Sarah

Lore & Background

In the biblical narrative, Sarah is the wife of Abraham. She was originally called Sarai. During the narrative of the covenant of circumcision in Genesis 17, God renames Abram and Sarai as Abraham and Sarah, then promises them that they will have a son. According to most modern scholars, both Sarah and Sarai come from the same root SRR, with both meaning 'important woman'. A minority of scholars derive Sarai from the root SRY, meaning 'contend with' or 'withstand', similar to the name Israel. Sarah died at the age of 127. Abraham mourned after her death, and bought a piece of land with a cave near Hebron from Ephron the Hittite in which to bury her. This was the first land owned by the Israelites in Canaan, according to the biblical narrative. The place became known as the Cave of the Patriarchs.

Reader's Guide

Sarah is mentioned alongside Abraham in Isaiah 51:2. The First Epistle of Peter praises Sarah for obeying her husband. She is praised for her faith in the Hebrews 'hall of faith' passage alongside a number of other Old Testament figures. Other New Testament references to Sarah are in Romans and Galatians. In Galatians 4, she and Hagar are used as an allegory of the old and new covenants.

Did You Know?

• Sarah has her feast day on 1 September in the Catholic Church, 19 August in the Coptic Orthodox Church, 20 January in the LCMS, and 12 and 20 December in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
• Sarah gave birth to Isaac at the age of 90, after God promised Abraham that she would have a son.