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Kedar קֵדָר

Male Arabia H6938 6 books

A son of Ishmael and a nomadic tribe

Who is Kedar in the Bible?

Kedar was a son of Ishmael and the eponymous ancestor of a nomadic Arab tribe that inhabited the desert regions of northern Arabia (Genesis 25:13, 1 Chronicles 1:29). The Kedarites were known for their black tents, large flocks of sheep and goats, and skill as archers and warriors (Isaiah 21:16-17, Isaiah 60:7, Ezekiel 27:21). In biblical literature, Kedar often symbolizes the foreign and hostile desert environment, as when the psalmist laments dwelling among the tents of Kedar (Psalm 120:5), and the prophet Jeremiah references them as a distant, powerful nation (Jeremiah 2:10, Jeremiah 49:28). The Kedarites represented one of the major Arab tribes of the ancient Near East and served in Scripture as a symbol of the nomadic peoples beyond Israel's settled borders.

Biography

Kedar is first mentioned in Gen.25.13 and 1Ch.1.29 as one of the twelve sons of Ishmael, the son of Abraham. He is the eponymous ancestor of the Kedarites, a nomadic Arab tribe that inhabited the desert regions of northern Arabia.

The Kedarites were known for their black tents (Sng.1.5) and their large flocks of sheep and goats (Isa.60.7; Ezk.27.21). They were skilled archers and warriors (Isa.21.16-17) and were one of the major Arab tribes in the ancient Near East.

In the Bible, Kedar is often used as a representation of the nomadic tribes of the desert. The psalmist laments living among the tents of Kedar, symbolizing a hostile and foreign environment (Psalm Isa.120.5). The prophet Jeremiah uses Kedar as an example of a distant and powerful nation.

Family

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In Scripture

6 biblical books ; 4 with study content
Genesis 1 verse
  • Genesis 25:13

    "These are the names of the sons of Ishmael in the order of their birth: Nebaioth the firstborn of Ishmael, then Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,"

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1 Chronicles 1 verse
  • 1 Chronicles 1:29

    "These are their genealogies: Nebaioth the firstborn of Ishmael, then Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,"

Psalms 1 verse
  • Psalms 120:5

    "Woe to me that I dwell in Meshech, that I live among the tents of Kedar!"

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Song of Solomon 1 verse
  • Song of Solomon 1:5

    "I am dark, yet lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon."

Isaiah 4 verses
  • Isaiah 21:16

    "For this is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a hired worker would count it, all the glory of Kedar will be gone."

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  • Isaiah 21:17

    "The remaining archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.” For the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken."

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  • Isaiah 42:11

    "Let the desert and its cities raise their voices; let the villages of Kedar cry aloud. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them cry out from the mountaintops."

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  • Isaiah 60:7

    "All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered to you; the rams of Nebaioth will serve you and go up on My altar with acceptance; I will adorn My glorious house."

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Jeremiah 2 verses
  • Jeremiah 2:10

    "Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus and take a look; send to Kedar and consider carefully; see if there has ever been anything like this:"

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  • Jeremiah 49:28

    "Concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated, this is what the LORD says: “Rise up, advance against Kedar, and destroy the people of the east!"

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Names & Aliases

Form Language Script Transliteration Meaning
Named Hebrew קֵדָר qēdār Kedar , a son of Ishmael; also (collectively) Bedouin (as his descendants or representatives)
Encyclopedia Article

Kedar

ISBE 1915 (Public Domain)

ntry in opposition to the lands of the Mediterranean (Jer 2:10). The author of Second Isa introduces this tribe in company with Nebaioth, and both are represented as owners of flocks (Isa 60:7). Evidence of their nomadic habits appears in Jer 49:28,29, where they are classed among the Bene-Qedhem, and mention is made of their flocks, camels, tents, curtains and furniture. They are spoken of (Isa 42:11) as dwelling in chatserim ("villages"), from which it would appear that they were a somewhat settled tribe, corresponding to the Arabic chadariya or "town-dwellers," as distinct from wabariya or "nomads." Ezekiel (27:21) gives another hint of their pastoral nature where, in his detailed picture of the wealth of Tyre, Kedar and Arabia provide the Tyrians with lambs, rams and goats. The fame of the tribe is further reflected in Isa 21:16,17 (the only allusion to their might in war), and in the figurative references to their tents (Ps 120:5; So 1:5). In this last passage where the tents are made symbolic of dark beauty, the word qadhar ("to be black") may have been in the writer's mind.

The settlements of Kedar were probably in the Northwest of Arabia, not far from the borders of Palestine. Assyrian inscriptions have thrown light upon the history of the tribe. There Kedar is mentioned along with the Arabs and Nebaioth, which decides its identity with Kedar of the Old Testament, and there is found also an account of the conflicts between the tribe and King Assurbanipal (see Margoliouth in HDB).

Of the Ishmaelite tribes, Kedar must have been one of the most important, and thus in later times the name came to be applied to all the wild tribes of the desert. It is through Kedar (Arabic, keidar) that Muslim genealogists trace the descent of Mohammed from Ishmael.

A. S. Fulton

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