"ויקם אברהם מעל פני מתו וידבר אל בני חת לאמר: גר ותושב אנכי עמכם תנו לי אחוזת קבר עמכם ואקברה את מתי מלפני."

“And Avraham rose from before his dead (Sarah) and spoke to the Sons of Chet saying: ‘I am a stranger and a resident with you; give me a possession of a burial place with you that I might bury my dead from before me.”

The Stranger and the Resident in the Jewish Community

Avraham describes himself as a “ger vetoshav”. There seems to be an internal contradiction in this expression as “ger” literally means alien and “toshav” means resident”. Shem Olam (Vayikra 25:23) points out that the combined use of these two terms appears in two forms in the Torah: 1) “ger vetoshav” (גר ותושב), and 2) “ger toshav” (גר תושב). These expressions appear infrequently in the Torah, but are utilized three times in chapter 25 of Vayikra. Let us examine these three instances:

"וכי תשיג יד גר ותושב עמך ומך אחיך עמך ונמכר לגר תושב עמך…" (ויקרא כה:מז)

“And if a stranger and resident with you grows wealthy, and your brother who dwells by him grows poor, and sells himself to the stranger who resides with you …” (Vayikra 25:47)

In this verse, the two forms of the phrase are equated. This would indicate that the phrase “ger vetoshav” (גר ותושב) is in fact one adjective meaning a stranger who is a resident. This is the position expressed by Rashi and Shem Olam:

רש"י: גר והוא תושב … וסופו מוכיח ונמכר לגר תושב.

Rashi: A stranger and he is a resident … and the end of the verse proves it by its use of the term “and he sold himself to a stranger who is a resident (“ger toshav').

שם עולם: לפעמים הוי"ו היא וי"ו החיבור והוא שם תואר אחד ואז לפעמים הוראתו "גר תושב" – כמו בלא וי"ו – כמו למטה פסוק מז. (ויקרא כה:כג)

Shem Olam: Sometimes the “vav” is a connecting “vav” and it is one adjective. Then its meaning is “Rashi” – as if it has no “vav” – as below in verse 47.

This form is described by E.Z. Melamed as a hendiadys, an idiom composed of two words in which one defines the other. Although this seems to be the construction of the phrase in this verse, Shem Olam suggests that it has a different meaning in verse 25:35:

"וכי ימוך אחיך ומטה ידו עמך והחזקת בו גר ותושב וחי עמך."

“And if your brother grows poor with you and his means fail, you shall support him, though he be a stranger and a resident, that he may live with you.”

According to Shem Olam, this verse is referring to two different people, the “ger” and the “toshav”:

שם עולם: לפעמים הוי"ו הוא וי"ו לחלק כאמור גר או תושב, ואז גר הוא גר צדק ותושב הוא גר תושב.

Shem Olam: Sometimes the “vav” is a “vav” that distinguishes, in the sense of a “ger” or a “toshav”. Then, in this instance, “ger” would refer to a sincere convert, and “toshav” would refer to a stranger who resides with you.

In Rashi's commentary on this verse, he seems to agree with the interpretation of Shem Olam regarding the meaning of the “vav” that connects the two words:

רש"י: אף אם הוא גר או תושב.

Rashi: Whether he is a “ger” or a “toshav”.

Thus, according to both interpretations, we are commanded to lend support to a person who is in the category of “ger” (be it a convert or a stranger) and to one who resides among us as a “toshav”. Interestingly, in his commentary on the Gemara (Avodah Zarah 20a), Rashi seems to interpret the expression in verse 25:35 as “ger vetoshav” as he does in verse 25:47. In that commentary, he also gives a precise definition of the status of the “Rashi”:

רש"י: גר תושב שקיבל עליו שבע מצוות שנצטוו בני נח ונבלה מותרת לו ואתה מצווה להחיותו דכתיב (ויקרא כה:לה) גר ותושב וחי עמך.

Rashi: A “Rashi” is one who accepts upon himself the seven mitzvot that were commanded to Noah, but is permitted to eat meat that has not been properly slaughtered. And you are commanded to sustain him as it is written (Vayikra 25:35): “though he be a ‘ger vetoshav', that he may live with you.”

The Jubilee Year – The Jewish People as Strangers and Residents

The previous two verses in Vayikra that we have analyzed, deal with the status of someone who was formerly not part of the community, but who now is in some way connected. The third verse in Vayikra that utilizes the phrase “ger vetoshav”, however, deals with the status of Bnai Yisrael with regard to the
"והארץ לא תמכר לצמתת כי לי הארץ כי גרים ותושבים אתם עמדי." (ויקרא כה:כג)

“And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine (God's), and you are strangers and residents with me.” (Vayikra 25:23)

This verse relates to the law of the Jubilee Year in which all land returns to its original owner. It is based on the principle that the land actually belongs to God. As such, a Jew living in Israel is considered a “ger vetoshav” vis-a-vis God. Here, the context suggests that the expression “ger vetoshav” refers to a stranger who lives with someone else, as in verse 25:47. Interestingly, the context also suggests that the “ger vetoshav” does not have the right of land acquisition.

