21 The Lord was kind to Sarah. He did what he had promised to do for her. 2 Sarah became pregnant. She gave birth to a son for Abraham when he was very old. This happened at the time when God had said that it would. [ a ]
3 Abraham called his son ‘Isaac’. This is the son that Sarah gave birth to. 4 When Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him. That is what God had told him to do. [ b ]
5 Abraham was 100 years old when his son, Isaac, was born. 6 Sarah said, ‘Now God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears about what has happened will be happy with me.’ 7 She also said, ‘Abraham would never have thought that I would feed a child at my breasts. But I have given birth to a son for him, even when he is old.’
8 The child grew stronger, and he began to eat food. On that day, Abraham prepared a big party meal.
9 Then Sarah saw that Ishmael was laughing at Isaac. (Ishmael was the son of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian servant.) 10 So Sarah said to Abraham, ‘Send that slave woman and her son away from here. Ishmael must never receive any of our family's things. Everything must belong to my own son, Isaac.’
11 This made Abraham very sad, because Ishmael was his own son.
12 God said to Abraham, ‘Do not be upset about Ishmael or about Hagar. Do whatever Sarah tells you. Your family's descendants will come through Isaac, not Ishmael. 13 But, because Ishmael is also your son, I will make his descendants become a great nation of people too.’
14 Abraham woke up early the next morning. He took some food and some water in a bottle that was made from animal skin. He gave them to Hagar and he put them on her shoulders. Then he sent Hagar away, with their son, Ishmael.
She went and she travelled round the wilderness of Beersheba. [ c ] 15 After they had drunk all the water, Hagar put her son in the shade under a bush. 16 She herself went and sat down about 100 metres away from him. She thought, ‘I cannot watch the boy die.’ As she sat there, she began to cry.
17 Ishmael was crying and God heard him. The angel of God spoke to Hagar from heaven. He said, ‘What is the trouble, Hagar? Do not be afraid. God has heard the boy while he is crying there. 18 Go over to him and lift him up. Take hold of his hand and help him to stand. I will make him become a great nation of people.’ [ d ]
19 Then God helped Hagar to see clearly. She saw a well with water in it. She went to the well and she filled the bottle with water. She gave the boy some water to drink.
20 God took care of Ishmael while he grew up. The boy lived in the desert. He became a hunter of wild animals. 21 He lived in the Paran wilderness. Hagar, his mother, found an Egyptian wife for him to marry.
22 At that time Phicol was the leader of King Abimelech's army. Abimelech and Phicol said to Abraham, ‘We see that God helps you in everything that you do. 23 So please make a promise to me in front of God. Promise that you will never deceive me, or my children, or my descendants. You are living here in this land as a stranger. I have been kind to you, so please show that you will also be kind to us.’ 24 Abraham said, ‘I promise to do all that.’
25 One day, Abraham complained to Abimelech about a certain well of water. Abimelech's servants had taken the well from Abraham. They said that the well belonged to them. 26 Abimelech said, ‘I do not know who has done this. You did not tell me before. I did not hear about it until today.’
27 So Abraham brought some sheep and some cows and he gave them to Abimelech. The two men made a promise to help each other. 28 Abraham took seven female lambs from the sheep. He put them in a different place from the other animals. 29 Abimelech asked Abraham, ‘Why have you put these seven lambs in a different place?’ 30 Abraham replied, ‘You must accept these seven lambs as a gift from me. That will show that you agree that I dug this well. Everyone will know that it belongs to me.’ 31 Because of that, the name of the place became ‘Beersheba’, because the two men made a promise there. [ e ]
32 In that way, they made a promise at Beersheba to help one another. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the leader of his army, returned to the land of the Philistines.
33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba. [ f ] In that place, he worshipped the Lord who is God for ever.
34 Abraham lived in the land of the Philistines for a long time.
21 The Lord came back to visit Sarah as he said he would, and he kept his promise to her. 2 At exactly the time God said it would happen, Sarah became pregnant and gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. 3 Abraham named his son Isaac. [ a ] 4 Abraham did what God commanded and circumcised Isaac when he was eight days old.
