Genesis 25

Other Descendants of Abraham

25Abraham married another wife, whose name was Keturah. ²She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. ³Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan, and the descendants of Dedan were the Asshurim, the Letushim, and the Leummim. ⁴The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were Keturah’s descendants.

⁵Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac; ⁶but while he was still alive, he gave presents to the sons his other wives had borne him. Then he sent these sons to the land of the East, away from his son Isaac.

The Death and Burial of Abraham

^7–8Abraham died at the ripe old age of 175. ⁹His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in Machpelah Cave, in the field east of Mamre that had belonged to Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite. ^10*It was the field that Abraham had bought from the Hittites; both Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried there. ¹¹After the death of Abraham, God blessed his son Isaac, who lived near “The Well of the Living One who Sees Me”.

The Descendants of Ishmael

¹²Ishmael, whom Hagar, the Egyptian slave of Sarah, bore to Abraham, ¹³had the following sons, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, ¹⁴Mishma, Dumah, Massa, ¹⁵Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. ¹⁶They were the ancestors of twelve tribes, and their names were given to their villages and camping places. ¹⁷Ishmael was 137 years old when he died. ¹⁸The descendants of Ishmael lived in the territory between Havilah and Shur, to the east of Egypt on the way to Assyria. They lived apart from the other descendants of Abraham.

The Birth of Esau and Jacob

¹⁹This is the story of Abraham’s son Isaac. ²⁰Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebecca, the daughter of Bethuel (an Aramean from Mesopotamia) and sister of Laban. ²¹Because Rebecca had no children, Isaac prayed to the Lord for her. The Lord answered his prayer, and Rebecca became pregnant. ²²She was going to have twins, and before they were born, they struggled against each other in her womb. She said, “Why should something like this happen to me?” So she went to ask the Lord for an answer.

^23*The Lord said to her,

“Two nations are within you;

You will give birth to two rival peoples.

One will be stronger than the other;

The older will serve the younger.”

²⁴The time came for her to give birth, and she had twin sons. ²⁵The first one was reddish, and his skin was like a hairy robe, so he was named Esau.^{f 26}The second one was born holding on tightly to the heel of Esau, so he was named Jacob.^g Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.

Esau Sells His Rights as the First-Born Son

²⁷The boys grew up, and Esau became a skilled hunter, a man who loved the outdoor life, but Jacob was a quiet man who stayed at home. ²⁸Isaac preferred Esau, because he enjoyed eating the animals Esau killed, but Rebecca preferred Jacob.

²⁹One day while Jacob was cooking some bean soup, Esau came in from hunting. He was hungry ³⁰and said to Jacob, “I’m starving; give me some of that red stuff.” (That is why he was called Edom.)^h

³¹Jacob answered, “I will give it to you if you give me your rights as the firstborn son.”

³²Esau said, “All right! I am about to die; what good will my rights do me then?”

^33*Jacob answered, “First make a vow that you will give me your rights.”

Esau made the vow and gave his rights to Jacob. ³⁴Then Jacob gave him some bread and some of the soup. He ate and drank and then got up and left. That was all Esau cared about his rights as the firstborn son.