Amplified Bible
Genesis 23:4
4“I am a stranger and a sojourner (resident alien) among you; give (sell) me property for a burial place among you so that I may bury my dead [in the proper manner].”
Genesis 23:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.
- New International Version (NIV)“I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)"I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight."
- New King James Version (NKJV)“I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”
Context of Genesis 23:4
2Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3Then Abraham stood up before his dead [wife’s body], and spoke to the sons of Heth (Hittites), saying, “I am a stranger and a sojourner (resident alien) among you; give (sell) me property for a burial place among you so that I may bury my dead [in the proper manner].” 5The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6“Listen to us, my lord; you are a prince of God [a mighty prince] among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our graves; none of us will refuse you his grave or hinder you from burying your dead [wife].”
Read all of Genesis 23Genesis 23:4 word by word
גֵּר־וְתוֹשָׁ֥ב אָנֹכִ֖י עִמָּכֶ֑ם תְּנ֨וּ לִ֤י אֲחֻזַּת־קֶ֙בֶר֙ עִמָּכֶ֔ם וְאֶקְבְּרָ֥ה מֵתִ֖י מִלְּפָנָֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- a strangerגֵּרgêr gêyr · sojournerH1616
- and a sojournerתּוֹשָׁבtôshâb tôshâb · sojournerH8453
- with you: giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- me a possessionאֲחֻזָּה'ăchûzzâh · possessionH272
- of a buryingplaceקֶ֫בֶרqeber qibrâh · graveH6913
- with you, that I may buryקָבַרqâbar · to buryH6912
- my deadמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- out of my sightפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
Cross-references for Genesis 23:4
- Genesis 17:8I will give to you and to your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger [moving from place to place], all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession [of property]; and I will be their God.”
- Genesis 47:9Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my pilgrimage are a hundred and thirty. Few and unpleasant have been the years of my life, and they have not reached the years that my fathers lived during the days of their pilgrimage.”
- Leviticus 25:23‘The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; you are [only] foreigners and temporary residents with Me.
- 1 Chronicles 29:15For we are sojourners before You, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope [of remaining].
- Psalms 39:12“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and listen to my cry; Do not be silent at my tears; For I am Your temporary guest, A sojourner like all my fathers.
- Psalms 105:12When there were only a few men in number, Very few [in fact], and strangers in it;
- Psalms 119:19I am a stranger on the earth; Do not hide Your commandments from me.
- Hebrews 11:9By faith he lived as a foreigner in the promised land, as in a strange land, living in tents [as nomads] with Isaac and Jacob, who were fellow heirs of the same promise.
- 1 Peter 2:11Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers [in this world] to abstain from the sensual urges [those dishonorable desires] that wage war against the soul.
- Genesis 3:19By the sweat of your face You will eat bread Until you return to the ground, For from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.”
- Genesis 49:30in the cave in the field at Machpelah, east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, that Abraham bought, along with the field from Ephron the Hittite, to possess as a burial site.
- Genesis 50:13for his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, east of Mamre, which Abraham bought along with the field as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.
- Job 30:23For I know that You will bring me to death And to the house of meeting [appointed] for all the living.
- Ecclesiastes 6:3If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, however many they may be, but his soul is not satisfied with good things and he is not respected and is not given a proper burial [he is not laid to rest in the sepulcher of his fathers], then I say, “Better the miscarriage than he,
- Ecclesiastes 12:5Furthermore, they are afraid of a high place and of dangers on the road; the almond tree (hair) blossoms [white], and the grasshopper (a little thing) is a burden, and the caperberry (desire, appetite) fails. For man goes to his eternal home and the mourners go about the streets and market places.
- Acts 7:5But He did not give him inheritable property, not even enough ground to take a step on, yet He promised that He would give it to Him as a possession, and to his descendants after him.
Commentaries on Genesis 23:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4I am a stranger and a sojourner - It appears from Hebrews 11:13-16; 1 Peter 2:11, that these words refer more to the state of his mind than of his body. He felt that he had no certain dwelling place, and was seeking by faith a city that had foundations. Give me a possession of a burying place - It has been remarked that in different nations it was deemed ignominious to be buried in another's ground; probably this prevailed in early times in the east, and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-20Verses 1-20 - The Death of Sarah 2. ארבע קרית qı̂ryat -'arba‛ “Qirjath-arba, city of Arba.” ארבע 'arba‛ “Arba, four.” 8. עפרון ‛eprôn “Ephron, of the dust, or resembling a calf.” צחר tshochar “Tsochar, whiteness.” 9. מכפלה makpêlâh “Makpelah, doubled.” The death and burial of Sarah are here recorded. This occasions the purchase of the field of Makpelah, in the cave of which is her sepulchre. Genesis 23:1-2 Sarah is the only woman whose age is recorded…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4Abraham negotiated with local Hittite elders to buy land for a burial site. These Hittites had moved south to Canaan from the large Hittite empire in what is now Turkey (compare 10:15). Abraham was a foreigner and an outsider among them. But he trusted God's promise that he would eventually own the land.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-203. Abraham stood up, &c.--Eastern people are always provided with family burying-places; but Abraham's life of faith--his pilgrim state--had prevented him acquiring even so small a possession (Ac 7:5). spake unto the sons of Heth--He bespoke their kind offices to aid him in obtaining possession of a cave that belonged to Ephron--a wealthy neighbor.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 23:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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