Berean Standard Bible
Genesis 17:4
4“As for Me, this is My covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
Genesis 17:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
- New International Version (NIV)“As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.
Context of Genesis 17:4
2I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly.” 3Then Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, “As for Me, this is My covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5No longer will you be called Abram, but your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6I will make you exceedingly fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will descend from you.
Read all of Genesis 17Genesis 17:4 word by word
אֲנִ֕י הִנֵּ֥ה בְרִיתִ֖י אִתָּ֑ךְ וְהָיִ֕יתָ לְאַ֖ב הֲמ֥וֹן גּוֹיִֽם׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Genesis 17:4
- Genesis 12:2I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
- Genesis 13:16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.
- Genesis 16:10Then the angel added, “I will greatly multiply your offspring so that they will be too numerous to count.”
- Genesis 22:17I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Genesis 25:1Now Abraham had taken another wife, named Keturah,
- Genesis 32:12But You have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper, and I will make your offspring like the sand of the sea, too numerous to count.’”
- Genesis 35:11And God told him, “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation—even a company of nations—shall come from you, and kings shall descend from you.
- Genesis 36:1This is the account of Esau (that is, Edom).
- Numbers 1:1On the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, the LORD spoke to Moses in the Tent of Meeting in the Wilderness of Sinai. He said:
- Numbers 26:1After the plague had ended, the LORD said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron the priest,
- Romans 4:11And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
- Galatians 3:28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Commentaries on Genesis 17:4
- 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
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-5God guaranteed his promise by changing Abram’s name. Abram means “exalted father.” This referred to his father Terah and his noble lineage (11:27). His new name, Abraham (Hebrew ’ab hamon), means "father of a multitude." This was a wordplay on the promise of his countless descendants (see also John 8:31–59; Romans 4:16–17; Galatians 3:7, 15–19, 29). Whenever the new name was used, he and his household would remember that a multitude of nations would come…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. my covenant is with thee--Renewed mention is made of it as the foundation of the communication that follows. It is the covenant of grace made with all who believe in the Saviour.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 17:4
In the dictionaries
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
Berean Standard Bible — © Berean Bible — CC0 / Public Domain
Commentaries