Keturah

 Do you know a Keturah?  

It’s an unusual name. But if you’ve combed through the details of Abraham’s life, then you do. She is usually skipped over in discussions about great women in Bible, but looking closely, we can see why God chose her to produce lasting fruit. 

She was Abraham’s second wife, who bore him six sons. Compared to Sarah, Abraham’s first wife who birthed Isaac; and Hagar, the mother of Abraham’s first son, Ishmael; Keturah is relegated to the background, a minor prop in a stage play. 

Her name is mentioned only three times in the Bible. And yet, Keturah played a huge role through Abraham’s sunset years. 

Three years after Sarah’s death, and Isaac had taken for himself a wife, Abraham (aged 140), married Keturah. 

Their children are named—Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah—but we are not told why Abraham still married at such a late age. We can only surmise, based on what happens to widowers today, that Abraham was an empty-nester and needed company.  

In his declining years, Abraham was blessed with a woman’s care, a circle of six sons, who would become the ancestors of the 12 tribes of Israel, making Abraham “the father of many nations.” 

A single woman marrying a far older widower, Keturah gives us a glimpse of Abraham's last chapter on earth. Although we know nothing about her, the fact that God included her name in Scripture is noteworthy. 

This means that our relationships and the roles we play are important to God. Jesus assured His disciples, “You didn’t choose me; I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.” (John 15:16 NLT) 

Keturah produced lasting fruit as Abraham’s second wife, because God’s grace equipped her to do so.  

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