< Genesis 23 >
1 And the life of Sarah is one hundred and twenty-seven years—years of the life of Sarah;
2 and Sarah dies in Kirjath-Arba, which [is] Hebron, in the land of Canaan, and Abraham goes to mourn for Sarah, and to lament her.
3 And Abraham rises up from the presence of his dead, and speaks to the sons of Heth, saying,
4 “A sojourner and a settler I [am] with you; give to me a possession of a burying-place with you, and I bury my dead from before me.”
5 And the sons of Heth answer Abraham, saying to him,
6 “Hear us, my lord; a prince of God [are] you in our midst; in the choice of our burying-places bury your dead: none of our burying-places do we withhold from you, from burying your dead.”
7 And Abraham rises and bows himself to the people of the land, to the sons of Heth,
8 and he speaks with them, saying, “If it is your desire to bury my dead from before me, hear me, and meet for me with Ephron, son of Zoar;
9 and he gives to me the cave of Machpelah, which he has, which [is] in the extremity of his field; for full money does he give it to me, in your midst, for a possession of a burying-place.”
10 And Ephron is sitting in the midst of the sons of Heth, and Ephron the Hittite answers Abraham in the ears of the sons of Heth, of all those entering the gate of his city, saying,
11 “No, my lord, hear me: the field I have given to you, and the cave that [is] in it, to you I have given it; before the eyes of the sons of my people I have given it to you—bury your dead.”
12 And Abraham bows himself before the people of the land,
13 and speaks to Ephron in the ears of the people of the land, saying, “Only—if you would hear me—I have given the money of the field—accept from me, and I bury my dead there.”
14 And Ephron answers Abraham, saying to him,
15 “My lord, hear me: the land—four hundred shekels of silver; between me and you, what [is] it? Bury your dead.”
16 And Abraham listens to Ephron, and Abraham weighs to Ephron the silver which he has spoken of in the ears of the sons of Heth, four hundred silver shekels, passing with the merchant.
17 And established are the field of Ephron, which [is] in Machpelah, which [is] before Mamre, the field and the cave which [is] in it, and all the trees which [are] in the field, which [are] around all its border,
18 to Abraham by purchase, before the eyes of the sons of Heth, among all entering the gate of his city.
19 And after this Abraham has buried his wife Sarah at the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre (which [is] Hebron), in the land of Canaan;
20 and established are the field, and the cave which [is] in it, to Abraham for a possession of a burying-place, from the sons of Heth.
