Genesis 15:3

Genesis 15:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.
• New International Version (NIV)And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Abram said, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”

Context of Genesis 15:3

1After this, the Lord spoke to Abram in a dream. God said, ‘Do not be afraid Abram. I will keep you safe. I myself will give you many good gifts.’ 2But Abram said, ‘Almighty Lord, there is one gift that I want. I still have no children. When I die, Eliezer of Damascus will receive everything that I have. Because you have not given me any children, understand this: Everything that I have will one day belong to a servant in my house.’ 4The Lord gave Abram this message: ‘No! Eliezer will not be the one who receives your things. You will have your own son. He will be the one who receives everything that you have.’ 5The Lord took Abram outside. He said to Abram, ‘Look up at the sky. Count the stars. They are too many for you to count!’ Then God said, ‘That is how many descendants you will have.’

Genesis 15:3 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אַבְרָ֔ם הֵ֣ן לִ֔י לֹ֥א נָתַ֖תָּה זָ֑רַע וְהִנֵּ֥ה בֶן־בֵּיתִ֖י יוֹרֵ֥שׁ אֹתִֽי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Abramאַבְרָם'abrâm · AbramH87
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Behold, to me thou hast givenנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• noלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
• seedזֶ֫רַעzera‛ · seed: childrenH2233
• and, lo, one bornבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• in my houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
• is mine heirיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: possessH3423

Cross-references for Genesis 15:3

• Genesis 12:2I will cause your descendants to become a great nation. I will bless you. Everyone will know your name. You will bring my blessing to other people.
• Genesis 13:16I will make your descendants become very many. Like the dust of the ground, people will not be able to count them all.
• Proverbs 13:12When you do not receive the things that you hope for, it makes you sad. But when you receive what you have always wanted, you are very happy.
• Jeremiah 12:1Lord, when I complain to you, you always do what is right. But I must ask you about your justice. Why do wicked people have success in life? Why do people who cheat their friends live in comfort?
• Hebrews 10:35So continue to be strong in your thoughts. If you continue to trust God, you will receive great things.
• Genesis 14:14Abram understood that the kings had caught his nephew. So he called 318 men to come together. These men had been born in Abram's camp and they knew how to fight. Abram took his men with him. They went to attack the men who had caught Lot. They went as far as Dan.
• Proverbs 29:21You may give a servant everything that he wants from his birth. But if you do that, he will be useless in the end.
• Proverbs 30:23A woman that nobody loves who marries a husband. A female servant who takes the place of the woman that she has served.
• Ecclesiastes 2:7I bought male slaves and female slaves. Their children became my slaves too. I had many animals, including sheep, goats and cows. I had more animals than any of the rulers in Jerusalem who lived before me.

Commentaries on Genesis 15:3

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-21Verses 1-21 - The Faith of Abram 1. דבר dābār “a word, a thing;” the word being the sign of the thing. 2. אדני 'ǎdonāy “Adonai, the Lord;” related: “bring down, lay down.” This is the name usually read in place of Yahweh; but when, as in the present case, יהוה yehovâh and אדני 'ǎdonāy are in apposition, אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym is read instead of the former. The Jews from a feeling of reverence avoided the utterance of this sacred name except on the most…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 2-6Verses 2-6 Though we must never complain of God, yet we have leave to complain to him; and to state all our grievances. It is ease to a burdened spirit, to open its case to a faithful and compassionate friend. Abram's complaint is, that he had no child; that he was never likely to have any; that the want of a son was so great a trouble to him, that it took away all his comfort. If we suppose that Abram looked no further than outward comfort, this…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-3Abram used wordplay to show his concern that Eliezer of Damascus (Hebrew dammeseq), a man in Abram's household, would become his heir (Hebrew ben-mesheq, which means “son of possession”). This was the usual practice when a man had no son.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Eliezer of Damascus ... one born in my house is mine heir--According to the usage of nomadic tribes, his chief confidential servant, would be heir to his possessions and honors. But this man could have become his son only by adoption; and how sadly would that have come short of the parental hopes he had been encouraged to entertain! His language betrayed a latent spirit of fretfulness or perhaps a temporary failure in the very virtue for which he is so…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 15:3

• Adoption
• Blessing
• Children
• Condescension of God
• Heir
• Inheritance
• Vision

In the dictionaries

• Abram
• Abraham, Abram
• Chronology
• Count
• Covenant
• Eliezer
• Exceeding
• Fear
• Heir
• Horror

Commentaries on Genesis 15

• 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