Abraham, the most venerable of all the patriarchs, was truly the father of many nations. Jews, Christians, and Muslims all trace their roots back to Father Abraham. Known as a friend of God, he was a man of uncommon character. Yet the Bible still presents him as a man, complete with flaws and sins. Just like us, he was human, yet he lived a life of great faith.
Genesis chapter 25 summarizes the last years of Abraham’s life. We know from chapter 23 that his wife, Sarah, has died. And we know from chapter 24 that his son, Isaac, has married. Abraham was 137 years old when his wife died and even older when Isaac married Rebekah.
What do we learn about Abraham’s later years in verses 1-4? That’s right… Abraham took another wife, Keturah, and had even more children. And we can see from Keturah the birth of even more future nations.
Verses 5-6 tell us something interesting about Abraham’s estate. He left everything to Isaac. Isaac was the son of God’s promise. We know from previous studies that Isaac’s line was the one through which God would keep His promise to bless all nations (by delivering the Messiah, or Savior) and Isaac was the son of Abraham’s love, Sarah. But verse 6 says that he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines before he sent them away to live in the East. He did not forget his other children.
The mention of concubines, plural, tells us that Abraham did have multiple women and probably refers to Hagar and Keturah. Notice that the Bible does not tell us exactly when Abraham married Keturah and it could have been before OR after Sarah’s death. It is believed by some that this group of women and children may have come about during the time that Abraham and Sarah took things into their own hands to deliver a son to Abraham (remember Hagar in Gen 16?). If this were the case, these children would have been a reminder to Abraham that he had not waited on God or trusted Him to fulfill His promise. But God had made it clear to Abraham that the promise would be fulfilled through Isaac (Gen 21:12) and so Abraham gave gifts to the other sons and sent them east to live outside of Canaan. Isaac’s offspring were the ones who would inherit the land. See Abraham’s lineage in I Chron 1:28-34.
We are told of Abraham’s death in verses 7-8. How old was he when he died? How long was his relationship with God (Gen 12:4)? Can you imagine? What can we learn today from studying Abraham’s life (Heb 10:23)? Record this verse in your journal.
Hebrews 11:13-16 suggest to us that Abraham may never have been completely comfortable living in Canaan. God had taken him from his home to a faraway place to live among ungodly people. Most of the covenant promises God made with Abraham were not fulfilled in his lifetime, but rather through his descendants. Hebrews tells us that Abraham looked forward to another country, a Heavenly country. This was part of his great faith. We can also see in Jesus’ own words (John 8:56), that Abraham eventually saw the covenant promise fulfilled through Christ and was glad.
As Christians, we also look forward to this Heavenly country. Those who have professed their sins to Christ and sought His forgiveness have a Heavenly future to look forward to (Heb 10:9-13). This is a promise from God that we can be saved from the penalty for our sins. Gal 3:7-9, 14, 29 tells us that we who have faith are the seeds of Abraham. We are part of the fulfillment of that covenant promise made so many years ago.
Verses 9-10 tell us of the final arrangements made for Abraham by his sons. Where was Abraham buried (see Gen 23)? And in verse 11, we are told that after his death, God blessed his son Isaac. It also tells us here that Isaac was living in Beer Lahai Roi. This is the location of the well where the Angel of God met with Hagar in the desert years before (Gen 16:14).
Verses 12-18 tell us the descendants of Ishmael, Abraham’s son by Hagar. How old was Ishmael when he died? Where did his descendants settle? So many nations and peoples in the Middle East trace their lineage back to Father Abraham. The land that Israel sits on today is still mostly in the hands of Abraham’s descendants, through Isaac, though its possession is much disputed by the other nations in the area. This unrest began many, many years ago with the unrest between the sons of Abraham (Gen 16:12; 25:18) over the land and God’s promises and is still going on today. The Jews believe they are the heirs of God’s promises, through Isaac, while the Muslim world believes that they are the heirs of God’s promises, through Ishmael (the eldest son). We will see more of this tension growing as we continue our study of Genesis. What might have been the effect on world politics today if Abraham and Sarah had believed and trusted God enough to wait for the birth of their son rather than to take matters into their own hands?
Responding to God: Praise God and thank Him for His faithfulness. Thank Him for your salvation and the wonderful relationship you can have with Him throughout your life. Ask Him to help you have strong faith. Speak to Him honestly about times you may not have waited on His answer to prayer but took things into your own hands. Ask Him to show you the times you have not trusted Him as you should and pray for wisdom to do better in the future. Pray for the situation in the Middle East, for Israel, and for God’s will to be done. Praise God for that Heavenly country which we now look forward to.
Further Research: Hebrews 11:1-19 is often said to read like an obituary of Abraham’s life. Study it and consider the important highlights mentioned there as they are the moments of Abraham’s great faith in God.
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