Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 23:15 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 15. 15My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Ephron names four hundred shekels of silver and minimizes the dispute between them, inviting Abraham to proceed with the burial. The amount is clear; whether it was fair or inflated is not recoverable with certainty.
Read It With
- Genesis 23:1–20
Read verses 13–18. Abraham insists on paying; Ephron names the amount; Abraham pays it; then the narrator describes the property and witnesses confirming the transfer.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Ephron states the amount that Abraham will pay, while the narrator withholds any market judgment about it.
Read Genesis 23:12–16 together
Why these verses belong together: Abraham insists on payment, Ephron names four hundred shekels, and Abraham weighs the amount.
Verse 12. 12 And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land.
Verse 13. 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.
Verse 14. 14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,
Verse 15. 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.
Verse 16. 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.
Follow the Context
- Sarah dies at Kiriath-arba, that is Hebron, and Abraham mourns and weeps for her (23:1–2).
- Abraham rises from before Sarah's body, identifies himself as a resident outsider, and asks the sons of Heth for a burial possession; they honor him and offer their tombs (23:3–6).
- Abraham bows and asks them to intercede with Ephron for the cave of Machpelah at full price (23:7–9).
- At the city gate before the people, Ephron offers the field and cave; Abraham again bows and insists on paying for the field (23:10–13).
- Ephron names four hundred shekels of silver, Abraham weighs that amount according to the merchant standard, and the field, cave, trees, boundaries, and witnesses are specified (23:14–18).
- Abraham buries Sarah in the cave, and the field and cave are confirmed to him as a burial possession (23:19–20).
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“four hundred shekels of silver”
In plain language: A quantity of silver measured by weight.
Ephron states the amount Abraham then pays.
Why it matters: The text gives the amount but not enough market data to judge it conclusively.
How certain? strong“what is that betwixt me and thee?”
In plain language: What is such an amount between us?
Ephron frames the amount as no obstacle to burial.
Why it matters: The rhetoric does not independently determine fairness.
How certain? strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
Four hundred shekels does not mean four hundred minted coins.
The verse does not prove that the price was fair, exorbitant, extortionate, or a symbolic prediction of later events.
Ephron's wording does not make his private motive certain.
What Remains True
A stated price should be evaluated with evidence rather than with assumptions about either party's character.
How It Can Shape Life
- Ask for clear pricing and reliable comparisons, especially when grief or urgency can limit a person's ability to evaluate an offer.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 23:15's contribution to Genesis 23:1–20. Include why the nearby verses are required, what the verse clearly says, and one conclusion it does not justify.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 23:1–20 — Abraham Buys a Burial Place for SarahSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
Where care is needed
The field's dimensions, comparable transactions, and local market standard are insufficiently known to judge the price.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed wording, death and mourning, negotiation, payment, conveyance, burial, and later family-tomb connections.
Exact location: Genesis 23:1–20 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 25:9–10; 35:19–20, 27–29; 49:29–32; 50:13
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Mourning and weeping roots, ger vetoshav, burial possession, full silver, gate, weighing, merchant standard, boundary, acquisition, and confirmation language.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 23:1–20
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Resident-outsider terminology, prince-of-God idiom, sons-of-Heth caution, sale/conveyance language, gate setting, weighed silver, merchant standard, and property-confirmation wording.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 23 and translator notes 1–44
Open NET Genesis 23 ↗peer reviewed ancient law study extract limited
Purchase of the Cave of Machpelah
Raymond Westbrook
Israel Law Review 6(1), pages 29–38, 1971
Supports: Legal-form complexity, gift/purchase debate, and caution against declaring the 400-shekel amount unfair without adequate comparison evidence.
Exact location: Israel Law Review 6(1), 1971, pages 29–38; Cambridge official extract and metadata
Open source ↗