Discovery BoxGenesis 23:1-20
Context23:1 Sarah lived 127 years. 1 23:2 Then she 2 died in Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3
23:3 Then Abraham got up from mourning his dead wife 4 and said to the sons of Heth, 5 23:4 “I am a temporary settler 6 among you. Grant 7 me ownership 8 of a burial site among you so that I may 9 bury my dead.” 10
23:5 The sons of Heth answered Abraham, 11 23:6 “Listen, sir, 12 you are a mighty prince 13 among us! You may bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb to prevent you 14 from burying your dead.”
23:7 Abraham got up and bowed down to the local people, 15 the sons of Heth. 23:8 Then he said to them, “If you agree 16 that I may bury my dead, 17 then hear me out. 18 Ask 19 Ephron the son of Zohar 23:9 if he will sell 20 me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him sell it to me publicly 21 for the full price, 22 so that I may own it as a burial site.”
23:10 (Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth.) Ephron the Hethite 23 replied to Abraham in the hearing 24 of the sons of Heth – before all who entered the gate 25 of his city – 23:11 “No, my lord! Hear me out. I sell 26 you both the field and the cave that is in it. 27 In the presence of my people 28 I sell it to you. Bury your dead.”
23:12 Abraham bowed before the local people 23:13 and said to Ephron in their hearing, “Hear me, if you will. I pay 29 to you the price 30 of the field. Take it from me so that I may 31 bury my dead there.”
23:14 Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, 23:15 “Hear me, my lord. The land is worth 32 400 pieces of silver, 33 but what is that between me and you? So bury your dead.”
23:16 So Abraham agreed to Ephron’s price 34 and weighed 35 out for him 36 the price 37 that Ephron had quoted 38 in the hearing of the sons of Heth – 400 pieces of silver, according to the standard measurement at the time. 39
23:17 So Abraham secured 40 Ephron’s field in Machpelah, next to Mamre, including the field, the cave that was in it, and all the trees that were in the field and all around its border, 23:18 as his property in the presence of the sons of Heth before all who entered the gate of Ephron’s city. 41
23:19 After this Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah next to Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 23:20 So Abraham secured the field and the cave that was in it as a burial site 42 from the sons of Heth.
Genesis 14:7-10
Context14:7 Then they attacked En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh) again, 43 and they conquered all the territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who were living in Hazazon Tamar.
14:8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and prepared for battle. In the Valley of Siddim they met 44 14:9 Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of nations, 45 Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar. Four kings fought against 46 five. 14:10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. 47 When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, they fell into them, 48 but some survivors 49 fled to the hills. 50
[23:1] 1 tn Heb “And the years of Sarah were one hundred years and twenty years and seven years, the years of the life of Sarah.”
[23:2] 2 tn Heb “Sarah.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“she”) for stylistic reasons.
[23:2] 3 sn Mourn…weep. The description here is of standard mourning rites (see K. A. Kitchen, NBD3 149-50). They would have been carried out in the presence of the corpse, probably in Sarah’s tent. So Abraham came in to mourn; then he rose up to go and bury his dead (v. 3).
[23:3] 4 tn Heb “And Abraham arose from upon the face of his dead.”
[23:3] 5 tn Some translate the Hebrew term “Heth” as “Hittites” here (also in vv. 5, 7, 10, 16, 18, 20), but this gives the impression that these people were the classical Hittites of Anatolia. However, there is no known connection between these sons of Heth, apparently a Canaanite group (see Gen 10:15), and the Hittites of Asia Minor. See H. A. Hoffner, Jr., “Hittites,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 152-53.
[23:4] 6 tn Heb “a resident alien and a settler.”
[23:4] 7 tn Heb “give,” which is used here as an idiom for “sell” (see v. 9). The idiom reflects the polite bartering that was done in the culture at the time.
[23:4] 9 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction expresses purpose.
[23:4] 10 tn Heb “bury my dead out of my sight.” The last phrase “out of my sight” has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:5] 11 tn Heb “answered Abraham saying to him.”
[23:6] 12 tn Heb “Hear us, my lord.”
