Kejadian 23:11

Bahasa Indonesia Sehari-hari

"Tidak, tuanku, dengarkanlah aku; ladang itu kuberikan kepadamu dan gua yang di sanapun kuberikan kepadamu; di depan mata orang-orang sebangsaku kuberikan itu kepadamu; kuburkanlah isterimu yang mati itu."

Parallel Translations

Alkitab Terjemahan Baru
"Tidak, tuanku, dengarkanlah aku; ladang itu kuberikan kepadamu dan gua yang di sanapun kuberikan kepadamu; di depan mata orang-orang sebangsaku kuberikan itu kepadamu; kuburkanlah isterimu yang mati itu."

Alkitab Terjemahan Lama
Bukannya demikian, ya tuan! dengarlah olehmu akan kataku: adapun tanah itu kuberikan tuan dan gua yang di dalamnyapun kuberikan tuan, ia itu di hadapan segala anak kaumku kuberikan tuan, tanamkan juga orang tuan yang mati itu.

Contextual Overview

³ And Abraham stoode vp fro the sight of his corse, and talked with the sonnes of Heth, saying: ⁴ I am a straunger and a foriner amongest you: geue me a possession to bury in with you, that I may bury my corse out of my sight. ⁵ And the chyldren of Heth aunswered Abraham, saying vnto hym: ⁶ Heare vs my Lorde, thou art a prince of God amongest vs, in the chiefest of our sepulchres bury thy dead: none of vs shall forbyd thee his sepulchre, but thou mayest bury thy dead [therin.] ⁷ Abraham stoode vp and bowed hym selfe before the people of the lande, that is, the chyldren of Heth. ⁸ And he communed with them, saying: If it be your mynde that I shal bury my dead out of my sight, heare me, and speake for me to Ephron the sonne of Sohar, ⁹ That he may geue me the caue of Machpelah, whiche he hath in the ende of his fielde: but for as much money as it is worth shall he geue it me, for a possession to bury in amongest you. ¹⁰ (For Ephron dwelleth amongest the chyldren of Heth) and Ephron the Hethite aunswered Abraham in the audience of the chyldren of Heth, and of all that went in at the gates of his citie, saying: ¹¹ Not so my Lord, heare me: the fielde geue I thee, and the caue that therin is geue I thee also, in the presence of the sonnes of my people geue I it thee, burye thy dead. ¹² And Abraham bowed him selfe before the people of the lande.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

my lord: Genesis 23:6, 2 Samuel 24:20-24, 1 Chronicles 21:22-24, Isaiah 32:8

in the: Genesis 23:18, Numbers 35:30, Deuteronomy 17:6, Deuteronomy 19:15, Ruth 4:1, Ruth 4:4, Ruth 4:9, Ruth 4:11, Jeremiah 32:7-12, Luke 19:24

Reciprocal: Leviticus 2:12 - the oblation 2 Samuel 24:22 - Let my lord

Cross-References

Genesis 23:6
Heare vs my Lorde, thou art a prince of God amongest vs, in the chiefest of our sepulchres bury thy dead: none of vs shall forbyd thee his sepulchre, but thou mayest bury thy dead [therin.]

Genesis 23:7
Abraham stoode vp and bowed hym selfe before the people of the lande, that is, the chyldren of Heth.

Genesis 23:12
And Abraham bowed him selfe before the people of the lande.

Genesis 23:18
Unto Abraham for a possession in the sight of the chyldren of Heth, before all that went in at the gates of the citie.

Genesis 23:20
And so both the fielde & the caue that is therein, was made vnto Abraham a sure possession to bury in, by the sonnes of Heth.

Numbers 35:30
Whoso kylleth any person, the [Iudge] shall put the murtherer to death thorowe wytnesses: but one wytnesse shall not testifie agaynst any person, to cause hym to dye.

Deuteronomy 17:6
At the mouth of two or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death, dye: and at the mouth of one witnesse, let no man dye.

