Verse Lens · Context pointer
Genesis 25:14 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 14. 14And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Role in This Section
The list continues with Mishma, Dumah, and Massa. This is the middle of a twelve-son genealogy rather than a complete independent claim about any one group.
Read It With
- Genesis 25:12–18
Read verses 13–16 together. Verse 13 begins the birth-order list, verses 14–15 continue it, and verse 16 interprets all twelve names as leaders and clans with settlements and camps.
Why It Needs Context
Reading this verse alone would hide both the twelve-name structure and the explicit promise-fulfillment conclusion in verse 16.
Read Genesis 25:12–16 together
Why these verses belong together: The toledot heading, twelve names, settlements, camps, princes, and clans form one complete genealogy and promise-fulfillment movement.
Verse 12. 12 Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s handmaid, bare unto Abraham:
Verse 13. 13 And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
Verse 14. 14 And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,
Verse 15. 15 Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah:
Verse 16. 16 These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their castles; twelve princes according to their nations.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 25:12–18 — Ishmael's Twelve Princes Are NamedSources used for this context pointer
How certain is this explanation? very strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed wording, thought-unit boundary, Hagar and Ishmael identity, twelve names, promise fulfillment, lifespan, death formula, geography, and canonical reuse.
Exact location: Genesis 25:12–18 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 16:1–16; 17:18–21; 21:8–21; 25:7–19; 28:9; 36:3; 1 Chronicles 1:28–31; Isaiah 42:11; 60:7; and Jeremiah 49:28
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Toledot structure, social-status language, chiefs, settlements and camps, death formula, collective dwelling, and the disputed final clause.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 25:12–18; lemmas and morphology for toledot, shiphchah, nesi'im, chatserim, tirot, vayye'asef, shakhan, nafal, and al-pene
Open source ↗