Keturah | Mother of Many Nations

If you are like me, your knowledge of the Old Testament has a foundation of stories told during elementary church programs. Many of these stories were visualized by flannelgraph characters displayed on a flannel board. But when you continue to study the Scriptures, you will find that there are parts to many stories that were left out when you were younger. One reader asks, “Who was the lady named Keturah in Genesis? Were she and Hagar the same person? Was Abraham somewhat disobedient by marrying Keturah and having children with her?” Let’s see if we can fill in some of the blanks in our understanding of the Scriptures because you asked for it.

Many of us grew up singing the children’s song “Father Abraham had seven sons; seven sons had father Abraham.” But most of us shake our heads and think, “I can only count two sons,” and we assume the song is wrong.

The Torah (accepted by both Jewish and Christian leaders) informs us that Abraham married again after the death of Sarah, his first wife.

The most significant son of Keturah is Median. Medianites occur over 25 times in the Old Testament.

The Torah’s Continuing Explanation

The Torah continues to tell us that Abraham sent all of Keturah’s offspring to the east, so they would be away from the child of promise – the heir Isaac. When Abraham sent them away, he favored them by giving them gifts.

In this one passage of six verses, Keturah is called Abraham’s wife in verse one. This surely would have been acceptable to God, as Abraham’s first wife, Sarah, had passed away. The math we use from biblical references places Abraham at 140 when he married Keturah. Why did Abraham take a wife at such an advanced age? We can only speculate that he was lonely and still rejuvenated by God’s miraculous intervention in his life in order to have Isaac.

The Mystery of Keturah

Two other pieces of information are given to us in the Torah. We are told that Abraham gave gives to the sons of his concubines – plural. We know of one concubine – Hagar – who was also sent away with her son. The assumption would be from the text that the other “concubine” is Keturah. She is not a concubine in the sense that she was not a legitimate bride, but that she was not the wife of the promise.

Verse twelve of the chapter tells us a little about Abraham’s other son, Ishmael. His mother, Hagar, is mentioned by name, also recognizing that she was an Egyptian and Sarah’s servant. Although more information is given about Ishmael, the passage tells us nothing more about Keturah.

The name “Keturah” lends itself to a number of Rabbinic interpretations. The name means “perfumed with savory spices,” which many reason that her life was flavored with many good deeds. Another root of the word finds the meaning of “binding or sealing,” which some understand as somehow fulfilling Abraham’s life. It would be true that through Keturah, the promise that Abraham would be the father of many nations does come true.

Rabbinic Traditions

The traditions of Jewish rabbis over the years part ways with what we know from the Torah. The great rabbinic commentator Rashi boldly affirms that Keturah is actually Hagar. He reasons that she is now called Keturah because her deeds were as pleasing as incense. She certainly could lay claim to be “bound or sealed” to Abraham. The interpretation does not explain why both names are mentioned – with the certain implication that two different women are being mentioned.

The only other observation to be made concerns the offspring. Throughout Israel’s history, the children of Hagar and Keturah are always at odds with each other. The times they work together toward any task are few and far between. In essence, the feud continues today through the Israeli and Islamic bickering.

There is an interesting piece of information found in the Midrash writings around the time of Alexander the Great. Their traditions have offspring of both Keturah and Ishmael coming before the Greek ruler arguing that the land of Israel “belongs to us and to you, for we also are the children of Abraham.” The tradition continues that Alexander requested, “Where do you bring a proof for this claim?” The representatives replied, “From the Torah.”

Conclusions About Keturah

Can a conclusion be made about the relationship between Keturah and Hagar? Respect must be given to the traditions of the rabbis. But there seems little evidence in the Scripture that they are the same woman. The use of the words in the same passage seem to lead us to recognize two different women, even though they shared several things in common.

Was Abraham wrong to take have children with these other women? We know that Abraham was not completely trusting God’s promises that the child would come through Sarah’s offspring. Fearing that Sarah would never conceive, Abraham tried to assure the promise would come true by fathering a child through Hagar.

Abraham’s union with Keturah did not violate later Mosaic legalities. The wisdom of sending the children away certainly created separation and animosity between the siblings. Family traditions always assumed the family blessings would be given to the oldest male child. This usually included a significant portion of the family’s properties. Keturah’s children would have understood the tradition at the time.