Commentary on Genesis, Chapter 23
CHAP. XXIII.
Ver. 1. AND Sarah was an hundred and ſeven and twenty, &c.] The whole Verſe may be thus tranſlated, And the years of the life of Sarah, were (in the whole) an hundred twenty and ſeven years: It being uſual with the Hebrews to repeat a word (as Life is here) when they would ſignifie any thing to be compleat. And Sarah is the only Woman whoſe intire Age is ſet down in Scripture.
Ver. 2. Kirjath-arba.] i. e. The City of Arba, who was a famous Man among the Anakims, (as we read, Joſh. XIV. ult.) and either built this City, or made it the place of his reſidence; from whence it took his Name.
It doth not appear, when Abraham left Beer-ſheba, and removed to this place.
The ſame is Hebron.] A very ancient City, as appears from Numb. XIII. 22. When it aſſumed this Name, inſtead of Kirjath-Arba, is not certain: But ſome conjecture it might be after Abraham purchaſed a Burial-place in this Country. See XIII. 18.
Abraham came.] Some fanſie he was in ſome other Part of the Country, when his Wife died. And ſeveral of the Jews have a Conceit, that he came from Mount Moriah, (which is confuted by what we read, XXII. 19.) where Sarah hearing he was gone to ſacrifice her Son, died with Grief. But Maimonides ſpeaks better Sence, when he ſays, Abraham came from his own Tent, which was ſeparate (as I noted before, XVIII. 9.) from his Wife's: As appears further from XXIV. 67.
To mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.] The firſt relates to Private Sorrow: The other to the Publick, eſpecially at the Funeral Solemnities; when they made great Lamentation. After Abraham had performed the former, he made preparations for the latter: But what the Rites of Mourning were in thoſe days we do not know. It's likely they ſhut themſelves up from Company, neglected the Care of their Bodies, abſtained from their ordinary Food: Which, with many others, were the Cuſtoms of Abraham's Poſterity; who made it a part of their Religion, to mourn for the dead.
Ver. 3. And Abraham ſtood up from before his dead.] By this it ſeems to be apparent, that in Abraham's time they ſat upon the Ground while they mourned, as it is certain they did in future Ages. In which Poſture they continued till they had ſatisfied natural Affection, and the decent Cuſtom of the Age and Country where they lived. Then they roſe up as Abraham here did, to take care of the Interment of his Wife. Seven Days, in after Ages, were the common time of Mourning: And for Illuſtrious Perſons, they mourned thirty Days.
Spake unto the Sons of Heth.] In whoſe Country he now lived: Concerning whom ſee X. 15. By the Sons are meant the Principal Perſons of that Nation.
Ver. 4. I am a ſtranger and a ſojourner with you.] Though I am not a Native of your Country; yet I have lived long enough among you, to be known to you.
Give me poſſeſſion of a burying place, &c.] I do not deſire any large Poſſeſſions among you, being but a Sojourner, let me only have a Place, which I may call my own, wherein to bury thoſe of my Family, which die.
Ver. 5. And the Children (or Sons) of Heth anſwered, &c.] By one of their Body, who ſpake in the Name of the reſt: As appears by the firſt words of the next Verſe. Hear us, my Lord: In which form they were wont to addreſs themſelves to great Men, verſe 11, 13, 15, 16.
Ver. 6. Thou art a mighty Prince.] We have a great Honour for thee.
In the choice of our Sepulchres, &c.] Make choice of any one Sepulchre; and no Body will deny to let thee have it. Every Family (at leaſt great ones) had their proper place for Burial: Which, I ſuppoſe, were ſometime ſo large, that they might ſpare others a part of them; or, of the Ground wherein they were made.
Ver. 7. Abraham ſtood up.] It ſeems they had deſired him to ſit down among them, while they treated this buſineſs: Which when they had granted he ſtood up to thank them.
And bowed himſelf.] The Hebrew word ſignifies the bowing of the Body: And there are other words in that Language proper to the bowing of the Head, or of the Knee.
Ver. 8. Intreat for me to Ephron, &c.] He deſires them to mediate between him and this Man (who perhaps was not then preſent in the Aſſembly) for a Purchaſe of a convenient Place in his Ground.
Ver. 9. Cave of Machpelah.] We take this word Machpelah for a proper Name, as many others do: But the Talmudiſts generally think it to have been ſpeluncam duplicem, (as the Vulgar Latin alſo, with the LXX underſtand it) a double Cave. Yet they cannot agree in what Sence it was ſo; whether they went through one Cave into another; or, there was one above another. For that by a Cave is meant, a Vault, arched over with Stones, or Wood, which the Ancients called Cryptae, no Body doubts. Salmaſius hath deſcribed them in his Plin. Exercit. p. 1208. where he ſays this Cave is ſaid to have been double, in the ſame Sence that the Greeks called theirs foreign, becauſe they had a double Entrance, ſo that one might go into them at both Ends, as Heſychius expounds it. Which ſhows, as he adds, it was a large Place, and would contain many Bodies. And of this he is ſo confident as to ſay, Non quaerenda eſt alia duplicis ſpeluncae interpretatio. No other Interpretation of this double Sepulchre ought to be ſought after. But learned Men will not hearken to ſuch Dictates; and particularly Theodorick Hackspan maintains Machpelah to be a proper Name (as we take it) by theſe two Reaſons. Firſt, Becauſe the Field it ſelf wherein this Cave was, is called the Field of Machpelah, verſe 19. Which doth not ſignifie ſure that there was a double Gate to this Field, but that it was in that Tract of Ground, called Machpelah. And, Secondly, This Field in Machpelah, is ſaid to be before Mamre, verſe 17. Which plainly denotes it to be a Place ſo called. Miſcell. Lib. I. cap. 10. For which laſt Reaſon, Guil. Vorſtius alſo takes it to have been the Name of a Country, or Province, in which this Field and Cave lay. Animadv. in Pirke Elieſer, p. 179.
