New International Version
Genesis 17:3
3Abram fell facedown, and God said to him,
Genesis 17:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:
- New Living Translation (NLT)At this, Abram fell face down on the ground. Then God said to him,
Context of Genesis 17:3
1When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4“As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.
Read all of Genesis 17Genesis 17:3 word by word
וַיִּפֹּ֥ל אַבְרָ֖ם עַל־פָּנָ֑יו וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר אִתּ֛וֹ אֱלֹהִ֖ים לֵאמֹֽר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 17:3
- Genesis 17:17Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”
- Exodus 3:6Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
- Leviticus 9:23Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.
- Numbers 14:5Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there.
- Numbers 16:22But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, “O God, the God who gives breath to all living things, will you be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?”
- Joshua 5:14“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
- Judges 13:20As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground.
- 1 Kings 18:39When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”
- Ezekiel 1:28Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
- Ezekiel 3:23So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown.
- Ezekiel 9:8While they were killing and I was left alone, I fell facedown, crying out, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! Are you going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel in this outpouring of your wrath on Jerusalem?”
- Daniel 8:17As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”
- Daniel 10:9Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.
- Matthew 17:6When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.
- Revelation 1:17When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last.
Commentaries on Genesis 17:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3And Abram fell on his face - The eastern method of prostration was thus: the person first went down on his knees, and then lowered his head to his knees, and touched the earth with his forehead. A very painful posture, but significative of great humiliation and reverence.Read the comment
- 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. 1-27God gave Abram's family signs that his promises would come true. He changed Abram's name to Abraham (17:1–8). He established circumcision as the sign of the covenant (17:9–14, 23–27). He changed Sarai's name to Sarah (17:15–22).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Abram fell on his face--the attitude of profoundest reverence assumed by Eastern people. It consists in the prostrate body resting on the hands and knees, with the face bent till the forehead touches the ground. It is an expression of conscious humility and profound reverence.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 17:3
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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