Chapter 25
Other Children of Abraham.[a] 1 Abraham took another wife named Keturah. 2 She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. Dedan was the father of the Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All of these were the sons of Keturah.
5 Abraham gave all his possessions to Isaac. 6 As for the sons of the concubines whom Abraham had, he gave them gifts and, while he was still alive, sent them far away from his son Isaac eastward, to live in the east country.
Death of Abraham.[b] 7 Abraham lived for one hundred and seventy-five years. 8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age after a full life; and he was reunited with his ancestors. 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah in the field of Ephron, the son of Zohar the Hittite, near Mamre. 10 This was the field that he had bought from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried near his wife Sarah. 11 After the death of Abraham, God blessed his son Isaac, and Isaac lived near the Beer-lahai-roi.
12 Descendants and Death of Ishmael.[c] These are the descendants of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, whose mother was Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s slave.
13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael in order of birth. The firstborn of Ishmael was Nebaioth. He then had Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These are the Ishmaelites and these are their names by their towns and their camps. They were twelve princes, each a prince of his own tribe. 17 Ishmael lived for one hundred and seven years. He then died and was reunited with his ancestors. 18 They lived between Havilah and Shur (which lies on the side of the border of Egypt in the direction of Asshur), and each of them held his own[d] against all his kin.
Jacob, the Sinner Who Redeems Himself[e]
Isaac’s Two Sons.[f] These are the descendants of Isaac, the son of Abraham.Abraham was the father of Isaac. 20 Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram and the sister of Laban the Aramean.
21 Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, since she was barren. The Lord heard him, and thus his wife became pregnant. 22 The sons fought with each other in the womb, and she exclaimed, “If this is so, why go on living?” She went to consult the Lord. 23 The Lord answered her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples born of you shall be divided.
One shall be stronger than the other,
and the older shall serve the younger.”
24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twins in her womb. 25 The firstborn was red and totally covered with hair. So he was named Esau. 26 Immediately afterward, his brother was born, holding on to the heel of Esau. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.
27 The children grew up, and Esau became an expert hunter, a man who lived in the open country. Jacob, on the other hand, was a quiet man, who stayed among the tents. 28 Isaac loved Esau, for he enjoyed the taste of wild game, while Rebekah loved Jacob.
29 One day Jacob cooked a lentil stew. Esau came in from the countryside and he was exhausted. 30 He said to Jacob, “Let me eat a little of that red soup, for I am famished.” (This is why he was also called Edom.[g])
31 Jacob said, “First sell me your rights as firstborn.”
32 Esau answered, “I am about to die; what good will my rights as firstborn be?” 33 Jacob told him, “Swear it right now.” He swore an oath and sold his rights as firstborn to Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil soup. He ate and drank. Then he got up and left. This is how Esau despised his birthright.
Footnotes
- Genesis 25:1 The description shows that the other peoples are not without ties to the patriarch Abraham. In the future, the Midianites and the Sabeans will be named as representatives of pagans who convert (Ps 72:10; Isa 60:6).
- Genesis 25:7 This short account is from the Priestly tradition.
- Genesis 25:12 This summary in the Priestly style is an appendix that completes the story of Abraham; from this moment on, the line of Ishmael disappears from the biblical history. According to God’s promises, the descendants of Hagar are numerous and scattered. The names of the sons of Ishmael are the names of twelve nomadic tribes of northern Arabia; they show a demographic strength equal to that of the twelve tribes of Israel, for in this area they are heirs of the same blessing.
- Genesis 25:18 Held his own: this may also be translated “in opposition to,” thus showing the fulfillment of the prediction found in Gen 16:12.
- Genesis 25:19 In the structure of Genesis the story of Isaac is absorbed into the more distinctive stories of his father Abraham and his son Jacob. The only free-standing section is chapter 26, which has for its subject the handing on to Isaac of the divine promises and blessings. We hear in the chapter an echo of the religious spirit of Abraham (25:21; 26:25; 28:1-4), and we observe also Isaac’s weakness in preferring one son to the other (25:28). On the whole, the information given in Genesis is too sparse to give us a knowledge of Isaac’s personality.
19
Jacob, the immediate founder of the twelve tribes of Israel, will be the outward sign of their unity. In his story, there are, first, two distinct cycles concerning his years as a young man: a Palestinian cycle involving Jacob and Esau (25:19-34; then chs. 27–28; later, 30–31) and a Mesopotamian cycle involving Jacob and Laban, which is inserted into the former. These are followed by the story of Jacob and his sons (from ch. 34 to the end of the Book), with an insert on the posterity of Esau (ch. 36). But within this third cycle the figure of Joseph occupies a predominant place; the events involving him form a story apart (chs. 37, 39–47), although at the end his story and that of the family merge. - Genesis 25:19 The Lord, faithful to his word, grants Rebekah, who like Sarah is barren, the gift of motherhood. Twins are born and God prefers the younger and makes him the heir of the promise (see Mal 1:2-3; Rom 9:10-16). The point here is not personal salvation but a mission to be carried out in this life for the formation of God’s people. The free choices of the Lord do not mean any injustice toward those who are not called.
- Genesis 25:30 Edom means “red” in Hebrew.