The Kings Who Came from Abraham — Genesis 17:6

 Genesis 17:6 (KJV)

And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

When God declared that kings would come from Abraham, He was promising that Abraham's descendants would produce not only nations but also royal dynasties.

This promise was not limited to the kings of Israel. Abraham became the father of several lines of descendants through Sarah, Hagar, and Keturah.

However, Scripture gives us much more detailed royal genealogies for some branches than for others.

1. The Kings of Israel and Judah — Through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

The principal covenant line runs through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (Israel), and ultimately Judah.

God later repeated the royal promise to Jacob:

Genesis 35:11 (KJV)

And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins.

Kings of the United Kingdom of Israel

King	Scripture
Saul — from Benjamin	1 Samuel 9:1–2; 10:1
David — from Judah	1 Samuel 16:1–13
Solomon — son of David	1 Kings 1:32–39

Saul, David, and Solomon ruled the united kingdom before its division.

Kings of Judah — The Davidic Dynasty

These kings descended from Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and David.

King	Scripture
Rehoboam	1 Kings 11:43
Abijam (Abijah)	1 Kings 14:31
Asa	1 Kings 15:8
Jehoshaphat	1 Kings 15:24
Jehoram	2 Kings 8:16
Ahaziah	2 Kings 8:25
Joash (Jehoash)	2 Kings 12:1
Amaziah	2 Kings 14:1
Azariah (Uzziah)	2 Kings 15:1
Jotham	2 Kings 15:32
Ahaz	2 Kings 16:1
Hezekiah	2 Kings 18:1
Manasseh	2 Kings 21:1
Amon	2 Kings 21:19
Josiah	2 Kings 22:1
Jehoahaz	2 Kings 23:31
Jehoiakim	2 Kings 23:36
Jehoiachin	2 Kings 24:8
Zedekiah	2 Kings 24:17

Athaliah also ruled Judah as queen (2 Kings 11:1–3), although she was not part of the father-to-son succession of Davidic kings.

Kings of the Northern Kingdom of Israel

After Solomon's reign, the kingdom divided. The northern kingdom was ruled by kings from several different dynasties.

King	Scripture
Jeroboam I	1 Kings 12:20
Nadab	1 Kings 15:25
Baasha	1 Kings 15:33
Elah	1 Kings 16:8
Zimri	1 Kings 16:15
Omri	1 Kings 16:23
Ahab	1 Kings 16:29
Ahaziah	1 Kings 22:51
Joram (Jehoram)	2 Kings 3:1
Jehu	2 Kings 9:1–13
Jehoahaz	2 Kings 13:1
Jehoash (Joash)	2 Kings 13:10
Jeroboam II	2 Kings 14:23
Zechariah	2 Kings 15:8
Shallum	2 Kings 15:13
Menahem	2 Kings 15:17
Pekahiah	2 Kings 15:23
Pekah	2 Kings 15:27
Hoshea	2 Kings 17:1

These kings belonged to Israel, the nation descended from Abraham through Isaac and Jacob.

2. The Kings of Edom — Through Abraham, Isaac, and Esau

This is especially important because Genesis chapter 36 explicitly names kings who ruled Edom before Israel had a king.

Esau was Abraham's grandson through Isaac.

Genesis 36:31 (KJV)

And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Israel.

King of Edom	Scripture
Bela, son of Beor	Genesis 36:32
Jobab, son of Zerah	Genesis 36:33
Husham	Genesis 36:34
Hadad, son of Bedad	Genesis 36:35
Samlah	Genesis 36:36
Saul of Rehoboth	Genesis 36:37
Baal-hanan, son of Achbor	Genesis 36:38
Hadar (Hadad in 1 Chronicles 1:50)	Genesis 36:39

These eight kings are direct evidence of the fulfillment of God's promise that kings would arise from Abraham's descendants.

An important detail: Genesis 36 does not present all these Edomite kings as one continuous father-to-son dynasty. Their names and places of origin indicate a different succession pattern.

3. The Twelve Princes of Ishmael — Through Abraham and Hagar

God also promised Abraham that Ishmael would become a great nation.

Genesis 17:20 (KJV)

And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

Genesis 25:13–16 identifies Ishmael's twelve sons.

Prince	Scripture
Nebajoth	Genesis 25:13
Kedar	Genesis 25:13
Adbeel	Genesis 25:13
Mibsam	Genesis 25:13
Mishma	Genesis 25:14
Dumah	Genesis 25:14
Massa	Genesis 25:14
Hadar	Genesis 25:15
Tema	Genesis 25:15
Jetur	Genesis 25:15
Naphish	Genesis 25:15
Kedemah	Genesis 25:15

Genesis 25:16 identifies them as twelve princes according to their nations.

A distinction is necessary: Scripture calls these men princes, not explicitly kings. They were leaders associated with the tribal divisions of Ishmael's descendants.

Nevertheless, their leadership demonstrates the fulfillment of God's specific promise to multiply Ishmael and establish him as the ancestor of a great nation.

4. The Descendants of Keturah — Abraham's Other Nations

After Sarah's death, Abraham took Keturah as his wife.

Genesis 25:1–4 identifies six sons born to Abraham through Keturah:

Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.

These sons became ancestors of additional peoples.

The Midianites, for example, descended from Midian.

Scripture later identifies five kings of Midian:

King of Midian	Scripture
Evi	Numbers 31:8
Rekem	Numbers 31:8
Zur	Numbers 31:8
Hur	Numbers 31:8
Reba	Numbers 31:8

Numbers 31:8 explicitly calls these men kings of Midian.

Since Midian was Abraham's son through Keturah, these kings also belonged to a people descended from Abraham.

5. Jesus Christ — The Promised King Through Abraham's Seed

The greatest fulfillment of the royal promise is found in Jesus Christ.

Matthew 1:1 (KJV)

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

The royal line leading to Christ is:

Abraham

Isaac

Jacob

Judah

Phares (Perez)

Esrom (Hezron)

Aram (Ram)

Aminadab

Naasson

Salmon

Booz (Boaz)

Obed

Jesse

David

The Davidic Royal Line

Jesus Christ

Abridged genealogy based on Matthew 1:1–16. The generations between David and Jesus are condensed.

Jesus is identified as the promised Son of David.

Luke 1:32–33 declares that God will give Him the throne of His father David and that His kingdom shall have no end.

Revelation 19:16 identifies Him as:

KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

The Spiritual Significance of Genesis 17:6

When God told Abraham, kings shall come out of thee, the promise reached across generations and nations.

It included the royal descendants of Jacob, the kings of Edom through Esau, and rulers among other Abrahamic peoples.

Yet Scripture places particular emphasis upon the covenant line through Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and David, culminating in Jesus Christ.

The important distinction is that not every king descended from Abraham belonged to the specific covenant line through Isaac and Jacob. God's promise concerning many nations was broader than the particular lineage through which the Messiah would come.

God's declaration in Genesis 17:6 was therefore fulfilled on several historical levels, while the New Testament presents Jesus Christ as the climactic royal descendant of Abraham.

The promise of kings began with Abraham, but its greatest redemptive significance is revealed in Christ, whose kingdom shall have no end.