Generally, when we feel we are being taken advantage of, our instinctive reaction is to resist and stand our ground. But while in many situations this is certainly appropriate and even necessary, Avraham’s exchange with Efron teaches us that sometimes we are best advised to simply say “ok” and move on.
The opening section of Parashat Chayei-Sara tells of Avraham’s purchase of a parcel of land from Efron, a member of the Chittite tribe in Chevron, as a burial site after the death of his wife, Sara. Efron offers the land Avraham requests free of charge, saying, “What is a 400-shekel land between us? Bury your dead!” (23:15).
While the plain meaning of the verse is that Efron offers to give the field to Avraham as a gift, as Rashi and others explain, Chazal understood that Efron was in fact asking – or even demanding – the exorbitant price of 400 silver coins (see the sources cited by Torah Sheleima to this verse, #72). The textual basis for this interpretation is the very next verse, which tells, “Avraham listened to Efron, and Avraham paid Efron the money which he mentioned…” Here we read that Avraham “listened to Efron” (“va-yishma Avraham le-Efron”), which suggests that he granted Efron’s request. This must mean that Efron had requested four hundred silver coins, and thus Chazal understood that although Efron sounded as though he was offering the land free of charge, he was, in fact, stating a price for the sale. The Midrash (Tanchuma, Re’ei 10) says about Efron, “hikhnis ayin tzara be-mammono” – he greedily sought to capitalize on Avraham’s wealth by asking an exorbitant price for the land he wanted.
Avraham’s response becomes especially meaningful in light of Chazal’s harshly critical view of Efron. According to the Midrash, Efron acted with pure greed, as he was well aware of Avraham’s wealth and decided to take advantage of his need for a burial site by asking a high price. Yet, in response to Efron’s avarice, “va-yishma Avraham le-Efron” – Avraham simply accepted the offer, rather than argue or haggle.
Generally, when we feel we are being taken advantage of, our instinctive reaction is to resist and stand our ground. But while in many situations this is certainly appropriate and even necessary, Avraham’s exchange with Efron teaches us that sometimes we are best advised to simply say “ok” and move on.
Not every fight that could be waged is worth waging. Avraham, it seems, assessed his situation and determined that his wisest course of action was simply to pay the full price without further delay. We can consider several different reasons why – perhaps Avraham did not want to further delay Sara’s burial, or he wanted to firmly establish his sterling reputation of integrity and kindness – but regardless, his immediate acquiescence to Efron’s demands is noteworthy and teaches an important lesson. Before instinctively arguing, we need to carefully consider whether the argument indeed serves our best interests, or whether we are better served by acquiescing.