Genesis 25:9, commentary and pictures

Abraham was buried by his sons Isaac and Ishmael in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, near Mamre in Canaan. His burial was not in the same place as his people, for his father Terah was buried in Haran in Mesopotamia and his earlier ancestors were buried in Chaldea, far away. The burial belongs to the passage in Genesis 25:1-11 that records Abraham's later family, his death, and his burial, placing his death about 1821 B.C.

After this account, the narrative traces Ishmael's descendants and records Ishmael's death at age 137, before turning to the birth of Isaac and Rebekah's sons Esau and Jacob. The burial falls within the account of God's providential dealings with Abraham's family to preserve the chosen line through which the promised Seed would come. It belongs to the continuing story of Abraham and his family showing his gradual development of faith, standing with the account of Isaac and his two sons in their defects leading to Jacob's victory which made him Israel, prevailer with God.

The burial places Isaac and Ishmael together, marking what was probably their last meeting. At their father's tomb Ishmael was nearly ninety years old and in the height of his prosperity as a bold, adventurous desert prince and early leader among the mixed peoples of Arabia, standing with his armed retainers around him, while Isaac was the peaceful shepherd who was heir to Abraham's wealth and head over hundreds of trained servants born in his house, so that Ishmael felt no need to envy Isaac despite Isaac's inheritance and position. The burial shows children honoring their father by burying him, proving that the fifth commandment's duty to honor parents governed the patriarchs and was observed before the Ten Commandments were given at Sinai, as also seen in the burial of Isaac by his children.