See note Gen. 13:18^3b.

I.e., the Hittites.

Abraham buried Sarah in the choicest burial place. He cared much more for the place in which he and his descendants would be buried than for his tent as his earthly dwelling (cf. Matt. 8:20; 27:57-60). He was more concerned for the future than for the present. This is because he considered himself a stranger and a sojourner on the earth, looking for a permanent city and a better country (Heb. 11:9-10, 16).

Meaning double, doubling. Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob and Leah, three couples, were all buried in the cave of Machpelah (v. 19; 25:9; 49:29-32; 50:13). The names Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are the components of the divine title of God, who is the God of resurrection (Exo. 3:15; Matt. 22:32 and note Matt. 22:32¹).

Although Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac were living at Beer-sheba (Gen. 21:33), Sarah died and was buried in Hebron, the place of fellowship with God. Hebron is between Beer-sheba on the south and Jerusalem on the north. Thus, Hebron was not only a place of fellowship but also a way that led to Jerusalem. In spiritual significance, the cave of Machpelah in Hebron (v. 19), in which Sarah was buried, is the gateway to the New Jerusalem.

The cave of Machpelah was at the end of a field, in which were many trees (v. 17). A field is a place where life grows; thus, it implies resurrection. Abraham did not bury Sarah in a place of death but in a place of life, a place full of resurrection (1 Cor. 15:36 and note 1 Cor. 15:36¹). This indicates that Abraham believed in the God of resurrection (Rom. 4:17) and was filled with the expectation that his wife would be resurrected and would be in the city which has the foundations, the New Jerusalem. According to Abraham’s realization, Sarah’s death was not a termination but an entering into the gate of resurrection, the gateway into the expected city and the better country (Heb. 11:10, 16).