5 Abraham was 100 years old when his son Isaac was born. 6 Sarah said, “God has made me happy, and everyone who hears about this will be happy with me. 7 No one thought that I, Sarah, would be able to have Abraham’s child. But I have given Abraham a son, even though he is old.”
8 Isaac continued to grow, and soon he was old enough to begin eating solid food. So Abraham gave a big party. 9 Sarah saw Hagar’s son playing. (Hagar was the Egyptian slave woman who gave birth to Abraham’s first son.) 10 Sarah said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son. Send them away! When we die, our son Isaac will get everything we have. I don’t want that slave woman’s son sharing these things with my son Isaac!”
11 This upset Abraham very much. He was worried about his son Ishmael. 12 But God said to Abraham, “Don’t worry about the boy and the slave woman. Do what Sarah wants. Your descendants will be those who come through Isaac. 13 But I will also bless the son of your slave woman. He is your son, so I will make a great nation from his family also.”
14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and water and gave them to Hagar. She carried them and left with her boy. She left that place and wandered in the desert of Beersheba.
15 After some time, when all their drinking water was gone, Hagar put her son under a bush. 16 Then she walked a short distance away and sat down. She thought her son would die because there was no water. She did not want to watch him die. She sat there and began to cry.
17 God heard the boy crying, and God’s angel called to Hagar from heaven. He said, “What is wrong, Hagar? Don’t be afraid! God has heard the boy crying there. 18 Go help the boy. Hold his hand and lead him. I will make him the father of many people.”
19 Then God allowed Hagar to see a well of water. So she went to the well and filled her bag with water. Then she gave water to the boy to drink.
20 God continued to be with the boy while he grew up. Ishmael lived in the desert and became a hunter. He learned to shoot a bow very well. 21 His mother found a wife for him in Egypt. They continued to live in the Paran desert.
22 Then Abimelech and Phicol spoke with Abraham. Phicol was the commander of Abimelech’s army. They said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. 23 So make a promise to me here before God. Promise that you will be fair with me and with my children. Promise that you will be kind to me and this country where you have lived. Promise that you will be as kind to me as I have been to you.”
24 And Abraham said, “I promise to treat you the same way you have treated me.” 25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelech because Abimelech’s servants had captured a well of water.
26 But Abimelech said, “I don’t know who did this. You never told me about this before today!”
27 So Abraham and Abimelech made an agreement. Abraham gave Abimelech some sheep and cattle as proof of the agreement. 28 Abraham also put seven [ b ] female lambs in front of Abimelech.
29 Abimelech asked Abraham, “Why did you put these seven female lambs by themselves?”
30 Abraham answered, “When you accept these lambs from me, it will be proof that I dug this well.”
31 So after that, the well was called Beersheba. [ c ] Abraham gave the well this name because it was the place where they made a promise to each other.
32 So Abraham and Abimelech made an agreement at Beersheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, his military commander, went back to the country of the Philistines.
33 Abraham planted a special tree at Beersheba and prayed to the Lord , the God who lives forever. 34 And Abraham lived as a stranger for a long time in the country of the Philistines.
21 And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken.
2 For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
3 And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
5 And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
6 And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.
7 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.
8 And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.
9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.
10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.
12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.
14 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
15 And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bow shot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.
17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.
18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.
19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
20 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:
23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.
24 And Abraham said, I will swear.
25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.
26 And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing; neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day.
27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.
28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
30 And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
31 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them.
32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the Lord , the everlasting God.
34 And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land many days.
21 ( A ) Then the Lord took note of Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had [ a ] promised. 2 ( B ) So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at ( C ) the appointed time of which God had spoken to him. 3 Abraham named his son who was born to him, the son whom Sarah bore to him, ( D ) Isaac. 4 Then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was ( E ) eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5 Now Abraham was ( F ) a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6 Sarah said, “God has made ( G ) laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh [ b ] with me.” 7 And she said, “ ( H ) Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have given birth to a son in his old age.”
