Genesis 17:17

Genesis 17:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
• New International Version (NIV)Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, "Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?"
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”

Context of Genesis 17:17

15Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai (my princess), but her name will be Sarah (Princess). 16I will bless her, and indeed I will also give you a son by her. Yes, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” 18And Abraham said to God, “Oh, that Ishmael [my firstborn] might live before You!” 19But God said, “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son indeed, and you shall name him Isaac (laughter); and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant and with his descendants after him.

Genesis 17:17 word by word

וַיִּפֹּ֧ל אַבְרָהָ֛ם עַל־פָּנָ֖יו וַיִּצְחָ֑ק וַיֹּ֣אמֶר בְּלִבּ֗וֹ הַלְּבֶ֤ן מֵאָֽה־שָׁנָה֙ יִוָּלֵ֔ד וְאִ֨ם־שָׂרָ֔ה הֲבַת־תִּשְׁעִ֥ים שָׁנָ֖ה תֵּלֵֽד׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then Abrahamאַבְרָהָם'abrâhâm · AbrahamH85
• fellנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
• upon his faceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• and laughedצָחַקtsâchaq · to laughH6711
• and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• in his heartלֵבlêb · heartH3820
• be bornיָלַדyâlad · to begetH3205
• unto him that is an hundredמֵאָהmê'âh mê'yâh · hundredH3967
• yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
• oldבֵּןbên · son: agedH1121
• and shall Sarahשָׂרָהώârâh · SarahH8283
• that is ninetyתִּשְׁעִיםtish‛îym · ninetyH8673
• oldבַּתbath · daughterH1323

Cross-references for Genesis 17:17

• Genesis 17:3Then Abram fell on his face [in worship], and God spoke with him, saying,
• Leviticus 9:24Then fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the portions of fat on the altar; and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell face downward [in awe and worship].
• Numbers 14:5Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the Israelites.
• Numbers 16:22But they fell on their faces [before the Lord], and said, “O God, God of the spirits of all flesh! When one man sins, will You be angry with the entire congregation?”
• Deuteronomy 9:18Then, as before, I fell down before the Lord for [another] forty days and forty nights; I did not eat food or drink water, because of all the sin you had committed by doing what was evil in the sight of the Lord to provoke Him to anger.
• Joshua 5:14He said, “No; rather I have come now as captain of the army of the Lord.” Then Joshua fell with his face toward the earth and bowed down, and said to him, “What does my lord have to say to his servant?”
• Joshua 7:6Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and [with great sorrow] they put dust on their heads.
• Judges 13:20For when the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the Angel of the Lord ascended in the altar flame. When Manoah and his wife saw this they fell on their faces to the ground.
• 1 Chronicles 21:16Then David raised his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, covered in sackcloth, fell on their faces.
• Job 1:20Then Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head [in mourning for the children], and he fell to the ground and worshiped [God].
• Ezekiel 1:28As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory and brilliance of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell face downward and I heard a voice of One speaking.
• Daniel 8:17So he came near where I was standing, and when he came I was frightened and fell face downward; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the [fulfillment of the] vision pertains to [events that will occur in] the time of the end.”
• Matthew 2:11And after entering the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then, after opening their treasure chests, they presented to Him gifts [fit for a king, gifts] of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
• Revelation 5:8And when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb (Christ), each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of fragrant incense, which are the prayers of the saints (God’s people).
• Revelation 11:16And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell face downward and worshiped God,
• Genesis 18:12So Sarah laughed to herself [when she heard the Lord’s words], saying, “After I have become old, shall I have pleasure and delight, my lord (husband) being also old?”

Commentaries on Genesis 17:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Then Abraham - laughed - I am astonished to find learned and pious men considering this as a token of Abraham's weakness of faith or unbelief, when they have the most positive assurance from the Spirit of God himself that Abraham was not weak but strong in the faith; that he staggered not at the promise through unbelief, but gave glory to God, Romans 4:19, Romans 4:20. It is true the same word is used, Genesis 18:12, concerning Sarah, in whom it was…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-27Verses 1-27 - The Sealing of the Covenant 1. שׁדי shaday Shaddai, “Irresistible, able to destroy, and by inference to make, Almighty.” שׁדד shādad “be strong, destroy.” This name is found six times in Genesis, and thirty-one times in Job. 5. אברהם 'abrâhām Abraham, from אברם 'abrām “high-father,” and הם hām the radical part of המין hāmôn a “multitude,” is obtained by a euphonic abbreviation אברהם 'abrâhām “father of a multitude.” The root רהם rhm…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-22Verses 15-22 Here is the promise made to Abraham of a son by Sarai, in whom the promise made to him should be fulfilled. The assurance of this promise was the change of Sarai's name into Sarah. Sarai signifies my princess, as if her honour were confined to one family only; Sarah signifies a princess. The more favours God confers upon us, the more low we should be in our own eyes. Abraham showed great joy; he laughed, it was a laughter of delight, not of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-18he laughed (Hebrew yitskhaq): This was because the promise seemed unbelievable. He thought his family line would continue through Ishmael. But Abraham and Sarah would have their own son.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed--It was not the sneer of unbelief, but a smile of delight at the improbability of the event (Ro 4:20).Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 17:17

• Abraham
• Barrenness
• Covenant
• Isaac
• Miracles
• Sarah

In the dictionaries

• Abraham
• Sarah
• Sarah; Sarai
• Abraham, Abram
• Covenant
• Establish
• Everlasting
• Works, Covenant of
• Agrarian Laws
• Atonement, Day of

Commentaries on Genesis 17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings