourning at the death Sarah because of the depth of his love and respect for his wife. Abraham is the father of faith yet we can see the way he mourned the passage of his wife. We must never feel guilty to mourn the death of our loved ones. Faith in God does not diminish human emotion. In our mourning, we must always have the right perspective according to
1 Thes. 4:13-14 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
James Montgomery wrote in his commentary that to weep for a loved one is to show that we have been close, that the loss is deeply felt, that death is an enemy, and that sin has brought the sad punishment upon the human race.
2. Abraham’s Request for a Burial Site (Verses 3-9)
3 Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying, 4 “I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 5 And the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him, 6 “Hear us, my lord: You are a mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.” 7 Then Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, the sons of Heth. 8 And he spoke with them, saying, “If it is your wish that I bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and meet with Ephron the son of Zohar for me, 9 that he may give me the cave of Machpelah which he has, which is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me at the full price, as property for a burial place among you.”
In verses 3-4, Abraham made reference to our true identity on earth that we are all foreigners and sojourners on earth according to Heb. 11:9-10 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; 10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
He demanded to buy a piece of the land to bury Sarah despite knowing that God already promised him and his descendants the whole land in Gen. 17:8. We must also make a demand on the land despite the promise in Josh. I:3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. Abraham did not carry his dead wife home (Ur of the Chaldeans) to bury Gen 11:31
In verses 5-9 Abraham’s approach when negotiating for the land shows tact, wisdom, and integrity in dealing with the Hittites (the sons of Heth). Why did Abraham demand for Hebron (Gen. 11:31).
3. The Purchase of Machpelah (verses10-16)
10Now Ephron dwelt among the sons of Heth; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the presence of the sons of Heth, all who entered at the gate of his city, saying, 11 “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field and the cave that is in it; I give it to you in the presence of the sons of my people. I give it to you. Bury your dead!”12 Then Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land; 13 and he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, “If you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.”14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, 15“My lord, listen to me; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver. What is that between you and me? So bury your dead.” 16And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham weighed out the silver for Ephron which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, currency of the merchants.
In verse 7and 12, we saw the humility of Abraham as he bowed himself before the people of the land despite being held in high regard by calling him lord.
Abraham refused to accept the land for free because of his integrity. “The integrity of the upright will guide them, but the crookedness of the treacherous will destroy them.” (Prov.
11:3; 13:6). True integrity is revealed when no one is watching. Do you walk with integrity when no one else can see it?
In verses 13 to 16, Abraham insisted in paying the full price for the land because without consideration, the Hittites could revoke the land gift to Abraham at any time. To ensure that the tomb would remain for future generations, Abraham insisted upon paying the full price. 400 shekels of silver (about $5,000) was believed to be inflated price for the land, but he paid without negotiation in honour of his wife. Abraham showed how we should conduct business with the world; he was courteous, fair and prudent (Phil. 4:5).
4. Transfer of Ownership and Burial of Sarah (verses 17-20)
17 So the field of Ephron which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, which were within all the surrounding borders, were deeded 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.19And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So the field and the cave that is in it were deeded to Abraham by the sons of Heth
Abraham obtained the title deed to the property after payment demonstrating in faith in the promise of God to give him the whole land of Canaan. Sarah was buried in this property, and it became the ancestral burial ground for the descendants of Abraham. Abraham was buried here (Gen. 25:9), Isaac, Rebekah and Leah (Gen. 49:31), Jacob (Gen. 49:29), and Joseph (Gen. 50:13).
CONCLUSION
Abraham lived with eternal perspective by looking for a city whose builder and maker is God. Abraham mourned the death of Sarah because mourning is sacred; grief reflects love for the departed. He also gave his wife a dignified burial which demonstrated how we must honour the dead with the hope of resurrection with Christ at His coming.
Abraham also conducted himself with integrity giving us an example of how to make our faith visible in our dealings and decisions. Finally, Abraham left a Godly legacy teaching us to consider how our choices today shape our spiritual legacy.
