Part 2A the Life of Abraham continued

Olive Tree understanding Israel series - The Patriarchs the root of the Olive Tree

The Life of Abraham, The Father of the Faith continued

And Isaac the Son of Promise 

We will continue on in this post with the Patriarchs beginning with Abraham.

I will put the post for ease of reading into two parts.

Part 2A will continue on with Abraham’s life, the birth of Isaac, the testing of Abraham by God to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice to God.

Part 2B will focus on Isaac’s life and the birth of Isaac’s sons Jacob and Esau.

• Each post on the patriarchs will begin with the verses from Romans 11.
• These verses remind us that the root of the Olive Tree is holy.
• That is to say that Abraham and the Patriarchs are holy so too are the branches are holy, we are holy because of the root.  
• The reason why the root is holy is because Abraham who along with God is the root of the Olive Tree of Israel.  For God used Abraham to found or begin a nation of people among whom His Son Jesus will be born at the fullness of time.
• We are supported by the root not the root being supported by us.

Romans 11:15-18, 25-32

15 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.

17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;

18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.

26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father's sakes.

29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:

31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Overview – The certainty of the Covenant of the land of Canaan that God promised to the Patriarchs that we now know as Israel.
⦁ Some people may today question the validity of the covenant and the promise of the land of Canaan that God gave to Abraham and his descendants the land of Canaan later became known as Israel named after the Israelites who are the twelve tribes the twelve sons of Jacob aka Israel.  
⦁ They think that this covenant and promise no longer apply.  However God is not like man and He does not change His mind or break a promise or covenant He has made with an uplifted hand in an oath that He will give this land which is His to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Israel) forever as a perpetual inheritance.  
⦁ He gave this covenant and promise of the land and He swore to give it to the descendants of Israel many times in the Bible with an oath.  God takes very seriously the covenant to give the land to Israel and so should we, it is their inheritance and it will one day be our inheritance too – when the Kingdom of God comes to earth at the Second Coming of Jesus - through faith in God’s Son Jesus to whom the land really belongs as it is His inheritance.
⦁ That is why we are studying in depth about the Patriarchs and how God made this covenant with each of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and what is it exactly He promised to give them and do for them and their descendants. 
⦁ Though it is taking a long time to come to fulfilment in its entirety the people of Israel living in the amount of land that was promised them, it will come to pass.  
⦁ It will surely come to pass the amount of land being lived in its entirety by the Israeli people when the Lord Jesus comes to set up His kingdom on earth.  Then the tribes will have their tribal inheritance and any foreigner who decides to live with the tribes in any of the tribal lands and has children they are to also inherit the land like one of the native born Israelis.  This is yet to happen in the not too distant future at the return of the King of Kings.
⦁ Ezekiel 47:13-23 set out the boundaries of the land that the tribes of Israel are going to inherit in the millennial kingdom of Christ.
Ezekiel 47:13-14
 13 Thus says the Lord God: These shall be the boundaries by which you shall divide the land among the twelve tribes of Israel: Joseph shall have two portions.
 14 And you shall divide it equally. I lifted up My hand and swore to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance.
Ezekiel 47:21-23
21So you shall divide this land among you according to the tribes of Israel.
 22 You shall divide it by allotment as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners who reside among you and shall have children born among you. They shall be to you as those born in the country among the children of Israel; they shall inherit with you among the tribes of Israel.
23 In whatever tribe the foreigner resides, there shall you give him his inheritance, says the Lord God.
⦁ To sum up before we go on our journey with Abraham and Isaac, God is not a man that He should lie or a son of man that He should change His mind in regards to the blessings and promises that He makes with His people Israel.
Numbers 23:8-10, 19-21  This is taken from the account of Balaam blessing the people of Israel when Balak wanted him to curse them.  This is his response to this request when he spoke under the unction of the Holy Spirit.  This is God’s attitude to the people of Israel, this is how He sees them.
Numbers 23:8-10, 19-21
8 How can I curse those God has not cursed? Or how can I [violently] denounce those the Lord has not denounced?
9 For from the top of the rocks I see Israel, and from the hills I behold him. Behold, the people [of Israel] shall dwell alone and shall not be reckoned and esteemed among the nations.
 10 Who can count the dust (the descendants) of Jacob and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous [those who are upright and in right standing with God], and let my last end be like theirs!
19 God is not a man, that He should tell or act a lie, neither the son of man, that He should feel repentance or compunction [for what He has promised]. Has He said and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken and shall He not make it good?
 20 You see, I have received His command to bless Israel. He has blessed, and I cannot reverse or qualify it.
 21 [God] has not beheld iniquity in Jacob [for he is forgiven], neither has He seen mischief or perverseness in Israel [for the same reason]. The Lord their God is with Israel and the shout of praise to their King is among the people.

