November 12
TREKKING WITH ABRAHAM
“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 the borders round about, were made sure to Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city. And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan. And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made sure to Abraham for a possession of a burying place by the sons of Heth.”
Genesis 23:17-20
Have you read those verses above. Do you see what I see?
The man that was a “godlike prince” (as per the Berkeley translation) amongst the demonic culture of the Hittites, having entered the city gates of the hell and idolatry of the Hittite culture, and having laid prostrate before them (as if dead), had risen to conquer and take authority, and pay the full price in order to take the keys of the “double cave” (Machpelah) – the place of the dead. In the midst of the darkness of the Hittites there was a place for the righteous dead. A field which, according to custom, could not now ever be removed from Abraham’s descendant’s possession. Just as our Lord Jesus Christ had entered the portals of hell and taken the keys of the double cave of death and hell, and led captivity captive. The heathen people gave Abraham whatever he desired. He took what he desired. He paid the price for what he desired.
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The field of Ephron is delineated, clearly and specifically. The field was in the area of Machpelah. Machpelah was before Mamre, which is Hebron. The cave, and the trees around the field and the cave, were all now Abraham’s property. Everything was, “made sure” for Abraham. Whether that means the field was fenced off, or signposted we can only hypothesize. Once finalised, Sarah was buried securely in the cave, in the land of Canaan. Looking at the maps of the area and where the traditional site of Machpelah is situated, one cannot but agree with the late Ron Wyatt, that the site, with the huge building and millions of visitors every year who come to pay homage to Abraham’s crypt, are actually visiting the wrong place. But I leave that for archaeologists to disprove. Abraham buried Sarah his wife wherever the true Machpelah is. This was where Isaac and Ishmael buried Abraham. Isaac and Rebekah were both buried here. Jacob buried Leah here, and Joseph buried Jacob here. So although Machpelah means “Double Cave,” it obviously did not mean that there was only room for two, Perhaps the cave entrance led to a divide into two caves. Joseph instructed his descendants to bury him in Canaan. They took his bones with them after leaving Egypt and entering Canaan with Joshua. Machpelah, however, must have been fully occupied by that time. Joseph’s tomb is (or was) just to the South East of Shechem. It was in good shape and a place of pilgrimage to many until it was recently destroyed and ravaged by the Palestinians.
So after Abraham’s huge crisis of faith and the euphoria of victory in Genesis 22, he seems to have had 27 or so years of peaceful existence in which the Bible brings to us the family news of relatives afar off (22:20-24) and the death of Sarah, bringing us to the 24th chapter of Genesis and Abraham’s paternal efforts to protect the family line and ensure progeny. Sarah dying at 127 years of age, we can extrapolate that at the time of her passing Abraham was 137, and Isaac was single and 37.
Sarah’s death was, of course, one of a believer i.e. a woman with a serious commitment to God. The scripture says that, “the death of His saints is precious in His sight” (Psalm 116:15). Sarah was a woman of deep faith according to Hebrews 11:11-13, and 1 Peter 3:5-6. Her death was also the demise of a loving wife and partner. Sarah had trekked around Canaan for almost 60 years with Abraham. His loss was huge. Her gain was God. Peter in the New Testament, undoubtedly taught by Christ Himself on the matter, speaks in the highest possible praise of Sarah’s character. It was also the death of a mother. Although Isaac was 37 and single, he had obviously been a “home bird” that was loved, treasured, and doted on all his life. Genesis 24:67 explains to us how Isaac was absolutely distraught at the loss of Sarah. It was also a death in the home. The rock like female mien of Sarah, to both Abraham and Isaac left a huge gap in the relationships and the dynamics of the home. The quiet influence of such a warm feminine presence in the home is of a price unfathomable. The loss at death is proportionately huge.For Isaac, it seems that the loss was just too much to handle.
She died at Hebron. Griffiths suggests that Abraham had two compounds where his flocks were kept, one at Beersheba and one at Hebron. He seems convinced that Abraham was living apart from Sarah when she passed away. How strong a lesson is that to ensure that we leave nothing unsaid to our loved ones in case of sudden demise or accident. I believe Griffiths is correct that the couple were apart, though not for the simple business like reasons he gives.
Genesis 23:2 is the first mention in scripture of a man’s tears. There was absolutely nothing morbid, unmanly, idle or inappropriate here. It is a man full of God, full of faith and knowledge, weeping for the huge loss and emptiness in his heart.
Abraham’s penchant for staying active, especially in the midst of bereavement, is a sound psychological device for preventing excessive grief and melancholy at such times. Abraham’s feelings, and desire for a resting place for the body of his wife is a striking testimony to the innate feelings concerning care of the body of a departed loved one. The possessive pronouns, “his dead” in 23:3, “my dead” in 23:4, and “your dead” in 23:6 are totally striking in this context. The body of his departed beloved was important to him, and was regarded highly by both him and others, as his own property. He had come to take special and loving care of her body, and he had come knowing exactly where he wanted to bury her.
The conversation as recorded between Abraham and the sons of Heth reveal so much about Abraham’s personal thought life, and his understanding of who and what he was. He concedes he is a sojourner and an alien in a strange land, yet his purchase of Machpelah tells us clearly he is never going to leave the place. The promise of Yahweh was that the land was to be his. However, Abraham was aware that it was not his – yet. I have read so many books and commentaries re Genesis 23. Some think Abraham was faking “kindness” to the Hittites – I reject those thoughts. Some think Ephron was being falsely kind – perhaps, but he was caught by the words of the elders who had announced before all the city that whatever piece of land Abrahan wanted, he could have – and that for free. So I give no black marks to Abraham or Ephron, just a big red tick on their CV’s and the words “Well done!.” The gentleness of what we westerners would refer to as “gentlemanly conduct,” of Abraham must have been real. Wilson’s “Old Testament Word Studies” asserts that the word translated, “bow,” as Abraham did before the whole gate full of Hittite elders, means “to bow down, sink down, to prostrate oneself with the face to the earth.” That is moving as well as thought provoking as to our conduct before unbelievers.
WHAT’S THE POINT? See Abraham as a type, the mighty conqueror having purchased the double cave of Death and hell.
Trekking with Abraham 