Upon the death of Abraham, Isaac and Ishmael were both present for the burial. This devotion looks at what happened to Ismael.
Nuggets
- Let’s take a look at what we know so far about Ishmael.
- Ishmael had twelve sons, just as Jacob did.
- Ishmael died at the age of 137.
- Abraham is considered the father of Islam.
We’re going to take the verses of Genesis 25 a little bit out of order. We just finished up Abraham the Patriarch series with Genesis 25: 1-10. We’re moving on to Isaac.
In fact, the Genesis 25: 11 is about Isaac.
But then Genesis 25: 12-18 is about Ishmael. Then it goes back to Isaac.
So, we’re going to look at Ishmael before we jump into all the Isaac verses in Genesis 25.
Let's Put It into Context
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Devotions in the Isaac the Patriarch series
Ishmael
“This is the account of the family of Ishmael, the son of Abraham through Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian servant” (Gen. 25: 12 NLT)
Let’s take a look at what we know so far about Ishmael.
Because Sarah was barren, she gave her Egyptian slave Hagar to Abraham to become his concubine/secondary wife. Hagar became pregnant, but she held her mistress in contempt.
Long story short. Hagar ran away, came back, had Ishmael, taught him to show contempt for the covenant son Isaac, and got sent away.
Before Isaac was born, Abraham tried to offer Ishmael for the covenant son. Bradford argued that was because he saw Ishmael as the promised son.
But Jehovah wasn’t having anything to do with that. He did promise to bless Ishmael, though. “As for Ishmael, I will bless him also, just as you have asked. I will make him extremely fruitful and multiply his descendants. He will become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will be confirmed with Isaac, who will be born to you and Sarah about this time next year” (Gen. 17: 20-21 NLT).
Bradford made another important observation. He wrote, “… Ishmael is a Semite, just as Isaac was, and of course, as Abraham was. What’s a Semite? A descendant of Noah’s son Shem.”
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Okay. Let’s mull on that for a second. We have Bradford to thank for this, too.
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I have previously said Abraham was declared a Hebrew. Isaac was born into being a Hebrew.
But Ishmael wasn’t a Hebrew. Yes, we know Abraham was already called a Hebrew (Gen. 14: 13) when Ishmael was born (Gen. 16: 15). So, it wasn’t just birth.
God had to declare Isaac to be Hebrew. There was no such declaration for Ishmael.
Ishmael’s Descendants
Here is a list, by their names and clans, of Ishmael’s descendants: The oldest was Nebaioth, followed by Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These twelve sons of Ishmael became the founders of twelve tribes named after them, listed according to the places they settled and camped. ” (Gen. 25: 13-16 NLT)
Ishmael had twelve sons, just as Jacob did.
Ishmael took an Egyptian wife. “And God was with the boy [Ishmael] as he grew up in the wilderness. He became a skillful archer, and he settled in the wilderness of Paran. His mother arranged for him to marry a woman from the land of Egypt” (Gen, 21: 20-21 NLT).
Ishmael’s descendants were hostile groups. They battled all their relatives — including Isaac’s descendants.
This hostility continues today. We know them today as Arabs, many of which— but not all — are descendants of Ishmael according to Got Questions.
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Ishmael’s descendants made their home in the northern part of Arabian Peninsula. Nebaioth and Kedar were listed as shepherd in Isaiah 60: 7.
Bradford gave a good snapshot of Ishmael’s descendants.
- The descendants of Ishmael’s firstborn, Nebaioth, are known as the Nabaiati or Nabateans, currently the Jordanians of Petra.
- The descendants of Kedar associated with the Edomites. Today, they are a part of the Bedouins,
- Adbe’el (or Idiba’il) was conquered by Tiglath-Pileser, the conquerer of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
- The land of Dumah’s tribe bordered that of Midian on the Arabian Peninsula. This tribe was mentioned in Isaiah 21.
- Tema and his tribe settled on a caravan route that ran from the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula to lower Mesopotamia.
- Jetur and Naphish combined into one tribe. It was called the Hagrites in 1 Chronicles 5: 10.
- Little reliable information is known about the rest of Ishmael’s sons.
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Bradford also noted that Ishmael’s descendants lived in villages instead of walled cities. That would have fed the hostility they experienced among each other.
Ishmael also had a daughter. She married Esau. Two different names are given to her in the only two places she in mentioned in God’s Word.
