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In today's lesson we discover that Sarah has died and that Avraham - our first Patriarch, whom YHWH has blessed greatly for his obedience - is actually the first person we know of in the Torah to bury anyone.
We are told that he purchased a grave site from "the sons of Het" to bury Sarah's remains - and a huge deal was made out of his insistence that he buy the land, instead of accepting it as a gift. (Please note, although YHWH promised Avraham that all the land he walked over during his lifetime would be given to him and to his descendants forever (Genesis 15:18), by the end of his life Avraham owned only one small field at Hebron - a transaction that was recorded in Genesis 23, below.)
Genesis 23: 1 Sarah lived to be 127 years old; these were the years of Sarah's life. 2 Sarah died in Kiryat-Arba, also known as Hevron, in the land of Kena'an; and Avraham came to mourn Sarah and weep for her. 3 Then he got up from his dead one and said to the sons of Het, 4 "I am a foreigner living as an alien with you; let me have a burial site with you, so that I can bury my dead wife." 5 The sons of Het answered Avraham, 6 "Listen to us, my lord. You are a prince of God among us, so choose any of our tombs to bury your dead - not one of us would refuse you his tomb for burying your dead." 7 Avraham got up, bowed before the people of the land, the sons of Het, 8 and spoke with them. "If it is your desire to help me bury my dead, then listen to me: ask 'Efron the son of Tzochar 9 to give me the cave of Makhpelah, which he owns, the one at the end of his field. He should sell it to me in your presence at its full value; then I will have a burial site of my own."
10 'Efron the Hitti was sitting among the sons of Het, and he gave Avraham his answer in the presence of the sons of Het who belonged to the ruling council of the city: 11 "No, my lord, listen to me: I'm giving you the field, with its cave - I'm giving it to you. In the presence of my people I give it to you." 12 Avraham bowed before the people of the land 13 and spoke to 'Efron in their hearing: "Please be good enough to listen to me. I will pay the price of the field; accept it from me, and I will bury my dead there." 14 But 'Efron answered Avraham, 15 "My lord, listen to me. A plot of land worth 400 silver shekels - what is that between me and you? Just bury your dead."
16 Avraham got the point of what 'Efron had said, so he weighed out for 'Efron the amount of money he had specified in the presence of the sons of Het, 400 silver shekels of the weight accepted among merchants [ten pounds]. 17 Thus the field of 'Efron in Makhpelah, which is by Mamre - the field, its cave and all the trees in and around it - were deeded 18 to Avraham as his possession in the presence of the sons of Het who belonged to the ruling council of the city. 19 Then Avraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Makhpelah, by Mamre, also known as Hevron, in the land of Kena'an. 20 The field and its cave had been purchased by Avraham from the sons of Het as a burial-site which would belong to him.
Avraham lived to the ripe old age of 175 and he even took another wife, whose name was K'turah who bore more children (Genesis 25:-4). However, before he died and was buried with his wife Sarah in the plot he had purchased from the sons of Het the Hitti, he bequeathed everything to his son Yitz'chak (Isaac), the son promised by YHWH in Genesis 18:10-15.
Genesis 25: 7 This is how long Avraham lived: 175 years. 8 Then Avraham breathed his last, dying at a ripe old age, an old man full of years; and he was gathered to his people. 9 Yitz'chak and Yishma'el his sons buried him in the cave of Makhpelah, in the field of 'Efron the son of Tzochar the Hitti, by Mamre, 10 the field which Avraham purchased from the sons of Het. Avraham was buried there with Sarah his wife. 11 After Avraham died, God blessed Yitz'chak his son, and Yitz'chak lived near Be'er-Lachai-Ro'i.
Why was it so important for Avraham to OWN the plot land where Sarah was to be buried? Because YHWH had told him in Genesis 15 that one day the land would belong to Avraham's descendants! So, Avraham bought the large burial site at Hebron (Genesis 23:1-20); and eventually, David bought the Temple Mount (1 Chronicles 21:25).
And who was the Land ever sold to? NOBODY! - which means the Muslims have no right to insist the Temple Mount belongs to them! Check it out:
Genesis 15: 18 That day ADONAI made a covenant with Avram: "I have given this land to your descendants - from the Vadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates River - 19 the territory of the Keni, the K'nizi, the Kadmoni, 20 the Hitti, the P'rizi, the Refa'im, 21 the Emori, the Kena'ani, the Girgashi and the Y'vusi."
Leviticus 25: 23 "The land is not to be sold in perpetuity, because the land belongs to me -you are only foreigners and temporary residents with me."
So, in short, we see Avraham acknowledging he was not a property owner in the land of the Hittites and he needed a place to bury his wife. A man of Avraham's station - who was considered a "prince of God" (Genesis 23:6) - was not to be refused such a request, and the Canaanites recognized the hand of YHWH upon this man and so were inclined to treat him favorably. They would have gladly loaned him the best they had, but a borrowed grave was not acceptable to Avraham because he needed this site for posterity (Genesis 25:9; 50:13) as he would also one day be buried there. The land of Canaan was to be his home, not a mere stopping-off place.
In Genesis 25:1-5 we learn that the aged Avraham - apparently very prolific way into his old age - also had some children with concubines, to whom he made grants and sent them "off to the east, away from Yitz'chak (Genesis 25:6).
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