February 5, 2013
A COVENANT RUNNING WITH THE LAND
Genesis 23
David Morrison
Central Truth
God is faithful to come through on His promises.
Key Verse | Genesis 23:20
"The field and the cave that is in it were deeded over to Abraham as property for a burial site by the sons of Heth." (Genesis 23:20)
Genesis 23
Sarah's Death and Burial
1 Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. 2 And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3 And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, 1 23:3 Hebrew sons of Heth; also verses 5, 7, 10, 16, 18, 20 4 “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 5 The Hittites answered Abraham, 6 “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God 2 23:6 Or a mighty prince 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.” 7 Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. 8 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, 9 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 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 shekels 3 23:15 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham 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 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 were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.
Dive Deeper | Genesis 23
It is interesting to note that Sarah is the only woman in the Bible to have her age at death noted. This is to communicate the significance of Sarah.
However, this chapter is not about Sarah. It is about Abraham's acquisition of land in Canaan and his commitment to follow God.
Most of us will go home to be buried. You may die in another state or country, but you will be brought home to be buried. It was no different for Abraham and his family.
It would have been customary for Abraham to head back to Mesopotamia to bury his wife. That was his home. That is where his family had lived and died. But instead of heading home to bury his wife, Abraham paid 400 shekels to the Hittites to bury Sarah in Canaan.
Why would Moses tell this story to the Israelites? Why is it in my Bible? Because Abraham is an example of faithfulness.
Mesopotamia is no longer Abraham's home. He is the father of the nation of Israel, and Canaan is his according to God. This is a huge deal to a group of Israelites reading the Book of Genesis hundreds of years later and still not in full possession of the land. Genesis was written to strengthen the faith of a nation called to take on challenges bigger than they could imagine in view of a God bigger than everything.
This story is an example of what it looks like to trust a good and all-powerful God when culture and circumstance would tell you to head home, call it quits, bury your wife, and die in peace. Abraham believed the promise of God more than his current situation. And Moses is calling the Israelites (and us) to do the same. It was said of Abraham that "[n]o unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God." (Romans 4:20a, ESV) He knew what God had said. He counted the cost (in this case, 400 pieces of silver). He took possession of the land. He considered the unseen promise of God as more trustworthy than the visible roadblocks to faithfulness.
Discussion Questions
1. What problems of today are crowding out your belief in God's promise to be faithful?
2. Are there any cultural expectations that keep you from counting the cost of following God?
3. What would it look like for you to be faithful to God today?