Genesis 16:11
in Genesis 16The angel of the LORD proceeded: “Behold, you have conceived and will bear a son. And you shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard your cry of affliction.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the angel of Jehovah said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son; and thou shalt call his name Ishmael, because Jehovah hath heard thy affliction.
KJV
And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.
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This verse in Genesis 16
Commentary
9 notes on this verseAnd shalt call his name Ishmael - ישמאעל Yishmael, from שמע shama, he heard, and אל El, God; for, says the Angel, The Lord Hath Heard thy affliction. Thus the name of the child must ever keep the mother in remembrance of God’s merciful interposition in her behalf, and remind the child and the man that he was an object of God’s gracious and providential goodness.
This site's exposition
you have conceived and will bear a son
on Genesis 16:11-12
Ishmael means God hears, and the angel gives the name for the cry the LORD had heard. This is the first birth announcement of its form in Scripture, and the same shape returns to Mary at Luke 1:31. He is called a wild donkey of a man, an animal that lives free of any owner. The promise and the trouble are spoken in one breath.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
At that time, giving birth to children was regarded as a matter of great importance in view of the multiplication of human beings, as we have explained—this, moreover, at a time when virginity and the teaching on virtue did not yet have much credibility.
(Verse 11) And she called his name Ishmael; for God has heard my affliction. Ishmael means, God hears.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Behold, he said, you have conceived and will bear a son, and you shall call his name Ishmael. Ishmael means God hears, and the reason for the name is explained when it is immediately added: because the Lord has heard your affliction.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Ishmael, that is, God will hear; and the reason is, because the Lord hath heard: he hath, and therefore he will. The experience we have had of God's seasonable kindness in distress should encourage us to hope for the like help in the like exigencies. Even there, where there is little cry of devotion, the God of pity hears the cry of affliction: tears speak as well as prayers.
And the angel of the Lord said unto her,.... Continued his discourse with her, informing her she should have a son, and what his name should be, and what his character, and the place of his habitation: behold, thou art with child; this she knew, and it is said, not for her information, as to this respect, but to lead on to something else he had to acquaint her with, she did not know.
2 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Note, Even where there is little cry of devotion, the God of pity sometimes graciously hears the cry of affliction. Tears speak as well as prayers. This speaks comfort to the afflicted, that God not only sees what their afflictions are, but hears what they say.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Ishmael--Like other Hebrew names, this had a signification, and it is made up of two words--"God hears." The reason is explained.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
The angel informed Hagar that his name will be Ishmael — just as in the verse, Behold, a son shall be born unto the house of David Josiah by name. I Kings:2.
3 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
‘PERE ADAM.’ Rashi comments: “One who loves the deserts. The word pere is thus, according to Rashi, synonymous with “desert,” as it says peraim bamidbar (Job:5). Pere adam is thus: “a man who loves the desert.
הרבה ארבה, the angel being G'd's messenger, may speak in the first person as if he were to do what he says, seeing that he delivers G'd's message. It is as if G'd Himself had spoken.
The angel of Adonoy said to her: I will greatly multiply your descendants that they can not be counted because of their great number.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לָהּ֙ | lah | to <the> her | ||
| מַלְאַ֣ךְ | malakh | [the] angel of | H4397 → | 213 times |
| יְהוָ֔ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| הִנָּ֥ךְ | hinakh | here you | H2009 → | 843 times |
| הָרָ֖ה | harah | [are] pregnant | H2030 → | 16 times |
| וְיֹלַ֣דְתְּ | veyoladt | and you will bear | H3205 → | 496 times |
| בֵּ֑ן | ben | a son | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וְקָרָ֤את | vekarat | and you will call | H7121 → | 733 times |
| שְׁמוֹ֙ | shemo | name his | H8034 → | 864 times |
| יִשְׁמָעֵ֔אל | yishmael | Ishmael | H3458 → | 48 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| שָׁמַ֥ע | shama' | he has listened | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| עָנְיֵֽךְ׃ | ʾaneyekh | affliction your | H6040 → | 36 times |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לָהּ֙to <the> her
lah
מַלְאַ֣ךְ[the] angel of
malakhH4397 →213 times
יְהוָ֔הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
הִנָּ֥ךְhere you
hinakhH2009 →843 times
הָרָ֖ה[are] pregnant
harahH2030 →16 times
וְיֹלַ֣דְתְּand you will bear
veyoladtH3205 →496 times
בֵּ֑ןa son
benH1121 →4930 times
וְקָרָ֤אתand you will call
vekaratH7121 →733 times
שְׁמוֹ֙name his
shemoH8034 →864 times
יִשְׁמָעֵ֔אלIshmael
yishmaelH3458 →48 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
שָׁמַ֥עhe has listened
shama'H8085 →1159 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
עָנְיֵֽךְ׃affliction your
ʾaneyekhH6040 →36 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
Isaiah 7:14Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
it leads to
- Matthew 1:23
“Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means, “God with us”).
- Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of…
- Luke 1:31
Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.
- John 1:1–2
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- Matthew 1:23
Through
Exodus 3:7The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.
it leads to
- Psalms 145:19
He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them.
- Psalms 106:44
Nevertheless He heard their cry; He took note of their distress.
- Exodus 2:23–25
After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.
- Psalms 145:19
Where this verse is studied
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Studies4
On this verse
About Genesis
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); Didymus the Blind, ON GENESIS 245; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Hebrew Questions on Genesis; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.