Genesis 17:8
in Genesis 17And to you and your descendants I will give the land where you are residing—all the land of Canaan—as an eternal possession; and I will be their God.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
KJV
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
⋯
This verse in Genesis 17
Commentary
7 notes on this verseEverlasting possession - Here עולם olam appears to be used in its accommodated meaning, and signifies the completion of the Divine counsel in reference to a particular period or dispensation. And it is literally true that the Israelites possessed the land of Canaan till the Mosaic dispensation was terminated in the complete introduction of that of the Gospel.
This site's exposition
the land where you are residing
God gives Canaan as an eternal possession to a man living there as a foreigner. The only ground Abraham ever owns in it is the cave at Machpelah, bought for four hundred shekels of silver in 23:16-20. Hebrews 11:13 says they all died in faith without receiving what was promised. God ends it by saying He will be their God.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And I will give to you and to your seed after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
What God is himself, that he will be to his people: his wisdom theirs, to guide and counsel them; his power theirs, to protect and support them; his goodness theirs, to supply and comfort them. What faithful worshippers can expect from the God they serve believers shall find in God as theirs. This is enough, yet not all.
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee,....
The token of the covenant, and that is circumcision, for the sake of which the covenant is itself called the covenant of circumcision, Acts vii.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
I will give unto thee . . . the land--It had been previously promised to Abraham and his posterity (Ge 15:18). Here it is promised as an "everlasting possession," and was, therefore, a type of heaven, "the better country" (Heb 11:16).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְנָתַתִּ֣י | venatati | and I will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לְ֠ךָ | lekha | to you | ||
| וּלְזַרְעֲךָ֨ | ulezarakha | and to offspring your | H2233 → | 229 times |
| אַחֲרֶ֜יךָ | ʾachareikha | after you | H310 → | 715 times |
| אֵ֣ת׀ | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֶ֣רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מְגֻרֶ֗יךָ | megureikha | sojournings your | H4033 → | 11 times |
| אֵ֚ת | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אֶ֣רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| כְּנַ֔עַן | kenaan | Canaan | H3667 → | 94 times |
| לַאֲחֻזַּ֖ת | laachuzat | to a possession of | H272 → | 66 times |
| עוֹלָ֑ם | olam | perpetuity | H5769 → | 438 times |
| וְהָיִ֥יתִי | vehayiti | and I will become | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לָהֶ֖ם | lahem | for <the> them | ||
| לֵאלֹהִֽים׃ | lelohim | <into> God | H430 → | 2601 times |
וְנָתַתִּ֣יand I will give
venatatiH5414 →2011 times
לְ֠ךָto you
lekha
וּלְזַרְעֲךָ֨and to offspring your
ulezarakhaH2233 →229 times
אַחֲרֶ֜יךָafter you
ʾachareikhaH310 →715 times
אֵ֣ת׀<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
אֶ֣רֶץ[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
מְגֻרֶ֗יךָsojournings your
megureikhaH4033 →11 times
אֵ֚ת<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
אֶ֣רֶץ[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
כְּנַ֔עַןCanaan
kenaanH3667 →94 times
לַאֲחֻזַּ֖תto a possession of
laachuzatH272 →66 times
עוֹלָ֑םperpetuity
olamH5769 →438 times
וְהָיִ֥יתִיand I will become
vehayitiH1961 →3559 times
לָהֶ֖םfor <the> them
lahem
לֵאלֹהִֽים׃<into> God
lelohimH430 →2601 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
Leviticus 26:12I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be My people.
it leads to
- 2 Corinthians 6:16
What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and…
- Jeremiah 30:22
“And you will be My people, and I will be your God.”
- Jeremiah 7:23
but this is what I commanded them: Obey Me, and I will be your God, and you will be My people. You must walk in all the ways I have commanded you, so that…
- Exodus 6:7
I will take you as My own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of…
- 2 Corinthians 6:16
Through
Genesis 12:7Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So Abram built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
it leads to
- Genesis 13:15
for all the land that you see, I will give to you and your offspring forever.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 13:15
Through
Genesis 13:15for all the land that you see, I will give to you and your offspring forever.
it leads to
- Genesis 12:7
Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So Abram built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Chronicles 20:7
Our God, did You not drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend?
- Genesis 12:7
Through
Psalms 105:11“I will give you the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance.”
it leads to
- Genesis 15:18
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 15:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies6
About Genesis
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.