Genesis 23:4 "I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead."

◄ Genesis 23:4 ►

New International Version
“I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”

New Living Translation
“Here I am, a stranger and a foreigner among you. Please sell me a piece of land so I can give my wife a proper burial.”

English Standard Version
“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.”

Berean Standard Bible
“I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.”

King James Bible
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 King James Version
“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.”

New American Standard Bible
“I am a stranger and a foreign resident among you; give me a burial site among you so that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

NASB 1995
“I am a stranger and a sojourner among you; give me a burial site among you that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

NASB 1977
“I am a stranger and a sojourner among you; give me a burial site among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Legacy Standard Bible
“I am a sojourner and a foreign resident among you; give me a possession for a burial site among you that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Amplified Bible
“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].”

Christian Standard Bible
“I am an alien residing among you. Give me burial property among you so that I can bury my dead.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I am a foreign resident among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.”

American Standard Version
I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

Contemporary English Version
"I live as a foreigner in your land, and I don't own any property where I can bury my wife. Please let me buy a piece of land."

English Revised Version
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.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"I'm a stranger with no permanent home. Let me have some of your property for a tomb so that I can bury my dead wife."

Good News Translation
"I am a foreigner living here among you; sell me some land, so that I can bury my wife."

International Standard Version
"I am an alien and an outsider among you. Give me a cemetery among you where I can bury my dead away from my presence."

Majority Standard Bible
?I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.?

NET Bible
"I am a temporary settler among you. Grant me ownership of a burial site among you so that I may bury my dead."

New Heart English Bible
"I am a stranger and a foreigner living with you. Give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may remove my dead for burial."

Webster's Bible Translation
I am a stranger and a sojourner with you; give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

World English Bible
“I am a stranger and a foreigner living with you. Give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
“A sojourner and a settler I [am] with you; give to me a possession of a burying-place with you, and I bury my dead from before me.”

Young's Literal Translation
A sojourner and a settler I am with you; give to me a possession of a burying-place with you, and I bury my dead from before me.'

Smith's Literal Translation
I am a sojourner and stranger with you: give me the possession of a grave with you, and I will bury my dead from my face.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
I am a stranger and sojourner among you: give me the right of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead.

Catholic Public Domain Version
“I am a newcomer and a sojourner among you. Give me the right of a sepulcher among you, so that I may bury my dead.”

New American Bible
“Although I am a resident alien among you, sell me from your holdings a burial place, that I may bury my deceased wife.”

New Revised Standard Version
“I am a stranger and an alien residing among you; give me property among you for a burying place, so that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
I am a stranger and a sojourner with you; give me the possession of a burial ground with you that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
“I am a settler and a pilgrim with you; give to me the inheritance of a tomb with you and I shall bury my dead before me.”

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
I am a sojourner and a stranger among you, give me therefore possession of a burying-place among you, and I will bury my dead away from me.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

The Death and Burial of Sarah
…3Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and said to the Hittites, 4“I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.” 5The Hittites replied to Abraham,…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Hebrews 11:9-10
By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. / For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Hebrews 11:13
All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

1 Peter 2:11
Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.

Acts 7:5
He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised to give possession of the land to Abraham and his descendants, even though he did not yet have a child.

Leviticus 25:23
The land must not be sold permanently, because it is Mine, and you are but foreigners and residents with Me.

1 Chronicles 29:15
For we are foreigners and strangers in Your presence, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope.

Psalm 39:12
Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. For I am a foreigner dwelling with You, a stranger like all my fathers.

Psalm 119:19
I am a stranger on the earth; do not hide Your commandments from me.

2 Corinthians 5:6
Therefore we are always confident, although we know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord.

2 Corinthians 5:1
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.

Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,

Ephesians 2:19
Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,

Exodus 2:22
And she gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, saying, “I have become a foreigner in a foreign land.”

1 Peter 1:17
Since you call on a Father who judges each one’s work impartially, conduct yourselves in reverent fear during your stay as foreigners.

John 17:16
They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.

Treasury of Scripture

I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a burial plot with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

stranger.

Genesis 17:8
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

Genesis 47:9
And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.

Leviticus 25:23
The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.

buryingplace.

Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Genesis 49:30
In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace.

Genesis 50:13
For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.

bury.

Genesis 23:19
And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.

Jump to Previous

Alien Burial Bury Burying Buryingplace Burying-Place Country Dead Foreigner Possession Property Rest Sell Sepulchre Settler Sight Site Sojourner Strange Stranger

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Alien Burial Bury Burying Buryingplace Burying-Place Country Dead Foreigner Possession Property Rest Sell Sepulchre Settler Sight Site Sojourner Strange Stranger

Genesis 23

1. The age and death of Sarah.
3. The purchase of the field and cave of Machpelah;
19. where Sarah is buried.

Berean Study Bible

I am a foreigner and a stranger among you
This phrase begins with Abraham's humble acknowledgment of his status among the Hittites. The Hebrew word for "foreigner" is "גֵּר" (ger), which implies someone living temporarily in a land not their own. This reflects Abraham's life of faith, as he lived in the land promised to him by God but had not yet taken possession of it. The term "stranger" or "תּוֹשָׁב" (toshav) further emphasizes his transient status, highlighting the biblical theme of believers as sojourners on earth, looking forward to a heavenly homeland (Hebrews 11:13-16).

