And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,
And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,
And Ephron answereth Abraham, saying to him,
And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him,
Genesis — The book of beginnings. Creation, fall, flood, covenant, election, providence — eleven generational seams stitch one unbroken story from heaven-and-earth to a coffin in Egypt.
Voices2
Ephron answered, Nay, my lord, &c.--Here is a great show of generosity, but it was only a show; for while Abraham wanted only the cave, he joins "the field and the cave"; and though he offered them both as free gifts, he, of course, expected some costly presents in return, without which, he would not have been satisfied.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871reformed
Great courtesy, and obligingness to his friend and neighbour. Ephron was not jealous of Abraham as a resident foreigner, nor envious at him as a man likely to thrive and grow rich. He bore him no ill-will for his singularity in religion, but was much kinder to him than most people now-a-days are to their own brothers: What is that between me and thee?
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1710puritan
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread — the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
