ABRAHAM SERIES: MORE SONS AND ABRAHAM’S DEATH

In my Abraham blog series, which begins in Genesis 11, I have covered the life of Abraham from age seventy-five to now, in Genesis 25, where he is one hundred and seventy-five years old. The blog began when Abraham was a productive senior, and it concludes with this last blog, marking the end of his life story.

This twenty-fifth chapter of Genesis opens with the revelation that Abraham took another wife named Keturah, who bore him six sons. The scriptures do not state the age of Abraham when this marriage occurred; however, he lived for thirty-eight years after the death of Sarah, and so I assume the marriage took place somewhere in that time period. For Abraham to have the ability to have more children is a testament to the power and favor of God in permitting an older man to be fruitful. The scripture reveals that Abraham gave gifts to these sons and sent them to live eastward, in the east country, which may explain why they were not present to participate in his burial. Moreover, upon Abraham’s death, Ishmael and Isaac dutifully came together to bury him, and as I previously stated, missing from the burial were the six sons of Keturah. It is also important to note that the scriptures do not record Ishmael or Isaac mourning over the death of Abraham. 

Abraham’s story ends by informing readers of his lineage. His first son, Ishmael, whom he had with Hagar, the Egyptian handmaiden of Sarah, lived to be a hundred thirty-seven years old. He had twelve sons who were described as princes over nations that resided in their castles and towns from Havilah to Shur. This confirms the words of God to Abraham in Genesis 17 concerning him becoming the father of many nations, as seen in the numerous Arab nations that originated from Ishmael and Keturah’s sons. Also, in chapter seventeen, He told Abraham that Isaac was the heir of the covenant promise, and this chapter states that Isaac was the heir of Abraham’s estate.

Abraham’s story ends in verse eighteen, and then in verse nineteen of this chapter, the story of Isaac’s family begins with the proclamation of his marriage to Rebekah.

Here are my final nuggets from the story of Abraham:

With the help of God, you can be fruitful in your old age.

God is faithful to fulfill every promise that He makes to you.

The impact you have made on your children will be evident after your passing.

Children who live far away may not be able to travel the distance to attend their parents’ burial.

Children can bury their parents out of duty and still be devoid of an emotional attachment to them.

As I bring this series to an end, it is my prayer that you, the reader, have begun to examine the story of Abraham’s life in a different way. That you did not just see him as a man of faith but also a man with flaws that were detrimental to his family. Equally important, you were able to learn from his successes and failures, for after all is said and done, scripture is given for inspiration, instruction, and correction.