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| Irad | |
| Iram | |
| Isaac | | The son of Abraham and Sarah, considered the second biblical patriarch, 18th-15th century B.C.E. Isaac was born when Sarah was 90 and Abraham 99 years of age. The name's significance stems from the account (Genesis 18:1-16, Genesis 21:1-7) that Sarah laughed on hearing the news. When he was a boy, God commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah but stopped the sacrifice by sending an angel (Genesis 22:12), who told Abraham to sacrifice a ram instead. Abraham's act is referred to as the Akedah (the binding of Isaac). He married his cousin Rebecca and had twin sons, Esau and Jacob. He was tricked into giving his inheritance to Jacob instead of Esau. He died aged 180 and was buried at the Cave of Machpelah at Hebron where his mother, father and wife were interned. | |
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| Ishmael | | Son of Abraham by his Egyptian concubine Hagar, was circumcised by Abraham with the rest of his family. When Ishmael was 13 and his younger brother Isaac was born, Sarah felt mocked by Hagar and persuaded Abraham to evict Hagar and Ishmael. When they ran out of water in the Beer-sheba desert she placed Ishmael under a bush to die, until God reminded her of his promise that he would make Ishmael into a great nation and led her to a well of water nearby. Like Isaac he had 12 sons, who became the ancestors of the tribes that constituted the Arab nation (Genesis 16:12, Genesis 21:9-21). | |
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| Israel | | The name given to Jacob by God after Jacob's battle with the angel, and thereafter the generic name for his descendants. | |
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| Issachar | | Ninth son of Jacob and the fifth son of Leah, born after the affair of the mandrakes (Genesis 30:9-18) and eponymous ancestor of the tribe of Issachar. One meaning of his name is 'man of reward' (Hebrew: sakhar.Together with his brothers he was responsible for selling Joseph into slavery in Egypt. Jacob settled in Egypt with Issachar and his four sons, Tolah, Puvvah, Yov and Shimron. His etymology is again echoed in Jacob's deathbed blessing, where he is said to 'bend his back to the load, working like a slave' (Genesis 49:14-15). | |
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| Ithamar | |
| Iyezer | |
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