Gospel Light Christian Church Thru-The-Bible Series (19.5)
The Book of Genesis
Genesis Chapter 22:19-24, 23:1-20 - Read this
Bible passage once through before referring to the notes below.
The Descendants of Nahor
v.20-24 This little section records the expansion of the family in
the eastern regions by listing the descendants of Nahor, the brother of Abraham.The inclusion of the name of Rebekah indicates the primary reason
for this information – it prepares the ground for the choosing of a bride for Isaac in chapter 24.Additionally, the position of this
genealogical information here (rather than before chapter 24) signals a change in the direction of the narratives.Now that Abraham had proven faithful,
attention begins to shift to the next generation.Therefore, everything from this point onwards about Abraham is transitional to the
generation of Isaac, the heir of the promise. Chapter 23:1-20
Sarah’s Death and Burial in Canaan
v.1-2 “These all died in faith, not having
received the promises” (Heb.
11:13).This is the main theme of the chapter.The death of Sarah reminded Abraham of his own mortality and introduces another tension to the narrative.The promises of many descendants
and of the land remained unfulfilled and the recipients of the promises began to die.What, then, would become of the promises?It is clear by this point that the marvelous promises of God to Abraham
would not be fulfilled within the lifetime of Abraham and Sarah.As a result, Abraham had to prepare for the future.
v.3-4 Sarah died in “Hebron in the land
of Canaan,” where Abraham remained “a stranger and asojourner”.This made it necessary for Abraham to purchase a burial ground from the inhabitants
of the land promised to him by God.With the request to purchase some land for a family burial site, Abraham demonstrated his faith in the
promise, and declared his intention to remain in Canaan.There is no turning back to the ancestral home in the East because Abraham “having seen [the promises] afar off, and were persuaded
of them, and embraced them” (Heb.
11:13), and was thus convinced that the future lay in the land of Canaan.
The example of Abraham is very instructive for believers today.Many are the wonderful promised blessings of God in His Word but Christians have often
looked at their lives and their griefs and wondered what now would become of God’s promised blessing.Sarah died – a life of patient waiting
for the promises now faded.Others
would follow.It would
have been natural for the patriarch to mourn the death of his wife and then turn back to his ancestral home for
burial.For this man
of faith, however, Sarah’s death provided another situation in which faith could operate.Likewise, Christians need be reminded in their moments of grief and
disappointment that “The harvest is not the end of the [church] meeting. [Nor is it the end of this life.] It is
at the end of the age.Minister
by faith.God promises
to do the rest.”
v.5-18 To secure a place to bury Sarah, Abraham negotiated with the
natives of the land – “the sonsof
Heth”, i.e. the Hittites.These Hittites could have migrated from the north of Palestine and settled in the
central Judean hill country.After
expressing his polite humility by his bowing down, Abraham requested the purchase of “the
cave of Machpelah” (v.9) from Ephron.Ephron, however, refused to sell him only the cave but wanted to sell the field as
well (v.11) because Hittite law required the owner of a complete unit of land to perform the feudal services of
a king.In other words,
Ephron, the wealthy prince, did not want to own the land in which Abraham’s cave is located because he did not
want to be responsible for feudal services to Abraham, which the owner of the land must perform.
The point of in this story is that Abraham went through all these elaborate negotiations of the Ancient Near East
to purchase a possession, in which to bury his dead, because he was making this portion of the land the ancestral
home.The normal custom
is for burial to take place in one’s native land.With the purchase of this land for “400 shekels of silver”, there would be no turning back to Haran as this purchase of a burial ground signified that he was renouncing
the land of his origin.
It is interesting that here is the only portion of the Promised Land that Abraham ever owned, through purchase,
– and it was a grave.But
this grave bound them to the land, for the later patriarchs would also die and be gathered to their ancestors here
– in Canaan (cf. 50:13).The
purchase does not create a legal title in the eyes of the world but it binds the heart of the patriarch and his
descendants to the Promise Land because of the Word of the LORD to them.
v.19-20 Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the land of Canaan, the
land promised to Abraham and his descendants, in the burial spot that he had acquired as his possession.The actions of Abraham were evidence
that he believed the promises were not in vain.This development is a harsh reminder of the continued presence of evil – death entered the race by sin,
and it continues to prevail in the era of the patriarchs.Therefore, Abraham and Sarah could not exhaust the promises of God in their lifetime.They only had Isaac as their son
and heir, and their prosperity in their sojournings fall far short of the promise of the land.The burial of Sarah in the cave of Macphelah in the land of Canaan
indicated that Abraham had hope in the promises of God beyond this life.
In much the same way, times of sadness and grief also come to the believer today, who is faithfully holding onto
the promises of God.But
true faith demonstrates itself at the time of death in a hope that lies beyond the grave.A focus on things eternal kept Paul from despairing in the trials
of life (2 Co. 4:16-18).If a person, even a Christian, were
to take that which is “seen and temporal” so much to heart, when that which is “seen” is taken away from that person,
great sorrow and despair rushes in.In times of grief, only a living faith in the Eternal will keep one from despair.
The promises of God to all His children are not exhausted in this lifetime but extend
into the life to come, demanding a resurrection for their fulfillment.“If in this life only we have hope in Christ,
we are of all men most miserable…[but] when this corruptible
shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the
saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory…thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through
our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Co.
15:19, 54, 57).The true believer has no buried hopes, only the anticipation of a glorious future!