Study Desk

Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan; and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

"I am a sojourner and a foreign resident among you; give me a possession for a burial site among you that I may bury my dead out of my sight."

"Hear us, my lord, you are a mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial sites; none of us will refuse you his burial sites for burying your dead."

And he spoke with them, saying, "If it is your desire for me to bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and meet with Ephron the son of Zohar for me,

that he may give me the cave of Machpelah which belongs to him, which is at the end of his field; for the full price let him give it to me in your presence as a possession for a burial site."

And he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, "If you will only please hear me; I will give the silver for the field, accept it from me that I may bury my dead there."

So Abraham heard Ephron; and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, commercial standard.

So the field and the cave that is in it were deeded over to Abraham for a possession for a burial site by the sons of Heth.

and I will make you swear by Yahweh, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live,

but you will go to my land and to my kin, and take a wife for my son Isaac."

Yahweh, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my kin, and who spoke to me and who swore to me, saying, ‘To your seed I will give this land,' He will send His angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there.

now may it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar so that I may drink,' and she says, ‘Drink, and I will give water to your camels to drink also'—may she be the one whom You have decided for Your servant Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown lovingkindness to my master."

Now when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, "I will draw also for your camels until they have finished drinking."

So she hurried and emptied her jar into the watering channel and ran again to the well to draw, and she drew for all his camels.

Now it happened that when the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing a half-shekel and two bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels in gold,

and said, "Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there a place for us to lodge in your father's house?"

And he said, "Blessed be Yahweh, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His lovingkindness and His truth toward my master; as for me, Yahweh has guided me in the way to the house of my master's brothers."

And he said, "Come in, blessed of Yahweh! Why do you stand outside since I have prepared the house and a place for the camels?"

And my master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live;

but you shall go to my father's house and to my family, and take a wife for my son.'