Deuteronomy 19:15
One witnesse shall not rise agaynst a man for any maner trespasse, or for any maner sinne, or for any maner fault that he offendeth in: but at the mouth of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall the matter be stablished.

Ruth 4:1
Then went Booz vp to the gate, and sat him downe there: and beholde, the kinsman of which Booz spake, came by, vnto whom, he sayde: Ho, suche one, come, sit downe here. And he turned, & sat downe.

Ruth 4:4
And I thought to do thee to wyt, and byd the bye it before thee inhabitauntes and elders of my people. If thou wilt redeeme it, redeeme it: but & if thou wilt not redeeme it, then tell me, that I may knowe: For there is none to redeeme it, saue thou, and I next thee. And the other aunswered: I will redeeme it.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Nay, my lord, hear me,.... Or not so, my lord, as Aben Ezra paraphrases it; not that he denied his request entirely, or refused him the cave at any rate, but that he should not buy it of him, he would give it to him, and therefore he desires he would hear what he had to say further:

the field give I thee, and the cave that [is] therein I give it thee; which was more than Abraham asked to purchase; he only desired to have the cave, which lay in one corner of the field, but Ephron proposes both to give him the cave, and the field also:

in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee; both field and cave; three times he says, "I give it thee", to show that he freely gave it, and that Abraham was welcome to it, and for the confirmation of the grant:

bury thy dead; in the cave, at once, immediately, without any more ado.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Death of Sarah

2. ארבע קרית qı̂ryat-'arba‛, “Qirjath-arba‘, city of Arba.” ארבע 'arba‛, “Arba‘, four.”

8. עפרון ‛eprôn, “‘Ephron, of the dust, or resembling a calf.” צחר tshochar, “Tsochar, whiteness.”

9. מכפלה makpêlâh, “Makpelah, doubled.”

The death and burial of Sarah are here recorded. This occasions the purchase of the field of Makpelah, in the cave of which is her sepulchre.

Genesis 23:1-2

Sarah is the only woman whose age is recorded in Scripture. She meets with this distinction as the wife of Abraham and the mother of the promised seed. “A hundred and twenty and seven years,” and therefore thirty-seven years after the birth of her son. “In Kiriatharba.” Arba is called the father of Anak Joshua 15:13; Joshua 21:11; that is, of the Anakim or Bene Anak, a tall or gigantic tribe Numbers 13:22; Numbers 28:0; Numbers 33:0, who were subsequently dispossessed by Kaleb. The Anakim were probably Hittites. Abraham had been absent from Hebron, which is also called Mamre in this very chapter Genesis 23:17, Genesis 23:19, not far from forty years, though he appears to have still kept up a connection with it, and had at present a residence in it. During this interval the sway of Arba may have commenced. “In the land of Kenaan,” in contradistinction to Beer-sheba in the land of the Philistines, where we last left Abraham. “Abraham went to mourn for Sarah,” either from Beer-sheba or some out-field where he had cattle pasturing.

Genesis 23:3-16

Abraham purchases a burying-ground in the land. “The sons of Heth.” These are the lords of the soil. “A stranger and a sojourner.” He is a stranger, not a Hittite; a sojourner, a dweller in the land, not a mere visitor or traveller. The former explains why he has no burial-ground; the latter, why he asks to purchase one. “Bury my dead out of my sight.” The bodies of those most dear to us decay, and must be removed from our sight. Abraham makes his request in the most general terms. In the somewhat exaggerated style of Eastern courtesy, the sons of Heth reply, “Hear us, my lord.” One speaks for all; hence, the change of number. “My lord” is simply equivalent to our “Sir,” or the German “mein Herr.” “A prince of God” in those times of simple faith was a chief notably favored of God, as Abraham had been in his call, his deliverance in Egypt, his victory over the kings, his intercession for the cities of the vale, and his protection the court of Abimelek. Some of these events were well known to the Hittites, as they had occurred while he was residing among them.

