Genesis 15:4
in Genesis 15Then the word of the LORD came to Abram, saying, “This one will not be your heir, but one who comes from your own body will be your heir.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And, behold, the word of Jehovah came unto him, saying, This man shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.
KJV
And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.
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This verse in Genesis 15
Commentary
5 notes on this verseBut if the words of Abraham are not enough to correct, consider the word of God, who condemns such a mode of transmitting inheritance. "This man shall not be your heir," he says, "but the other who will come out from you, he will be your heir." Who is this other of whom he speaks? In fact Hagar too bore a son, Ishmael, but he is not speaking of him. Instead, he is speaking of holy Isaac. For this reason he added "who will come out from you."
This site's exposition
one who comes from your own body
on Genesis 15:4-5
God sets the servant aside and names an heir who comes from Abram's own body, so there is nothing left for Abram to arrange. Then the LORD takes him outside and tells him to count the stars, if he is able. The promise of offspring beyond counting comes to a childless man.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
This one shall not be your heir; but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir. This is proved by reason to have been said about Isaac and his offspring; of whom it was later heard: In Isaac shall your seed …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And behold, the word of the Lord came unto him,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
This shall not be thine heir--To the first part of his address no reply was given; but having renewed it in a spirit of more becoming submission, "whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it" [Ge 15:8], he was delighted by a most explicit promise of Canaan, which was immediately confirmed by a remarkable ceremony.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהִנֵּ֨ה | vehineh | and there! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| דְבַר־ | devar- | [the] word of | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| יְהוָ֤ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֵלָיו֙ | ʾelav | [was] to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| לֵאמֹ֔ר | lemor | <to> saying | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִֽירָשְׁךָ֖ | yirashekha | he will inherit you | H3423 → | 231 times |
| זֶ֑ה | zeh | this [one] | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| כִּי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אִם֙ | ʾim | except | H518 → | 1069 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | [one] who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֵצֵ֣א | yetze' | he will come out | H3318 → | 1067 times |
| מִמֵּעֶ֔יךָ | mimeeikha | from inward parts your | H4578 → | |
| ה֖וּא | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| יִֽירָשֶֽׁךָ׃ | yirashekha | he will inherit you | H3423 → | 231 times |
וְהִנֵּ֨הand there!
vehinehH2009 →843 times
דְבַר־[the] word of
devar-H1697 →1440 times
יְהוָ֤הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֵלָיו֙[was] to him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
לֵאמֹ֔ר<to> saying
lemorH559 →5305 times
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
יִֽירָשְׁךָ֖he will inherit you
yirashekhaH3423 →231 times
זֶ֑הthis [one]
zehH2088 →1180 times
כִּי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אִם֙except
ʾimH518 →1069 times
אֲשֶׁ֣ר[one] who
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יֵצֵ֣אhe will come out
yetze'H3318 →1067 times
מִמֵּעֶ֔יךָfrom inward parts your
mimeeikhaH4578 →
ה֖וּאhe
hu'H1931 →1879 times
יִֽירָשֶֽׁךָ׃he will inherit you
yirashekhaH3423 →231 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
2 Samuel 7:12And when your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom.
it leads to
- Acts 2:30
But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that He would place one of his descendants on his throne.
- 1 Kings 8:20
Now the LORD has fulfilled the word that He spoke. I have succeeded my father David, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised. I have built the house for…
- 1 Kings 2:1
As the time drew near for David to die, he charged his son Solomon,
- Acts 2:30
Through
Genesis 21:12But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to everything that Sarah tells you, for through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.
it leads to
- Hebrews 11:18
even though God had said to him, “Through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.”
- Romans 9:7–8
Nor because they are Abraham’s descendants are they all his children. On the contrary, “Through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.”
- Hebrews 11:18
Through
Galatians 4:28Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise.
it leads to
- Galatians 4:23
His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born through the promise.
- Romans 9:8–9
So it is not the children of the flesh who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as offspring.
- Galatians 4:23
Through
Genesis 17:16And I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will descend from her.”
it leads to
- Genesis 35:11
And God told him, “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation—even a company of nations—shall come from you, and kings shall descend from you.
- Genesis 35:11
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies13
About Genesis

This page draws on Ambrose of Milan, On Abraham; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on Genesis; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
