Genesis 23

1 Now Sarah [the noblewoman, Abraham’s wife] lived [existed, came into being] to be 127 [a hundred and twenty-seven, one hundred twenty-seven] years old [in her lifetime, during her physical life on earth]. word study 2 She died [passed away, came to the end of her life] in Kiriath-arba [the city of Arba, also known as Hebron] (that is, Hebron [a city in the land of Canaan, a place of pilgrimage]) in the land [the earth, the territory] of Canaan [the region inhabited by the Canaanites], and Abraham [the father of faith, the descendant of Terah] went out to mourn [to lament, to express sorrow] and to weep [to cry, to shed tears] for her [his beloved wife, Sarah]. word study 3 Then Abraham [the father of many nations] got up [rose up, stood up] from beside [in the presence of, before] his dead [deceased, lifeless] wife [Sarah, his partner] and said [spoke, communicated] to the [sons of, descendants of] Hittites [children of Heth, a Canaanite tribe], word study 4 “I am a foreigner [sojourner, stranger] and an outsider [lacking inherited rights] among you. Give me a burial site [possession of a burying-place, land for a grave] among you so that I can bury [inter, lay to rest] my dead [those who have passed away, departed].” word study 5 The Hittites [children of Heth, descendants of Canaan] replied [answered, responded to] to Abraham [the father of many nations, later name of Abram], word study 6 “Listen to us, sir [my lord, a title of respect]. You are God’s [Elohim, the supreme Creator] chosen one [a prince of God, a mighty leader] among us. Bury your dead [those who have passed away, the deceased] in the finest [best, most excellent] of our tombs [sepulchres, burial sites]. None of us will withhold [refuse, hold back] his tomb [grave, sepulchre] for burying your dead [to lay them to rest, to inter them].” word study 7 Then Abraham [the father of many nations] rose [stood up, to rise to power] and bowed down [to bow in respect, worship] before the people [a nation, community] of the land [the earth, territory], the Hittites [descendants of Heth, a Canaanite tribe]. word study 8 “If you are willing [agreeable, of the same mind] for me to bury [inter, lay to rest] my dead [those who have passed away, departed from life],” he said to them, “listen to me [hear and obey, give attention], and approach [meet, encounter] Ephron [a Hittite] son of Zohar [a Canaanite] on my behalf [in my place] word study 9 to sell me the cave [a hollow in the rock] of Machpelah [a place of burial, near Hebron] that belongs to him; it is at the end [the extremity or border] of his field [a land or area for cultivation]. Let him sell it to me in your presence [among you, before you] for full price [the complete amount, without reduction], so that I may have a burial site [a possession for a grave, a place to bury my dead].” word study 10 Now Ephron [dwelt among, was sitting in the midst of] was sitting among the sons [descendants, children] of Heth. So in the presence [audience, hearing] of all [every one, the whole] the Hittites [descendants of Heth] who had come [gone, entered] to the gate [entrance, doorway] of his city [town, settlement], Ephron [a Canaanite] the Hittite answered [replied, responded] Abraham [the father of many nations], word study 11 “No, my lord [master, ruler]. Listen to me [hear and obey]. I give you the field [land, territory], and I give you the cave [hollow, den] that is in it [within its boundaries]. I give it to you in the presence [before the eyes] of my people [nation, community]. Bury [inter, lay to rest] your dead [those who have passed away, deceased ones].” word study 12 Again Abraham [the father of many nations] bowed down [in reverence, on his face] before the people [a nation, a group of individuals] of the land [the earth, a territory] word study 13 and said to Ephron [in the presence of all the people] in their presence, “If you will please listen [hear and obey] to me, I will pay [give the price, compensate] you the price [silver, money] of the field [land, property]. Accept [take, receive] it from me, so that I may bury [lay to rest, inter] my dead [those who have died, the deceased] there [in that place].” word study 14 Ephron [the Canaanite, son of a noble family] answered [replied, responded to] Abraham [the father of many nations, a key figure in God’s plan], word study 15 “Listen to me [hear and obey], my lord [master, ruler]. The land [earth, territory, region] is worth four [exactly 4] hundred [a multitude of] shekels [a unit of weight or money] of silver [a precious metal, wealth], but what [of what value] is that [this amount] between [shared by] you and me [between us]? Bury [inter, lay to rest] your dead [those who have died, the deceased].” word study 16 Abraham [the father of faith] agreed to Ephron’s [a Hittite, son of Zohar] terms and weighed out for him the price [four hundred shekels of silver, a significant amount] he had named [spoken, declared] in the hearing [presence, audience] of the Hittites [descendants of Heth, an aboriginal Canaanite]: four hundred [a large quantity] shekels [a unit of weight or money] of silver [valuable metal, wealth], according to the standard [current, common] of the merchants [traders, businessmen]. word study 17 So Ephron’s field [a plot of land, a tract of ground] at Machpelah [a place of burial, a site of great significance] near Mamre [a location of great spiritual importance], the cave [a hollow, a place of hiding] that was in it, and all [every single one, the entirety] the trees within the boundaries [the marked limits, the designated borders] of the field [the land, the property] were deeded over [transferred ownership, legally conveyed] word study 18 to Abraham’s [as a permanent inheritance] possession [acquired through purchase, for a possession] in the presence [before the eyes, in full view] of all [every one of, the entire group] the Hittites [descendants of Heth, the children of Heth] who had come [entered, gone in] to the gate [the city entrance, the town gate] of his city [the town, the urban settlement]. word study 19 After this [following these events], Abraham [the father of faith] buried [laid to rest, interred] his wife [companion, partner] Sarah [noblewoman, princess] in the cave [hollow rock, underground chamber] of the field [land, territory] at Machpelah [a place of burial, near Hebron] near [close to, adjacent to] Mamre [a place of strength, fatness] (that is, Hebron [a city of refuge, alliance]) in the land [territory, region] of Canaan [the promised land, a land of milk and honey]. word study 20 So the field [a plot of land, used for cultivation] and its cave [a dark or hidden place, a hole or hollow] were deeded [officially transferred, made sure] by the Hittites [sons of Heth, descendants of Canaan] to Abraham [the father of many nations, later name of Abram] as a burial site [a place of sepulchre, a grave or tomb]. word study