Amplified Bible
Genesis 21:20
20God was with Ishmael, and he grew and developed; and he lived in the wilderness and became an [expert] archer.
Genesis 21:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
- New International Version (NIV)God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So God was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
Context of Genesis 21:20
18Get up, help the boy up, and hold him by the hand, for I will make him a great nation.” 19Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water; and she went and filled the [empty] skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with Ishmael, and he grew and developed; and he lived in the wilderness and became an [expert] archer. 21He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt. 22Now at that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do;
Read all of Genesis 21Genesis 21:20 word by word
וַיְהִ֧י אֱלֹהִ֛ים אֶת־הַנַּ֖עַר וַיִּגְדָּ֑ל וַיֵּ֙שֶׁב֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר וַיְהִ֖י רֹבֶ֥ה קַשָּֽׁת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 21:20
- Genesis 17:20As for Ishmael, I have heard and listened to you; behold, I will bless him, and will make him fruitful and will greatly multiply him [through his descendants]. He will be the father of twelve princes (chieftains, sheiks), and I will make him a great nation.
- Genesis 28:15Behold, I am with you and will keep [careful watch over you and guard] you wherever you may go, and I will bring you back to this [promised] land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
- Genesis 39:2The Lord was with Joseph, and he [even though a slave] became a successful and prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian.
- Judges 6:12And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O brave man.”
- Judges 13:24So the woman [in due time] gave birth to a son and named him Samson; and the boy grew and the Lord blessed him.
- Luke 1:80The child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel [as John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah].
- Luke 2:40And the Child continued to grow and become strong [in spirit], filled with wisdom; and the grace (favor, spiritual blessing) of God was upon Him.
- Genesis 10:9He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the Lord.”
- Genesis 16:12He (Ishmael) will be a wild donkey of a man; His hand will be against every man [continually fighting] And every man’s hand against him; And he will dwell in defiance of all his brothers.”
- Genesis 25:27When the boys grew up, Esau was an able and skilled hunter, a man of the outdoors, but Jacob was a quiet and peaceful man, living in tents.
- Genesis 27:3So now, please take your [hunting] gear, your quiver [of arrows] and your bow, and go out into the open country and hunt game for me;
- Genesis 49:23The [skilled] archers have bitterly attacked and provoked him; They have shot [at him] and harassed him.
Commentaries on Genesis 21:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Became an archer - And by his skill in this art, under the continual superintendence of the Divine Providence, (for God was with the lad), he was undoubtedly enabled to procure a sufficient supply for his own wants and those of his parent.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-34Verses 1-34 - The Birth of Isaac 7. מלל mı̂lēl “speak,” an ancient and therefore solemn and poetical word. 14. חמת chêmet “bottle,” akin to חמה chāmâh “surround, enclose,” and הוּם chûm “black. באר שׁבע beêr -sheba‛ Beer-sheba, “well of seven.” 22. פיכל pı̂ykol Pikhol, “mouth or spokesman of all.” 23. נין nı̂yn “offspring, kin;” related: “sprout, flourish.” נכד neked “progeny,” perhaps “acquaintance,” cognate with נגד ngd “be before” (the eyes) and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-21Verses 14-21 If Hagar and Ishmael had behaved well in Abraham's family, they might have continued there; but they were justly punished. By abusing privileges, we forfeit them. Those who know not when they are well off, will be made to know the worth of mercies by the want of them. They were brought to distress in the wilderness. It is not said that the provisions were spent, or that Abraham sent them away without money. But the water was spent; and having…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-21God rescued Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness and promised them a future (compare 16:7–14). This passage is like chapter 16, but there are key differences. God saves Hagar and Ishmael, but there is no special naming. God repeats the promise to Hagar, but she is not told to return to Sarah. These repeated themes show God's plan for Hagar and Ishmael. As Joseph later explained to Pharaoh, a repeated event confirms God's plan (41:32). God did not leave…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 20-2120-21. God was with the lad, &c.--Paran (that is, Arabia), where his posterity has ever dwelt (compare Ge 16:12; also Is 48:19; 1Pe 1:25). his mother took him a wife--On a father's death, the mother looks out for a wife for her son, however young; and as Ishmael was now virtually deprived of his father, his mother set about forming a marriage connection for him, it would seem, among her relatives.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 21:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 21
- 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
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