Genesis 23:7-9

Abraham now makes a specific offer to purchase the field of Makpelah from Ephron the son of Zohar. “Treat for me” - deal, use your influence with him. Abraham approaches in the most cautious manner to the individual with whom he wishes to treat. “The cave of Makpelah.” The burial of the dead in caves, natural and artificial, was customary in this Eastern land. The field seems to have been called Makpelah (doubled) from the double form of the cave, or the two caves perhaps communicating with each other, which it contained. “For the full silver.” Silver seems to have been the current medium of commerce at this time. God was known, and mentioned at an earlier period Genesis 2:11; Genesis 13:2. “A possession of a burying-ground.” We learn from this passage that property in land had been established at this time. Much of the country, however, must have been a common, or unappropriated pasture ground.

Genesis 23:10-16

The transaction now comes to be between Abraham and Ephron. “Was sitting.” The sons of Heth were seated in council, and Ephron among them. Abraham seems to have been seated also; for he stood up to make his obeisance and request Genesis 23:7. “Before all that went in at the gate of his city.” The conference was public. The place of session for judicial and other public business was the gate of the city, which was common ground, and where men were constantly going in and out. “His city.” This implies not that he was the king or chief, but simply that he was a respectable citizen. If Hebron was the city of the Hittites here intended, its chief at the time seems to have been Arba. “The field give I thee.” Literally, have I given thee - what was resolved upon was regarded as done. “In the sight of the sons of my people.” This was a public declaration or deed before many witnesses.

He offers the field as a gift, with the Eastern understanding that the receiver would make an ample recompense. This mode of dealing had its origin in a genuine good-will, that was prepared to gratify the wish of another as soon as it was made known, and as far as it was reasonable or practicable. The feeling seems to have been still somewhat fresh and unaffected in the time of Abraham, though it has degenerated into a mere form of courtesy. “If thou wilt, hear me.” The language is abrupt, being spoken in the haste of excitement. “I give silver.” “I have given” in the original; that is, I have determined to pay the full price. If the Eastern giver was liberal, the receiver was penetrated with an equal sense of the obligation conferred, and a like determination to make an equivalent return. “The land is four hundred shekels.” This is the familiar style for “the land is worth so much.” The shekel is here mentioned for the first time. It was originally a weight, not a coin. The weight at least was in common use before Abraham. If the shekel be nine pennyweights and three grains, the price of the field was about forty-five pounds sterling. “And Abraham weighed.” It appears that the money was uncoined silver, as it was weighed. “Current with the merchant.” The Kenaanites, of whom the Hittites were a tribe, were among the earliest traders in the world. The merchant, as the original imports, is the traveller who brings the wares to the purchasers in their own dwellings or towns. To him a fixed weight and measure were necessary.

Genesis 23:17-20

The completion of the sale is stated with great formality. No mention is made of any written deed of sale. Yet Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob remained in undisturbed possession of this burial-ground. Undisputed tenure seems to have been acknowledged as a title. The burial of Sarah is then simply noted. The validity of Abraham’s title is practically evinced by the actual burial of Sarah, and is recited again on account of the importance of the fact.

This chapter is interesting as containing the first record of mourning for the dead, of burial, of property in land, of purchase of land, of silver as a medium of purchase, and of a standard of weight. Mourning for the dead was, no doubt, natural on the first death. Burial was a matter of necessity, in order, as Abraham says, to remove the body out of sight, as soon as it was learned by experience that it would be devoured by beasts of prey, or become offensive by putrefaction. To bury or cover it with earth was a more easy and natural process than burning, and was therefore earlier and more general. Property in land was introduced where tribes became settled, formed towns, and began to practise tillage. Barter was the early mode of accommodating each party with the articles he needed or valued. This led gradually to the use of the precious metals as a “current” medium of exchange - first by weight, and then by coins of a fixed weight and known stamp.

The burial of Sarah is noted because she was the wife of Abraham and the mother of the promised seed. The purchase of the field is worthy of note, as it is the first property of the chosen race in the promised land. Hence, these two events are interwoven with the sacred narrative of the ways of God with man.