to Abraham’s possession in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city.
Parallel translations
- WEB to Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.
- KJV Unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.
- NKJV to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.
- NASB to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who entered the gate of his city.
- NLT It was transferred to Abraham as his permanent possession in the presence of the Hittite elders at the city gate.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The property passes to Abraham as a possession before all the Hittite witnesses at the gate. The public deed makes his ownership secure and permanent.
Overview
The sale is finalized in the presence of the assembled witnesses, guaranteeing an undisputed title. Abraham now legally possesses ground in Canaan, a pledge of the larger inheritance to come. By faith he holds a foothold in the land long before his offspring possess it fully.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Ruth 4:1Meanwhile, Boaz went to the gate and sat down there. Soon the kinsman-redeemer of whom he had spoken came along, and Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down.
- Jer 32:12and I gave this deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of my cousin Hanamel and the witnesses who were signing the purchase agreement and all the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard.
- Gen 34:20So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and addressed the men of their city:
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 23:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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