Genesis 21 Free Bible Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 The Lord came to help Sarah as he'd said he would. The Lord did for Sarah what he'd promised.
1 Yahweh visited Sarah as he had said, and Yahweh did to Sarah as he had spoken.
2 She became pregnant and had a son for Abraham when he was old, at the exact time God said she would.
2 Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
3 Abraham named their son Isaac.
3 Abraham called his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.
4 Abraham circumcised him when Isaac was eight days old, following God's command.
4 Abraham circumcised his son, Isaac, when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.
5 Abraham was 100 when Isaac was born.
5 Abraham was one hundred years old when his son, Isaac, was born to him.
6 Sarah declared, “God has made me laugh, and all those who hear about this will laugh with me.”
6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears will laugh with me.”
7 She also said, “Would anyone have announced to Abraham that Sarah was going to have children to nurse? But now I have had a son for Abraham even when he was old!”
7 She said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.”
8 The baby grew up, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a large feast.
8 The child grew and was weaned. Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.
9 But Sarah noticed that Ishmael, Hagar the Egyptian's son she'd had for Abraham, was making fun of Isaac.
9 Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking.
10 So she went to Abraham and told him, “You have to get rid of this slave woman and this son of hers! A slave woman's son is not going to be one of your heirs and inherit together with my son Isaac!”
10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this servant and her son! For the son of this servant will not be heir with my son, Isaac.”
11 Abraham felt very bad about it because Ishmael was his son.
11 The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.
12 But God told Abraham, “Don't feel bad about the boy and the slave woman. Do whatever Sarah tells you, because it's through Isaac that your descendants will be counted.
12 God said to Abraham, “Don’t let it be grievous in your sight because of the boy, and because of your servant. In all that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice. For your offspring will be named through Isaac.
13 Don't worry—I will also make the son of the slave woman into a nation because he's your son.”
13 I will also make a nation of the son of the servant, because he is your child.”
14 Abraham got up early the next morning. He packed up some food and a skin of water which he gave to Hagar, putting them on her shoulder. Then he sent her and the boy away. She left and wandered through the Desert of Beersheba.
14 Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread and a container of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder; and gave her the child, and sent her away. She departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
15 When the water ran out, she left the boy under one of the bushes.
15 The water in the container was spent, and she put the child under one of the shrubs.
16 She went and sat down some way off, a few hundred yards away, saying, “I can't bear to watch my son die!” As she sat down she burst into tears.
16 She went and sat down opposite him, a good way off, about a bow shot away. For she said, “Don’t let me see the death of the child.” She sat opposite him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.
17 God heard the boy's cries, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, “What's the matter, Hagar? Don't be afraid! God has heard the boy crying from where he is.
17 God heard the voice of the boy. The angel of God called to Hagar out of the sky, and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Don’t be afraid. For God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.
18 Get up, go over and help the boy up, and encourage him, for I will make him into a great nation.”
18 Get up, lift up the boy, and hold him with your hand. For I will make him a great nation.”
19 God opened her eyes and she saw a well nearby. She went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
19 God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, filled the container with water, and gave the boy a drink.
20 God blessed Ishmael and he grew up, living in the desert. He became a skilled archer.
20 God was with the boy, and he grew. He lived in the wilderness, and as he grew up, he became an archer.
21 He lived in the Desert of Paran. His mother chose a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran. His mother got a wife for him out of the land of Egypt.
22 Around this time Abimelech came with Phicol, the commander of his army, to see Abraham. “God blesses you in everything you do,” Abimelech said.
22 At that time, Abimelech and Phicol the captain of his army spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do.
23 “So swear to me right here and now that you won't betray me, my children, or my descendants. In the same way I've proved I'm trustworthy to you, do the same to me and my country where you're currently living.”
23 Now, therefore, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son. But according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me, and to the land in which you have lived as a foreigner.”
24 “I so swear,” Abraham replied.
24 Abraham said, “I will swear.”
25 Then Abraham raised an issue with Abimelech of a well that Abimelech's servants had taken by force.
25 Abraham complained to Abimelech because of a water well, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away.
26 “I don't know who did this, and you didn't mention it before. I haven't heard anything about it until today,” Abimelech responded.
26 Abimelech said, “I don’t know who has done this thing. You didn’t tell me, and I didn’t hear of it until today.”
27 Then Abraham gave Abimelech some of his sheep and cattle, and the two of them made an agreement.
27 Abraham took sheep and cattle, and gave them to Abimelech. Those two made a covenant.
28 Abraham also separated out seven female lambs from the flock.
28 Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 “What are these seven female lambs for that you've separated from the flock?” Abimelech asked.
29 Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs, which you have set by themselves, mean?”
30 “I'm giving you these seven female lambs in return for your admission that I dug this well,” Abraham replied.
30 He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.”
31 That's why he called the place Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath to each other.
31 Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because they both swore an oath there.
32 After making the agreement at Beersheba, Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army left and went home to the country of the Philistines.
32 So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Abimelech rose up with Phicol, the captain of his army, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and there he worshiped the Lord, the Eternal God.
33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of Yahweh, the Everlasting God.
