Genesis 24 ends with Isaac marrying Rebekah and finding comfort after his mother’s death. The next chapter opens with Abraham taking another wife whose name was Keturah.
The death of Sarah and the marriage of Isaac left Abraham alone and lonely. He longed for companionship and found it in Keturah.
Keturah was a younger woman who married an aged man. Theirs was more a marriage of convenience than of love or passion. Keturah provided Abraham companionship in his last days, but Abraham never put her on the same level as Sarah. He considered her a concubine like Hagar.
Though Abraham was 137-years-old when Sarah died, he went on to have six sons with Keturah. He probably never expected to produce more children, but he ended up with a whole new family of sons and grandsons. Those sons, however, were not cherished like Isaac, his promised son.
Genesis 25:5-6 tells us, “Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. But to the sons of his concubines Abraham gave gifts, and while he was still living he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.” (ESV)
What was it like for this later life wife of Abraham? What was it like for her living in the shadow of Abraham’s beloved Sarah?
We all long to be loved and cherished. But sometimes we find ourselves overshadowed by someone from the past. Keturah could never replace Sarah. She never had the marriage or love that Abraham and Sarah enjoyed. But she was there for Abraham when Sarah wasn’t. She was there to step in when Sarah died, and to take care of Abraham in his last days. And through Abraham, God blessed Keturah with a quiver-full of sons and grandsons.
Keturah in the Bible: Genesis 25:1-6
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