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Isaac Is Born

21 (A)Now Yahweh visited Sarah as He had said, and Yahweh did for Sarah as He had [a]promised. (B)So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at (C)the appointed time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, (D)Isaac. Then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was (E)eight days old, as God had commanded him. Now Abraham was (F)one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, “God has made (G)laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh [b]with me.” And she said, “(H)Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Sarah Sends Hagar Away

And the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. And Sarah saw (I)the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, [c](J)laughing in jest. 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “(K)Drive out this maidservant and her son! The son of this maidservant shall not be an heir with my son, with Isaac.” 11 (L)And the matter [d]distressed Abraham greatly because of his son. 12 So God said to Abraham, “[e]Do not be distressed because of the boy and your maidservant; whatever Sarah tells you, listen to her voice, for (M)through Isaac your seed shall be named. 13 And of (N)the son of the maidservant I will make a nation also, because he is your seed.” 14 So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a [f]skin of water and gave them to Hagar, putting them on her shoulder, and gave her the child, and sent her away. So she went and wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba.

15 When the water in the skin was finished, she [g]put the child under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went and sat down opposite him, about a bowshot away, for she said, “Do not let me [h]see when the child dies.” And she sat opposite him and (O)lifted up her voice and wept. 17 Then God (P)heard the voice of the boy crying; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter with you, Hagar? (Q)Do not fear, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the boy, and hold him by [i]the hand, (R)for I will make a great nation of him.” 19 Then God (S)opened her eyes, and she saw (T)a well of water; and she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20 (U)And God was with the boy, and he grew; and he [j]lived in the wilderness and was an archer. 21 (V)And he [k]lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

A Covenant with Abimelech

22 Now it happened at that time, that (W)Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “(X)God is with you in all that you do; 23 so now, (Y)swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my offspring or with my posterity, but according to the lovingkindness that I have shown you, you shall show me and the land in which you have sojourned.” 24 And Abraham said, “I swear it.” 25 But Abraham reproved Abimelech about the well of water which the servants of Abimelech (Z)had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor did I hear of it [l]until today.”

27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and (AA)the two of them cut a covenant. 28 Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. 29 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs mean, which you have set by themselves?” 30 He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand so that it may be a (AB)witness to me, that I dug this well.” 31 Therefore he called that place (AC)Beersheba, because there the two of them swore an oath. 32 So they cut a covenant at Beersheba; and Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, arose and returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 And Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba, and there (AD)he called upon the name of Yahweh, the (AE)Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham sojourned (AF)in the land of the Philistines for many days.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 21:1 Lit spoken
  2. Genesis 21:6 Lit for
  3. Genesis 21:9 Or playing
  4. Genesis 21:11 Lit was very grievous in Abraham’s sight
  5. Genesis 21:12 Lit Do not let it be grievous in your sight
  6. Genesis 21:14 A skin used as a bottle
  7. Genesis 21:15 Lit cast
  8. Genesis 21:16 Lit look upon the death of the child
  9. Genesis 21:18 Lit your
  10. Genesis 21:20 Lit dwelt
  11. Genesis 21:21 Lit dwelt
  12. Genesis 21:26 Lit except

Isaac Is Born(A)

21 And the Lord (B)visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah (C)as He had spoken. For Sarah (D)conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, (E)at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—(F)Isaac.[a] Then Abraham (G)circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, (H)as God had commanded him. Now (I)Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, (J)“God has [b]made me laugh, and all who hear (K)will laugh with me.” She also said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? (L)For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hagar and Ishmael Depart(M)

So the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar (N)the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, (O)scoffing.[c] 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, (P)“Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” 11 And the matter was very [d]displeasing in Abraham’s sight (Q)because of his son.

12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for (R)in Isaac your seed shall be called. 13 Yet I will also make (S)a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your [e]seed.”

14 So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and [f]a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and (T)sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. 15 And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. 16 Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, “Let me not see the death of the boy.” So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.

17 And (U)God heard the voice of the lad. Then the (V)angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for (W)I will make him a great nation.”

19 Then (X)God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink. 20 So God (Y)was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, (Z)and became an archer. 21 He dwelt in the Wilderness of Paran; and his mother (AA)took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

A Covenant with Abimelech

22 And it came to pass at that time that (AB)Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, (AC)“God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore, (AD)swear[g] to me by God that you will not deal falsely with me, with my offspring, or with my posterity; but that according to the kindness that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt.”

