Whether you’re brand new to SonRise or have been around SonRise for a while, let me briefly state what we seek to accomplish in this sermon moment each week. During the preaching portion of our Sunday gathering we employ and enjoy a style of preaching called expositional preaching. Which means that the preacher, whoever it is, won’t be aiming to say anything new but seeks only to say what God has already said, such that the point of the text in view that week is the point of the sermon. In this sense we make it our aim to be the nothing more than servers, whose task is taking the Chef’s meal from the kitchen and bringing it to the table without adding to it, taking away from it, or changing it in any way, shape, or form. We don’t to do this randomly but orderly, as we work through books of the Bible. So when we come to specific passages week after week we come to them in their own context, having already examined the verses that come before while also anticipating the verses that come after. Or to put it another way, we seek to sit underneath the authority and illumination of the Scripture, rather than standing over it using the Scripture to support our own message.
This is our goal, we don’t do it perfectly, but we do aim to be faithful handlers of God’s Word.[1]
In view this week is Genesis 23. We’ll pray, We’ll read through the chapter, and then we’ll unpack it together. Pray with me…
Genesis 23, “Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” The Hittites answered Abraham, “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.” Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city, “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I give the price of the field. Accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.” Ephron answered Abraham, “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants. So the field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was made over to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city. After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. The field and the cave that is in it were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.”
Do you now know why I began the sermon the way I did? With an explanation of expository preaching? I did so because this is one of those chapters in the Bible where when we come to it, whether personally in our own Bible reading or here together on a Sunday morning, we have to remember that everything in the Bible is inspired by God, for our good and for His glory. So Church, even though this chapter might not seem that interesting, eventful, or even helpful, there is much to glean here.
Right away we can tell that this chapter is about Sarah’s death. But is it? Even though Sarah’s death does occur here, the majority of the chapter is taken up with details about bargaining for her grave site. Why is that the case? And what is God teaching us in ordering things this way around Sarah’s death? Well, I think the big take away for us is that through the death of Sarah, Abraham’s wife, Abraham comes to own his very first piece of the promised land. Which, is a massive deal.[2] Hold this in mind as we now begin working through the text.
In v1-2 we see Sarah’s death. This is worth pausing on and lingering on because Sarah, in the scope of Scripture, is extremely important. She was a great woman.[3] In all the Bible we’re never told to look to Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, or Ruth. We’re never even told to look to Mary the mother of Jesus, but in two specific passages we are told to look to Sarah as an example. The first comes from Isaiah 51 which says, “Listen to me you who pursue righteousness and seek the Lord: look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were dug; look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth.” Then we have 1 Peter 3 which says, “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her Master.” So, Sarah was indeed a great woman.
She was there for the epic journey going out from Ur to Canaan, she was there when the promises were first given to Abraham, she was there when the coalition of kings were defeated by Abraham and his armies, she was there for the covenant ceremony of Genesis 15 when God Himself walked through the animal parts, she was there for the institution of the covenant sign of circumcision, and for Abraham’s pleading prayer over Sodom. But, of course, she was also there for Abraham’s many failures and sins. She suffered twice from Abraham’s lying deception which put her into the harem of two great kings. And though it was her idea, she suffered when Abraham took their servant Hagar, into his tent in an effort to try to produce the promised child on their own terms. And then again she suffered when competition became present between her and Hagar because of the boy Ishmael. But, when the promised child arrived, Isaac, Sarah indeed became the mother she had longed to be.[4]
This is the great woman that Abraham is mourning and v1-2, his precious wife. And mourn Abraham does. Some Christians think tears for a deceased loved one are inappropriate, especially if they were believers, because they’re in a better place, with the Lord forever. But see here in Abraham a stout example. The man of faith, the Patriarch, the man who received such great and precious promises, he weeps and mourns over the death of his beloved wife. Notice that this is the first instance we have recorded in Genesis of Abraham weeping.[5] Perhaps there were a few other moments that we’ve already traveled through in Abraham’s life where we could imagine him weeping, but we don’t read of him weeping in those, not even in chapter 22 amid the almost sacrifice of his only son. But we do see it here at the death of Sarah. Lesson? Though we have great hope in the death of a believer there is still grief to be experienced and grief to be expressed.
But then the chapter all the sudden shifts. See it there in v3, the scene suddenly takes us to a conversation between Abraham and a group of Hittites in the gate of the city, where bargaining would happen for the majority of this chapter over the acquisition of a grave for Sarah. This bargaining follows a kind of pattern. Abraham begins the dialogue by proposing something, the Hittites kindly accept or adjust the offer, and then Abraham responds by going above and beyond what is required of him to ensure he buys this piece of land.[6]
Notice in v4 Abraham knows and states what he is, a sojourner and a foreigner, and then notice his desire is to purchase property among them to bury his dead. In v5-6 the Hittites respond very politely and very respectfully, telling Abraham he doesn’t need to buy anything, and to go on ahead and just bury his dead, for he is a mighty prince, or a prince of God among them. What a contrast between how Abraham presents himself, sojourner and foreigner, and how the Hittites view him, mighty prince of God. Some think this is all mere niceties or underhanded posturing, I don’t. I think Abraham has clearly earned much of their trust during the time he has lived among them, and these comments reflect that. There is dignity, honor, and respect here.
