Genesis chapter 23

So Sarah dies at the age of 127 and Abraham buys a plot of land from Ephron so he can bury his wife.

This is all about tradition in the Middle East, about how Ephron was offering this as a gift but in reality, was bargaining with Abraham for the land.  Abraham was aware of this, and insisted on buying the land and did not haggle with the price of 400 pieces of silver, even though it was probably twice the going rate and Ephron was probably expecting to agree a lower price.

This shows several things:

1. Abraham didn't care what he paid.  Sarah was his wife and his half sister, the mother of Isaac, and he was not going to haggle over the cost of her burial plot.  He and Sarah had been together for many years, and he needed to get her buried, to show respect, to mourn, to demonstrate his love for her and to do that he would pay any price.

2. Whilst Sarah had just died, and it was a hot climate so Abraham needed to get her buried quickly, I think the lack of haggling was because he was upset over her death and mourning her.  When we lose someone, you go numb.  I know when I lost the baby, it was like I was frozen, all I could think about was what had happened, and yet life goes on, you have to go to work, pay the bills, eat, drink, and so on.  I can imagine Abraham just wanting to get the land and not caring how much he paid because he was grieving over Sarah.  He was just going through the motions.

3. Abraham was a rich man, and whilst 400 pieces of silver was a high price, definitely far more than the market price, he had the means to pay it.

4. Whilst Abraham was a foreigner living in the land, they knew him, and they knew the sort of person he was.  He had built up a reputation and he is referred to in this chapter as "an honoured prince." 

People will watch us, especially when they know we are Christians, and will look to see if we are living up to Jesus Christ.  My family actually watches me, and comments on the things I do and say if they think I am not behaving as a Christian should.  There was one occasion when I called my daughter down for tea, telling her that her tea was going cold as it was on the table.  In reality, I had just dished it up and had not yet put her plate on the table, so one of my sons jokingly asked me if I had lied to my daughter by telling her something that wasn't true. I had to admit he was right, even though I did it for the right reasons, to get her to come down to tea before it went cold.  It certainly keeps me on my toes to know they are watching me.  I do not want my behaviour, my attitude to put them off Christianity, but to draw them closer to God.