Farewell, Princess
Opening Prayer
God, show me how You see me as I look into Your Word today.
Read Genesis 23:1–20
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
[1] Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. [2] She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her. [3] Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites. He said, [4] “I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.” [5] The Hittites replied to Abraham, [6] “Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.” [7] Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. [8] He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf [9] so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.” [10] Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. [11] “No, my lord,” he said. “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 he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can 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 weight current among the merchants. [17] So Ephron’s field in Machpelah near Mamre-both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field-was deeded [18] to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city. [19] Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah near Mamre (which is at Hebron) in the land of Canaan. [20] So the field and the cave in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site. Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
On her death, what’s your opinion of Sarah the “princess,” Abraham’s wife? So important is Sarah to Abraham that her burial place should be secure, permanent andrecognized forever. That’s why he buys the land, with all the negotiations and transactions withthe local landowners that this involves.Abraham starts at a disadvantage—he’s a “foreigner and stranger” among the Hittites, but hisrecognized status as a “mighty prince” opens the way. Gift? Paid-for? In the end, Abraham paysdearly for the cave and field. The detail in these verses is almost itself a legal record of theagreement. Today, the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron still stands as the burial place ofAbraham, Isaac, Jacob and their wives.I sometimes wonder how I’ll be remembered, or if I’ll be remembered. Sarah is celebrated aspart of a faithful husband-and- wife team (Heb. 11:11), as one of the “holy women of the pastwho put their hope in God” (1 Pet. 3:5,6). In other words, her life was all about God, not her.Actually, that’s not a bad epitaph!So important is Sarah to Abraham that her burial place should be secure, permanent and recognized forever. That’s why he buys the land, with all the negotiations and transactions with the local landowners that this involves.
Abraham starts at a disadvantage—he’s a “foreigner and stranger” among the Hittites, but his recognized status as a “mighty prince” opens the way. Gift? Paid-for? In the end, Abraham pays dearly for the cave and field. The detail in these verses is almost itself a legal record of the agreement. Today, the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron still stands as the burial place of
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their wives.
I sometimes wonder how I’ll be remembered, or if I’ll be remembered. Sarah is celebrated as part of a faithful husband-and- wife team (Heb. 11:11), as one of the “holy women of the past who put their hope in God” (1 Pet. 3:5,6). In other words, her life was all about God, not her. Actually, that’s not a bad epitaph!
Apply
Take some time to think how you would like the world to remember you. What steps can you take to make that a reality?
Closing prayer
Lord God, please help me to show that the important one in my life is You, not me.
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