Genesis 17:4

2 And I will make My ^acovenant between Me and you, and ^bwill multiply you exceedingly.”

3 Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:

4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a ^afather of many nations.

5 No longer shall ^ayour name be called Abram, but your name shall be² Abraham; ^bfor I have made you a father of³ many nations.

6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations ^aof you, and ^bkings shall come from you.

7 And I will ^aestablish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, ^bto be God to you and ^cyour descendants after you.

8 Also ^aI give to you and your descendants after you the land ^bin which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and ^cI will be their God.”

9 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, ^ayou shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.

10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: ^aEvery male child among you shall be circumcised;

11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be ^aa sign of the covenant between Me and you.

12 He who is eight days old among you ^ashall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant.

13 He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.

14 And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person ^ashall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”

15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.

16 And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, ^aand she shall be a mother ^bof nations; ^ckings of peoples shall be from her.”

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?

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What Does Genesis 17:4 Mean?

Genesis 17:3-5

Abraham and Sarah still had not had Isaac, but God is talking about many nations in the past tense. He talks of things that are not as if they already are.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Twenty-Seven)

Genesis 17:3-8

God made a twofold promise to Abraham. The first was a material promise that he would be the father of many nations and that kings would descend from him. God promised him that his progeny would inherit the land of Canaan, an expanse that He defined as stretching from the Nile to the Euphrates rivers. The second, but more important, promise was spiritual. God promised Abraham that in his Seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. This promise encompasses the life and work of Abraham's best known and most revered descendant, Jesus Christ.

This promise was later extended to include the inheritance of the whole world (Romans 4:13). Abraham's physical descendants, the nation of Israel, inherited the land of Canaan. This was a type of Abraham's spiritual descendants inheriting the earth.

Earl L. Henn
Basic Doctrines: The Reward of the Saved

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Genesis 17:4:

Genesis 13:14-15
Galatians 3:29

<< Genesis 17:3

Genesis 17:5 >>

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What Does Genesis 17:4 Mean?

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