Sell me a burial site here
Abraham's request to "sell me a burial site" is significant in the context of ancient Near Eastern customs. The Hebrew word for "sell" is "מָכַר" (makar), indicating a formal transaction. This request marks a pivotal moment where Abraham seeks to establish a permanent family legacy in the Promised Land, despite his current status as a foreigner. The act of purchasing a burial site signifies faith in God's promises, as it is a tangible claim to the land God vowed to give his descendants.

so that I can bury my dead
The phrase "so that I can bury my dead" reveals Abraham's deep respect for Sarah and the importance of proper burial practices in ancient cultures. The Hebrew verb "קָבַר" (qabar) means to bury, and it underscores the significance of honoring the deceased. This act of burial is not just a personal or familial duty but a spiritual one, reflecting the belief in the sanctity of life and the hope of resurrection. Abraham's desire to bury Sarah in the land of Canaan is a testament to his unwavering faith in God's covenant.

here
The word "here" is a simple yet profound declaration of Abraham's faith. It indicates his intention to root his family in the land God promised, despite not yet possessing it. This choice of location for Sarah's burial is a prophetic act, foreshadowing the eventual inheritance of the land by his descendants. It serves as a reminder to believers of the importance of trusting in God's promises, even when they are not immediately visible or fulfilled.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(4) A possession of a buryingplace.--While strangers might pasture their cattle upon the open downs, yet the consent of the natives seems to have been necessary before Abraham could occupy any spot permanently (Genesis 15:13; Genesis 20:15). He now wanted even more, and for the actual appropriation of any portion of the soil a public compact and purchase was required, which must be ratified not merely by the seller but by the consent of all the tribe, convened in full assembly at the gate of the city. Thus, in spite of his power and wealth, Abraham, as regards his legal position towards the inhabitants, was but a stranger and sojourner (Hebrews 11:9), and could secure a resting- place for his dead only by their consent.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 4. - I am a stranger and a sojourner with you. Ger, one living out of his own country, and Thoshabh, one dwelling in a land in which he is not naturalized; advena et peregrinus (Vulgate); πάροικος καὶ παρ ἐπίδημος (LXX.). This confession of the heir of Canaan was a proof that he sought, as his real inheritance, a better country, even an heavenly (Hebrews 11:13). Give me a possession of a burying-place with you. The first mention of a grave in Scripture, the word in Hebrew signifying a hole in the earth, or a mound, according as the root is taken to mean to dig (Furst) or to heap up (Gesenius). Abraham's desire for a grave m which to deposit Sarah's lifeless remains was dictated by that Divinely planted and, among civilized nations, universally prevailing reverence for the body which prompts men to decently dispose of their dead by rites of honorable sepulture. The burning of corpses was a practice common to the nations of antiquity; but Tacitus notes it as characteristic of the Jews that they preferred interment to cremation ('Hist.,' 5:5). The wish to make Sarah's burying-place his own possession has been traced to the instinctive desire that most nations have evinced to lie in ground belonging to themselves (Rosenmüller), to an intention on the part of the patriarch to give a sign of his right and title to the land of Canaan by purchasing a grave in its soil - cf. Isaiah 22:16 (Bush), or simply to anxiety that his dead might not lie unburied (Calvin); but it was more probably due to his strong faith that the land would yet belong to his descendants, which naturally led him to crave a resting-place in the soil with which the hopes of both himself and people were identified (Ainsworth, Bush, Kalisch). That I may bury my dead out of my sight - decay not suffering the lifeless corpse to remain a fit spectacle for grief or love to gaze on.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

“I
אָנֹכִ֖י (’ā·nō·ḵî)
Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 595: I

am a stranger
גֵּר־ (gêr-)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1616: A guest, a foreigner

and an outsider
וְתוֹשָׁ֥ב (wə·ṯō·wō·šāḇ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8453: Resident alien

among you.
עִמָּכֶ֑ם (‘im·mā·ḵem)
Preposition | second person masculine plural
Strong's 5973: With, equally with

Give
תְּנ֨וּ (tə·nū)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

me
לִ֤י (lî)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's Hebrew

a burial
קֶ֙בֶר֙ (qe·ḇer)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6913: A grave, sepulcher

site
אֲחֻזַּת־ (’ă·ḥuz·zaṯ-)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 272: Something seized, a possession

among you
עִמָּכֶ֔ם (‘im·mā·ḵem)
Preposition | second person masculine plural
Strong's 5973: With, equally with

so that I can bury
וְאֶקְבְּרָ֥ה (wə·’eq·bə·rāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect Cohortative - first person common singular
Strong's 6912: To inter

my dead.”
מֵתִ֖י (mê·ṯî)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 4191: To die, to kill

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OT Law: Genesis 23:4 I am a stranger and a foreigner (Gen. Ge Gn)