Genesis 24:60
in Genesis 24And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you become the mother of thousands upon thousands. May your offspring possess the gates of their enemies.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let thy seed possess the gate of those that hate them.
KJV
And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
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This verse in Genesis 24
Commentary
4 notes on this verseBe thou the mother of thousands of millions - לאלפי רבבה lealphey rebabah, for thousands ten thousand, or for myriads of thousands, a large family being ever considered, in ancient times, as a proof of the peculiar blessing and favor of God. Similar addresses to a daughter, when she is going from her father’s house to live with her husband, are very common among the Hindoos; such as, “Be thou the mother of a son,” “Be thou the wife of a king,” etc. See Ward.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Note, When our relations are entering into a new condition, we ought by prayer to recommend them to the blessing and grace of God. Now that she was going to be a wife, they prayed that she might be a mother both of a numerous and of a victorious progeny.
And they blessed Rebekah,....
Note, When our relations are entering into a new condition, we ought by prayer to recommend them to the blessing and grace of God. Now that she was going to be a wife, they prayed that she might be a mother both of a numerous and of a victorious progeny.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְבָרֲכ֤וּ | vayvarakhu | and they blessed | H1288 → | 330 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| רִבְקָה֙ | rivkah | Rebekah | H7259 → | 30 times |
| וַיֹּ֣אמְרוּ | vaiyomeru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לָ֔הּ | lah | to <the> her | ||
| אֲחֹתֵ֕נוּ | ʾachotenu | O sister our | H269 → | 114 times |
| אַ֥תְּ | ʾat | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| הֲיִ֖י | hayi | become | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְאַלְפֵ֣י | lealfei | <into> thousands of | H505 → | |
| רְבָבָ֑ה | revavah | ten thousand | H7233 → | |
| וְיִירַ֣שׁ | veyirash | so may it take possession of | H3423 → | 231 times |
| זַרְעֵ֔ךְ | zarekh | offspring your | H2233 → | 229 times |
| אֵ֖ת | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שַׁ֥עַר | shaar | [the] gate of | H8179 → | 374 times |
| שֹׂנְאָֽיו׃ | soneav | [those who] hate it | H8130 → | 146 times |
וַיְבָרֲכ֤וּand they blessed
vayvarakhuH1288 →330 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
רִבְקָה֙Rebekah
rivkahH7259 →30 times
וַיֹּ֣אמְרוּand they said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
לָ֔הּto <the> her
lah
אֲחֹתֵ֕נוּO sister our
ʾachotenuH269 →114 times
אַ֥תְּyou
ʾatH859 →1094 times
הֲיִ֖יbecome
hayiH1961 →3559 times
לְאַלְפֵ֣י<into> thousands of
lealfeiH505 →
רְבָבָ֑הten thousand
revavahH7233 →
וְיִירַ֣שׁso may it take possession of
veyirashH3423 →231 times
זַרְעֵ֔ךְoffspring your
zarekhH2233 →229 times
אֵ֖ת<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
שַׁ֥עַר[the] gate of
shaarH8179 →374 times
שֹׂנְאָֽיו׃[those who] hate it
soneavH8130 →146 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 28:3May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a company of peoples.
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.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 48:3
Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there He blessed me
- Genesis 22:17–18
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 35:11
Through
Genesis 22:17I 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.
it leads to
- Genesis 15:5
And the LORD took him outside and said, “Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able.” Then He told him, “So shall your offspring be.”
- Jeremiah 33:22
As the hosts of heaven cannot be counted and as the sand on the seashore cannot be measured, so too will I multiply the descendants of My servant David and the Levites who minister…
- Genesis 26:4
I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed,
- Genesis 13:16
I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.
- Numbers 24:17–19
I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come forth from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel. He will crush the skulls of Moab and…
- Genesis 15:5
Where this verse is studied
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; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.