34 Abraham lived in the country of the Philistines for a long time.
34 Abraham lived as a foreigner in the land of the Philistines many days.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Abimelech
King of Gerar who took Sarah, was warned by God in a dream and returned her to Abraham, and made a covenant with Abraham at Beersheba; an Abimelech king of the Philistines at…
Cited in the guide: Genesis 20:2–3; Genesis 21:22–27; Genesis 26:1
Abraham
Called by God, he left home in faith to become the father of a chosen people.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 12–25
Hagar
Sarah's Egyptian servant who bore Ishmael and met God in the wilderness.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 16, 21
Isaac
The long-promised son, nearly offered on Moriah, through whom the covenant continued.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 21–27
Ishmael
Abraham's son by Hagar, blessed by God to become a great nation.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 16; 17:20; 21; 25:12–18
Phicol
Commander of Abimelech's army, who stood with him in the covenant at Beersheba with Abraham and again in the covenant with Isaac.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 21:22; Genesis 21:32; Genesis 26:26
Sarah
Wife of Abraham who bore Isaac in her old age, long after hope seemed gone.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 17-21
Places
Beersheba
The southern frontier of Israel ('from Dan to Beersheba'). Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all dug wells and worshiped here at the gateway to the Negev.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 21:31; Genesis 26:23; 1 Samuel 8:2
Cross references (33)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Psalm 12:6; Genesis 18:10; Genesis 18:14; Genesis 17:19; Galatians 4:23
- 2 Galatians 4:22; Hebrews 11:11; Luke 1:24–25; Genesis 17:19; Luke 1:36
- 3 Genesis 17:19; Romans 9:7; Genesis 21:6; Matthew 1:2; Joshua 24:3
- 4 Acts 7:8; Genesis 17:10–12; Leviticus 12:3; John 7:22–23; Exodus 12:48
- 5 Genesis 17:17; Romans 4:19; Genesis 17:1
- 6 Psalm 126:2; Isaiah 54:1; Genesis 17:17; Luke 1:58; Galatians 4:27–28
- 7 Genesis 18:11–12; Isaiah 66:8; 2 Thessalonians 1:10; Deuteronomy 4:32–34; Numbers 23:23
- 8 1 Samuel 1:22; Hosea 1:8; Genesis 40:20; Genesis 29:22; Psalm 131:2
- 9 Galatians 4:29; Genesis 16:15; Galatians 4:22; Genesis 16:1; Psalm 44:13–14
- 10 John 8:35; Galatians 4:22–31; 1 John 2:19; 1 Peter 1:4; Genesis 36:6–7
- 11 Hebrews 12:11; Genesis 17:18; Matthew 10:37; Genesis 22:1–2; 2 Samuel 18:33
- 12 Hebrews 11:18; Romans 9:7–8; Genesis 17:19; 1 Samuel 8:9; 1 Samuel 8:7
- 13 Genesis 16:10; Genesis 17:20; Genesis 21:18; Genesis 25:12–18
- 14 Psalm 119:60; Genesis 21:31; Proverbs 27:14; 1 Kings 19:3; Genesis 25:6
- 15 Jeremiah 14:3; 2 Kings 3:9; Psalm 63:1; Exodus 15:22–25; Exodus 17:1–3
- 16 Isaiah 49:15; Ruth 1:9; 1 Kings 3:26; Judges 2:4; 1 Samuel 30:4
- 17 Genesis 16:11; Psalm 50:15; Psalm 91:15; Exodus 3:7; Genesis 16:9
- 18 Genesis 21:13; Genesis 16:10; 1 Chronicles 1:29–31; Genesis 17:20; Genesis 25:12–18
- 19 Numbers 22:31; 2 Kings 6:17–20; Isaiah 35:5–6; Luke 24:16–31
- 20 Genesis 28:15; Genesis 39:21; Genesis 16:12; Genesis 39:2–3; Luke 1:80
- 21 Genesis 24:3–4; Genesis 26:34–35; Genesis 27:46–28:2; Numbers 12:16; 1 Samuel 25:1
- 22 Joshua 3:7; Genesis 26:28; Genesis 26:26; Genesis 20:2; Romans 8:31
- 23 Joshua 2:12; Genesis 20:14; Genesis 14:22–23; Genesis 26:28; Genesis 31:44
- 24 Hebrews 6:16; Romans 12:18; Genesis 14:13
- 25 Genesis 26:15–22; Proverbs 27:5; Matthew 18:15; Judges 1:15; Genesis 29:8
- 26 2 Kings 5:20–24; Genesis 13:7
- 27 Genesis 26:28–31; Isaiah 32:8; Proverbs 18:16; Proverbs 18:24; Ezekiel 17:13
- 29 Genesis 33:8; Exodus 12:26; 1 Samuel 15:14
- 30 Genesis 31:52; Joshua 24:27; Joshua 22:27–28; Genesis 31:44–48
- 31 Genesis 26:33; Genesis 21:14; 1 Kings 4:25; Genesis 26:23; 2 Samuel 17:11
- 32 Genesis 21:27; 1 Samuel 18:3; Genesis 10:14; Genesis 26:8; Exodus 13:17
- 33 1 Timothy 1:17; Isaiah 40:28; Psalm 90:2; Romans 16:26; Jeremiah 10:10
- 34 Psalm 39:12; Hebrews 11:13; Genesis 20:1; 1 Peter 2:11; Hebrews 11:9
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
For when Isaac was born and called by that name, Sarah showed that her laughter was not that of scornful reproach, but that of joyful praise; for she said, "God hath made me to laugh, so that every one who hears will laugh with me." Then in a little while the bond maid was cast out of the house with …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
And when, after he had gained his son, he was commanded to offer him up, although he had heard the word, In Isaac shall thy seed be called, he proceeded to offer up his son, his only son, to God, believing that God is able to raise up even from the dead.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)
… by casting out the bond maid and her son, "In Isaac shall thy seed be called." No doubt He then goes on to say, "And as for the son of this bond woman, I will make him a great nation, because he is thy seed." How then is it said "In Isaac shall thy seed be called," when God calls …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
For when it is said, "In Isaac shall thy seed be called," by this seed is meant solely the city of God; so that from it is separated Abraham's other seed, which was in the son of the bond woman, and which was to be in the sons of Keturah.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)