genesis-23:6-web

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Genesis 23:3-6

"And Abraham rose up from before his dead, and spake unto the children of Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him, Hear us, my lord; thou art a prince of God among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; and none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury thy dead.""Spake unto the children of... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Genesis 23:5-6

Genesis 23:5-6. The children of Heth answered, &c.— The people of Heth no sooner hear, than they grant with one voice, and in the most respectful manner, the petition of Abraham. They call him a mighty prince, in the Hebrew, a prince of God, i.e.. a prince of distinguished greatness and worth, peculiarly favoured and blessed of God, and so regarded by men. Abraham was well known, as he had long dwelt and distinguished himself among that people. See particularly in ch. 14: the account of his... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Genesis 23:3-16

Typically ancient Near Easterners buried family members in their native land. [Note: Ross, "Genesis," p. 66.] Abraham’s desire to bury Sarah in the Promised Land shows that he had turned his back on Mesopotamia forever (Genesis 23:4). Canaan was his adopted homeland.God had made Abraham a powerful person, which his neighbors acknowledged (Genesis 23:6). [Note: On Abraham as a "mighty prince," see Wiseman, "Abraham . . . Part II: Abraham the Prince," pp. 228-37.] "Abraham has put himself at the... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 23:1-20

Death of Sarah and Purchase of the Buryingplace of Machpelah by AbrahamThis section is from the Priestly source and dwells on the legal transaction.2. Came] rather, ’went in,’ perhaps from his own tent to that of Sarah. 3. Stood up from before his dead] To sit upon the ground was the posture of mourning: cp. Job 2:13. Sons of Heth] i.e. the Hittites: see on Genesis 10:15.6. After true Eastern custom, there was excessive courtesy in the transaction, but a large sum was in the end required. ’In... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Genesis 23:6

(6) A mighty prince.—Heb., a prince of God. Comp. “wind of God” (Genesis 1:2); “wrestlings of God” (Genesis 30:8); “mountains of God” (Psalms 36:6); “cedars of God” (Psalms 80:10). So also “a sleep of Jehovah” for a deep sleep (1 Samuel 26:12).In the choice of our sepulchres.—The interview between Abraham and the Hittites is marked by the utmost courtesy on both sides, but it is a mistake to suppose that this acceptance of the patriarch’s proposal contained the idea that he might select a... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Genesis 23:1-20

PURCHASE OF MACHPELAHGenesis 23:1-20IT may be supposed to be a needless observation that our life is greatly influenced by the fact that it speedily and certainly ends in death. But it might be interesting, and it would certainly be surprising, to trace out the various ways in which this fact influences life. Plainly every human affair would be altered if we lived on here for ever, supposing that were possible. What the world would be had we no predecessors, no wisdom but what our own past... read more

Arno Clemens Gaebelein

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Genesis 23:1-20

CHAPTER 23 The Death of Sarah 1. Sarah dies (Genesis 23:1-2 ) 2. The grave obtained (Genesis 23:3-18 ) 3. The burial of Sarah (Genesis 23:19-20 ) We call the attention to the typical meaning of the death of Sarah. She is the type of the nation Israel and her death in this chapter signifies the death of Israel, nationally. This must be brought in connection with the previous chapter. There we learned that Isaac was upon the altar and taken from it. This is typical of the death and... read more

John Calvin

Geneva Study Bible - Genesis 23:6

23:6 Hear us, my lord: thou [art] a {b} mighty prince among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury thy dead. {b} That is godly or excellent: for so do the Hebrews speak of all things that are notable, because all excellency comes from God. read more

L.M. Grant

L. M. Grant's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 23:1-20

THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH The time arrives for Sarah's death at the age of 127 years. This illustrates another lesson as regards the aftermath of the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus. Sarah is typical of the elect remnant of faith in the nation Israel, the godly, who virtually gave birth to the Lord Jesus. But after the cross, Israel practically withered away and died so far as any godliness was concerned, and since that time has not been revived to take any place of godly devotion to their... read more

James Gray

James Gray's Concise Bible Commentary - Genesis 23:1-20

ISAAC ’S BIRTH , SARAH ’S DEATH THE BONDWOMAN AND HER SON (CHAP. 21) There is little requiring explanation in this chapter, but Genesis 21:9-13 should not be passed without a look at Galatians 4:21-31 . Christians are the spiritual seed of Abraham, and those who would supplement faith in Christ by the works of the law are the children of the bond-woman, who have no place with the children of the promise. God, however, is not unmindful of Hagar and Ishmael, nor of His promise to Abraham... read more