New International Version
Galatians 3:16
16The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ.
Galatians 3:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, "And to offsprings," referring to many, but referring to one, "And to your offspring," who is Christ.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.
- New Living Translation (NLT)God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ.
Context of Galatians 3:16
14He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit. 15Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. 17What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
Read all of Galatians 3Galatians 3:16 word by word
τῷ δὲ Ἀβραὰμ ἐρρέθησαν αἱ ἐπαγγελίαι καὶ τῷ σπέρματι αὐτοῦ. οὐ λέγει· καὶ τοῖς σπέρμασιν ὡς ἐπὶ πολλῶν ἀλλ᾽ ὡς ἐφ᾽ ἑνός· καὶ τῷ σπέρματί σου ὅς ἐστιν Χριστός.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Nowδέde · thenG1161
- to AbrahamἈβραάμAbraam · AbrahamG11
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- seedὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- seedσπέρμαsperma · seed: offspringG4690
- wereἐρῶereō · to sayG2046
- the promisesἐπαγγελίαepaggelia · promiseG1860
- He saithλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- notοὐou · noG3756
- asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
- ofἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
- manyπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
- butἀλλάalla · butG235
- oneεἷςheis · oneG1520
- toσπέρμαsperma · seed: offspringG4690
- thyσύsu · youG4771
- whichὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547
Cross-references for Galatians 3:16
- Galatians 3:8Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”
- Genesis 12:3I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
- Genesis 13:15All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.
- Genesis 15:5He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
- Genesis 17:7I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
- Genesis 21:12But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.
- Genesis 22:17I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,
- Genesis 26:3Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.
- Genesis 28:13There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
- Genesis 28:14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
- Genesis 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.
- Galatians 3:27for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
- Romans 12:5so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
- 1 Corinthians 12:12Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.
- Ephesians 4:15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.
- Ephesians 5:29After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church—
Commentaries on Galatians 3:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Now to Abraham and his seed - The promise of salvation by faith was made to Abraham and his posterity. He saith not, And to seeds - It was one particular kind of posterity which was intended: but as of one - which is Christ; i.e. to the spiritual head, and all believers in him, who are children of Abraham, because they are believers, Galatians 3:7. But why does the apostle say, not of seeds, as of many? To this it is answered, that Abraham possessed in…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16Now to Abraham and his seed - To him and his posterity. Were the promises made - The promise here referred to was that which is recorded in Genesis 22:17-18. “In blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” He saith not, And to seeds, as of many, but as of one - He does not use the plural term…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-18Verses 15-18 The covenant God made with Abraham, was not done away by the giving the law to Moses. The covenant was made with Abraham and his Seed. It is still in force; Christ abideth for ever in his person, and his spiritual seed, who are his by faith. By this we learn the difference between the promises of the law and those of the gospel. The promises of the law are made to the person of every man; the promises of the gospel are first made to Christ…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16The promises to Abraham were mainly received by him and his child (literally his seed). This "seed" was the promised Messiah (God's chosen one), who is Abraham's ultimate descendant. The word "seed" can mean one descendant or many (see Genesis 12:7; 13:15). Although the promise can refer to many descendants (see Galatians 3:29; Genesis 13:15–16; 15:5–6; 17:7–8), it specifically points to one descendant, Christ, who fully fulfilled the promise. The heirs…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. This verse is parenthetical. The covenant of promise was not "spoken" (so Greek for "made") to Abraham alone, but "to Abraham and his seed"; to the latter especially; and this means Christ (and that which is inseparable from Him, the literal Israel, and the spiritual, His body, the Church). Christ not having come when the law was given, the covenant could not have been then fulfilled, but awaited the coming of Him, the Seed, to whom it was spoken…Read the comment
Topics related to Galatians 3:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Galatians 3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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