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A Burial Plot in the Promised Land

Sarah was a remarkable woman. She lived for 60 or so years with her husband Abraham in the Promised Land moving around with him to several different locations during that time. In her prime she was a beautiful woman though the NT emphasizes that her true beauty was anything but skin deep – she came to acquire that "imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit," that Peter spoke about as being pleasing to the Lord.

She was involved in God's plan of redemption as the mother through whom the line of Abraham's promised seed would be born. Her own involvement in this led to her being included in that famous chapter in Hebrews on the Heroes of Faith – indeed she is one of only two ladies named in that chapter.

Sarah has another claim to fame – perhaps one way in which her significance is highlighted for us in Holy Scripture – she is the only lady for whom her age is given!

And Moses in giving us her age brings us face to face with the fact that she now died!

The Bible speaks to us in everyday life about everyday life. There is no way the Bible can be considered to be detached being concerned only about 'spiritual' matters. It deals courtship, children and the problems of childlessness, it speaks of problems with relations, it speaks of sickness and of death.

The account of her death and of the purchase of a burial plot in which she is to be laid takes up the entire 23^rd chapter of Genesis and the amount of time that is given over to these details is also significant for us. Sarah's passing away brings into sharper focus the fact that Abraham's life too is a drawing to its own conclusion. Yes, he will live another 40 or so years but only one more thing or note will be recorded about his life. In the next chapter Abraham will endeavour to find a wife for his son. Having done that, his own death will then be recorded in ch.25.

As we approach this ch.23 then we should pause and ask ourselves to what it is that Moses wants to draw to our attention. What do the details mean?

Let's begin very simply by underlining the obvious fact that Sarah died. She had lived to the ripe old age of 127 and then she died. Even at that advanced age death was unwelcome. Death is always to be seen as an unnatural intruder into the world in which we live out our lives.

We are right to feel a certain outrage or resentment when we are confronted by death. Death had no part in the original plan of God but entered into God's perfect world as a consequence of human sin and rebellion. In today's world we must not allow any weakening of our senses as abortion and euthanasia come to be regarded as banal by others in our society. The killing of the unborn and the so-called mercy killing of others are simply examples of man refusing to accept that God is the giver of life. Our lives are in God's hands and none should seek to take them out of them. 

Death is unwelcome because it causes the soul to be separated from the body – a separation that should never have taken place but does so a direct result of God's curse. The effect of death on human relationships is very important too. Friendships and partnerships are terminated never to be restored in this world. There is pain in separation and Abraham responds very humanly, as a Godly and devout man of faith he grieved and wept over his loss.

We learn in the next chapter that Isaac too was hit hard by the loss of his mother. Sarah was evidently an impressive lady.

It is not wrong or unspiritual to weep over the loss of a loved one. It is rather misguided to do otherwise even though some Christians do suggest that no grieving is appropriate. Death is always a solemn reminder of God's curse pronounced upon a fallen world. The Christian's response to death is not a refusal to mourn but a refusal to mourn in the same way that the rest of the world does! The Christian mourns and grieves but not as those who have no hope! The Christian grieves the loss but knows that resurrection is a God-assured reality!

The structure of the chapter is interesting:

Moses writes directly about Sarah in the opening two verses. He then moves on to a lengthy description of how Abraham negotiated the purchase of a burial plot before returning to conclude his account with further reference to Sarah.

In v.2: we discover that Sarah dies "in the land of Canaan", that is she died at Kiriath-Arba, that is, Hebron, in the land that God had promised to Abraham and his descendants. This fact is highlighted again in v.19 and is clearly important.

And this poses a problem – although the land had been promised to him and although he had been dwelling in that land for some 60 years, Abraham did not yet possess any of it! During those years when he had travelled around he built a couple of altars but he was still at the time of Sarah's death living the life of a foreigner or a sojourner. He was a temporary resident who had no permanent location he could call his own. This fact is highlighted as he has no place where he can bury his wife.

And so Abraham sets about finding a solution.

*** Notes unrevised and incomplete after this point***

He asks for a plot but is NOT prepared to use borrowed ground. He has refused in the past to be enriched by others and here he acts in a similar way. He wants to buy a permanent place. Why does this become an issue after all those years? Well Abraham is looking to lay down some markers that will point up his faith in God's promises. The land that has been promised to him will one day be fully in the possession of his descendants – even if they will be absent from the Promised Land in slavery in Egypt for 400 years.

There is the description of the negotiation for a field – negotiations done in a local culturally acceptable way. The length to which Moses draws out the description suggests the importance of the transaction.

As we move through the Book of Genesis this importance is confirmed.

Sarah is buried first. In ch.25 Abraham, having solved the problem of a wife for Isaac (ch.24) is himself buried in this same cave/sepulchre.

In ch.35 Isaac is buried by his sons in the cave at Hebron 35:27-28, along with his wife Rebekah as we learn later (see 49:31). Jacob buried one of his own wives there – Leah – and made arrangements for his own body to be taken back from Egypt and buried there too. Jacob being away from the Promised Land is careful to clearly identify the place he wishes his own body to be buried and once more we find the phrase "in the land of Canaan added to the description. The markers that Abraham laid down were not forgotten by his descendents who held firm to the promises that God had made to him.

Jacob in due course is buried there see 50:5+13 – in both cases the phrase appears "in the land of Canaan".

And the book of Genesis comes to an end with Joseph making a similar (though not identical) request: Joseph doesn't specify just which tomb he should be buried in but he affirms his complete confidence that God will keep the promises made and the people of Israel will be taken up out of the land of Egypt and restored to the land promised to Abraham.

(The same type of behaviour is evidenced much later in Israel's history in the life of Jeremiah. As the nation is about to be carried off into exile a near relative of Jeremiah invites him to purchase a parcel of land. Humanly speaking this was a crazy thing to do – why buy when deportation is beckoning? But Jeremiah readily accepts and buys. He takes care that the documents are properly drawn up believing that the LORD would restore His people to their land in due course according to His promise. To our knowledge Jeremiah himself was never to return but the land was nevertheless inhabited by his people again. What a message of confidence his actions declared to his fellow countrymen. Just as Abraham's purchase of a burial spoke had spoken so loudly in the years following his own death!)

What about us? Are we putting down similar markers? Are keeping our eyes firmly fixed on the Lord's promises?