Sarah’s Burial

23 Now Sarah lived 127 years; these were all the years of her life. Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron(A)) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

When Abraham got up from beside his dead wife, he spoke to the Hethites: “I am an alien residing among you.(B) Give me burial property among you so that I can bury my dead.”[a](C)

The Hethites replied to Abraham,[b] “Listen to us, my lord. You are a prince of God[c] among us. Bury your dead in our finest burial place.[d] None of us will withhold from you his burial place for burying your dead.”

Then Abraham rose and bowed down to the Hethites, the people of the land. He 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 to 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 burial property.”

10 Ephron was sitting among the Hethites. So in the hearing[e] of all the Hethites who came to the gate of his city,(D) Ephron the Hethite 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 sight[f] of my people. Bury your dead.”

12 Abraham bowed down to the people of the land 13 and said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “Listen to me, if you please. 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 four hundred shekels of silver(E)—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 hearing of the Hethites: four hundred standard shekels[g] of silver.(F) 17 So Ephron’s field(G) 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 sight of all the Hethites 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. 20 The field with its cave passed from the Hethites to Abraham(H) as burial property.

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Footnotes

  1. 23:4 Lit dead from before me
  2. 23:5 Lit Abraham, saying to him
  3. 23:6 Or a mighty prince
  4. 23:6 Or finest graves
  5. 23:10 Lit ears, also in vv. 13,16
  6. 23:11 Lit in the eyes of the sons
  7. 23:16 Lit 400 shekels passing to the merchant

Sarah's Death and Burial

23 Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died at (A)Kiriath-arba (that is, (B)Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites,[a] (C)“I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; (D)give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” The Hittites answered Abraham, “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God[b] among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.”

10 Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who (E)went in at the gate of his city, 11 “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” 12 Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. 13 And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I give the price of the field. Accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred (F)shekels[c] of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham (G)weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants.

17 So (H)the field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was made over 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city. 19 After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 The field and the cave that is in it (I)were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 23:3 Hebrew sons of Heth; also verses 5, 7, 10, 16, 18, 20
  2. Genesis 23:6 Or a mighty prince
  3. Genesis 23:15 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams