Genesis 23:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: "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."

NIV: "I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead."

NASB: I am a stranger and a foreign resident among you; give me a burial site among you so that I may bury my dead out of my sight.'

CSB: "I am an alien residing among you. Give me burial property among you so that I can bury my dead."

NLT: Here I am, a stranger and a foreigner among you. Please sell me a piece of land so I can give my wife a proper burial.'

KJV: I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

NKJV: “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.”

Abraham wants to secure the permanent ownership of a burying place in the land of Canaan. He approaches the Hittites, the rightful owners of the place he wishes to buy. He describes his situation clearly and simply.

Abraham is a sojourner, a traveler, someone who is not a permanent resident in a place. He is also a foreigner. This is not his country—yet. God has promised Him that it will be the possession of his offspring. Though he will pay for it, Abraham is asking to be given place to permanently bury his dead. This is part of the eventual possession of the land by Israel; burying one's dead in a specific place is a sign of ownership.

It is possible that Abraham stood before these Hittite men still dressed in his torn garments, with unkempt hair and covered in ashes, having just come from mourning his wife according to the custom of the day. If so, the reason for his request would have been apparent, and the Hittites seem to receive it in a spirit of goodwill and openness, as described in the following verses.

Genesis 23:1–20 begins with the death of Abraham's wife Sarah at 127 years of age. That makes Abraham 137 years old and Isaac around 37. Abraham mourns for his wife and then approaches the Hittites settled in the region of Hebron about purchasing a permanent family burial place near Mamre. Once that transaction is completed, Abraham buries Sarah in the tomb where he himself and their son and one grandson will later be buried.

At the age of 127 years old, Abraham's wife Sarah dies. Now living in the region of Hebron, near Mamre, Abraham approaches the local people, the Hittites, about purchasing a specific cave he wants to use as a permanent family burial place. Abraham asks for a cave owned by Ephron the Hittite. After an odd negotiation, Abraham agrees to buy the cave and a field attached to it for 400 shekels of silver. Finally, Abraham buries Sarah in this cave at Machpelah in the land of Canaan. The permanent occupation of the land of Canaan by God's people has begun.

In the previous chapters, Isaac was born, Ishmael was sent away, and Abraham prepared to offer Isaac as an offering to God. Genesis 23 jumps forward a couple of decades to the death of Sarah at 127 years old. Abraham mourns for her and then purchases a cave near Mamre as a permanent family burial place in the land of Canaan. In the following chapter, Abraham will set about finding Isaac a wife.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 4/17/2025 6:55:34 PM