After this in v7-9, just as respectfully Abraham acknowledges both their kindness to him and requests to purchase a certain cave, Machpelah, from a certain man, Ephron. And not only so, but he desires to pay Ephron the full price for this cave. In v10 we see that Ephron is there among those gathered at the city gate. So he comes forward and in v11 he speaks, offering three times to give not just the cave to Abraham but the field the cave is in as well. Abraham, notice in v12, bows down before them all and states in v13 that he intends to pay the full price for that piece of land. Then again Ephron, in v14-15 tells Abraham what the land is worth and basically tells Abraham, ‘We’re both rich and wealthy men, don’t worry about the price, go ahead and bury Sarah.’[7] Some here make the point that Ephron is acting the huckster here and price gouging Abraham. I don’t believe that’s occurring. The value of the shekel changes throughout the OT bases on time and location, so it’s hard to know if this is a fair price or not.[8] Whether it was or not, Abraham responds by weighing out that exact amount, 400 shekels of silver, and pays Ephron for that field. He really is persistent isn’t he? He won’t back down and simply receive the field as a gift, no he must pay for it. Why does he do this? Is he being obstinate or stubborn? No. Think about it.[9] If he merely accepts the field as a gift and goes ahead and buries Sarah in that cave, Ephron or another Hittite down the line could take the field back whenever they so desired. By persisting to pay and buy this field, Abraham’s ensuring that he and his descendants will own the field, outright. So he buys it.
And see v17-20? It’s a kind of summary of the events of this chapter. In v17-18, and v20 we see that all in the gate approved of the transaction, that this field of Ephron’s was now a possession of Abraham’s. Then in v19 we see the outcome. Abraham buries his beloved Sarah in the cave. This would become in time a family grave. Abraham would be buried here, so would Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah would be buried here as well (Gen. 49:31).
Conclusion:
And then the chapter ends. Recall that I said earlier this chapter is about the death of Sarah, but that it’s a strange chapter because most of the chapter is taken up with details but Abraham bargaining and purchasing this particular grave. And through Abraham acquiring this grave he comes to own the very first piece of the promised land. Why is that such a massively big deal? It matters for two reasons.
First, it matters because this shows us that the promise God has made to Abraham is now slowly becoming a reality. “Go to a land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation…to your offspring I will give this land…Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you until your offspring forever. I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth so that if one could count the dust of the earth your offspring also can be counted. Arise, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I will give it to you” (Gen 12:1-3, 7, 13:14-17). It might seem like a ho-hum chapter, but now that Abraham has this field with the cave in it, he owns his first piece of the promise land. See it, the promises of God are beginning to come to pass regarding the land. He had to wait a long time to see it, but here near the end of his life, he gets his first glimpse of it.
Second, not only are God’s promises about the land beginning to come to pass, but they first come to pass with the purchase of a grave. Lesson? Abraham’s faith in God’s promises went beyond the grave. Church, our God is a God that makes great promises and a God who keeps those promises, and sometimes when He keeps them, and when He begins to unfold blessing upon blessing to us, it can look like mourning, like death, like a grave.
The book of Hebrews makes much of this moment, hear what 11:8-16 tells us…
Church, Abraham’s first taste of this great land coming into his possession was the purchase of a grave, but he knew there was far more to come, for God’s promises extend far beyond death! Do we not have the same hope today? A faith, trust, and hope in God, through the gospel, that goes beyond the grave? Indeed we do!! Christ died for us, and Christ rose for us! And as He rose, we too will one day follow!
John Calvin is so helpful here in his commentary on Genesis. He says, “While Abraham and Sarah themselves were silent, the grave cried aloud that death was no obstacle to their entering into the possession of what God had promised.”[10]
Church, dying is no obstacle for us! The gospel is greater, is stronger than death! Spiritually dying to self here in life, and physically dying at the end of life and entering into a grave is not only no obstacle for us to enter into all that God has promised us in Christ, but in a true sense, it is only through death that we enter into the promises of God. Which means, as Abraham was in life, so are we. Sojourners, foreigners, aliens. For God Himself, His country is our true home and possession forever.
[1] The Response Church in San Diego (Acts 29) begins every sermon with a description very similar to this.
[2] Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, WBC (Waco, Texas: Zondervan, 2000), 124.
[3] James Montgomery Boice, Genesis 12-36 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1985), 710.
[4] R. Kent Hughes, Genesis, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2004), 307–8.
[5] Boice, Genesis 12-36, 711.
[6] Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 126.
[7] Wenham, 129.
[8] Derek Kidner, Genesis (Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Academic, 2008), 156.
[9] Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 130.
[10] John Calvin, quoted in John D. Currid, Genesis 1:1-25:18, EP Study Commentary (Holywell, UK: Evangelical Press, 2015), 412.
