Tuesday 11th October

Genesis 23   Expand passage

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.

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Part of the series,

What is that between you and me?

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Genesis 23:14-16

Ephron answered Abraham, “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.” 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.

In some ways, what today’s reading describes is a typical business transaction. Abraham is the model customer. He is in need of a cave and he wants to pay a fair price to the owner for it. The sale goes through successfully; money changes hands and Abraham is able to bury his wife.

The two main characters are quite unusual, however, meaning that this transaction was far from typical. Firstly, Ephron’s spirit of generosity is instantly noticeable. Even the most kind-hearted of my acquaintances, who might not think twice about giving away their last Rolo, would not offer to give away a slice of land worth 4.6 kilograms of silver. Ephron was happy to lose out financially in order to help Abraham in his difficult circumstances, asking, “What is that between you and me?” How often do we exhibit this kind of generosity? How often do we harbour grudges which set us at odds with people? How often do we seek our own gain instead of attempting to aid others?

Secondly, Abraham acted with integrity. He could have sought a grand burial plot, but he opted for a modest cave in a field. He could have abused his position or pulled strings to acquire the cave without paying, but he made sure to pay a fair price for it. I am reminded of a fantastic scene in the West Wing, where the President’s secretary, Mrs Landingham, causes consternation by paying the full advertised price for a car. Even though most customers would expect to receive some sort of discount from the dealership, for her it was a matter of integrity to pay the advertised price. Abraham’s issue was much more important. He had been promised the land which he was buying, and he trusted that one day his descendants would inherit it. But until that day, he knew that it was not his to own unless fairly purchased.

Let’s take up the example of these two men today. Let’s follow Ephron in his generosity of spirit, and also Abraham in his principled integrity.

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Ali grew up in London, but is currently at university in the North East of England. He helped to re-launch Crossring in 2009, and has acted as Managing Editor of the website since then. He occasionally dabbles in photography and web development - he also designed and maintains the Crossring website.

About Daily Readings

As part of our active lifestyle of prayer and Bible reading, we are currently reading a small section of the Bible together each day and sharing our responses to it with each other. We also publish a short devotional thought on a key verse or two from each day's passage to prompt prayer or reflection.

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Current Series   

15th Oct   Luke 9:57-10:12
14th Oct   Genesis 26
13th Oct   Genesis 24:61-25:34
12th Oct   Genesis 24:1-60
11th Oct   Genesis 23
10th Oct   Genesis 21:22-22:24
9th Oct   Genesis 20:1-21:21

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