(1)Abraham continued.

1. In these next segments God is giving a promise to Abraham that he will have a son from his own body with Sarah and through this son will the family line continue. It will be through this family line that the nations of the world will be blessed.
2. They will be blessed through the chief descendant (seed) of Abraham who is Jesus Christ, coming through the line of his son Isaac who is the son of promise
3. The birth of Isaac, his weaning, the sending away of Ishmael.
4. I will give the key chapters of Genesis that deal with Abraham and Isaac giving a brief commentary on the key verses within the different chapters that are of importance.

Genesis 17:1-15 can be broken down into the following.

A – Isaac the son of promise to be born to Abram through his wife Sarai.

B – The family line will be continued through this son who will inherit the land.  As he will be the inheritor of the land covenant God made with Abraham.
C - Through this son all the nations of the world will be blest.
D – Names of Abram and Sarai to be changed to Abraham and Sarah
Genesis 17:1-15 
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers." 
 3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God." 
 9 Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant." 
⦁ As seen in the above verses that God again appears to Abram and tells him that He is Almighty God and that Abram is to walk before Him and be blameless, wholehearted, and complete. 
God made the covenant of circumcision with Abram before Isaac was born, ie Isaac was born into the covenant, he was born under the promise God made with Abram which had its outward evidence in circumcision,
⦁ Jesus was also circumcised on the eighth day in accordance with the promise made to Abram that the descendants of Abram were to be circumcised to be eligible to be part of the covenant God made with Abram who was renamed Abraham.
⦁ God also changes Sarai’s name to Sarah.
Please note before the key people in the bible entered a new phase or experience with God in their walk of faith with Him.  
God changes their names, the name reflects the new stage or change of walk that they have with the Lord.  
Only God has the ability to not only change a person’s name but to change that person’s character as well.  Jesus also changed his disciples names he gave Simon a new name Peter and called James and John the sons of thunder.

Genesis 17:15-22 key verses 15-22 to do with the covenant and Sarai’s name change from Sarai to Sarah.
Genesis 17:15-22 
15 God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her." (Key verse)
Sarah was to be blessed and she was no longer going to be barren, she was going to have a son to Abraham in his old age, this son was to be the son of promise.

Genesis 17:19 and 21 These verses are the crux of the Lord’s dealings with Abraham they are the pivotal verses in regards to the land of Canaan being given to the Hebrew people as their eternal inheritance.
Genesis 17:19 and 21
19 Then God said, "Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year." 22 When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.
⦁ The covenant will be between God and Abraham and Abraham’s descendants after him throughout the generations as an everlasting covenant, also the land will be given to Abraham’s posterity after him as an everlasting possession. 
 God also covenanted with Abraham and his descendants that He will be Abraham’s God and a God to his descendants after him.
⦁ This covenant with Isaac will be an everlasting one with him and his descendants after him.

Genesis 21:1 -21 Key events in this chapter.
⦁ Birth of Isaac which means laughter.
⦁ Isaac was circumcised on the eighth day, he was born into the covenant of circumcision. This was the command of God.
⦁ Weaning of Isaac and the sending away of Ishmael. Rest of the chapter is to do with Hagar and Ishmael God’s dealings with Ishmael
⦁ Reaffirmation of Isaac being the one in whom Abraham’s posterity be called.

Genesis 21:8-12
 8 And the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.
9 Now Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking [Isaac].
10 Therefore she said to Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son, for the son of this bondwoman shall not be an heir with my son Isaac.
11 And the thing was very grievous (serious, evil) in Abraham's sight on account of his son [Ishmael].
 12 God said to Abraham, Do not let it seem grievous and evil to you because of the youth and your bondwoman; in all that Sarah has said to you, do what she asks, for in Isaac shall your posterity be called.
 13 And I will make a nation of the son of the bondwoman also, because he is your offspring.

