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Genesis 25-26
GOD’S WORD Translation
Genesis 25-26
GOD’S WORD Translation
Abraham’s Second Marriage and His Death(A)
25 Abraham married again, and his wife’s name was Keturah. 2 Keturah gave birth to these sons of Abraham: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. Dedan’s descendants were the Assyrians, the Letushites, and the Leummites. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. These were the descendants of Keturah.
5 Abraham left everything he had to Isaac. 6 But while he was still living, Abraham had given gifts to the sons of his concubines.[a] He sent them away from his son Isaac to a land in the east.
7 Abraham lived 175 years. 8 Then he took his last breath, and died at a very old age. After a long and full life, he joined his ancestors in death. 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah in the field of Ephron, son of Zohar the Hittite. The cave is east of Mamre. 10 This was the field that Abraham had bought from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham died, God blessed his son Isaac, who settled near Beer Lahai Roi.
The 12 Tribes of Ishmael(B)
12 This is the account of the descendants of Abraham’s son Ishmael. He was the son of Sarah’s Egyptian slave Hagar and Abraham. 13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth (Ishmael’s firstborn), Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These are the sons of Ishmael and their names listed by their settlements and camps—12 leaders of their tribes.
17 Ishmael lived 137 years. Then he took his last breath and died. He joined his ancestors in death. 18 His descendants lived as nomads from the region of Havilah to Shur, which is near Egypt, in the direction of Assyria. They all fought with each other.
Esau and Jacob
19 This is the account of Abraham’s son Isaac and his descendants. Abraham was the father of Isaac. 20 Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean. 21 Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 When the children inside her were struggling with each other, she said, “If it’s like this now, what will become of me?” So she went to ask the Lord.
23 The Lord said to her,
“Two countries are in your womb.
Two nations will go their separate ways from birth.
One nation will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.”
24 When the time came for her to give birth, she had twins. 25 The first one born was red. His whole body was covered with hair, so they named him Esau [Hairy]. 26 Afterwards, his brother was born with his hand holding on to Esau’s heel, and so he was named Jacob [Heel]. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.
27 They grew up. Esau became an expert hunter, an outdoorsman. Jacob remained a quiet man, staying around the tents. 28 Because Isaac liked to eat the meat of wild animals, he loved Esau. However, Rebekah loved Jacob.
29 Once, Jacob was preparing a meal when Esau, exhausted, came in from outdoors. 30 So Esau said to Jacob, “Let me have the whole pot of red stuff to eat—that red stuff—I’m exhausted.” This is why he was called Edom.[b]
31 Jacob responded, “First, sell me your rights as firstborn.”
32 “I’m about to die.” Esau said. “What good is my inheritance to me?”
33 “First, swear an oath,” Jacob said. So Esau swore an oath to him and sold him his rights as firstborn. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau a meal of bread and lentils. He ate and drank, and then he got up and left.
This is how Esau showed his contempt for his rights as firstborn.
The Lord’s First Promise to Isaac
26 There was a famine in the land in addition to the earlier one during Abraham’s time. So Isaac went to King Abimelech of the Philistines in Gerar.
2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Don’t go to Egypt. Stay where I tell you. 3 Live here in this land for a while, and I will be with you and bless you. I will give all these lands to you and your descendants. I will keep the oath that I swore to your father Abraham. 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and give all these lands to your descendants. Through your descendant all the nations of the earth will be blessed. 5 I will bless you because Abraham obeyed me and completed the duties, commands, laws, and instructions I gave him.” 6 So Isaac lived in Gerar.
Isaac and Rebekah at Gerar
7 When the men of that place asked about his wife, Isaac answered, “She’s my sister.” He was afraid to say “my wife.” He thought that the men of that place would kill him to get Rebekah, because she was an attractive woman. 8 When he had been there a long time, King Abimelech of the Philistines looked out of his window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.
9 Abimelech called for Isaac and said, “So she’s really your wife! How could you say, ‘She’s my sister’?”
Isaac answered him, “I thought I would be killed because of her.”
10 Then Abimelech said, “What have you done to us! One of the people might have easily gone to bed with your wife, and then you would have made us guilty of sin.” 11 So Abimelech ordered his people, “Anyone who touches this man or his wife will be put to death.”
12 Isaac planted ⌞crops⌟ in that land. In that same year he harvested a hundred times as much as he had planted because the Lord had blessed him. 13 He continued to be successful, becoming very rich. 14 Because he owned so many flocks, herds, and servants, the Philistines became jealous of him. 15 So the Philistines filled in all the wells that his father’s servants had dug during his father Abraham’s lifetime.
16 Finally, Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us! You’ve become more powerful than we are.”
17 So Isaac moved away. He set up his tents in the Gerar Valley and lived there. 18 He dug out the wells that had been dug during his father Abraham’s lifetime. The Philistines had filled them in after Abraham’s death. He gave them the same names that his father had given them.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found a spring-fed well. 20 The herders from Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herders, claiming, “This water is ours!” So Isaac named the well Esek [Argument], because they had argued with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one too. So Isaac named it Sitnah [Accusation]. 22 He moved on from there and dug another well. They didn’t quarrel over this one. So he named it Rehoboth [Roomy] and said, “Now the Lord has made room for us, and we will prosper in this land.”
The Lord’s Second Promise to Isaac
23 He went from there to Beersheba. 24 That night the Lord appeared to Isaac, and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Don’t be afraid, because I am with you. I will bless you and increase the number of your descendants for my servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the Lord. He also pitched his tent in that place, and his servants dug a well there.
Isaac’s Agreement with Abimelech
26 Abimelech, his friend Ahuzzath, and Phicol, the commander of his army, came from Gerar to see Isaac. 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and sent me away from you?”