Avraham as a Stranger and a Resident Among Bnai Chet

In interpreting the meaning of the expression “ger vetoshav” in the case of Avraham, Shem Olam understands the “vav” as a connection, but views each expression as a different adjective describing Avraham.

ולפעמים הוראתו … "גר" מארץ אחרת ודעתו להשתקע בארץ אשר בא שמה וגם אנשי הארץ אינם מחזיקים אותו כגר כי אם מקבלים אותו כאחד התושבים כמו באברהם: "גר ותושב אנכי."

And sometimes its meaning is … “a stranger” who comes from another land, and his intention is to settle in the land to which he has come, and the local residents do not consider him a “stranger”, but accept him as one of the residents, as Avraham: “I am a stranger and a resident among you.”

Perhaps Shem Olam is drawn to this interpretation because there is no previous indication in the text that Avraham took up permanent residence among the Bnai Chet. Thus, the first term “ger” refers to his past status, and the term “toshav” refers to his future desired status.

Rashi gives two interpretations to the term “ger vetoshav” as it relates to Avraham (Bereshit 23:4):

גר ותושב אנכי עמכם: "גר" מארץ אחרת ונתיישבתי עמכם, ומדרש אגדה: אם תרצו הריני גר ואם לאו אהיה תושב ואטלנה מן הדין שאמר לי הקב"ה: "לזרעך אתן את הארץ הזאת".

I am a “stranger and a resident” among you: “a stranger” from another land and I have settled among you; And Midrash Aggadah: If you wish, consider me a stranger, and if not, I will be a resident and take it by legal right, for God said to me: “To your descendants will I give this land.”

In his first explanation, Rashi interprets “ger vetoshav” as “Rashi”, as he does in his commentary on Vayikra 25:47 and on the Gemara Avodah Zarah. In his second interpretation, based on the Midrash, the “vav” in “ger vetoshav” means “or” and comes as a distinguisher between two possibilities, similar to his commentary on Vayikra 25:35. In this case, it differentiates between Avraham's status in the eyes of Bnai Chet and Avraham's status in the eyes of God. Avraham hopes that as a stranger, the Bnai Chet will deal kindly with him and will allow him to use ownerless land to bury his wife. If not, however, he is prepared to exercise his legal right to the land based on his status as its rightful owner in the eyes of God.

The Status of the Stranger and the Resident

Avraham's status is a crucial point in this story. The application of the terminology “ger vetoshav” to the law of the Jubilee Year which forbids the acquisition of land in perpetuity is an indication that the “ger vetoshav” can not legally acquire property. This is consistent with the analysis of Melamed, who claims, based on a close reading of the text, that in fact Avraham had to receive the land through a legal fiction as a gift from Bnai Chet.

לגר ותושב לא היתה זכות לקנות קרקע, אף לא לקבורה…אברהם ידע את החוק הזה שנהג גם בימיו. במקומות שמקח וממכר בין שני אנשים משבטים שונים היה אסור, אפשר היה להערים על החוק בדרכים שונות ואחת מהם נתינת קרקע "במתנה".

A “ger vetoshav” was not allowed to buy land, even for burial … Avraham knew this law which was in force even during time. In places where land transactions between people of different tribes was forbidden, it was possible to circumvent the law in various ways including the giving of the land as a “gift”.

Melamed's analysis is based on the fact that throughout this section, the word “give” (נתן) is used rather than terms dealing with commerce. In fact, various forms of this word are used seven times during the negotiations. Melamed claims that Avraham gave the money to Ephron, but the field and the cave were transferred to Avraham by the Bnai Chet. As such, the field was not technically purchased from Ephron, but was given as a gift by Bnai Chet. This is supported by verse 23:20:

"ויקם השדה והמערה אשר בו לאברהם לאחוזת קבר מאת בני חת."

“And the field and the cave that is in it were transferred to Avraham as a possession for a burial place by the Sons of Chet.”

Thus, Avraham, the intended heir of the land, was unable through normal legal channels to even purchase a small burial plot for his wife, and had to rely on the kindness of Bnai Chet. This irony, which is accented in the second interpretation of Rashi, explains why some commentators view the purchase of the Cave of Machpelah as one of the ten trials of Avraham.