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Abraham’s Family
1Abraham married again. His new wife was Keturah. 2She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. 3Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. Dedan’s descendants were the people of Assyria, Letush and Leum. 4The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah. 5Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. 6But before Abraham died, he did give gifts to the sons of his other wives. Abraham sent them to the East to be away from Isaac.
7Abraham lived to be 175 years old. 8He breathed his last breath and died at an old age. He had lived a long and satisfying life. 9His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah. This cave is in the field of Ephron east of Mamre. Ephron was the son of Zohar the Hittite. 10This is the same field that Abraham had bought from the Hittites. Abraham was buried there with his wife Sarah. 11After Abraham died, God blessed his son Isaac. Isaac was now living at Beer Lahai Roi.
12This is the family history of Ishmael, Abraham’s son. (Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian servant, was Ishmael’s mother.) 13These are the names of Ishmael’s sons in the order they were born. The first son was Nebaioth. Then came Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. 16These were Ishmael’s sons. And these are the names of the tribal leaders. They are listed according to their settlements and camps. 17Ishmael lived 137 years. Then he breathed his last breath and died. 18Ishmael’s descendants lived from Havilah to Shur. This is east of Egypt stretching toward Assyria. Ishmael’s descendants often attacked the descendants of his brothers.
Isaac’s Family
19This is the family history of Isaac. Abraham had a son named Isaac. 20When Isaac was 40 years old, he married Rebekah. Rebekah was from Northwest Mesopotamia. She was Bethuel’s daughter and the sister of Laban the Aramean. 21Isaac’s wife could not have children. So Isaac prayed to the Lord for her. The Lord heard Isaac’s prayer, and Rebekah became pregnant.
22While she was pregnant, the babies struggled inside her. She asked, “Why is this happening to me?” Then she went to get an answer from the Lord.
23The Lord said to her,
“Two nations are in your body.
Two groups of people will be taken from you.
One group will be stronger than the other.
The older will serve the younger.”
24And when the time came, Rebekah gave birth to twins. 25The first baby was born red. His skin was like a hairy robe. So he was named Esau.# This name may mean “hairy.” 26When the second baby was born, he was holding on to Esau’s heel. So that baby was named Jacob.# This name sounds like the Hebrew word for “heel.” “Grabbing someone’s heel” is a Hebrew saying for tricking someone. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.
27When the boys grew up, Esau became a skilled hunter. He loved to be out in the fields. But Jacob was a quiet man. He stayed among the tents. 28Isaac loved Esau. Esau hunted the wild animals that Isaac enjoyed eating. But Rebekah loved Jacob.
29One day Jacob was boiling a pot of vegetable soup. Esau came in from hunting in the fields. He was weak from hunger. 30So Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red soup. I am weak with hunger.” (That is why people call him Edom.# This name sounds like the Hebrew word for “red.”)
31But Jacob said, “You must sell me your rights as the firstborn son.”# Usually the firstborn son had a high rank in the family. The firstborn son usually became the new head of the family.
32Esau said, “I am almost dead from hunger. If I die, all of my father’s wealth will not help me.”
33But Jacob said, “First, promise me that you will give it to me.” So Esau made a promise to Jacob. In this way he sold his part of their father’s wealth to Jacob. 34Then Jacob gave Esau bread and vegetable soup. Esau ate and drank and then left. So Esau showed how little he cared about his rights as the firstborn son.