When thinking about the book of Genesis, we often think of beginnings, the beginning of the world, humanity, the elect people of God. The word “genesis” itself means beginning.
Genesis is also known as the book of promises. Genesis contains three of the major Old Testament covenants: Adamic, Noahic and Abrahamic. In addition to the covenants, God makes dozens of promises to the patriarchs. And then God over and over again reminds the patriarchs of the promises he has made. Yahweh wants these people to expect him to keep his promises. Genesis is by and large a book of beginnings and promises.
Therefore it may seem strange to learn that the book of Genesis lists more burials than any other book in the Bible except for the books of 1 and 2 Kings. For a book so focused on beginnings and expectation, why is there so much text dedicated to death?
Do beginnings, burials and promises have a connection that makes sense according to Yahweh’s work in creation? The simple answer is yes. Genesis has a heavy focus on death because, in light of the resurrection, death is paradoxically connected to the new beginning of resurrection life. Death, in light of resurrection, is a beginning.
Abraham believed in the promises of God and thus burial was important because it revealed the means by which God would honor his promises to the dead.
Burial in Genesis
The book of Genesis contains eight burials and one hope for a future burial. The eight successful burials of Genesis were for Sarah (23), Abraham (25:9), Deborah (35:8), Rachel (35:16–20), Isaac (35:27–29), Jacob (49:29–32), Rebekah (49:31) and Leah (49:31). Out of these eight burials, six of them were buried at Abraham’s tomb in Machpelah. The only two who were not buried there were Deborah and Rachel, who were buried at various sites while Jacob was traveling.
To understand why these burials were so important, let’s start at the promised burial that never happens. Joseph died in Egypt; unlike his father Jacob, he was not immediately taken to Machpelah to be buried. Instead, he was mummified and left in Egypt. He did, however, ask his sons to one day take him to Machpelah to be buried with his fathers (50:24–26). Joseph’s desire to be buried with his fathers was not just fueled by familial piety, but by his faith in the living God. The author of Hebrews describes Abraham and the other heroes of the faith as those who “died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar” (11:13). The patriarchs died in anticipation of the fulfillment of God’s promises. They died confident that even death would not stop Yahweh from keeping his promises to them.
In that litany of the faithful, Joseph’s commended act of faith was his request that his bones be brought back to the promised land (Hebrews 11:22). Joseph’s desire to be buried at Machpelah was a sign of trust in the promises of Yahweh. In fact, all the Genesis burials are signs to the fact that these people believed in the promises of God. The question, then must be asked, “What promises were they holding onto?”
Sarah’s Burial
The answer raised in the last death of Genesis can be found in the very first burial of Genesis, that of Sarah. Being the very first recorded burial it is given more attention than usual; an entire chapter is dedicated to the event.
As the story goes, Sarah died and Abraham wanted to give her a proper burial. So Abraham goes to the Hittites looking for a tomb. The Hittites are happy to accommodate Abraham by gifting him a tomb for his family. However, Abraham refuses to simply be given a tomb, but he wants to buy it. After a short conversation, the Hittites agree and sell the tomb to Abraham. In possession of the tomb, Abraham buries his wife.
Why did Abraham insist on buying the tomb instead of taking it as a gift? Abraham was doing more than just acquiring a resting place for his wife. He was also acquiring the first piece of his inheritance. Upon Abraham’s arrival in Canaan, Yahweh’s first promise to Abraham was to give the land to him (Genesis 12:7). When Abraham bought the tomb in Machpelah, he was also acquiring his first piece of the promised. He insisted on buying the land because he did not want future generations to be confused about the true owner. Thus the firstfruits of God’s promise to Abraham was a tomb.
The focus on burials in Genesis is also a focus on the land promised to Abraham. It is important that Abraham and his decedents are buried at Machpelah because that is the only land they currently possess. Joseph’s desire to be buried in Machpelah is a sign that he still believes in Yahweh’s promise to one day give his family the land of Canaan.
The burials of Genesis are a sign of Abraham’s belief in the resurrection. How would God keep his promise to Abraham after he and the other patriarchs have died? He would raise them from the dead to receive their inheritance.
It is no coincidence that there were eight burials in Genesis. Eight is the number of new beginning, of resurrection (1 Peter 3:20). The eight burials of Genesis point to the hope of the burials: that these people will one day rise again to receive the promises of God.
Jesus and the Tomb
The promise of land begins with the tomb of Machpelah. The first fruits of God’s promise to Abraham is also the vessel in which he and his family will wait for the fulfillment of those promises. It should come as no surprise to us that the first fruits of the resurrection also begin in a tomb. It is in Joseph’s tomb that Jesus will rise from the dead. The beginning of Jesus’ kingdom on earth begins with the victory of his resurrection, which happens in a tomb. This parallels the first land that Abraham claimed as his own.
The filled tomb in Genesis is a reminder of the curse of sin, but it is also a sign of faith. Abraham and his family claimed land in Canaan, land that they believed would one day be their’s. The tomb they were laid in was a statement to the nations that they trusted in God’s faithfulness, even if they did not see receive the promise in their lifetime.
In Genesis, tombs and promises go hand-in-hand. The tomb of Machpelah is a testament to Abraham’s faith. The tomb says that Abraham’s family knows that even death cannot stop God from keeping his promises to his people. Jesus’ empty tomb is the sign of God’s faithfulness. It is the sign that God has not forgotten the promises he made to Abraham, Sarah, and Joseph. The empty tomb points to the fact that one day Abraham and his family will rise from the dead in new bodies to receive the heritage that Yahweh has promised. Abraham’s burial in a tomb was the sign of his faith in God’s promise and it is Jesus’ triumphal exit from a tomb that proves that Abraham’s faith was not wasted. Yahweh has raised the firstborn from the dead, and he will raise each of us.
Matthew Darby is an assisting priest at All Saints Anglican Honolulu.