Original Word: מַכְפֵּלָה
Part of Speech: Proper Name Location
Transliteration: Makpelah
Pronunciation: mak-peh-LAH
Phonetic Spelling: (mak-pay-law')
KJV: Machpelah
NASB: Machpelah
Word Origin: [from H3717 (כָּפַל - folded double)]

1. a fold
2. Makpelah, a place in Israel

Machpelah

From kaphal; a fold; Makpelah, a place in Palestine -- Machpelah.

see HEBREW kaphal

Word Origin
from kaphal
Definition
a place near Hebron
NASB Translation
Machpelah (6).

מַכְמֵּלָה proper name, of a location near Hebron, where the patriarchs and their wives were buried, only in P, always with article; ׳שׂדה אשׁר בַּמּ Genesis 23:17, ׳מְעָדַת הַמּ the cave of Machpelah Genesis 23:9, Genesis 25:9, מְעָרַת׳שְׂדֵה הַמּ Genesis 23:19; Genesis 50:13, ׳מְעָרָה אֲשֶׁר בִּשְׂדֵה הַמּ Genesis 49:30. — compare Buhl^{Geogr. 160, 161.} — (Evidently originally appellative, but meaning dubious; ᵐ5 τό διπλοῦν; according to Thes = part, lot, portion, as Ethiopic ).

Geographic Setting and Identification

Machpelah is situated “facing Mamre—that is, Hebron—in the land of Canaan” (Genesis 23:19), on the western slopes that look over the present-day city of Hebron. By Old Testament times the site comprised both “the cave of Machpelah” and the surrounding field, a distinction consistently noted in Genesis. Later Jewish and Christian tradition locates the spot beneath the monumental enclosure now known as the Sanctuary of the Patriarchs.

Narrative Contexts in Genesis

1. Genesis 23 records Abraham’s negotiated purchase of the property from Ephron the Hittite. The detailed legal protocol—“the field and the cave that is in it” (Genesis 23:17)—emphasizes full title transfer before witnesses at the city gate.
2. Genesis 23:19 presents the inaugural use of the site when “after this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field of Machpelah.”
3. Genesis 25:9 shows Isaac and Ishmael uniting to bury Abraham there, underscoring both the finality of the patriarch’s sojourn and the binding nature of God’s covenant promises.
4. Genesis 49:30–31 has Jacob on his deathbed instructing, “There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah, there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there I buried Leah.”
5. Genesis 50:13 closes the Genesis narrative with Jacob’s sons laying him to rest in the same ancestral tomb, sealing the generational continuity of faith.

Historical Importance

Machpelah is the only parcel of Canaan explicitly purchased and deeded to the patriarchs during their lifetimes. The transaction fixes a tangible, legal foothold in the Promised Land centuries before the Conquest, prefiguring Israel’s ultimate occupation. The Hittite contract formula embedded in Genesis 23 parallels extra-biblical Anatolian legal texts, reflecting authentic second-millennium practice and undergirding the historical reliability of the account.

Theological Themes

1. Covenant and Land: By acquiring Machpelah, Abraham acts in confident anticipation that the whole land will one day belong to his descendants, aligning faith with practical stewardship.
2. Hope of Resurrection: A common burial ground for patriarchs and matriarchs signals enduring family identity beyond death. Hebrews 11:13–16 later notes that they “were still living by faith when they died,” looking forward to a heavenly homeland. The cave stands as a silent witness to that expectation.
3. Unity in the Promise: Isaac and Ishmael, estranged brothers, cooperate to honor their father; Jacob’s twelve sons—whose tribes will form the nation—do the same for him. Machpelah becomes a place where covenant family divisions are temporarily healed in the face of God’s overarching plan.

Typological and Christological Insights

The fully paid-for tomb points ahead to another tomb “in which no one had yet been laid” (John 19:41). Whereas Machpelah bears the remains of Israel’s forebears, the empty tomb of Jesus Christ proclaims victory over death itself, fulfilling the hope epitomized by Machpelah. Abraham’s costly acquisition foreshadows the greater price paid at Calvary to secure an eternal inheritance for all who believe.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Stewardship: Believers are encouraged to act faithfully in the present, making decisions that anticipate God’s future promises.
• Generational Legacy: Christian families can learn to anchor their identity in God’s covenant faithfulness, cultivating burial and memorial practices that testify to resurrection hope.
• Reconciliation: The gatherings at Machpelah model peacemaking among estranged relatives, a ministry imperative affirmed in passages such as Matthew 5:23–24.

Key References

Genesis 23:9; Genesis 23:17; Genesis 23:19; Genesis 25:9; Genesis 49:30; Genesis 50:13

בַּמַּכְפֵּלָ֔ה במכפלה הַמַּכְפֵּלָ֑ה הַמַּכְפֵּלָ֛ה הַמַּכְפֵּלָה֙ המכפלה bam·maḵ·pê·lāh bammachpeLah bammaḵpêlāh ham·maḵ·pê·lāh hammachpeLah hammaḵpêlāhInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts