272 SHAUL BAR buried and Jacob erected a pillar over her grave. This leaves us wondering if burial under a tree was less desirable or whether no tree was available in Rachel’s case. Examination of burial sites and custom reveals that in ancient times important people were buried in family tombs. The patriarchs and matriarchs, except for Rachel, were all buried in the cave of Machpelah. Jacob’s body was brought back to Canaan from Egypt to be interred there (Gen 50,13). Later, in the period of the Judges and the early monarchy, we read that the dead were buried on their family estates and in tombs. Indeed the Bible uses the biblical idiom “lie down with one’s father ” (Gen 47,30; Deut 31,16; 2 Sam 7,12; 35 times in 1–2 Kgs and 2 Chr) ; it is usually meant a peaceful death. In contrast the Bible indicates that kings that were wicked were not buried with their ancestors 8. In addition, for kings that were murdered there is no information about their burial 9. The Prophet Uriah the son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim was extradited from Egypt by King Jehoiakim and put to the sword (Jer 26, 23) for seconding Jeremiah’s political opposition to the king’s anti- Babylonian policy. According to the second part of the verse, the unfortunate prophet’s corpse was tossed negligently (Èlçyw has the connotation of discarding something unwanted or repulsive) into a mass paupers’ grave. Jehoiakim did not allow Uriah to be buried in his ancestral tomb, thereby disgracing him after his death as well. Uriah was put to the sword, as prescribed by the law concerning those who defy the king. While, in 2 Kings 23,6 we read that King Josiah burned the image of Asherah at wadi Kidron, beat it to dust and threw the dust of it upon the graves of the common people. Wealthy people were buried in caves hollowed out of hillsides: whereas the poor people were buried in a common graveyard, essentially a large pit. According to Ra d ak , Josiah threw the dust on the graves of the people who worshiped the idols in order to humiliate them. Indeed in the parallel text 2 Chr 34,4 we read: “and strewed it onto graves of those who had sacrifice to them”. Deborah was Rebekah’s nurse, from childhood, acted as her guardian and was a professional crier. Even though she was part of the family, only the patriarchs and matriarchs were buried in the family tombs, the cave of Macheplah. Because of her lower class status she was buried under the tree like the common people who were buried in common grave yard. As See for example 2 Kgs 21,18 where Manasseh was buried “in the garden 8 of his house, in the garden of Uzza,” as was his son Amon (2 Kgs 21,26). See for example: Nadab, Elah, Zechariah, Shallum, Pekahiah, Pekah (1 9 Kgs 15,28; 16,10; 2 Kgs 15,10.14.25.30).