Sarah has died, and since Abraham has lived like a nomad (though he is wealthy) since leaving Ur of the Chaldees, he owns no land on which to bury her. In yesterday's passage he asked the Hittites he lives among to sell him a piece of ground. They respect him so much that they offer him his choice of all the tombs in the land for his wife, but he wants his own family tomb.
"Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. He said, 'If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.'" (Genesis 23:7-9) The cave is at the end of Ephron's field, out of the way of anything Ephron might want to do with his land. A cave is not that useful for a farmer unless it is shaped in such a way that it can provide safe, easily accessible shelter for animals. If Abraham intends to use it for a tomb, then its opening is not likely very wide. It's also probably not shaped well for animals to huddle together inside out of the cold, because the word "machpelah" means "doubled" or "twofold". This probably means it had two chambers with a dividing wall between them. The cave is not accessible in our times due to the presence of a mosque there, but in times past explorers gave their account of the cave. Some of them state it has two chambers, while one says it has three, but they all agree that it is accessed through a narrow opening in the ground and that a person entering it must climb down into the hole and then crawl through a low passageway until reaching the first chamber where it is possible to stand up. We can see how a cave like this wouldn't be suitable for livestock but would provide a secure resting place for the dead.
Abraham is speaking to the leaders or elders of the Hittites. There must be a large enough crowd of them that he doesn't realize Ephron is among them. It's at this point that Ephron steps forward and speaks up. "Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. 'No, my lord,' he said. '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 presence of my people. Bury your dead.'" (Genesis 23:10-11) Abraham had asked that he be quoted a full price for the cave. He doesn't want anyone to give him a bargain just because he is their friend and neighbor. I admire and respect these Hittites who think enough of a foreigner who worships a different God that they are willing to give him any piece of land he wants for a burial place. Ephron would love to make a gift of not only the cave but also the field beside of it. It would make him happy to be able to help a grieving neighbor in this way.
I am sure Abraham is grateful for the concern of these men. In his hour of need they show themselves to be true friends and good neighbors. But Abraham knows that in time his descendants will take over the promised land from those whom God has said will become their "enemies". The Hittites are people the Lord will instruct the Israelites to conquer after the exodus from Egypt. Since the Hittites are going to become the enemies of Abraham's descendants, he doesn't want any of his family buried on land the Hittites have given to him. They might decide to break their word over land that was given away. They might desecrate the burial places of his family members. But if he purchases the cave in a legal contract, they will be more likely to respect his family's right to lie undisturbed. "Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land and he said to Ephron in their hearing, 'Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.' Ephron answered Abraham, 'Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.' Abraham agreed to Ephron's terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants." (Genesis 23:12-16)
Some scholars point out that the sum Ephron names is quite large. It may be that he does this in order to show his fellow Hittites how generous he had been willing to be with Abraham. If the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, then his fellow citizens will admire him for his willingness to part with the land for no payment. Or it could be that he hoped to engage in the pleasurable ancient custom of bargaining. A man would name an exorbitant sum, then he and the other man would go back and forth haggling over the price until both parties felt satisfied. If this is what Ephron intended, then he's disappointed, because Abraham accepts his price immediately and starts weighing out the silver. Why doesn't Abraham haggle with him? Well, for one thing, I think time is of the essence. There weren't any morgues or funeral homes in those days. Sarah's body is lying on her bed at home. Abraham needs to get her interred as quickly as possible. For another thing, Abraham is quite wealthy and he can easily afford Ephron's price. Even if the price is inflated, it's not going to break the bank and Abraham doesn't waste time trying to make counter offers.
"So Ephron's field in Machpelah near Mamre---both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field---was deeded to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city. Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah near Mamre (which is at Hebron) in the land of Canaan. So the field and the cave in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site." (Genesis 23:17-20)
Abraham's purchase is an act of faith. He believes that his descendants will someday have possession of the land of Canaan. He doesn't take Sarah back to his hometown of Ur to bury her there among his ancestors. He departed from Ur when God called him to go to a land which his descendants would inherit, and Abraham isn't going to bury any of his family members in Ur but in the promised land. He doesn't want any of his descendants returning to Ur but instead wants them to inherit what God has promised them. He's going to keep on moving forward with God; he's not going to go backwards. Abraham is fully committed to the Lord and is fully persuaded that God will keep His promises regarding the land of Canaan.
No comments:
Post a Comment