Abraham Honors Sarah

"1 Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. 2 She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.

3 Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites. He said, 4 "I am an alien and a stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead."

5 The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6 "Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead."

7 Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. 8 He said to them, "If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf 9 so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you." Genesis 23:1-9

This chapter goes on with Abraham and the Hittites arguing back and forth. The Hittites tell Abraham that he is welcome to have whatever land he wants to bury his wife. Abraham is insistent that he pay for the land to make it his. This goes back and forth before Abraham reaches an agreement with a landowner for some land- and he pays for the land what it is worth. He honored the memory of his wife and the life they lived together by purchasing the land at whatever cost. He wanted her body to be at rest and at peace, with no chance of it being disturbed by whoever owned the land. Abraham also ensured that his family now had a burial site, so that when his time came, he would be buried next to his wife, and his sons after him should they choose to do so.

I also think it was honorable of Abraham to insist that he pay for the land. The Hittites would have gladly deeded him the land without payment, they loved Abraham and considered him a prince. Yet Abraham did not want to take away what another man had earned, or worked heard to purchase themselves. Instead he insisted that he compensate the Hittites for their generosity.

In this same way, our generosity can be rewarded by God. How many times do we give generously with no thought of ourselves. Every time we donate food to the food pantry, or give money to help support a missionary, God takes notice. He sees the spirit of our heart when we give of ourselves. And when we give freely and generously, that generosity is often rewarded. That doesn't mean that rewards are the reason to be generous, but maybe it can be an impetus for extracting a more generous spirit. Someone who has maybe been stingy for their whole life and sees the benefits of giving generously could be changed into a more generous person. Watching a child's eyes light up when they receive that Christmas gift that they didn't think they were getting is priceless and reward enough itself.

There are many lessons to be learned from Abraham, and tomorrow, we'll see how he finds a wife for his beloved son, Isaac.