Think of a leader.

Someone you actually know.

Like a teacher.

A principal.

An elder in your church.

A police officer.

A fireman.

A business owner.

A mentor.

A parent.

An upstanding citizen in your neighborhood.

Think about their family.

Think about their spouse.

Now, ask yourself, do they have another spouse ?

Do they have another family ? Other kids ?

Probably not.

That would be CRAZY!

Abraham did.

It wasn’t just Sarah and Isaac.

It was Hagar and Ishmael.

“Well,” you say, “That was just a one-off thing. Everybody gets a pass for ONE CRAZY STUPID DECISION in life.”

Hmmmmmmmm…

I thought the same thing.

But then, yesterday, I was in a meeting with The Boss, and He said,

“Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Jokshan fathered Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. 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.”

I assume you knew about Sarah and Hagar, but did you know about Keturah?

I surmise you knew about Isaac and Ishmael, but did you know about Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah?

I reckon you knew about Abraham’s grandkids – Jacob & Esau, but did you know about Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah; and Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim; and Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah?

Am I drawing your attention to Abraham’s other families (the ones you never think about) in order to villainize Abraham? NO.

Am I pointing out the fact that Abraham has other families in order to celebrate and commend his choices? NO.

However, these other families are mentioned in the Γέγραπται, and therefore YOU MUST ponder anew, and imaginatively immerse yourself in the realities God reveals to us!

If you found out that your mom had other families you’d be AGHAST!

If you found out that your dad had another family you’d be processing it with a counselor for $150 per/hour for hundreds of hours!

If you discovered that your teacher, your principal, or an upstanding citizen in your neighborhood had multiple families you’d be riveted by this revelation.

There is so much depth and detail in Scripture! There are so many wonky dynamics demanding our attention! God is the master story-teller, and every bit of the story is an invitation to enter the mystery of God’s marvelous and merciful authorship! All of it ultimately culminating with the crescendo of Christ Crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2; Hebrews 12:2; Luke 24:27; 1 Peter 1:10-12; Hebrews 2:1).