创世记 23
Chinese New Version (Simplified)
亚伯拉罕买地埋葬撒拉
23 撒拉享寿一百二十七岁，这是撒拉一生的岁数。 2 撒拉死在迦南地的基列．亚巴，就是希伯仑；亚伯拉罕进去为撒拉哀恸哭号。 3 亚伯拉罕从死者面前起来，对赫人说： 4 “我是在你们中间寄居的外族人，求你们在你们中间给我一块坟地作产业，使我可以埋葬我死了的人，使她不露在我面前。” 5 赫人回答亚伯拉罕，说： 6 “我主请听，你在我们中间是一位尊贵的王子，你可以在我们最好的坟地里埋葬你死了的人，我们必没有人阻止你在他的坟地埋葬你死了的人。” 7 于是，亚伯拉罕起来，向当地的赫人下拜， 8 对他们说：“你们若有意使我埋葬我死了的人，使她不露在我的眼前，就请听我的话，为我请求琐辖的儿子以弗仑， 9 叫他把他所拥有的，田头上那麦比拉洞卖给我。他可以按着十足的价银卖给我，使我在你们中间有产业作坟地。” 10 那时，以弗仑正坐在赫人中间。于是，赫人以弗仑就回答亚伯拉罕，所有来到城门口的赫人都听见他说： 11 “我主，不要这样，请听我说，这块田我送给你，连其中的洞我也送给你。我在我的族人眼前送给你，让你可以埋葬你死了的人。” 12 亚伯拉罕就在当地的人面前下拜， 13 然后在当地的人面前对以弗仑说：“请听我说，如果你愿意，我必定把地的价银给你，请你收下吧，让我可以在那里埋葬我死了的人。” 14 以弗仑回答亚伯拉罕，对他说： 15 “我主，请听我说，一块值四百块（四千五百克）银子的田地，在你我之间，算得甚么呢？你埋葬你死了的人吧。” 16 亚伯拉罕同意以弗仑说的价银，就照着他在赫人面前所说的，拿商人通用的银子，称了四百块（四千五百克）银子给以弗仑。
17 于是，以弗仑在麦比拉，在幔利前面的那块地，包括那块田和其中的洞，田中和四周所有的树木， 18 都在赫人眼前，就是在所有来到城门口的赫人眼前，归给亚伯拉罕作产业。 19 这事以后，亚伯拉罕把自己的妻子撒拉埋在迦南地，幔利前面麦比拉田间的洞里。幔利就是希伯仑。 20 这样，那块田和田中的洞，就从赫人归给了亚伯拉罕为产业作坟地。
Genesis 23
The Voice
23 When Sarah reached the end of her life, she was 127 years old. 2 She died at Kiriath-arba (a city now known as Hebron) in Canaan. Abraham went in where her body was laid out to mourn and weep over her. 3 When he got up from his place beside her, he spoke to the Hittites who had been his neighbors for many years.
Abraham: 4 I am a stranger and an outsider living here among you. In my heartache, I am asking you please to allow me to obtain some property here among you as a grave site for my dead wife. This would allow me to give her a proper burial.
5 The Hittites conferred and answered Abraham.
Hittites: 6 Listen, my lord. We recognize you are a powerful prince among us, and God is certainly with you. Bury your dead in the best of our burial places. None of us will deny you any tomb so that you might properly bury your dead.
7 Abraham got up and bowed in respect to the people of the land, the Hittites.
Abraham (to the Hittites): 8 If you are really willing for me to give my dead wife a proper burial, then would you please ask Ephron (Zohar’s son) for me 9 if I might buy the cave of Machpelah. It is a tract of land he owns located at the end of his field. With you as my witnesses, I will offer him full price for the property as a place to bury my dead.
10 Now it happened that Ephron was sitting right there among the Hittites. He personally answered Abraham so that all those present at the city gate could hear.
Ephron: 11 No, my lord, listen: I will not sell it to you; I will give you the field and the cave that lies on the property. In the presence of all of these people, my people, I give it to you so that you can go and bury your dead.
12 Abraham again bowed in respect to the people of the land 13 and replied to Ephron so all those present could hear.
Abraham: Please, listen to what I have to say. I will gladly pay you a fair price for the field. Please accept it from me. That way I can bury my dead in peace.
This account reveals the complex and rather ambiguous Near Eastern way of negotiating a purchase. The transaction takes place publicly at the city gate in the presence of the community leaders who could serve as advisors to the deal or witnesses if the deal goes awry. Initially Ephron offers to give the land to Abraham for a burial site, but in true Near Eastern style the patriarch indicates respectfully that he desires to purchase it instead. Ephron’s true motive may be seen in his counteroffer; the property is worth 10 pounds of silver, a not-so-insignificant price for a tract of land on the edge of his property. Abraham’s motive is clear enough. He wants to own outright a parcel of land near where he and his family have lived for many years, a land promised to him by God, a land where now Sarah has died and needs a proper burial. Gifts come with strings attached, and Abraham does not want to owe Ephron or anyone else for that matter. He knows full well he owes everything to God.
14 Ephron answered Abraham.
Ephron: 15 My lord, listen to me. The property is worth 10 pounds of silver. Surely that is an amount we can agree on. So go, and bury your dead in peace.
16 So Abraham accepted Ephron’s offer, and he weighed out the silver for him in the amount they had agreed upon in the presence of the Hittites—10 pounds of silver, according to the weights among the merchants of that time.
17 So it was that the field of Ephron in Machpelah, east of Mamre, the field with the cave in it and the trees on it all passed 18 to Abraham and became his legal possession in the presence of the Hittites and all those officials present at the city gate. 19 After the agreement was made, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah, east of Mamre (an area now known as Hebron) in Canaan. 20 The field and the cave in it became Abraham’s property with the approval of the Hittites; now he had a proper place to bury his dead.
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