- “So Esau visited his uncle Ishmael’s family and married one of Ishmael’s daughters, in addition to the wives he already had. His new wife’s name was Mahalath. She was the sister of Nebaioth and the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son” (Gen. 28: 9 NLT).
- “He [Esau] also married his cousin Basemath, who was the daughter of Ishmael and the sister of Nebaioth. Adah gave birth to a son named Eliphaz for Esau. Basemath gave birth to a son named Reuel. Oholibamah gave birth to sons named Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. All these sons were born to Esau in the land of Canaan” (Gen. 36: 3-5 NLT).
The Death of Ishmael
Ishmael lived for 137 years. Then he breathed his last and joined his ancestors in death. Ishmael’s descendants occupied the region from Havilah to Shur, which is east of Egypt in the direction of Asshur. There they lived in open hostility toward all their relatives” (Gen. 25: 17-18 NLT)
Ishmael died at the age of 137.
When Ishmael died, it said that he was “… gathered unto his people” (Gen. 25: 17 KJV). Gathered to his people meant that Ishmael would be reunited with his ancestors who had died before him. We know he wasn’t buried with Abraham, but this meant he would have been reunited with him.
According to tradition, Ishmael is buried in Meca, Saudi Arabia, alongside Hagar. However, the exact location is not known. This allows other spots to be considered his burial place.
Islam
Abraham is considered the father of Islam.
Not only is Abraham known as the father of Judaism and Christianity, he is also considered the father of Islam. That is because its prophet, Muhammad, was believed to be a descendant of Ishmael.
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There are some issues with trying to make Ishmael the covenant son. Many who believe in Allah believe that the Torah was changed to identify Isaac as the covenant son when it really should be Ishmael.
There is a problem with that. Muhammad was born (575 AD) 600 years after Yeshua’s life (100 AD) and 1,000 years after the final Old Testament book was written (400 BC).
If you are interesting in digging deeper into this, check out Bradford’s lesson. He is much more knowledgeable than I am about this topic.
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Making the Connections #1
“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you. Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over you. All nations will come to your light; mighty kings will come to see your radiance. Look and see, for everyone is coming home! Your sons are coming from distant lands; your little daughters will be carried home. Your eyes will shine, and your heart will thrill with joy, for merchants from around the world will come to you. They will bring you the wealth of many lands. Vast caravans of camels will converge on you, the camels of Midian and Ephah. The people of Sheba will bring gold and frankincense and will come worshiping the Lord. The flocks of Kedar will be given to you, and the rams of Nebaioth will be brought for my altars. I will accept their offerings, and I will make my Temple glorious" (Isa. 60: 1-7 NLT)
We talked about how some of the descendants of Ishmael were combined with the descendants of Keturah. That showed the breakdown on tribal lines.
But look what it really says in Isaiah 60: 1-7.
- Darkness is associated with those living apart from Jehovah.
- Israel is called to be “… ‘a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth’” (Isa. 49: 6 NLT).
- Toward the beginning of the ends times, nations will come to Jehovah.
- They will include descendants of Keturah’s son Midian and grandsons Ephah and Sheba. Kedar and Nebaioth were sons of Ishmael.
In other words, those who are Arab descendants of Abraham will come to worship Jehovah and Yeshua.
Making the Connections #2
Bradford told us why it is important to look at Ishmael as well as Isaac. He wrote,
“You see, Isaac and Ishmael represent the crux of the matter between Jews and Christians on the one side, and Muslims on the other; Isaac and Ishmael are a distinct fork in the road. And, please grasp that the differences between the Judeo-Christian world, and the Islamic world, are irreconcilable. There is no halfway point, there is no compromise. Islam says that the words from God, from Allah, and the people of the promise of the covenants with Abraham, come down through Ishmael and are recorded in the Koran. Of course, Jews and Christians maintain that the promise of the covenants comes down through Isaac, and are recorded in the Holy Scriptures.”
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It is easy to think that the two religions are sort of a mirror of each other. That they say the same thing only differently.
That is false.
Isaac was the covenant son. That trumps Ishmael being born first.
“But My Brit (covenant) will I establish with Yitzchak [Isaac], which Sarah shall bear unto thee at mo’ed hazeh (this set time) next year” (Gen. 17: 21 OJB).
How Do We Apply This?
- Choose to follow Jehovah.
Father God. Thank You for giving us families. Help us to grow together in You individually and together. Amen.
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