2. God tests Abraham

Genesis 22:1-14

 1 AFTER THESE events, God tested and proved Abraham and said to him, Abraham! And he said, Here I am. 

 2 [God] said, Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah; and offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which I will tell you. 
3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and his son Isaac; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and then began the trip to the place of which God had told him. 
4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 
5 And Abraham said to his servants Settle down and stay here with the donkey, and I and the young man will go yonder and worship and come again to you. 
  6 Then Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on [the shoulders of ] Isaac his son, and he took the fire (the fire pot) in his own hand, and a knife; and the two of them went on together. 
 7 And Isaac said to Abraham, My father! And he said, Here I am, my son. [Isaac] said, See, here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt sacrifice? 
 8 Abraham said, My son, God Himself will provide a lamb for the burnt offering. So the two went on together. 
  9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there; then he laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar on the wood.
 10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand and took hold of the knife to slay his son. 
 11 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham! He answered, Here I am. 
 12 And He said, Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear and revere God, since you have not held back from Me or begrudged giving Me your son, your only son. 
 13 Then Abraham looked up and glanced around, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering and an ascending sacrifice instead of his son! 
 14 So Abraham called the name of that place The Lord Will Provide. And it is said to this day, On the mount of the Lord it will be provided. 

The test of Abraham by God

• God tests Abraham – What would you do if God asked you to surrender a child you had for a long time waited to be born to be given back to Him as a sacrifice?
•  Would you be like Abraham and be willing to do what God asked of him and somehow know that God will raise up the child after you had put him to death?
•  it wasn’t just any ordinary sacrifice, Isaac was to be a burnt offering. 
• Or would you rebel and say not on your life would I do this.

Abraham's response to God's test to sacrifice his son

⦁ Abraham rose to the challenge, he was willing to offer up his only son Isaac as a sacrifice to God He took his son and went the three days journey to the mountain that God had shown him.
⦁ In Isaac was the promise of the future Seed (Christ) salvation for the world.  Abraham believed that God would raise Isaac from the dead should he have to slay him as a sacrifice.  He was willing to give God everything, including the one that was most dear to him; he was not holding anything back from God. 
⦁ Abraham completely trusted and had faith in God and God blessed Abraham for his obedience and willingness to surrender his own son in an act of obedience to God.  Abraham also had a walk with God based on friendship and trust that had been built up over many years that is why he was able to offer up his dearly beloved son to God, knowing and trusting God will be able to raise up Isaac or return him to Abraham from the dead.

The journey to Mt Moriah
⦁ Abraham put the wood of the sacrifice on Isaac’s shoulder, just like the beam of the cross was put on our savior’s shoulder.
⦁ Isaac would have been a young man in the prime of his life probably about the same age as Jesus when He went to the cross which would have been around 33 and half years of age: as the amount of wood for the sacrifice would have been a fair amount more than say a young child would have been able to carry. 
⦁ Also Isaac was a type of our Lord an earthly version of the second person of the Triune Godhead so what happened to him was a reflection of what was going to happen to Jesus Father’s Son.
 Isaac may have been offered on the altar at the time of the Spring barley or wheat harvests at the time that would later become the Passover when the children of Israel were led out of Egypt by Moses that first Passover.  
Isaac’s being offered as a sacrifice was a forerunner of the Great Passover the Lamb of God being offered up for mankind’s sins.  Abraham may have had a vision of the Lord’s crucifixion because Jesus said in John 8:56 that Abraham saw His day and rejoiced in it.
⦁ Isaac asked about the offering and Abraham said that God will provide a lamb for sacrifice which He did when He sent His Son to the cross.
⦁ It was a journey that only father and son could do the servants were left behind and both father and son went on alone to the lonely place of Mt Moriah.  
This is symbolic because only God the Father and God the Son could make that ultimate journey of the cross together.  The Father dealt with sin by punishing His Son by pouring out His wrath against sin with the fire of judgment.   His Son became a burnt offering on the cross.  Jesus took the ultimate punishment by being willing to stand in the gap for mankind and take the punishment for sin.  This is a mystery that only God knows and can understand.
⦁ A point of interest which I had never thought about before and it is plain to see and I read this in a newsletter I received from Australia called Manna International.  The point I am referring to is this.  
That Isaac could not be sacrificed for sin as he was born into sin being a descendant of Adam and therefore not a perfect sacrifice.   For he was not sinless.
⦁ (The next few dot points are from my own understanding)  Only one without sin could die for mankind.  Isaac was born under the first Adam and therefore born into sin.  
⦁ Jesus on the other hand is the second Adam and was not born in sin but was born sinless of the seed of woman.  
He is the second Son of Promise in fact He is The Son of Promise to whom Isaac the first son of promise and his descendants are looking forward to. 
⦁ God was raising up through the first son of promise a family line a nation through which the second Adam / Son of Promise can be born into the family of man through a virgin birth.   
As He was born sinless He alone could take our place by becoming the sacrifice for sin (He became sin who knew no sin) so that we can be set free from the curse of the law which is death through sin.  ref: 2 Corinthians 5:19-21.
⦁ He could then give us eternal life in exchange for our sin as He is the Second Adam a life giving Spirit and the long awaited Son of Promise that was spoken of in the garden of Eden. refs: Romans 5:8-21, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, 45, Genesis 3:15
When God told Eve that from her offspring would come One who would crush satan’s head to destroy the power of sin.
⦁ God did provide a ram and He made several promises to Abraham

