‘And Sarah died in Kiriath Arba (the same is Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.'
We are not told why Sarah happened to be in Hebron. It had previously been a place occupied by the family tribe and a sanctuary had been established there (Genesis 13:18; Genesis 14:13; Genesis 18:1 with Genesis 23:19). She may well have been visiting connections there, possibly with the purpose of maintaining the old alliances.
“Came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.” The mourning rites associated with death were considered very important and paid mourners would often be employed (compare Genesis 50:10. See Jeremiah 9:17 on). The phrase thus refers to Abraham as coming to prepare for her funeral. We need not however doubt that it was an intensely personal moment for him.
“Kiriath Arba”. This was an earlier name for Hebron and means ‘the city of four' or ‘the city of Arba' (see Joshua 14:15). The Anakim Arba may have taken his name from the city. It is stressed that it is in the land of Canaan, the promised land.