Genesis 17:16
in Genesis 17And 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.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I will bless her, and moreover I will give thee a son of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be of her.
KJV
And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.
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This verse in Genesis 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseI will bless her, etc. - Sarah certainly stands at the head of all the women of the Old Testament, on account of her extraordinary privileges. I am quite of Calmet’s opinion that Sarah was a type of the blessed Virgin. St. Paul considers her a type of the New Testament and heavenly Jerusalem; and as all true believers are considered as the children of Abraham, so all faithful holy women are considered the daughters of Sarah, Gal 4:22, Gal 4:24, Gal 4:26. See also 1Pe 3:6.
This site's exposition
do not call her Sarai
on Genesis 17:15-16
Sarah is renamed in the same conversation as her husband. God will bless her, and the same promise of nations and kings goes to her. Genesis stated her barrenness at 11:30, before the promise was ever made. She is ninety years old when God calls her the mother of nations.
This site's exposition
she will be the mother of nations
Adam Clarke sets Sarah at the head of the women of the Old Testament, and he follows Paul in Galatians 4 in reading her as a figure of the heavenly Jerusalem. Peter calls faithful women her daughters at 1 Peter 3:6. Matthew Henry reads the kings of peoples who descend from her as a blessing of ordered government.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And I will give you a son by her, whom I will bless, and he will become nations, and kings of peoples shall come from him.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Civil government and order are a great blessing to the church. It is promised, not only that people, but kings of people, should be of her; not a headless rout, but a well-modelled well-governed society.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And I will bless her,....
The words behind it
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּבֵרַכְתִּ֣י | uverakhti | and I will bless | H1288 → | 330 times |
| אֹתָ֔הּ | ʾotah | <obj.> her | H853 → | 10935 times |
| וְגַ֨ם | vegam | and also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| נָתַ֧תִּי | natati | I will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| מִמֶּ֛נָּה | mimenah | from her | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| לְךָ֖ | lekha | to <the> you | ||
| בֵּ֑ן | ben | a son | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וּבֵֽרַכְתִּ֙יהָ֙ | uverakhtiha | and I will bless her | H1288 → | 330 times |
| וְהָֽיְתָ֣ה | vehayetah | and she will become | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְגוֹיִ֔ם | legoyim | <into> nations | H1471 → | 561 times |
| מַלְכֵ֥י | malkhei | kings of | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| עַמִּ֖ים | ʾamim | peoples | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| מִמֶּ֥נָּה | mimenah | from her | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| יִהְיֽוּ׃ | yihyu | they will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
וּבֵרַכְתִּ֣יand I will bless
uverakhtiH1288 →330 times
אֹתָ֔הּ<obj.> her
ʾotahH853 →10935 times
וְגַ֨םand also
vegamH1571 →769 times
נָתַ֧תִּיI will give
natatiH5414 →2011 times
מִמֶּ֛נָּהfrom her
mimenahH4480 →1188 times
לְךָ֖to <the> you
lekha
בֵּ֑ןa son
benH1121 →4930 times
וּבֵֽרַכְתִּ֙יהָ֙and I will bless her
uverakhtihaH1288 →330 times
וְהָֽיְתָ֣הand she will become
vehayetahH1961 →3559 times
לְגוֹיִ֔ם<into> nations
legoyimH1471 →561 times
מַלְכֵ֥יkings of
malkheiH4428 →2525 times
עַמִּ֖יםpeoples
ʾamimH5971 →1873 times
מִמֶּ֥נָּהfrom her
mimenahH4480 →1188 times
יִהְיֽוּ׃they will be
yihyuH1961 →3559 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
Genesis 17:6I will make you exceedingly fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will descend from you.
it leads to
- Genesis 17:4
“As for Me, this is My covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
- Matthew 1:6–17
and Jesse the father of David the king. Next: David was the father of Solomon by Uriah’s wife,
- Genesis 17:4
Through
1 Peter 3:6just as Sarah obeyed Abraham and called him lord. And you are her children if you do what is right and refuse to give way to fear.
it leads to
- Genesis 18:12
So she laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
- Romans 9:7–9
Nor because they are Abraham’s descendants are they all his children. On the contrary, “Through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.”
- Daniel 3:16–18
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.
- Isaiah 57:11
Whom have you dreaded and feared, so that you lied and failed to remember Me or take this to heart? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear…
- Genesis 18:12
Through
Genesis 35:11And 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.
it leads to
- Genesis 17:1
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty. Walk before Me and be blameless.
- Genesis 22:17
I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Genesis 17:1
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies6
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.