8 And the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.
9 Now Sarah saw ( I ) the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, ( J ) mocking Isaac . 10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “ ( K ) Drive out this slave woman and her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be an heir with my son [ c ] Isaac!” 11 ( L ) The matter [ d ] distressed Abraham greatly because of his son Ishmael . 12 But God said to Abraham, “ [ e ] Do not be distressed because of the boy and your slave woman; whatever Sarah tells you, listen to her, for ( M ) through Isaac [ f ] your descendants shall be named. 13 And of ( N ) the son of the slave woman I will make a nation also, because he is your [ g ] descendant.” 14 So Abraham got up early in the morning and took bread and a [ h ] skin of water, and gave them to Hagar, putting them on her shoulder, and gave her the boy, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba.
15 When the water in the skin was used up, she [ i ] left the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went and sat down opposite him, about a bowshot away, for she said, “May I not [ j ] see the boy die!” And she sat opposite him, and ( O ) raised her voice and wept. 17 God ( P ) heard the boy crying; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “ [ k ] What is the matter with you, Hagar? ( Q ) Do not fear, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. 18 Get up, lift up the boy, and hold him by [ l ] the hand, ( R ) for I will make a great nation of him.” 19 Then God ( S ) opened her eyes, and she saw ( T ) a well of water; and she went and filled the [ m ] skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20 And ( U ) God was with the boy, and he grew; and he lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21 ( V ) He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
22 Now it came about at that time that ( W ) Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “ ( X ) God is with you in all that you do; 23 so now, ( Y ) swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my offspring or with my descendants, but according to the kindness that I have shown to you, you shall show to me and to the land in which you have resided.” 24 Abraham said, “I swear it.” 25 But Abraham [ n ] complained to Abimelech because of the well of water which the servants of Abimelech ( Z ) had seized. 26 And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor did I hear of it [ o ] until today.”
27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and ( AA ) the two of them made a covenant. 28 But Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. 29 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs mean, which you have set by themselves?” 30 He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand so that it may be a ( AB ) witness for me, that I dug this well.” 31 Therefore he called that place [ p ] ( AC ) Beersheba, because there the two of them took an oath. 32 So they made a covenant at Beersheba; and Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, got up and returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba, and there ( AD ) he called on the name of the Lord , the ( AE ) Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham resided ( AF ) in the land of the Philistines for many days.
21 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah ( A ) as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. ( B ) 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son ( C ) to Abraham in his old age, ( D ) at the very time God had promised him. ( E ) 3 Abraham gave the name Isaac [ a ] ( F ) to the son Sarah bore him. 4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, ( G ) as God commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old ( H ) when his son Isaac was born to him.
6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, ( I ) and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.” ( J )
8 The child grew and was weaned, ( K ) and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham ( L ) was mocking, ( M ) 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman ( N ) and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” ( O )
11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. ( P ) 12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring [ b ] will be reckoned. ( Q ) 13 I will make the son of the slave into a nation ( R ) also, because he is your offspring.”
14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. ( S ) He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. ( T )
15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she [ c ] began to sob. ( U )
17 God heard the boy crying, ( V ) and the angel of God ( W ) called to Hagar from heaven ( X ) and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; ( Y ) God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation. ( Z ) ”
19 Then God opened her eyes ( AA ) and she saw a well of water. ( AB ) So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20 God was with the boy ( AC ) as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, ( AD ) his mother got a wife for him ( AE ) from Egypt.
22 At that time Abimelek ( AF ) and Phicol the commander of his forces ( AG ) said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. ( AH ) 23 Now swear ( AI ) to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants. ( AJ ) Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.” ( AK )
24 Abraham said, “I swear it.”
25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized. ( AL ) 26 But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”
27 So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty. ( AM ) 28 Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, 29 and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”
30 He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness ( AN ) that I dug this well. ( AO ) ”
31 So that place was called Beersheba, [ d ] ( AP ) because the two men swore an oath ( AQ ) there.
32 After the treaty ( AR ) had been made at Beersheba, ( AS ) Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces ( AT ) returned to the land of the Philistines. ( AU ) 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree ( AV ) in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord , ( AW ) the Eternal God. ( AX ) 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines ( AY ) for a long time.
