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This week’s
parasha is entitled Chayei Sarah, translated,
“The Life of Sarah” and takes us through Genesis
23:1 through 25:18. In chapter 23 the death of
Sarah, at age 127, is recorded. After mourning
for her (the Hebrew verb describes loud wailing
characteristic of grieving in the Middle East)
Abraham comes to the sons of Heth in nearby Hebron
to negotiate the purchase of a field and cave
in Machpelah, where he wishes to bury Sarah. The
transaction is described in considerable detail
and gives us a glimpse into Ancient Middle Eastern
customs. After Abraham offers to purchase the
land, Ephron, the son of Zohar says to him, “No,
no, please, I give it to you!” You need to
know that in the Ancient Near East a statement
like that was a conventional form of politeness.
It was not meant literally, nor would Abraham
have taken it literally. So when Ephron finally
says, “A piece of land worth 400 shekels of
silver, what is that between you and me?”
he was “subtly” declaring his asking price. By
the way, that was no pittance. A shekel of silver
at that time corresponded to four days’ wages.
So figure out how much you make in roughly 4.4
years and that was the amount he was asking. And
Abraham agreed to the price (that’s right, no
haggling), and purchased the land Ephron, one
of the sons of Heth, and buried Sarah.
At first
it seems an oddly long narrative for a simple
land transaction, particularly in light of the
vast scope of history covered in the 50 short
chapters of Genesis. So what’s the big deal about
this purchase? It is because when our people came
out of Egypt and entered Eretz Canaan, when we
came to the territory of the Hittites – the “sons
of Heth” we had a legitimate claim to that land.
Not only had God promised it to Abraham in perpetuity,
but this parcel had been legally purchased at
an agreed-upon price in the presence of many witnesses
by Abraham, and it belonged to his descendants.
It also establishes firmly the rightful Jewish
claim, then and now, to the city of Hebron, in
spite of the turmoil that has engulfed the city
over the last century, and in spite of the opinion
of the United Nations.
Hebron,
we are informed, was formerly known as Kiryat
Arba (“City of the Four”). The city has a
considerable history! It is the second oldest
continuously inhabited city on Earth, excavations
there revealing settlements dating to 3,400 years
BC! The name Hebron is from the Hebrew word chaver,
meaning “friend” or “companion” and may have taken
on that name in association with Abraham, who
was called “the friend of God” (see 2 Chronicles
20:7 and James 2:23). Not only Sarah, but Abraham,
Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah, Ruth, Jesse, and
Abner the son of Ner (one of David’s great generals),
all are buried there! Hebron was also the place
where David was anointed and would reign as king
for seven years. It is regarded as the second
holiest site in Judaism.
Hebron
was under Jordanian jurisdiction from 1948 until
1967, during which time Jews were not allowed
in the city. During that time the Islamic authorities
systematically destroyed as much archaeological
evidence as possible of ancient Jewish presence
in Hebron. They desecrated the Jewish cemeteries
and even built animal pens over the ruins of an
ancient synagogue there. In 1967, after the Six-Day
War, some Jewish families moved back, but still
represent a tiny minority. To this day Jewish
people are only allowed 10 days out of the year
in which to visit the tomb of Isaac (one of the
few that hasn’t been desecrated). There are approximately
130,000 Muslims 550 Jews and 3 Christians living
in Hebron. It is part of the area the media calls
the “West Bank” but it is, in fact, part of biblical
Judea.
The central
part of our parasha is chapter 24. Abraham sends
his servant to find a wife for Isaac. Abraham
resolutely refuses to take a wife for Isaac from
among the Canaanites, who worshiped false gods.
Neither would he permit Isaac to be returned to
Mesopotamia, the land of his origins. But this
isn’t about ethnicity; it is about preserving
the true faith. The Canaanites worshiped false
deities, as did most of the Chaldeans. Isaac was
not to be re-introduced into pagan society. Abraham
instead sends his servant, Eliezer, to find a
wife for Isaac from among Abraham’s relatives
in Nahor. He swears him to a most solemn oath
concerning the matter. It is one of the most magnificent
stories in all the Word of God. Abraham sends
a trusted servant on the most serious of missions.
The servant prays to the God of Heaven and Earth
for guidance and success. God answers his prayers
to the letter, and he meets Rebekah, Abraham’s
grand-niece as she comes out to draw water. She
kindly draws water for Eliezer at his request
and, without his asking, generously offers to
water his camels as well. It was the very sign
Eliezer had asked of the Lord, but also was indicative
of the excellent qualities Rebekah possessed.
This was a discerning servant! He is invited to
their home and food is set before him, but he
refuses to eat until he has stated his business.
God further answers Abraham and Eliezer’s prayers:
the family hears the proposal and is agreeable
– as is Rebekah, who is willing to accompany him
to a distant land, to be married to a man she
had never laid eyes on.
This is
a chapter that shows us great faith in action.
There is also a serious lesson here: Parents must
not be passive observers where their children’s
decisions about courtship or marriage are concerned.
If there’s one clear lesson for us in the story
of Abraham, Isaac and Rebekah, it is that we must
marry within the faith. We parents need to
communicate to our children, long before they’re
even looking at the opposite gender, that we expect
them to marry fellow believers in Yeshua, and
that we will be very much a part of the matching
process. If it sounds antiquated, just consider
the epidemic of divorce and broken homes over
the past two generations and it will look better
and better.
Chapter
25 records briefly Abraham’s subsequent marriage
to Keturah (probably from a word meaning incense),
and gives the names of their offspring, some of
whom would eventually become nations hostile to
Israel, such as Midian. To these Abraham gave
gifts and then sent them away to settle eastward,
because the rightful heir would be Isaac. This
is crucial, as it focuses the reader of Scripture
more narrowly on a chosen line, through which
Messiah Yeshua would eventually come. Finally,
we read of the death of Abraham at a ripe old
age (175) and satisfied with life.
Friendship with God truly brings fullness of life!
Isaac and Ishmael come together to bury their
father, a paradigm to be sure, since it is the
last time they or their descendants would come
together in unity until Messiah Yeshua – the greatest
descendant of Abraham, returns to planet Earth
and brings us all together under His righteous
Kingship.
Shalom,
Rabbi Glenn
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