Which is in the end of his Field.] Burying-Places were not anciently in the Cities, much leſs in their Temples; but in the Fields, in Caves, or Vaults made to hold a good Number of Bodies. And ſo they continued it's manifeſt in our Saviour's Time among the Jews; as appears by Lazarus his Monument, John XI. 30, 31. and by the Burying-places for ſtrangers, Matth. XXVII. 7. and their carrying the Widows Son out of the City, Luke VII. 12, &c.
This ſeems to have been in the Corner of the Field before mentioned; which perhaps was near the High-way: For there they ſometimes affected to bury their dead, as appears from Gen. XXXV. 8, 19. Joſh. XXIV. 30.
Ver. 10. And Ephron dwelt.] The Hebrew word for dwelt ſignifies literally ſat. Which hath made ſome think that Ephron was a great Man (a Ruler, or Governor) among the Children of Heth: Who ſat as a Prince or Judge in this Aſſembly. And that this was the reaſon why Abraham (Verſe 8.) addreſſed himſelf to others of the ſame Rank, that they would make way for him into his Favour.
In the audience of the Children of Heth, &c.] It is judiciouſly obſerved by Cornel. Bertram, that all weighty Matters in thoſe Days were determined by the King, (if they had any) or the Elders, with the Conſent of the People. De Repub. Judaic. cap. 3. Marriages were a Matter of Publick Right, XXIX. 22. as Sepulchres were it appears by this place: Both of them being held to belong to Religion.
Ver. 11. In the preſence of the Sons of my People, &c.] Contracts, or Grants, were wont to be made before all the People, or their Repreſentatives, till Writings were invented.
Ver. 12. Abraham bowed, &c.] Becauſe by their Interceſſion this Favour was granted him.
Ver. 13. I will give thee Money for the Field.] This was the ſureſt Title, he thought, by Purchaſe. And it was but reaſonable he ſhould buy it, if he would have any Land in Canaan; for the time of poſſeſſing it, according to God's Promiſe, was not yet come.
Ver. 15. The Land is worth four hundred Shekels.] This is the firſt time we meet with the Name of Shekel. Mention was made of Money before in general, XVII. 12, 13. and of pieces of Silver, XX. 16. (which ſhows the uſe of Money was found out in thoſe early Days, and they did not Trade merely by the exchange of one Commodity for another) but we have no Name for the Money till now: And cannot exactly tell of what value a Shekel of Silver was. But Joſephus, L. III. Antiq. c. 10. ſaith foreign, it was as much as four Attick Drachms; that is, half an Ounce: Which in our Money wants not much of half a Crown.
What is that between me and thee?] Some will have this to ſignifie, as much as, This is not worth ſpeaking of between Friends, and therefore I had rather thou wouldſt accept it as a gift. But it is more reaſonable to think, that he only pretended to uſe him kindly, and not to exact upon his Neceſſity. It being as much as to ſay, This is no great Price, but a friendly Bargain: Pay it therefore, and bury thy dead.
Ver. 16. Abraham weighed to Ephron, &c.] They did not tell Money as we do now, but weigh it; for it was not ſtampt anciently, as Ariſtotle obſerves: But in the beginning of the World was received, foreign, by its bulk and its weight. Which being very troubleſome, they learnt in time to ſet a Mark upon it, to free them from that inconvenience. foreign, for that Mark was ſet upon it to denote its Quantity, i. e. how much it was worth. For having the Publick Stamp, that made it current, at a known value. Which muſt not be underſtood of Foreign Money, which was ſtill weighed, though ſtampt: But of that of their own Country, which they were aſſured was worth ſo much as the Mark expreſſed. Yet it continued to be weighed among the Jews in David's time, 1 Chron. XXI. 25. nay, till the Captivity of Babylon, Jerem. XXXII. 9. And indeed the very word Shekel comes from Shakal to weigh. And may be interpreted as Waſerus obſerves, the weight.
From all which Herm. Conringius well concludes there is no Truth in what the Jews ſay, in Bereſchith Rabba, and other Books, that Joſhua, David, and Mordecai; nay Abraham, coined Money in their Days. To ſupport which Fiction they have counterfeited ſome Coins, with the Inſcription of Senex & Anus on one ſide, and Juvenis & Virgo on the other. As if Iſaac and Rebekah were now married: Or Abraham had Power to coin Money in a Country where he did but ſojourn and was no Sovereign.
Ver. 17. Which were before Mamre.] Over againſt Mamre. See XIII. 18.
Were made ſure.] By a ſolemn Contract, in a Publick Aſſembly, (verſe 11.) where the Money was tendred and accepted; and all there preſent deſired to be Witneſſes to it.
Ver. 18. In the preſence of the Children of Heth.] See Verſe 11.
Ver. 19. And after this Abraham buried Sarah, &c.] It is not likely that Ephron had ever buried any of his Family here, but had only begun to make a Vault in this Field which Abraham bought of him, with all the Trees therein, (verſe 17.) or, if it were finiſhed, he ſold it before he had made uſe of it. For we cannot think Abraham would lay his Wife's Body among thoſe of the Hittites: But in a vacant place where he intended to be interred himſelf: As his Family after him alſo were, XLIX. 30, 31.
Ver. 20. Was made ſure.] He repeats this, which had been ſaid verſe 17. becauſe now the Purchace was more confirmed, by the laying Sarah's Body in this Place: It being a kind of taking actual poſſeſſion of it.