The Birth of Isaac 1 UST Then Yahweh blessed Sarah{ just} as he had said{ he would}. Yes, he did for her{ exactly} what he had promised{ to do}. BSB BSB: Now the LORD attended to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised.
2 UST So Sarah became pregnant and at the time{ God had} appointed, she gave birth to a son for Abraham when he was old, just as God had promised him{ that she would}. BSB BSB: So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised.
3 UST Then Abraham named his son Isaac,{ the son} whom Sarah had given birth to. BSB BSB: And Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore to him.
4 UST Also, when Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, which was exactly what God had commanded him{ to do}. BSB BSB: When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him.
5 UST Abraham{ was} 100 years old when his son Isaac was born. BSB BSB: Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
6 UST { When he was born,} Sarah exclaimed,“God has made me laugh{ for joy}! Everyone who hears{ about this} will laugh{ for joy} with me!” BSB BSB: Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.”
7 UST She also exclaimed,“No one would have{ even thought of} telling Abraham{ that} I would have children. Yet I have given birth to a son{ for him} when he is old!” 21:8-21 BSB BSB: She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
8 UST Isaac grew as a child and reached the age when his mother stopped nursing him. When that happened, Abraham held a big feast{ to celebrate}. BSB BSB: So the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned.
Sarah Turns against Hagar (Galatians 4:21–30)
9 UST But{ during the feast} Sarah noticed that{ Ishmael,} the son of{ her} Egyptian{ handmaid} Hagar and Abraham, was making fun of{ Isaac}. BSB BSB: But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking her son,
10 UST So she{ was angry and} told Abraham,“Get rid of that servant woman and her son! Her son must never share{ any part of} what my son Isaac inherits{ from you}!” BSB BSB: and she said to Abraham, “Expel the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac!”
11 UST Abraham was very upset about that, because{ Ishmael} was{ also} his son{ and he cared about him too}. BSB BSB: Now this matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son Ishmael.
13 UST But I will also make your servant woman’ s son become{ the ancestor of} a{ large} people group, because he is your son.” BSB BSB: But I will also make a nation of the slave woman’s son, because he is your offspring.”
14 UST Early the next morning Abraham got up, brought{ some} food and a leather container{ full} of water to Hagar{ and} put them on her back. Then he sent her off with the boy, and they left and wandered{ around} in the desert near{ the city of} Beersheba. BSB BSB: Early in the morning, Abraham got up, took bread and a skin of water, put them on Hagar’s shoulders, and sent her away with the boy. She left and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba.
15 UST When they had finished{ all} the water in the container, she left her son under{ the shade of} a bush. BSB BSB: When the water in the skin was gone, she left the boy under one of the bushes.
16 UST She thought{ to herself},“I cannot{ bear to} watch my son die.” So she went{ away from him} and sat down by herself, about as far away as someone can shoot an arrow. Then she started crying loudly. BSB BSB: Then she went off and sat down nearby, about a bowshot away, for she said, “I cannot bear to watch the boy die!” And as she sat nearby, she lifted up her voice and wept.
18 UST { So} go help the boy to get up, and take care of him, because I{ Yahweh} will make him become{ the ancestor of} a large people group.” BSB BSB: Get up, lift up the boy, and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
19 UST Then God enabled Hagar to see a water well. So she went over{ to the well}, filled her{ water} container{ with} water, and gave her son some water to drink. BSB BSB: Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20 UST As the boy grew up, God was with him{ and helped him}. He lived in the{ Paran} Desert and learned to hunt skillfully with a bow{ and arrows}. BSB BSB: And God was with the boy, and he grew up and settled in the wilderness and became a great archer.
21 UST While he was there, his mother found a wife for him{ who was} from the country of Egypt. 21:22-34 BSB BSB: And while he was dwelling in the Wilderness of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
The Covenant at Beersheba 22 UST Meanwhile, one day{ King} Abimelech{ came} with his army captain Phicol to Abraham{ and} said to him,“{ I have noticed that} God{ is} with you{ and helps you} in everything that you do. BSB BSB: At that time Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army said to Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do.
23 UST Now then,{ please} vow to me here in God’ s presence that you will never{ again} deceive me or my children or my descendants.{ Instead,} just as I have treated you kindly,{ vow that} you will{ also} be kind to me and{ my people in} this country where you are living.” BSB BSB: Now, therefore, swear to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or descendants. Show to me and to the country in which you reside the same kindness that I have shown to you.”
24 UST Abraham replied{ to him},“I vow{ that I will do those things}.” BSB BSB: And Abraham replied, “I swear it.”
25 UST Then Abraham{ also} confronted{ King} Abimelech about a water well that Abimelech’ s servants had taken control of{ from Abraham’ s servants}. BSB BSB: But when Abraham complained to Abimelech about a well that Abimelech’s servants had seized,
26 UST But Abimelech responded,“I have no idea who did that. Besides that, you did not tell me{ about it}{ before}, and so today is the first that I have heard about it.” BSB BSB: Abimelech replied, “I do not know who has done this. You did not tell me, so I have not heard about it until today.”
27 UST Then Abraham gave{ some of his} sheep and cattle to Abimelech, and he and Abimelech made a{ peace} treaty{ with one another}. BSB BSB: So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech, and the two men made a covenant.
28 UST Abraham{ also} separated seven female lambs from the rest of the flock. BSB BSB: Abraham separated seven ewe lambs from the flock,
29 UST So Abimelech asked him,“Why did you separate those seven lambs{ from the rest of the flock}?” BSB BSB: and Abimelech asked him, “Why have you set apart these seven ewe lambs?”
30 UST Abraham replied,“Because I want you to accept them from me, to show{ everyone} that you agree with me that I dug this well{ and it belongs to me}.” BSB BSB: He replied, “You are to accept the seven ewe lambs from my hand as my witness that I dug this well.”
31 UST { Abimelech accepted the lambs,} so Abraham named that place Beersheba,{ which means“Well of the Seven” or“Well of the Vow,”} because that’ s where they both vowed{ to live at peace with one another}. BSB BSB: So that place was called Beersheba, because it was there that the two of them swore an oath.
32 UST After Abraham and{ King} Abimelech made their{ peace} treaty at Beersheba, Abimelech and his army captain Phicol left{ from there} and went back to{ their homes in} the Philistines’ territory{ that Abimelech ruled over}. BSB BSB: After they had made the covenant at Beersheba, Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army got up and returned to the land of the Philistines.
33 UST Then Abraham planted an{ evergreen} tree{ named} tamarisk at{ the place called} Beersheba, and there he worshiped Yahweh,{ who is} the God who lives forever. BSB BSB: And Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called upon the name of the LORD, the Eternal God.
34 UST After that, Abraham lived{ there} in the Philistines’ territory for many years. BSB BSB: And Abraham resided in the land of the Philistines for a long time.