3. What does God do in response to Abraham’s obedience to offer up his dearly beloved and only son?
⦁ As Abraham was willing to give God his son in an act of sacrifice, God was willing in years to come to give His own dearly beloved first born Son as a sacrifice for our sins and Jesus was willing to go as the sent One of the Father, to do His bidding to die for our sins.  
⦁ God intervened and told Abraham not to lay his hand on his son that He knows that Abraham fears and reveres God and has not held back his only son from giving Him God his only son.  Abraham looks around and finds a ram caught in a thicket by its horns and uses this in a sacrifice to God. 
⦁ God again promises Abraham to bless him and make his descendants very numerous, his seed will possess the gates of his enemy and through his future descendant (Christ) the nations of the world will be blest.
Genesis 22:15-18
 15 The Angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 
 16 And said, I have sworn by Myself, says the Lord, that since you have done this and have not withheld [from Me] or begrudged [giving Me] your son, your only son, 
 17 In blessing I will bless you and in multiplying I will multiply your descendants like the stars of the heavens and like the sand on the seashore. And your Seed (Heir) will possess the gate of His enemies, 
 18 And in your Seed [Christ] shall all the nations of the earth be blessed and [by Him] bless themselves, because you have heard and obeyed My voice. 

Jesus the prophesied seed of Abraham will possess the gates of His enemies which is hell. ⦁ In Matthew chapter 16 Jesus who is the prophesied seed of Abraham, as his direct descendant He is the One who will possess the gates of His enemies.  
⦁ He makes a statement that on the revelation that Peter spoke forth that He Jesus is the Christ (Messiah) the Son of the living God and on this knowledge the Lord will build His church (temple) that the gates of hell will not prevail against it. 
⦁ Remember He is the head of the church as a High Priest and King and the church is His body, so in essence the gates of hell will not prevail against Him because He is Head over the church and lives in the Church by His Spirit it is His temple, 
The gates of hell or His enemies cannot and will not prevail against the truth that He is the Messiah of Israel the Son of the Living God.
Matthew 16:15-18
 15 He said to them, But who do you [yourselves] say that I am?
 16 Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
  17 Then Jesus answered him, Blessed (happy, fortunate, and[ to be envied) are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. For flesh and blood [men] have not revealed this to you, but My Father Who is in heaven.
 18 And I tell you, you are Peter [Greek, Petros--a large piece of rock], and on this rock [Greek, petra--a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it [or be strong to its detriment or hold out against it]. (The Lord through His church true believers which includes Jewish / Israeli believers will possess the gates of His enemy that is hell and hell will not prevail over His people)
⦁ In Hebrews it is stated that Jesus has broken the power of the devil over people’s lives through the fear of death.  Jesus died that we may live and no longer fear death.
Hebrews 2:13-15
 13 And again He says, My trust and assured reliance and confident hope shall be fixed in Him. And yet again, Here I am, I and the children whom God has given Me.
14 Since, therefore, [these His] children share in flesh and blood [in the physical nature of human beings], He [Himself] in a similar manner partook of the same [nature], that by [going through] death He might bring to nought and make of no effect him who had the power of death—that is, the devil—
15 And also that He might deliver and completely set free all those who through the [haunting] fear of death were held in bondage throughout the whole course of their lives.
⦁ Jesus also tells John in Revelation 1 that He has the keys of death and hell
He is the one who possesses the gates of His enemies He has triumphed over sin and death.
Revelation 1:17-18
17 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as if dead. But He laid His right hand on me and said, Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last,
18 And the Ever-living One [I am living in the eternity of the eternities]. I died, but see, I am alive forevermore; and I possess the keys of death and Hades (the realm of the dead).
⦁ The chapters in Genesis that speak about the promise of God to give Abraham a son from Genesis 17, the birth of Isaac Genesis 21 and the testing of Abraham by God in Genesis 22 these chapters focus on Isaac as the son of promise and the posterity, generations, seed (another greater Son of Promise) that will come from and through him. 
