What Does 1 Chronicles 1:32 Mean?

Now the sons of Keturah, Abraham's concubine. She bore Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. And the sons of Jokshan, Sheba, and Dedan.

1 Chronicles 1:32 · SDV

Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.

Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.

This verse in the King James

King James wording

King James Version

Now the sons of Keturah, Abraham’s concubine: she bare Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. And the sons of Jokshan; Sheba, and Dedan.

THE KEY

Keturah’s name carries the image of incense, a meaning the English leaves hidden.

THE MEANING

This verse keeps Abraham’s concubine Keturah and her six sons in view, then follows Jokshan’s line to Sheba and Dedan. Her branch of the family continues through named descendants.

WHAT THIS UNDOES

It undoes the idea that Keturah’s descendants disappear from the family record: her sons and grandsons are named here.

THE ROOT

קְטוּרָה

Qĕṭūrāh

GROWS FROM

קטר

Qāṭar: to make smoke or burn incense.

Keturah’s name is commonly connected to qāṭar, the root of making incense smoke. The name shares its word-family with “incense,” giving this genealogy an image the English rendering of her name does not show.

ALSO GROWS

qĕṭōret: Incense

קְטֹרֶת

This is the incense word used in Psalm 141:2, where prayer is likened to incense.

qīṭōr: Smoke or vapor

קִיטוֹר

This related form makes the smoke within the incense image explicit.

THE PATTERN

Scripture carries family identity forward by naming branches and their descendants.

And the sons of Midian were Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.

Genesis 25:4 · SDVKeturah’s family branches further as the next generation is named.

These are the names of Esau's sons; Eliphaz, the son of Adah the wife of Esau, and Reuel, the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau.

Genesis 36:10 · SDVEsau’s line is carried forward by naming his sons and their mothers.

Abraham brought forth Isaac, and Isaac brought forth Jacob, and Jacob brought forth Judah and his brothers.

Matthew 1:2 · SDVThe lineage continues through a sequence of named generations.

THE THREAD

Let my prayer be set before you as smoke, and the lifting of my palms as the evening offering.

Psalm 141:2 · SDV

Keturah’s name is linked to ⁨קטר⁩ (qāṭar), the root behind ⁨קְטֹרֶת⁩ (qĕṭōret), “incense.” Psalm 141:2 uses that same incense word, letting the name’s hidden image rise within this genealogy.

Read the SDV Bible.

Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.

Get Selah Verse

The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.

Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us