Genesis Part 9: Sarah's Death, and comfort in Rebekah

 Hi, everyone, and thank you for joining me at 144Judah! We are continuing on with our Genesis study starting at Genesis 23 where Sarah dies and we end with Genesis 24. This isn't a very long blog today, as the next section gets pretty bulky, so buckle up and get ready to mourn Sarah, The Mother of Nations... 

So, I was curious for more information on Sarah, as the bible gives us some, but there, of course, are other texts where Sarah is talked about. Wikipedia had some decent information on Sarah, and according to the site, the Catholics have a feast day dedicated to her on September 1st, so this Friday, get your "Sarah Party" on! 

Courtesy of Wikipedia

On Wikipedia:

Sarah^[a] (born Sarai)^[b] is a biblical matriarch, prophetess and major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her character similarly, as that of a pious woman, renowned for her hospitality and beauty, the wife and half-sister^[1] of Abraham, and the mother of Isaac. Sarah has her feast day on 1 September in the Catholic Church,^[2] 19 August in the Coptic Orthodox Church,^[3] 20 January in the LCMS,^[4] and 12 and 20 December in the Eastern Orthodox Church.^[5]

So, we learned in our last read that Sarah, was the half-sister of her husband...yikes, but they did that in those days... I guess there wasn't a whole lot to choose from, kind of like now! Right now, the world is concerned about gender and while dating online you need to be careful on whom you see, because who knows if it is really a boy or a girl... Back then, you had the choice of your sister from another mister or your cousin... 

I guess we do have many things to be thankful for now, don't we? :)

Anyway... let's get back to Sarah. At the start of Genesis 23 we learn that Sarah was a hundred and twenty seven when she died, and she wasn't in the same place as Abraham when it happened either. 

Were they separated? 

Well, when Sarah told Abraham to make Ishmael leave, that seems to have been the last of the two together, as where the bible mentions anyway. 

Sarah died in Kirjath-arba; (the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan). At the time, Abraham was living in Beer-sheba, if you remember. 

Anyway, Sarah dies, and Abraham leaves to go see her to mourn, and asks the sons of Heth if he can bury Sarah out of his sight. And they agree to give him a cave so he can be buried there with her and his family. This field was in the field of Machpelah before Mamre. 

From: The Truth about Abraham's Purchase of a field in Machpelah • God Quest (god-quest.com)

Abraham already knew which cave he wanted for a burial site. He wanted a cave in Machpelah, a district of Hebron, that belonged to a man named Ephron. The cave was on the edge of Ephron’s field, so he could sell it without disturbing the rest of his property. But Ephron wanted to sell the whole field along with the cave, possibly because he knew Abraham would pay more than it was worth.

The negotiations and payment are recorded in unusual detail, complete with all the niceties typical of bartering societies. Although both Abraham and Ephron use the verb nathan (“to give”), Ephron was never willing to give away his property, and Abraham was not asking him to. When Ephron finally stated a price, he made it sound like a paltry amount not worth haggling over. Abraham was not in a position to negotiate a fairer price, so he simply accepted the offer.

The narrative goes to great lengths to emphasize the legality of the transaction. Abraham paid “the full value,” so Ephron’s heirs would have no claim on the field. Both the negotiations and the payment were witnessed by the Hittites. And the price was weighed out properly according to the standards of the time.⁵ So the field passed to Abraham and legally belonged to his heirs even at the time Moses wrote Genesis.

Wikipedia again: Death[edit]

Sarah dies at the age of 127, and Abraham buys a piece of land with a cave near Hebron from Ephron the Hittite in which to bury her, which is the first land owned by the Israelites in Canaan according to the biblical narrative. The place became known as the Cave of the Patriarchs.^{[26][8]: 26}

Which brings us to Genesis 24: 1-4... "And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac."

So, apparently by taking a hand under the thigh that is some sort of modern-day oath/handshake agreement. 

Genesis 24:6-9 "And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. The LORD God of heaven which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again. And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning the matter."

So, he swares, and then the fun begins of finding Isaac a wife. So, the servant takes ten camels of Abraham's and leaves, and goes to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. Once he gets there, he has the camels kneel down at a well of water in the evening where women go to fetch water. And there he prays that God will show him kindness to Abraham, and he says, "And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down they pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master."

And, what do you know? God, sends Rebekah there! Abraham must definitely be favored, because I do a lot of begging.... and... well, you know how it is. 

And it turns out Rebekah was good looking, a virgin, and didn't have any problem giving the camels some water. Sounds like a catch. Good thing she isn't Isaac's sister! Thank God they didn't have any girls. lol

Then the servant asked, "...Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in? And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in. And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD. 

After he gets settled in, but before they eat, the servant spoke. Genesis 24:35 "And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses. And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath. And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son. And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me. And he said unto me, The LORD, before whom I walk will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house: Then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred; and if they give not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath."

So, the servant is telling the family of Rebekah, all about the oath of his to Abraham, and how he met her at the well, and whom Abraham wanted for his son. (And of course, they are related in some way...) And it goes on to say that he asks about Rebekah and whose child she is. And then he basically asks if he can take Rebekah, and then Laban and Bethuel answer, "Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master'[s son's wife as the LORD hath spoken." Genesis 24:51

So, the servant brought forth jewels of silver and gold and raiment and gave them to her. He also gave things to her mother and brother. Then they ate, and waited til the morning to leave to go back to Abraham. Then they blessed Rebekah and said, "Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them." Genesis 24:60

Now we come to Genesis 24:62 "And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. 

Not the most romantic start, but it works...