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)

Hagar and Ishmael

16 Now Sarai,^(AV) Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.^(AW) But she had an Egyptian slave^(AX) named Hagar;^{(AY) 2} so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children.^(AZ) Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”^(BA)

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan^(BB) ten years,^(BC) Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar,^(BD) and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.^{(BE) 5} Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”^(BF)

⁶ “Your slave is in your hands,^(BG)” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated^(BH) Hagar; so she fled from her.

⁷ The angel of the Lord^(BI) found Hagar near a spring^(BJ) in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.^{(BK) 8} And he said, “Hagar,^(BL) slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”^(BM)

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

⁹ Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” ¹⁰ The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”^(BN)

¹¹ The angel of the Lord^(BO) also said to her:

¹³ She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,^(BV)” for she said, “I have now seen^[h] the One who sees me.”^{(BW) 14} That is why the well^(BX) was called Beer Lahai Roi^[i];^(BY) it is still there, between Kadesh^(BZ) and Bered.

¹⁵ So Hagar^(CA) bore Abram a son,^(CB) and Abram gave the name Ishmael^(CC) to the son she had borne. ¹⁶ Abram was eighty-six years old^(CD) when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

The Covenant of Circumcision

17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old,^(CE) the Lord appeared to him^(CF) and said, “I am God Almighty^[j];^(CG) walk before me faithfully and be blameless.^{(CH) 2} Then I will make my covenant between me and you^(CI) and will greatly increase your numbers.”^(CJ)

³ Abram fell facedown,^(CK) and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you:^(CL) You will be the father of many nations.^{(CM) 5} No longer will you be called Abram^[k]; your name will be Abraham,^[l](CN) for I have made you a father of many nations.^{(CO) 6} I will make you very fruitful;^(CP) I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.^{(CQ) 7} I will establish my covenant^(CR) as an everlasting covenant^(CS) between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God^(CT) and the God of your descendants after you.^{(CU) 8} The whole land of Canaan,^(CV) where you now reside as a foreigner,^(CW) I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you;^(CX) and I will be their God.^(CY)”

⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant,^(CZ) you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.^{(DA) 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.^{(DB) 11} You are to undergo circumcision,^(DC) and it will be the sign of the covenant^(DD) between me and you. ¹² For the generations to come^(DE) every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised,^(DF) 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.^(DG) My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.^{(DH) 14} Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised^(DI) in the flesh, will be cut off from his people;^(DJ) he has broken my covenant.^(DK)”

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

¹⁷ Abraham fell facedown;^(DP) he laughed^(DQ) and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old?^(DR) Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”^{(DS) 18} And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael^(DT) might live under your blessing!”^(DU)

¹⁹ Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son,^(DV) and you will call him Isaac.^[m](DW) I will establish my covenant with him^(DX) as an everlasting covenant^(DY) 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.^(DZ) He will be the father of twelve rulers,^(EA) and I will make him into a great nation.^{(EB) 21} But my covenant^(EC) I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you^(ED) by this time next year.”^{(EE) 22} When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.^(EF)

²³ On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household^(EG) or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him.^{(EH) 24} Abraham was ninety-nine years old^(EI) when he was circumcised,^{(EJ) 25} and his son Ishmael^(EK) was thirteen; ²⁶ Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day. ²⁷ And every male in Abraham’s household^(EL), including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.

The Three Visitors

18 The Lord appeared to Abraham^(EM) near the great trees of Mamre^(EN) while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent^(EO) in the heat of the day. ² Abraham looked up^(EP) and saw three men^(EQ) standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.^(ER)

³ He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes,^(ES) my lord,^[n] do not pass your servant^(ET) by. ⁴ Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet^(EU) and rest under this tree. ⁵ Let me get you something to eat,^(EV) so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”

“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”

⁶ So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs^[o] of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”^(EW)

⁷ Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf^(EX) and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. ⁸ He then brought some curds^(EY) and milk^(EZ) and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them.^(FA) While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.

⁹ “Where is your wife Sarah?”^(FB) they asked him.

“There, in the tent,^(FC)” he said.

¹⁰ Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year,^(FD) and Sarah your wife will have a son.”^(FE)

Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. ¹¹ Abraham and Sarah were already very old,^(FF) and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.^{(FG) 12} So Sarah laughed^(FH) to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord^(FI) is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

¹³ Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’^{(FJ) 14} Is anything too hard for the Lord?^(FK) I will return to you at the appointed time next year,^(FL) and Sarah will have a son.”^(FM)

¹⁵ Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”

But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

Abraham Pleads for Sodom

¹⁶ When the men^(FN) got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. ¹⁷ Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham^(FO) what I am about to do?^{(FP) 18} Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,^(FQ) and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.^{[p] 19} For I have chosen him^(FR), so that he will direct his children^(FS) and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord^(FT) by doing what is right and just,^(FU) so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”^(FV)

²⁰ Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom^(FW) and Gomorrah is so great^(FX) and their sin so grievous^{(FY) 21} that I will go down^(FZ) and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”

²² The men^(GA) turned away and went toward Sodom,^(GB) but Abraham remained standing before the Lord.^{[q](GC) 23} Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?^{(GD) 24} What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare^[r] the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?^{(GE) 25} Far be it from you to do such a thing^(GF)—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous^(GG) and the wicked alike.^(GH) Far be it from you! Will not the Judge^(GI) of all the earth do right?”^(GJ)

²⁶ The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.^(GK)”

²⁷ Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes,^{(GL) 28} what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”

“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”

²⁹ Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”

He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”

³⁰ Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry,^(GM) but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”

He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

³¹ Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”

He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”

³² Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more.^(GN) What if only ten can be found there?”

He answered, “For the sake of ten,^(GO) I will not destroy it.”

³³ When the Lord had finished speaking^(GP) with Abraham, he left,^(GQ) and Abraham returned home.^(GR)