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Genesis tells how Abraham buys a field with its cave from the Hittites for 400 silver pieces to bury Sarah. Jubilees retells this narrative, calling the site the double cave and describing the negotiation as a test of Abraham.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Genesis 23:19
Hebrew Bible
17 So Abraham secured Ephron’s field in Machpelah, next to Mamre, including the field, the cave that was in it, and all the trees that were in the field and all around its border, 18 as his property in the presence of the sons of Heth before all who entered the gate of Ephron’s city. 19 After this Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah next to Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So Abraham secured the field and the cave that was in it as a burial site from the sons of Heth.
Date: 750–400 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Jubilees 19:5
Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions
4 For in patience of spirit he conversed with the children of Heth, to the intent that they should give him a place in which to bury his dead. 5 And the Lord gave him grace before all who saw him, and he entreated in gentleness the sons of Heth, and they gave him the land of the double cave opposite Mamre, that is Hebron, for four hundred pieces of silver. 6 And they entreated him saying, We shall give it to you for nothing; but he would not take it from their hands for nothing, for he gave the price of the place, the money in full, and he bowed down before them twice, and after this he buried his dead in the double cave.
Date: 170–125 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
... Very little of the detailed account remains in Jubilees, not even the courteous, honorific titles the Hittites use in addressing Abraham or the name of the man who sold the field—Ephron the Hittite. There are several instances in which Jubilees mentions just one time what Genesis, which distinguishes the stages in the negotiation, expresses twice. 19:4: He spoke with the Hittites . . . so that they would give him a place in which to bury his dead: see Genesis 23:3-4 (with the Hittites), 8-9 and 13 (with Ephron). 19:5: The verse takes up elements from Genesis 23:9, 11, 19 (Machpelah), 15-16 (four hundred shekels of silver). 19:6: They wanted to give it to Abraham free of charge (Genesis 23:6, 11), but he insisted on paying the full price (verses 9, 13). He bowed twice (Genesis 23:7, 12). The writer does reproduce the fact that Abraham approached the Hittites in a patient fashion to acquire a burial plot, and he was able to infer from Genesis that they received him favorably. Jubilees 19:5 describes the burial plot in language drawn from Genesis 23:19. ...
James C. VanderKam, Jubilees 1: A Commentary on the Book of Jubilees Chapters 1–21 (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2018), 587–589.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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