English Standard Version
Genesis 15:3
3And Abram said, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir."
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.”
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”
- New Living Translation (NLT)You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.”
Context of Genesis 15:3
1After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: "Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great." 2But Abram said, "O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?" And Abram said, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir." 4And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: "This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir." 5And he brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be."
Read all of Genesis 15Genesis 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 12:2And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
- Genesis 13:16I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted.
- Proverbs 13:12Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
- Jeremiah 12:1Righteous are you, O Lord, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?
- Hebrews 10:35Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
- Genesis 14:14When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.
- Proverbs 29:21Whoever pampers his servant from childhood will in the end find him his heir.
- Proverbs 30:23an unloved woman when she gets a husband, and a maidservant when she displaces her mistress.
- Ecclesiastes 2:7I bought male and female slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house. I had also great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem.
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
In the dictionaries
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
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