The importance of a sepulchre

A sepulchre is a burial chamber. In ancient Hebrew practice, it was carved into the rock of a hillside. It is first mentioned as purchased by Abraham for Sarah from Ephron the Hittite (Gen. 23:20). This was the “cave of the field of Machpelah,” where also Abraham and Rebekah and Jacob and Leah were buried (79:29-32). In Acts 7:16 it is said that Jacob was “laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of Sychem.”

The term sepulchre is most often used for the sepulchral burial site of Jesus in Jerusalem, over which the Church of the Holy Sepulchre has been erected. The Church is the holiest Christian site in Jerusalem and Israel. The Church contains the Chapel of Golgotha and three Stations of the Cross, as well as the place of Jesus Christ’s burial and resurrection. The church stands in the place where a temple dedicated to Aphrodite used to stand. This temple was built during the Roman Empire’s time on the location where Christ was crucified and buried, so it will be forgotten. Ironically, the building of the temple actually preserved the exact burial site’s location.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre ornament by Ancient Ties Inc.