Father Abraham Had Many Sons Trivia Quiz

Answer:

Abraham is traditionally regarded as the biological father (or ancestor) of Jews and Arabs, as well as the spiritual father of Christians.

Ishmael was Abraham's firstborn son, the son of Sarah's Egyptian maid, Hagar. Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born.

Isaac was Sarah's son, the son of the covenant that God promised to Abraham and his wife. Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born.

After Sarah died, Abraham married Keturah and had Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. He was probably around 140 when he married Keturah and then died at 175.

According to Rabbinic commentaries, Keturah was Hagar given a new name. Not all Bible readers agree with this theory. However, it's likely that ALL of Keturah's descendants became what we call Arabs, and by the time of Joseph, the Ishmaelites and the Midianites were closely connected. This provides some evidence for the Hagar is Keturah belief, I think.

The Bible doesn't say much about Abraham's sons with Keturah, because they are minor characters, but the Midianites, the descendants of Midian, played a significant role in Israel's history. Moses' first wife, Zipporah, was a Midianite. The land of Midian, which is now Saudi Arabia, was also the place where Moses received the 10 Commandments from God. Later in the Bible, the Israelites and Midianites went to war against each other.

Bildad, one of Job's friends, was apparently a Shuahite, a descendant of Abraham's son Shuah. Now THIS I never knew before. I thought Job lived before Abraham for some reason. If we search the Bible long enough, or consult other sources long enough, we can probably find other minor characters who could be related to Abraham through Keturah.

Esau was one of Isaac's sons, brother of Jacob and grandson of Abraham. Some Bible scholars believe that Palestinians are Edomites or the descendants of Esau, because God told Rebekah that she had two nations in her womb, and they were always fighting. To clarify, Jacob and Easu were fighting in Rebekah's womb when God told her that she had two nations in her womb. The Edomites, including Amalekites, and the Israelites fought (and will fight, according to Bible prophecies) continuously throughout the Bible too.

Adam, Enoch, Noah, Shem, and Eber all lived long before Abraham (they really did, unlike Job). Terah was Abraham's father; the grandfather to his sons. Lot was Abraham's nephew. Nahor was Abraham's brother.

By the way, the word "Semitic" derives from "Shem". "Hebrew" comes from "Eber". Technically, Abraham was a Hebrew (descendant of Eber), but he wasn't an Israelite or a Jew (because those are the descendants of Jacob). Both Jews and Arabs are Semitic (descendants of Shem).