⦁ The future Seed is Jesus in these verses where God tells Abraham that he will be blessed and will become a multitude of people and kings which includes the King of all kings who will make of Israel a great nation and nations will come from him through his son Isaac whom he has with Sarah his wife. 
Jesus being the Promised Seed of Abraham is the reason why Abraham was circumcised at 99 years of age, ready for Isaac to be born as the son of the covenant, between Abraham and God. 
 Centuries later Jesus too was circumcised as a son of the covenant that was made between God and Abraham and therefore He is an inheritor of the land covenant that was made between God and Abraham of which circumcision was the token sign of that covenant.  
Luke 2:21
 21 And at the end of eight days, when [the Baby] was to be circumcised, He was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.
This truth of Jesus being the promised seed that will bless the nations of the earth is seen in Acts 3:25-26 and Acts 5:31
Acts 3:25-26
25 Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.
Acts 5:30-31
30 The God of our forefathers raised up Jesus, Whom you killed by hanging Him on a tree (cross).
31 God exalted Him to His right hand to be Prince and Leader and Savior and Deliverer and Preserver, in order to grant repentance to Israel and to bestow forgiveness and release from sins.

Genesis 22:19-24 Lists the descendants of Abraham’s brother one of them being Isaac’s future wife.  Please keep this in mind when we look at the marriage of Isaac in Part 2B.  As Rebekah will be the one the Lord chooses to be the bride for Isaac.

Genesis 22:19-24 
So Abraham returned to his servants, and they rose up and went with him to Beersheba; there Abraham lived.
 20 Now after these things, it was told Abraham, Milcah has also borne children to your brother Nahor:
 21 Uz the firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram,
 22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.
 23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham's brother. (Rebekah became Isaac’s wife)

4. The passing of Sarah, Abraham’s buries his wife.
Genesis 23:1-20

1 And Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty years old: these were the years of the life of Sarah.

2 And Sarah died in Kirjatharba; the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.

3 And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying,

4 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.

5 And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him,

6 Hear us, my lord: thou art a mighty prince among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury thy dead.

7 And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth.

8 And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,

9 That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field; for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me for a possession of a burying place amongst you.

10 And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth: and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying,

11 Nay, my lord, hear me: the field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee: bury thy dead.

12 And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land.

13 And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me: I will give thee money for the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there.

14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,

15 My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.

16 And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

17 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

18 Unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.

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.

20 And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession of a burying place by the sons of Heth.

⦁ Everything that is included in the Bible is relevant and is important nothing is put into the Bible without a reason, even the death of the wife of the Father of the faith, his descendants and their wives and where they are buried all of these things are relevant. 
⦁ God wanted this burial of Sarah to be included so that there will be no doubt as to where she is buried where the other patriarchs and their wives would be buried and that this cave belongs to the Hebrew people. 
⦁ Though this is being hotly contested by the Muslim people today who say that the cave belongs to them and the patriarchs are theirs not the Jewish people, in other words they are saying the Patriarchs are Muslim(Arabic) not Jewish.
⦁ That is why I have mentioned this chapter of Genesis here as even the place where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah are buried is being challenged as to being part of the Jewish heritage by the Muslim people who now live in this area.  

I will continue on in the next post with part 2 B with the life of Isaac and the birth of his two sons.