Genesis 25:16
in Genesis 25These were the sons of Ishmael, and these were their names by their villages and encampments—twelve princes of their tribes.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
these are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their villages, and by their encampments; twelve princes according to their nations.
KJV
These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their castles; twelve princes according to their nations.
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This verse in Genesis 25
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThese are the sons of Ishmael,.... The twelve before mentioned, Gen 25:13, these are their names, by their towns and by their castles; their towns and their castles being called after their names, some of which we are able to trace at this distance, as the above notes show: twelve princes according to their nations; these were princes, or heads of tribes, and there were twelve of them, and continued so, see Gen 17:20; where is the prophecy, and here an accomplishment of it.
This site's exposition
This is the account of Abraham's son Ishmael
on Genesis 25:12-16
Ishmael gets a toledot of his own, the Hebrew heading that opens an account of a man's line. Missler reads the whole book by its eleven headings. The branch outside the covenant is put on record and closed before the chosen line goes on, as Cain was before Seth. Twelve princes are counted by name, in the order of their birth, which is what God promised Abraham for this son at 17:20.
This site's exposition
by their villages and encampments
These twelve princes are named by their villages and encampments, the places where the sons of Ishmael lived. Adam Clarke read the first word as places of encampment in the wilderness, of the kind Arabs had always used. The second he took for towers and fortified rocks.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
The names of his twelve sons are recorded. Midian and Kedar we often read of in scripture. And some very good expositors have taken notice of the signification of those three names which are put together (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
These are the sons of Ishmael,.... The twelve before mentioned, Gen 25:13, these are their names, by their towns and by their castles; their towns and their castles being called after their names, some of which we are able to trace at this distance, as the above notes show: twelve princes according to their nations; these were princes, or heads of tribes, and there were twelve of them, and continued so, see Gen 17:20; where is the prophecy, and here an accomplishment of it.
Now the number and strength of this family were the fruit of the promise made to Hagar concerning Ishmael ( ch. xvi. 10 ), and to Abraham, ch. xvii. Note, Many that are strangers to the covenants of promise are yet blessed with outward prosperity for the sake of their godly ancestors.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
These are their names - By which their descendants were called. Their towns - places of encampment in the wilderness, such as have been used by the Arabs from the remotest times. Their castles, טירתם tirotham, their towers, probably mountain tops, fortified rocks, and fastnesses of various kinds in woods and hilly countries.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֵ֣לֶּה | ʾeleh | these | H428 → | 746 times |
| הֵ֞ם | hem | they | H1992 → | 553 times |
| בְּנֵ֤י | benei | [were] [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יִשְׁמָעֵאל֙ | yishmael | Ishmael | H3458 → | 48 times |
| וְאֵ֣לֶּה | veeleh | and these | H428 → | 746 times |
| שְׁמֹתָ֔ם | shemotam | [are] names their | H8034 → | 864 times |
| בְּחַצְרֵיהֶ֖ם | bechatzreihem | by villages their | H2691 → | |
| וּבְטִֽירֹתָ֑ם | uvetirotam | and by encampments their | H2918 → | |
| שְׁנֵים־ | sheneim- | two [plus] | H8147 → | 768 times |
| עָשָׂ֥ר | ʾasar | ten | H6240 → | 338 times |
| נְשִׂיאִ֖ם | nesiim | princes | H5387 → | 134 times |
| לְאֻמֹּתָֽם׃ | leumotam | to tribes their | H523 → |
אֵ֣לֶּהthese
ʾelehH428 →746 times
הֵ֞םthey
hemH1992 →553 times
בְּנֵ֤י[were] [the] sons of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
יִשְׁמָעֵאל֙Ishmael
yishmaelH3458 →48 times
וְאֵ֣לֶּהand these
veelehH428 →746 times
שְׁמֹתָ֔ם[are] names their
shemotamH8034 →864 times
בְּחַצְרֵיהֶ֖םby villages their
bechatzreihemH2691 →
וּבְטִֽירֹתָ֑םand by encampments their
uvetirotamH2918 →
שְׁנֵים־two [plus]
sheneim-H8147 →768 times
עָשָׂ֥רten
ʾasarH6240 →338 times
נְשִׂיאִ֖םprinces
nesiimH5387 →134 times
לְאֻמֹּתָֽם׃to tribes their
leumotamH523 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Genesis 17:20As for Ishmael, I have heard you, and I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He will become the father of twelve rulers, and I will make…
it leads to
- Genesis 21:18
Get up, lift up the boy, and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
- Genesis 21:13
But I will also make a nation of the slave woman’s son, because he is your offspring.”
- Genesis 25:12–18
This is the account of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s maidservant, bore to Abraham.
- Genesis 16:10–12
Then the angel added, “I will greatly multiply your offspring so that they will be too numerous to count.”
- Genesis 21:18
Through
Genesis 17:23On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or purchased with his money—every male among the members of Abraham’s household—and he circumcised them, just as God…
it leads to
- Psalms 119:60
I hurried without hesitating to keep Your commandments.
- Genesis 17:10–14
This is My covenant with you and your descendants after you, which you are to keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.
- Genesis 17:26–27
Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day.
- Genesis 18:19
For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that…
- Psalms 119:60
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Chuck Missler, The Book of Genesis; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.