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It is mentioned as having been purchased by the Hebrew patriarch Abraham as a burial plot for his family after his wife Sarah dies ( Book of Genesis, 23 [1]). He bought a plot of land near Hebron from Ephron the Hittite, the Cave of Mechpelah, for 400 shekels of silver. There he buried his wife Sarah. Later Abraham himself Isaac, Jacob, Rebekah, and Leah were buried there. ( Rachel was buried near Bethlehem). This site is now known as the Tomb of the Patriarchs or Tomb of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs and is a shrine for both JewThe word Jew is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to either a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or a member of the Jewish culture or ethnicity. This article discusses the term as describing an ethnic group; for as and ArabThere are three factors which may assist to varying degrees in determining whether someone is considered Arab or not: Political: whether they live in a country which is a member of the Arab League (or, more vaguely, the Arab World); this definition coverss most of whom are MuslimA Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. The word Muslim means one who submits and implies complete submission to the will of God ( Allah). Muslims believe that nature is itself Islamic, since it follows natural laws placed by God. Thus, a Muslim ss
It is also known to Muslims as the Ibrahimi (Abraham) mosque, and today it is in the mostly Arab populated West Bank city of Hebron. The site has been occupied since the time of Herod the Great by a large structure, since the Arab conquest a mosque under the control of the Muslim Waqf a traditional trust holding land for Islamic religious purposes. During periods such as the Crusades when Christians were in control of the site it has been a church. Despite Israeli occupation of the West Bank, access by Jews remains limited.