Bible Strands
Genesis 23:17
So Ephron’s field at Machpelah near Mamre, the cave that was in it, and all the trees within the boundaries of the field were deeded over
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records the finalization of Abraham’s purchase from Ephron the Hittite, witnessed by the city elders at the gate. This statement closes the immediate transaction after Abraham pays the silver and before the legal deed is formally registered.
The words — וַיָּקָם (va.ya.kom) literally means “it was confirmed” or “it was established,” marking the legal ratification of the sale. The phrase שְׂדֵה עֶפְרוֹן (sede. Ephron) specifies the exact property being transferred by deed.
The thread — The same field and cave are identified as the family burial site in Genesis 25:9 and Genesis 50:13, while the legal transfer is restated in Genesis 23:20.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to see that covenant promises are secured through tangible, publicly witnessed transactions rather than abstract assurances. A reader must acknowledge that physical possession and legal documentation are the historical means by which God’s word takes root.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure
Cross-references
- Genesis 25:9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite.
- Genesis 50:13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site.
- Genesis 23:20 So the field and its cave were deeded by the Hittites to Abraham as a burial site.
- Genesis 49:29 Then Jacob instructed them, “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite.
- Acts 7:16 Their bones were carried back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a price he paid in silver.
- Ruth 4:7 Now in former times in Israel, concerning the redemption or exchange of property, to make any matter legally binding a man would remove his sandal and give it to the other party, and this was a confirmation in Israel.
- Psalms 112:5 It is well with the man who is generous and lends freely, whose affairs are guided by justice.
- Jeremiah 32:7 Behold! Hanamel, the son of your uncle Shallum, is coming to you to say, ‘Buy for yourself my field in Anathoth, for you have the right of redemption to buy it.’
- Matthew 10:16 Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
- Ephesians 5:15 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,