The Call of Abram

12 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household^(A) to the land^(B) I will show you.^(C)

The Lord’s Covenant With Abram

15 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram^(A) in a vision:^(B)

² But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord,^(F) what can you give me since I remain childless^(G) and the one who will inherit^[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?^(H)” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant^(I) in my household^(J) will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.^(K)” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars^(L)—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring^[d] be.”^(M)

⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.^(N)

⁷ He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out^(O) of Ur of the Chaldeans^(P) to give you this land to take possession of it.”^(Q)

⁸ But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord,^(R) how can I know^(S) that I will gain possession of it?”^(T)

⁹ So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer,^(U) a goat and a ram, each three years old,^(V) along with a dove and a young pigeon.^(W)”

¹⁰ Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other;^(X) the birds, however, he did not cut in half.^{(Y) 11} Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses,^(Z) but Abram drove them away.

¹² As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,^(AA) and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. ¹³ Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years^(AB) your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved^(AC) and mistreated there. ¹⁴ But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out^(AD) with great possessions.^{(AE) 15} You, however, will go to your ancestors^(AF) in peace and be buried at a good old age.^{(AG) 16} In the fourth generation^(AH) your descendants will come back here,^(AI) for the sin of the Amorites^(AJ) has not yet reached its full measure.”

¹⁷ When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch^(AK) appeared and passed between the pieces.^{(AL) 18} On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram^(AM) and said, “To your descendants I give this land,^(AN) from the Wadi^[e] of Egypt^(AO) to the great river, the Euphrates^(AP)— ¹⁹ the land of the Kenites,^(AQ) Kenizzites, Kadmonites, ²⁰ Hittites,^(AR) Perizzites,^(AS) Rephaites,^{(AT) 21} Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”^(AU)

The Covenant of Circumcision

17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old,^(A) the Lord appeared to him^(B) and said, “I am God Almighty^[a];^(C) walk before me faithfully and be blameless.^{(D) 2} Then I will make my covenant between me and you^(E) and will greatly increase your numbers.”^(F)

³ Abram fell facedown,^(G) and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you:^(H) You will be the father of many nations.^{(I) 5} No longer will you be called Abram^[b]; your name will be Abraham,^[c](J) for I have made you a father of many nations.^{(K) 6} I will make you very fruitful;^(L) I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.^{(M) 7} I will establish my covenant^(N) as an everlasting covenant^(O) between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God^(P) and the God of your descendants after you.^{(Q) 8} The whole land of Canaan,^(R) where you now reside as a foreigner,^(S) I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you;^(T) and I will be their God.^(U)”

⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant,^(V) you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.^{(W) 10} This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.^{(X) 11} You are to undergo circumcision,^(Y) and it will be the sign of the covenant^(Z) between me and you. ¹² For the generations to come^(AA) every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised,^(AB) including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. ¹³ Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised.^(AC) My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.^{(AD) 14} Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised^(AE) in the flesh, will be cut off from his people;^(AF) he has broken my covenant.^(AG)”

¹⁵ God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai^(AH) your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.^{(AI) 16} I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her.^(AJ) I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations;^(AK) kings of peoples will come from her.”

¹⁸ And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael^(A) might live under your blessing!”^(B)

¹⁹ Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son,^(C) and you will call him Isaac.^[a](D) I will establish my covenant with him^(E) as an everlasting covenant^(F) for his descendants after him. ²⁰ And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers.^(G) He will be the father of twelve rulers,^(H) and I will make him into a great nation.^{(I) 21} But my covenant^(J) I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you^(K) by this time next year.”^{(L) 22} When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.^(M)

Jacob and Esau

¹⁹ This is the account^(A) of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, ²⁰ and Isaac was forty years old^(B) when he married Rebekah^(C) daughter of Bethuel^(D) the Aramean from Paddan Aram^[a](E) and sister of Laban^(F) the Aramean.^(G)

²¹ Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless.^(H) The Lord answered his prayer,^(I) and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. ²² The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.^(J)

²³ The Lord said to her,

²⁴ When the time came for her to give birth,^(M) there were twin boys in her womb.^{(N) 25} The first to come out was red,^(O) and his whole body was like a hairy garment;^(P) so they named him Esau.^{[b](Q) 26} After this, his brother came out,^(R) with his hand grasping Esau’s heel;^(S) so he was named Jacob.^[c](T) Isaac was sixty years old^(U) when Rebekah gave birth to them.

²⁷ The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter,^(V) a man of the open country,^(W) while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. ²⁸ Isaac, who had a taste for wild game,^(X) loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.^(Y)

²⁹ Once when Jacob was cooking some stew,^(Z) Esau came in from the open country,^(AA) famished. ³⁰ He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew!^(AB) I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.^[d])^(AC)

³¹ Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.^(AD)”

³² “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”

³³ But Jacob said, “Swear^(AE) to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright^(AF) to Jacob.

³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew.^(AG) He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

So Esau despised his birthright.

27 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see,^(A) he called for Esau his older son^(B) and said to him, “My son.”

“Here I am,” he answered.

² Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death.^{(C) 3} Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country^(D) to hunt some wild game for me. ⁴ Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like^(E) and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing^(F) before I die.”^(G)

⁵ Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country^(H) to hunt game and bring it back, ⁶ Rebekah said to her son Jacob,^(I) “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, ⁷ ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’^{(J) 8} Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you:^{(K) 9} Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats,^(L) so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it.^{(M) 10} Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing^(N) before he dies.”

¹¹ Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man^(O) while I have smooth skin. ¹² What if my father touches me?^(P) I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse^(Q) on myself rather than a blessing.”

¹³ His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me.^(R) Just do what I say;^(S) go and get them for me.”

¹⁴ So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it.^{(T) 15} Then Rebekah took the best clothes^(U) of Esau her older son,^(V) which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. ¹⁶ She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins.^{(W) 17} Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.

¹⁸ He went to his father and said, “My father.”

“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”^(X)

¹⁹ Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn.^(Y) I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game,^(Z) so that you may give me your blessing.”^(AA)

²⁰ Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”

“The Lord your God gave me success,^(AB)” he replied.

²¹ Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you,^(AC) my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.”

²² Jacob went close to his father Isaac,^(AD) who touched^(AE) him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” ²³ He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau;^(AF) so he proceeded to bless him. ²⁴ “Are you really my son Esau?” he asked.

“I am,” he replied.

²⁵ Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”^(AG)

Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank. ²⁶ Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”

²⁷ So he went to him and kissed^(AH) him^(AI). When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes,^(AJ) he blessed him and said,

³⁰ After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. ³¹ He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”^(AS)

³² His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”^(AT)

“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.^(AU)”

³³ Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me?^(AV) I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!^(AW)”

³⁴ When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry^(AX) and said to his father, “Bless^(AY) me—me too, my father!”

³⁵ But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully^(AZ) and took your blessing.”^(BA)

³⁶ Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob^[a]?^(BB) This is the second time he has taken advantage of^(BC) me: He took my birthright,^(BD) and now he’s taken my blessing!”^(BE) Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?”

³⁷ Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine.^(BF) So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”

³⁸ Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.^(BG)

³⁹ His father Isaac answered him,^(BH)

God’s Faithfulness

3 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? ² Much in every way!^(A) First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.^(B)

³ What if some were unfaithful?^(C) Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness?^{(D) 4} Not at all! Let God be true,^(E) and every human being a liar.^(F) As it is written: