Genesis 23
1 Now Sarah lived to be 127 years old. 2 She died in Kiriath-arba ( that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her. 3 Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and said to the Hittites, 4 “ I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.” 5 The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6 “ Listen to us, sir. You are God ’s chosen one among us. Bury your dead in the finest of our tombs. None of us will withhold his tomb for burying your dead.” 7 Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. 8 “ If you are willing for me to bury my dead,” he said to them, “ listen to me, and approach Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf 9 to sell me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him sell it to me in your presence for full price, so that I may have a burial site.” 10 Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham, 11 “ No, my lord. 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.” 12 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land 13 and said to Ephron in their presence, “ If you will please listen to me, I will pay you the price of the field. Accept it from me, so that I may bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “ 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.” 16 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 standard of the merchants. 17 So Ephron ’s field at Machpelah near Mamre, the cave that was in it, and all the trees within the boundaries of the field were deeded over 18 to Abraham’s possession in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. 19 After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre ( that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So the field and its cave were deeded by the Hittites to Abraham as a burial site.
✦ What the text says
## Summary
Genesis 23 narrates Sarah's death at Kiriath-arba (Hebron) at the age of 127 years, and Abraham's negotiation with Ephron the Hittite, before the assembled "sons of Heth," to purchase the cave of Machpelah as a burial site. The chapter closes with the formal transfer of the field, cave, and trees to Abraham's possession for 400 shekels of silver.
## Key words
- *shaneh* ("year", H8141) — repeated in the construct chain of v.1 (*chayyei Sarah*, "life of Sarah") to build the sum 100+20+7 years, a Hebrew idiom for stating age by adding separate numerical units rather than one combined figure.
- *achuzzat qever* (*'achuzah* "possession", H0272 + *qever* "burial site", H6913) — a construct phrase meaning "a possession for burial," used by Abraham in v.4 and v.9 and echoed by Ephron in v.20; it frames the entire negotiation as a request for legal land tenure, not merely permission to bury.
- *nesi' Elohim* (*nasi'* "prince/chief", H5387A construct + *Elohim* "God", H0430G) — the Hittites' address to Abraham in v.6, a construct phrase literally "a prince of God," used as an honorific.
- *qum* (H6965B/H6965I) — appears both as a simple narrative verb "he arose" (vv.3, 7) and, in the causative/stative sense, "it was confirmed/established" (vv.17, 20), describing the legal validation of the field transaction — the same root spans physical rising and legal ratification.
- *kesef 'ober la-socher* (*kesef* "silver", H3701G + *'ober* "passing/current", H5674A + *socher* "trader", H5503) — v.16's idiom for silver "current with the merchant," i.e., silver weighed by a recognized commercial standard.
## What the text says
The chapter is built almost entirely through direct speech exchanged before witnesses, framed by narrative verbs of standing and speaking (*qum*, *dabber*). Abraham's opening self-description as *ger ve-toshav* ("sojourner and resident alien", H1616 + H8453A) in v.4 sets a legal tone: he has no inherited land right and must formally acquire one. The negotiation follows a stylized pattern — repeated imperatives *shema'eni* ("listen to me", H8085G) mark each speech turn, and the phrase *ve-yitten li... ba-kesef malé* ("let him give it to me... for full price", v.9) signals Abraham's insistence on purchase rather than gift, even though Ephron twice offers it without charge (v.11). The price, "400 shekels of silver" (v.15), is stated obliquely by Ephron as a rhetorical minimization ("what is that between you and me?") before Abraham silently complies by weighing out the sum (v.16), an action verb (*shaqal*, H8254) that formalizes the payment.
## Differences between versions
The LXX gives Sarah's age as a single number, "127 years" (ἔτη ἑκατὸν εἴκοσι ἑπτά), collapsing the Hebrew's three-part addition (100
This explanation describes the text using linguistic data; it adds no doctrine or confessional interpretation.