EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Genesis 17:4
4‘As for me, this is my covenant that I have made with you. You will become the ancestor of many nations of people.
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
2Then I will certainly keep my covenant with you. I will make your descendants grow in number.’ 3Abram fell down so that his face touched the ground. God said to him, ‘As for me, this is my covenant that I have made with you. You will become the ancestor of many nations of people. 5Your name will not be Abram any more. Instead your name will be Abraham, because I will cause you to become the ancestor of many nations. 6I will give you many descendants. These will make many nations of people. Some of your descendants will become kings.
Read all of Genesis 17Genesis 17:4 word by word
אֲנִ֕י הִנֵּ֥ה בְרִיתִ֖י אִתָּ֑ךְ וְהָיִ֕יתָ לְאַ֖ב הֲמ֥וֹן גּוֹיִֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 17:4
- 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.
- Genesis 16:10The angel also said, ‘I will make the number of your descendants become very many. They will be too many for people to count.’
- Genesis 22:17Because you have done this, I will bless you. I will make your descendants become so many that people cannot count them. They will be as many as the stars that are in the sky. They will be as many as the pieces of sand on the shore by the sea. Your descendants will win against their enemies and their enemies' cities.
- Genesis 25:1Abraham then married another woman. Her name was Keturah.
- Genesis 32:12But you have said, “I will give you many good things. I will give you so many descendants that nobody will be able to count them. They will be as many as the pieces of sand on the shore of the sea.” ’
- Genesis 35:11Then God said to him, ‘I am Almighty God. Give birth to many children so that your descendants become very many. They will become many nations and some of them will be kings.
- Genesis 36:1This is the report about Esau and his family. (Esau is also called Edom.)
- Numbers 1:1The Israelites were in the Sinai desert. It was the first day of the second month of the second year after they left Egypt. Moses was in the Tent of Meeting. The Lord said to Moses,
- Numbers 26:1When the bad disease stopped killing people, the Lord spoke to Moses and to Eleazar, the son of Aaron.
- Romans 4:11Some time after that, God told Abraham that someone should circumcise him. That would be a mark on his body to show that God had accepted him. God had already accepted Abraham because Abraham believed in him. God did not accept Abraham because they had circumcised him as a Jewish man. This shows that Abraham is like a father to everyone that God has accepted. Like Abraham, God has accepted them because they have believed in him. It is not important that nobody has circumcised them.
- Galatians 3:28It does not matter whether you are a Jew or a Gentile. It does not matter whether you are a slave or a free person. It does not matter whether you are a man or a woman. You all belong together because you all belong to 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
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