Relationships from Abraham to 12 Patriarchs
Beginning of 14 Generations from Abraham to King David
The individual genealogy of Abraham is not given separately in the Bible, and begins with his father, Terah, in Genesis 11:25. There it documents the brothers Abram (Abraham), Nahor, and Haran without mention of their half sister, Sarai (Sarah), whom Abram would marry. The relationships from Abraham to the 12 patriarchs include intermarriage plus heirs from servants which together provide valuable insight into the beginning of the 14 royal generations from Abraham to King David, and the pure bloodline to the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
In Genesis there are several instances of marrying relatives, and taking of handmaids (family household servants), that may not be apparent to the casual reader. Heirs born from the handmaid of a wife in the case of barren wives was common, moral, and legal according to the laws of Khammurabi. Marriage to distant or not so distant relatives in Abraham's line was by choice and necessity to keep the bloodline separate from the Canaanites as explained later.
Intermarriage Between Families of Brothers Haran, Nahor, and Abraham
The line from Abraham to the 12 patriarchs is Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and then his 12 sons. Jacob was renamed Israel by God, and his 12 sons were born from 2 wives and 2 of their handmaids. Let's take a closer look at the ancestors, and review the intermarriage between the families of brothers Haran, Nahor, and Abraham.
Haran's children were Milcah, Iscah, and Lot, and Lot's sons were Moab and Ammon. Haran's brother Nahor married his niece, Milcah, whose children were Laban and Rebekah. Abraham's son Isaac married his cousin Rebekah, and their son Jacob married both of his cousin Laban's daughters, Leah and Rachel. Take a moment to consider the importance of these close family ties in light of the following facts.
Abraham had moved from Ur and lived in Canaan at God's direction, and this area was part of the Promised Land to be conquered and occupied by future generations. God spoke directly with many of the ancient patriarchs, and in Genesis 15 a glimpse of the future is given as He speaks to Abram.
And He said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; Genesis 15:13 (KJV)
This "land that is not theirs" referred to was Egypt. The land of Canaan was already occupied by evil descendants of the Nephilim, the fallen angels, and the time for taking over and occupying the Promised Land was centuries away. The descendants of the 12 patriarchs who died in Egypt would be the later generations and survivors who eventually left under the leadership of Moses many years later which we will explore in Exodus.
Family Bitterness to Consider in Later Bible Study
After Sarah's death, Abraham remarried to a woman named Keturah and she bore several sons including Midian. Other persons of note are the sons of Abraham's nephew Lot, Moab and Ammon, who were already mentioned above. Not mentioned was Esau, Jacob's older twin brother, who rejected his birthright and was also known as Edom. The descendant Midianites, Moabites, Ammonites, and Edomites are mentioned often later in the Bible, so students should note their relationship now for future reference.
For example, when Isaac ordered that Jacob take a wife from their fellow kinsmen, and specifically not from the daughters of Canaan, out of spite Esau went to Ishmael and took a wife from the Canaanites. Esau was bitter and jealous of Jacob and conspired to kill him. Ishmael and Esau were the firstborn of Abraham and Isaac respectively, yet the second born in each case (Isaac and Jacob) was chosen by God to be in the royal seedline. The Midianites, Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, and Canaanites figure prominently in later Bible studies.
Children of Jacob by Two Wives and Their Two Handmaids
The following are the children of Jacob's wives and handmaids listed by birth mother in chronological order. Some siblings were born the same year. These are the 12 patriarchs of Israel with the exception of one daughter, Dinah.
Leah: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun (and daughter Dinah)
Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin
Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali
Zilpah: Gad and Asher
The royal seedline and 14 generations from Abraham to King David were Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Phares, Esrom, Aram, Amminadab, Haashon, Salmon, Boaz, Obed, Jesse, and David. The genealogy to Moses from Jacob was Levi, Kohath, Amram, and Moses. The Levites, descendants of Levi, were chosen by God to serve exclusively as the priests of the nation of Israel, which included Moses and his older siblings, Miriam and Aaron.
From the entire household of Israel who first went to Egypt, and just over 70 persons total, an estimated 2 million descendants would be led out of bondage nearly 400 years later as documented in Exodus. Bible students are encouraged to look closer at names and relationships mentioned in the Bible for clearer understanding of how each book and the entire Old Testament and New Testament combine to form the complete and perfect Word of God.
Article Source: www.ultimateriddles.com/genesis-bible-lesson-08.html.
About the Author: Jim Degerstrom is an author who works in a faith based business offering custom website design and graphic art services, and documents Bible studies at his Ultimate Riddles Spiritual Journey website and blogs about spiritual growth on his Ultimate Riddles Spiritual Study blog from Kissimmee, Florida USA.
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