28 They answered, “We have seen that the Lord is with you. So we thought, ‘There should be a solemn agreement between us.’ We’d like to make an agreement with you 29 that you will not harm us, since we have not touched you. We have done only good to you and let you go in peace. Now you are blessed by the Lord.”
30 Isaac prepared a special dinner for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning they exchanged oaths. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left peacefully.
32 That same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about a well they had dug. They said to him, “We’ve found water.” 33 So he named it Shibah [Oath]. That is why the name of the city is still Beersheba today.
Esau’s Marriages
34 When Esau was 40 years old, he married Judith, daughter of Beeri the Hittite. He also married Basemath, daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 These women brought Isaac and Rebekah a lot of grief.
Genesis 25-26
New International Version
Genesis 25-26
New International Version
The Death of Abraham(A)
25 Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran,(B) Jokshan, Medan, Midian,(C) Ishbak and Shuah.(D) 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba(E) and Dedan;(F) the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah,(G) Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.
5 Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac.(H) 6 But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines(I) and sent them away from his son Isaac(J) to the land of the east.(K)
7 Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years.(L) 8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age,(M) an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people.(N) 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him(O) in the cave of Machpelah(P) near Mamre,(Q) in the field of Ephron(R) son of Zohar the Hittite,(S) 10 the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites.[a](T) There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac,(U) who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.(V)
Ishmael’s Sons(W)
12 This is the account(X) of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagar(Y) the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.(Z)
13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth(AA) the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar,(AB) Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah,(AC) Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema,(AD) Jetur,(AE) Naphish and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers(AF) according to their settlements and camps.(AG) 17 Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people.(AH) 18 His descendants(AI) settled in the area from Havilah to Shur,(AJ) near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward[b] all the tribes related to them.(AK)
Jacob and Esau
19 This is the account(AL) of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.
Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old(AM) when he married Rebekah(AN) daughter of Bethuel(AO) the Aramean from Paddan Aram[c](AP) and sister of Laban(AQ) the Aramean.(AR)
21 Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless.(AS) The Lord answered his prayer,(AT) and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.(AU)
23 The Lord said to her,
“Two nations(AV) are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.(AW)”
24 When the time came for her to give birth,(AX) there were twin boys in her womb.(AY) 25 The first to come out was red,(AZ) and his whole body was like a hairy garment;(BA) so they named him Esau.[d](BB) 26 After this, his brother came out,(BC) with his hand grasping Esau’s heel;(BD) so he was named Jacob.[e](BE) Isaac was sixty years old(BF) when Rebekah gave birth to them.
27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter,(BG) a man of the open country,(BH) while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game,(BI) loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.(BJ)
29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew,(BK) Esau came in from the open country,(BL) famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew!(BM) I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.[f])(BN)
31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.(BO)”
32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
33 But Jacob said, “Swear(BP) to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright(BQ) to Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew.(BR) He ate and drank, and then got up and left.
So Esau despised his birthright.
Isaac and Abimelek(BS)
26 Now there was a famine in the land(BT)—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines(BU) in Gerar.(BV) 2 The Lord appeared(BW) to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt;(BX) live in the land where I tell you to live.(BY) 3 Stay in this land for a while,(BZ) and I will be with you(CA) and will bless you.(CB) For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands(CC) and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.(CD) 4 I will make your descendants(CE) as numerous as the stars in the sky(CF) and will give them all these lands,(CG) and through your offspring[g] all nations on earth will be blessed,[h](CH) 5 because Abraham obeyed me(CI) and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees(CJ) and my instructions.(CK)” 6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar.(CL)
7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,(CM)” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.”
8 When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines(CN) looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?(CO)”
Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”
10 Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us?(CP) One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
11 So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms(CQ) this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”(CR)
12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold,(CS) because the Lord blessed him.(CT) 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.(CU) 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants(CV) that the Philistines envied him.(CW) 15 So all the wells(CX) that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up,(CY) filling them with earth.
16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us;(CZ) you have become too powerful for us.(DA)”
17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar,(DB) where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells(DC) that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled(DD) with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!”(DE) So he named the well Esek,[i] because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled(DF) over that one also; so he named it Sitnah.[j] 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth,[k](DG) saying, “Now the Lord has given us room(DH) and we will flourish(DI) in the land.”
23 From there he went up to Beersheba.(DJ) 24 That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham.(DK) Do not be afraid,(DL) for I am with you;(DM) I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants(DN) for the sake of my servant Abraham.”(DO)
25 Isaac built an altar(DP) there and called on the name of the Lord.(DQ) There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.(DR)
26 Meanwhile, Abimelek had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces.(DS) 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?(DT)”
28 They answered, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you;(DU) so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty(DV) with you 29 that you will do us no harm,(DW) just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.”(DX)
30 Isaac then made a feast(DY) for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath(DZ) to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully.
32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well(EA) they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” 33 He called it Shibah,[l] and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.[m](EB)
Jacob Takes Esau’s Blessing
34 When Esau was forty years old,(EC) he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.(ED) 35 They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.(EE)
Footnotes
- Genesis 25:10 Or the descendants of Heth
- Genesis 25:18 Or lived to the east of
- Genesis 25:20 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
- Genesis 25:25 Esau may mean hairy.
- Genesis 25:26 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he deceives.
- Genesis 25:30 Edom means red.
- Genesis 26:4 Or seed
- Genesis 26:4 Or and all nations on earth will use the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
- Genesis 26:20 Esek means dispute.
- Genesis 26:21 Sitnah means opposition.
- Genesis 26:22 Rehoboth means room.
- Genesis 26:33 Shibah can mean oath or seven.
- Genesis 26:33 Beersheba can mean well of the oath and well of seven.
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