Iscah

Biblical Record

Iscah is named once, in the genealogy of Terah in Genesis 11. According to Genesis 11:27, Terah had three sons: Abram (later Abraham), Nahor, and Haran; Haran was the father of Lot. Haran died before his father Terah in his native land, Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 11:28).

In recounting the marriages of Abram and Nahor, Genesis 11:29 introduces Nahor's wife Milcah as "the daughter of Haran" and adds that Haran was "the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah." This is all that Scripture says about Iscah. As Haran's daughter, she was a full sibling of Milcah and Lot through their shared father. In Genesis 11:31, when Terah sets out for Canaan, those he takes with him are listed as Abram, Lot, and Sarai, but Iscah is not named. Neither her marriage nor her later life is recorded.

Significance Within Scripture

Iscah is a genealogical figure whose place in the text illustrates the kinship ties of Abraham's family. The text does not explain why her name was preserved in the genealogy. She is not mentioned in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Debates

• Identification with Sarai: The Talmud and the medieval Jewish commentator Rashi are reported to have identified Iscah with Sarai, Abram's wife. On this view, Sarai would have been Abram's niece. The first-century Jewish historian Josephus is also reported to have presented Sarai and Milcah as daughters of Haran.
• Opposing view: In Genesis 20:12, Abraham says of Sarah, "she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother." Some point out that a literal reading of this verse makes Sarah a daughter of Terah, which makes it difficult to identify her with Iscah. Proponents of the identification read "daughter" here in a broader sense that includes a granddaughter. Many interpreters also regard the two as separate individuals, noting that Genesis 11:29 names Sarai and Iscah separately within the same verse.
• Meaning of the name: The Talmud is reported to have linked the name to a Hebrew word meaning "to see," but its exact etymology is uncertain.

The biblical text does not itself state that Iscah and Sarai are the same person. This identification is an interpretation that arose in later Jewish tradition and should be distinguished from the text's own record.

In the Korean Church

Because Iscah appears in only one verse, she is rarely treated on her own in sermons or Sunday school lessons in Korean churches. She is usually introduced alongside her siblings Lot and Milcah when Abraham's family tree is explained in read-through-the-Bible programs or Bible studies.