Abraham: The Covenant

Then Abraham rose vp from the sight of his corps, and talked with the Hittites, saying,

I am a stranger, and a forreiner among you, giue me a possession of buriall with you, that I may burie my dead out of my sight.

Then the Hittites answered Abraham, saying vnto him,

Heare vs, my lorde: thou art a prince of God among vs: in the chiefest of our sepulchres bury thy dead: none of vs shall forbid thee his sepulchre, but thou mayest bury thy dead therein.

Then Abraham stoode vp, and bowed him selfe before the people of the land of the Hittites.

And he communed with them, saying, If it be your minde, that I shall bury my dead out of my sight, heare me, and intreate for me to Ephron the sonne of Zohar,

That he would giue me ye caue of Machpelah, which he hath in the ende of his field: that he would giue it me for as much money as it is worth, for a possession to bury in among you.

(For Ephron dwelt among the Hittites) Then Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of all the Hittites that went in at the gates of his citie, saying,

No, my Lord, heare me: the fielde giue I thee, and the caue, that therein is, I giue it thee: euen in the presence of the sonnes of my people giue I it thee, to bury thy dead.

Then Abraham bowed himselfe before the people of the land,

And spake vnto Ephron in the audience of the people of the countrey, saying, Seeing thou wilt giue it, I pray thee, heare me, I will giue the price of the fielde: receiue it of me, and I will bury my dead there.

Ephron then answered Abraham, saying vnto him,

My lord, hearken vnto me: ye land is worth foure hundreth shekels of siluer: what is that betweene me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.

So Abraham hearkened vnto Ephron, and Abraham weyed to Ephron the siluer, which he had named, in the audience of the Hittites, euen foure hundreth siluer shekels of currant money among marchants.

So the fielde of Ephron which was in Machpelah, and ouer against Mamre, euen the field and the caue that was therein, and all the trees that were in the fielde, which were in all the borders round about, was made sure

Vnto Abraham for a possession, in ye sight of the Hittites, euen of all that went in at the gates of his citie.

And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the caue of the fielde of Machpelah ouer against Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.

Thus the fielde and the caue, that is therein, was made sure vnto Abraham for a possession of buriall by the Hittites.

Nowe Abraham was olde, and striken in yeeres, and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.

Therefore Abraham saide vnto his eldest seruant of his house, which had the rule ouer all that he had, Put nowe thine hand vnder my thigh,

And I will make thee sweare by ye Lord God of the heauen, and God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife vnto my sonne of the daughters of the Canaanites among who I dwel.

But thou shalt go vnto my countrey, and to my kinred, and take a wife vnto my sone Izhak.

And the seruant saide to him, What if the woman will not come with me to this land? shall I bring thy sonne againe vnto the lande from whence thou camest?

To whom Abraham answered, Beware that thou bring not my sonne thither againe.

The Lord God of heauen, who tooke me from my fathers house, and from the land where I was borne, and that spake vnto me, and that sware vnto me, saying, Vnto thy seede wil I giue this land, he shall send his Angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife vnto my sonne from thence.