Genesis 21:7
in Genesis 21She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should give children suck? for I have borne him a son in his old age.
KJV
And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.
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This verse in Genesis 21
Commentary
4 notes on this verseWho would have said that God should send his Son to die for us, his Spirit to sanctify us, his angels to attend us? Who would have said that such great sins should be pardoned, such mean services accepted, and such worthless worms taken into covenant and communion with the great and holy God?
This site's exposition
God has made me laugh
on Genesis 21:6-8
Sarah laughed inside the tent at 18:12 and denied it. Here she says God has made her laugh, and calls everyone to laugh with her. She asks who told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children. The great feast comes on the day Isaac was weaned.
This site's exposition
Who would have told Abraham
Sarah asks who would have told Abraham that she would nurse children, and in Genesis the one who told him was God. Matthew Henry turns her question toward the gospel. He asks the same of God sending His Son to die for sinners.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And she said, who would have said unto Abraham,....
The words behind it
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתֹּ֗אמֶר | vatomer | and she said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| מִ֤י | mi | who? | H4310 → | 423 times |
| מִלֵּל֙ | milel | has he said | H4448 → | |
| לְאַבְרָהָ֔ם | leavraham | to Abraham | H85 → | 175 times |
| הֵינִ֥יקָה | heinikah | she has suckled | H3243 → | 33 times |
| בָנִ֖ים | vanim | children | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| שָׂרָ֑ה | sarah | Sarah | H8283 → | 38 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יָלַ֥דְתִּי | yaladti | I have borne | H3205 → | 496 times |
| בֵ֖ן | ven | a son | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| לִזְקֻנָֽיו׃ | lizkunav | of old age<s> his | H2208 → | 4 times |
וַתֹּ֗אמֶרand she said
vatomerH559 →5305 times
מִ֤יwho?
miH4310 →423 times
מִלֵּל֙has he said
milelH4448 →
לְאַבְרָהָ֔םto Abraham
leavrahamH85 →175 times
הֵינִ֥יקָהshe has suckled
heinikahH3243 →33 times
בָנִ֖יםchildren
vanimH1121 →4930 times
שָׂרָ֑הSarah
sarahH8283 →38 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
יָלַ֥דְתִּיI have borne
yaladtiH3205 →496 times
בֵ֖ןa son
venH1121 →4930 times
לִזְקֻנָֽיו׃of old age<s> his
lizkunavH2208 →4 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
Numbers 23:23For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’
it leads to
- Luke 10:18–19
So He told them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
- Joshua 13:22
The Israelites also killed the diviner Balaam son of Beor along with the others they put to the sword.
- Numbers 24:1
And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not resort to sorcery as on previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness.
- Romans 16:20
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
- Micah 6:4–5
For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery. I sent Moses before you, as well as Aaron and Miriam.
- Luke 10:18–19
Through
Isaiah 66:8Who has heard of such as this? Who has seen such things? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be delivered in an instant? Yet as soon as Zion was…
it leads to
- Isaiah 64:4
From ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.
- Isaiah 64:4
Through
2 Thessalonians 1:10on the day He comes to be glorified in His saints and regarded with wonder by all who have believed, including you who have believed our testimony.
it leads to
- Ephesians 1:18
I ask that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope of His calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints,
- 1 Corinthians 3:13
his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.
- Ephesians 1:18
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis

Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonPatriarchsSarahAbraham's wife — barren, then bearing Isaac by promise “past age” through faith; Paul's allegory of the covenant of promise (Gal 4…
- PersonPatriarchsAbrahamCalled out of Ur, the father of all who believe, justified by faith, and the friend of God through whose seed all nations are bles…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