[23:6] 13 tn Heb “prince of God.” The divine name may be used here as a means of expressing the superlative, “mighty prince.” The word for “prince” probably means “tribal chief” here. See M. H. Gottstein, “Nasi’ ‘elohim (Gen 23:6),” VT 3 (1953) 298-99; and D. W. Thomas, “Consideration of Some Unusual Ways of Expressing the Superlative in Hebrew,” VT 3 (1953) 215-16.
[23:6] 14 tn The phrase “to prevent you” has been added in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:7] 15 tn Heb “to the people of the land” (also in v. 12).
[23:8] 16 tn Heb “If it is with your purpose.” The Hebrew noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) here has the nuance “purpose” or perhaps “desire” (see BDB 661 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ).
[23:8] 17 tn Heb “bury my dead out of my sight.” The last phrase “out of my sight” has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:8] 19 tn Heb “intercede for me with.”
[23:9] 20 tn Heb “give.” This is used here (also a second time later in this verse) as an idiom for “sell”; see the note on the word “grant” in v. 4.
[23:9] 21 tn Heb “in your presence.”
[23:10] 23 tn Or perhaps “Hittite,” but see the note on the name “Heth” in v. 3.
[23:10] 24 tn Heb “ears.” By metonymy the “ears” stand for the presence or proximity (i.e., within earshot) of the persons named.
[23:10] 25 sn On the expression all who entered the gate see E. A. Speiser, “‘Coming’ and ‘Going’ at the City Gate,” BASOR 144 (1956): 20-23; and G. Evans, “‘Coming’ and ‘Going’ at the City Gate: A Discussion of Professor Speiser’s Paper,” BASOR 150 (1958): 28-33.
[23:11] 26 tn Heb “give.” The perfect tense has here a present nuance; this is a formal, legally binding declaration. Abraham asked only for a burial site/cave within the field; Ephron agrees to sell him the entire field.
[23:11] 27 tn The Hebrew text adds “to you I give [i.e., sell] it.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[23:11] 28 tn Heb “in the presence of the sons of my people.”
[23:13] 31 tn After the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction expresses purpose or result.
[23:15] 32 tn The word “worth” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:15] 33 sn Four hundred pieces of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 4.6 kilograms, or 160 ounces (about 10 pounds).
[23:16] 34 tn Heb “listened to Ephron.”
[23:16] 35 tn Heb “and Abraham weighed out.”
[23:16] 36 tn Heb “to Ephron.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:16] 38 tn Heb “that he had spoken.” The referent (Ephron) has been specified here in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
[23:16] 39 tn Heb “passing for the merchant.” The final clause affirms that the measurement of silver was according to the standards used by the merchants of the time.
[23:17] 40 tn Heb “And it was conveyed.” The recipient, Abraham (mentioned in the Hebrew text at the beginning of v. 18) has been placed here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[23:18] 41 tn Heb “his city”; the referent (Ephron) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[23:20] 42 tn Heb “possession of a grave.”
[14:7] 43 tn Heb “they returned and came to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh).” The two verbs together form a verbal hendiadys, the first serving as the adverb: “they returned and came” means “they came again.” Most English translations do not treat this as a hendiadys, but translate “they turned back” or something similar. Since in the context, however, “came again to” does not simply refer to travel but an assault against the place, the present translation expresses this as “attacked…again.”
[14:9] 45 tn Or “Goyim.” See the note on the word “nations” in 14:1.
[14:9] 46 tn The Hebrew text has simply “against.” The word “fought” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[14:10] 47 tn Heb “Now the Valley of Siddim [was] pits, pits of tar.” This parenthetical disjunctive clause emphasizes the abundance of tar pits in the area through repetition of the noun “pits.”
[14:10] 48 tn Or “they were defeated there.” After a verb of motion the Hebrew particle שָׁם (sham) with the directional heh (שָׁמָּה, shammah) can mean “into it, therein” (BDB 1027 s.v. שָׁם).
[14:10] 50 sn The reference to the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah must mean the kings along with their armies. Most of them were defeated in the valley, but some of them escaped to the hills.
