The Price Of The Field (Genesis 23:13)

 


Saturday, February 8, 2025


Psalm 89:1-18

Genesis 23

Luke 3:23-38


The Price Of The Field (Genesis 23:13)


Is there anything more Australian than thinking about real estate on a Saturday morning? Our economy runs on it; we are obsessed with it; Saturday mornings are when the suburbs are flooded with agents opening up houses for inspection and selling them off. There is a delicious irony in reading this twenty-third chapter of Genesis on a Saturday morning.


Abraham has finally seen the first part of God’s promise come into existence: he has a son of his own. Now, in looking for a grave suitable for the mother of the nations, he gets a taste of the second: his first official piece of the Promised Land.


There are several suggested interpretations of this passage. One of my favourite is that Ephron, the landowner, is eager to give away this bit of land so that he doesn’t have to pay taxes or upkeep on it anymore. Another is that Ephron didn’t ever intend on giving it away – this is just how a deal is made in the Near East (and one has to admit, there is something a little bit Indiana Jones about their haggling).


It all feels very human. God doesn’t send an angel, or speak from heaven, or appear in anyone’s dreams. We have a grieving widower, looking to pay the ultimate respects for his wife. The reader knows all the sticky ins and outs of their relationship, and how much drama they have gone through as husband and wife. But this is Sarah, Abraham’s wife, and she should be honoured – and Abraham does so.


Perhaps then this is where we should let our reflections lead us this morning. In this little interlude of Sarah’s death and burial, we have a passage of sacred scripture where it would seem that it is a good thing to respect people, especially those whom we love. That, in spite of our many flaws, we should keep in mind that one day we will all die, and when we do, those around us should overlook those flaws and focus on respecting one who was made in God’s image, blessed, and called “very good” by God. We should also do the same for those who go before us; that, as the living left behind, we have a certain duty to those whom we see no longer, and are in God’s nearer presence.


How will the reality of death influence your love towards your neighbour this weekend?


God of the living, who makes every believer a temple of your Holy Spirit: grant us in this world knowledge of your truth, and the world to come, life eternal.

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