Genesis 23
1 And the lifetime of Sarah was a hundred and twenty-seven years; [these] were the years of the life of Sarah.
When Sarah was 127 years old,
2 And Sarah died in Kiryath-arba, the same in Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.
she died at Kiriath-Arba [town], which is now called Hebron, in the Canaan region. After Abraham mourned for her,
3 And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke unto the sons of Heth, saying,
he left the body of his wife and [went and] spoke to some of the descendants of Heth, saying,
4 A stranger and a sojourner I am with you; give me a possession for a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.
“I am a foreigner [DOU] living among you, [so I do not own any land here]. Sell me some land here so that I can bury my wife’s body.”
5 And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him:
They replied to him,
6 Hear us, my lord; a prince of God thou art among us; in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, so that thou mayest bury thy dead.
“Sir, you are a powerful prince among us. Choose one of our finest tombs and bury your wife’s [body] in it. None of us will refuse to sell land to you for a tomb for your relatives’ bodies.”
7 And Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, to the children of Heth.
Then Abraham stood up and bowed [in respect] in front of the people who owned the land, the descendants of Heth.
8 And he spoke with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and intercede for me with Ephron the son of Zochar,
He said to them, “If you say that you are willing for me to bury my wife’s body here, listen to me, and ask Ephron, the son of Zohar for me,
9 That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which is his, which is at the end of his field; for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me, for a possession as a burying-place amongst you.
to sell to me the cave in the Machpelah area, which is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price he wants, so that I can have a burial ground among you.”
10 And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the children of Heth, and of all those that went in at the gate of his city, saying,
Ephron was sitting among the people near the city gate where many [HYP] descendants of Heth had gathered. He heard what Abraham said to them.
11 Nay, my lord, hear me: the field I give to thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it to thee; in the presence of the sons of my people do I give it to thee; bury thy dead.
[So, just to make the customary reply to start the real discussion about a price], Ephron said, “No, sir, listen to me. I will give to you the field and the cave in it, without charge, with the people here as witnesses.”
12 And Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land.
Abraham again bowed before the people who lived in the area,
13 And he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wouldst only hear me; I will give the money for the field, take it off me, and I will bury my dead there.
and said to Ephron, as all the others were listening, “[No], listen to me. If you are willing, I will pay for the field. You tell me what the price is, and I will give it to you. If you accept it, the field will become mine, and I can bury my wife’s body there.”
14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,
Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him,
15 My lord, hearken unto me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between me and thee? only bury thy dead.
“Sir, listen to me. The land is worth 400 pieces of silver. But the price is not important to you and me. Give me the money and bury your wife’s body there.”
16 And Abraham understood the meaning of Ephron; and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current with the merchant.
Abraham agreed with Ephron about the price, and weighed for Ephron the 400 pieces of silver he had suggested, as everyone was listening, using the standard weights for silver used [in that area] by people who sold things.
17 And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all its borders round about, were made sure
So Ephron’s field in the Machpelah area, near Mamre, and the cave in the field, and all the trees that were in the field inside the boundaries of the land, became Abraham’s possession.
18 Unto Abraham for a bought possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.
It became Abraham’s property as all the descendants of Heth were listening there at the city gate.
19 And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre, which is Hebron, in the land of Canaan.
After that, Abraham buried his wife Sarah’s body in the cave in the field in the Machpelah area near Mamre, which is now called Hebron [city], in the Canaan region.
20 And the field, with the cave that is therein, was made sure unto Abraham for a possession as a burying-place by the sons of Heth.
So the field and the cave in it were officially sold to Abraham by the descendants of Heth, to be used as a burial ground.