24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”

25 Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants (AE)had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them (AF)made a [h]covenant. 28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29 Then Abimelech asked Abraham, (AG)“What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?”

30 And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that (AH)they may be my witness that I have dug this well.” 31 Therefore he (AI)called that place [i]Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath there.

32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol, the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and (AJ)there called on the name of the Lord, (AK)the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines many days.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 21:3 Lit. Laughter
  2. Genesis 21:6 Lit. made laughter for me
  3. Genesis 21:9 Lit. laughing
  4. Genesis 21:11 distressing
  5. Genesis 21:13 descendant
  6. Genesis 21:14 A water bottle made of skins
  7. Genesis 21:23 take an oath
  8. Genesis 21:27 treaty
  9. Genesis 21:31 Lit. Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven

The Birth of Isaac

21 The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would. And Abraham named their son Isaac. Eight days after Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him as God had commanded. Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born.

And Sarah declared, “God has brought me laughter.[a] All who hear about this will laugh with me. Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse a baby? Yet I have given Abraham a son in his old age!”

Hagar and Ishmael Are Sent Away

When Isaac grew up and was about to be weaned, Abraham prepared a huge feast to celebrate the occasion. But Sarah saw Ishmael—the son of Abraham and her Egyptian servant Hagar—making fun of her son, Isaac.[b] 10 So she turned to Abraham and demanded, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son. He is not going to share the inheritance with my son, Isaac. I won’t have it!”

11 This upset Abraham very much because Ishmael was his son. 12 But God told Abraham, “Do not be upset over the boy and your servant. Do whatever Sarah tells you, for Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted. 13 But I will also make a nation of the descendants of Hagar’s son because he is your son, too.”

14 So Abraham got up early the next morning, prepared food and a container of water, and strapped them on Hagar’s shoulders. Then he sent her away with their son, and she wandered aimlessly in the wilderness of Beersheba.

15 When the water was gone, she put the boy in the shade of a bush. 16 Then she went and sat down by herself about a hundred yards[c] away. “I don’t want to watch the boy die,” she said, as she burst into tears.

17 But God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, “Hagar, what’s wrong? Do not be afraid! God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Go to him and comfort him, for I will make a great nation from his descendants.”

19 Then God opened Hagar’s eyes, and she saw a well full of water. She quickly filled her water container and gave the boy a drink.

20 And God was with the boy as he grew up in the wilderness. He became a skillful archer, 21 and he settled in the wilderness of Paran. His mother arranged for him to marry a woman from the land of Egypt.

Abraham’s Covenant with Abimelech

22 About this time, Abimelech came with Phicol, his army commander, to visit Abraham. “God is obviously with you, helping you in everything you do,” Abimelech said. 23 “Swear to me in God’s name that you will never deceive me, my children, or any of my descendants. I have been loyal to you, so now swear that you will be loyal to me and to this country where you are living as a foreigner.”

24 Abraham replied, “Yes, I swear to it!” 25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelech about a well that Abimelech’s servants had taken by force from Abraham’s servants.

26 “This is the first I’ve heard of it,” Abimelech answered. “I have no idea who is responsible. You have never complained about this before.”

27 Abraham then gave some of his sheep, goats, and cattle to Abimelech, and they made a treaty. 28 But Abraham also took seven additional female lambs and set them off by themselves. 29 Abimelech asked, “Why have you set these seven apart from the others?”

30 Abraham replied, “Please accept these seven lambs to show your agreement that I dug this well.” 31 Then he named the place Beersheba (which means “well of the oath”), because that was where they had sworn the oath.

32 After making their covenant at Beersheba, Abimelech left with Phicol, the commander of his army, and they returned home to the land of the Philistines. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba, and there he worshiped the Lord, the Eternal God.[d] 34 And Abraham lived as a foreigner in Philistine country for a long time.

Footnotes

  1. 21:6 The name Isaac means “he laughs.”
  2. 21:9 As in Greek version and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew lacks of her son, Isaac.
  3. 21:16 Hebrew a bowshot.
  4. 21:33 Hebrew El-Olam.

21 And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken.

For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.

And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.

And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.

And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.

10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.

11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.

12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

14 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

15 And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bow shot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.

17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.

18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.

19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.

20 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.

21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.

22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:

23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.

24 And Abraham said, I will swear.

25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.

26 And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing; neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day.

27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.

28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?

30 And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.

31 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them.

32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.

33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God.

34 And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land many days.