By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and set out for a place that he was going to receive as an inheritance. He went out, even though he did not know where he was going.(A) By faith he stayed as a foreigner in the land of promise, living in tents as did Isaac and Jacob, coheirs of the same promise.(B) 10 For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.(C)

11 By faith even Sarah herself, when she was unable to have children, received power to conceive offspring, even though she was past the age, since she[a] considered that the one who had promised was faithful.(D) 12 Therefore, from one man—in fact, from one as good as dead—came offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and as innumerable as the grains of sand along the seashore.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. 11:11 Or By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—received the ability to procreate since he

By faith Abraham, when he[a] was called, obeyed to go out to a place that he was going to receive for an inheritance, and he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived in the land of promise as a stranger, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the fellow heirs of the same promise. 10 For he was expecting the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith also, with Sarah[b],[c] he received the ability to procreate[d] even past the normal age[e], because he regarded the one who had promised to be faithful. 12 And therefore these were fathered from one man, and he being as good as dead, as the stars of heaven in number and like the innumerable sand by the shore of the sea.

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Footnotes

  1. Hebrews 11:8 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal participle (“was called”)
  2. Hebrews 11:11 Literally “with her, Sarah”
  3. Hebrews 11:11 Some manuscripts have “even though Sarah herself was barren”
  4. Hebrews 11:11 Literally “power to deposit seed”
  5. Hebrews 11:11 Literally “beyond the time of maturity”