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Grow With Me

Genesis 15:5

“He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And he said to him, “So will your offspring be.””

Genesis 15:5 · direct translation from the Hebrew
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To childless Abram, God shows the stars and promises descendantsFaithfulnessGod asks Abram to count the stars: so will his offspring be; and Abram believedHopeChildless Abram hears God's promise and believes itWaiting on God

With the Hebrew beneath

5

Quotation · Romans 4:18

Go to Romans 4:18

Paul quotes the last words of Genesis 15:5, spoken after telling Abram to count the stars.

Formula: κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον “according to what had been said” (Romans 4:18)

See the original texts

Greek of the New Testament: ὃς παρ’ ἐλπίδα ἐπ’ ἐλπίδι ἐπίστευσεν εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι αὐτὸν πατέρα πολλῶν ἐθνῶν κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον Οὕτως ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα σου

Hebrew (Masoretic text): וַיּוֹצֵא אֹתוֹ הַחוּצָה וַיֹּאמֶר הַבֶּט נָא הַשָּׁמַיְמָה וּסְפֹר הַכּוֹכָבִים אִם תּוּכַל לִסְפֹּר אֹתָם וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ כֹּה יִהְיֶה זַרְעֶךָ

Septuagint (Genesis 15:5-6 in the Septuagint numbering): ἐξήγαγεν δὲ αὐτὸν ἵξω καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὸν Ἀν’άβλεψον δὴ εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ ἀρίθμησον τοὺς ἀστέρας, εἰ δύνῃ ἐξαριθμῆσαι αὐτούς. καὶ οὕτως ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα σου. § καὶ ἐπίστευσεν Ἀβρὰμ τῷ θεῷ, καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην.

The Greek of the NT matches the Septuagint word for word in 5 consecutive words: “Οὕτως ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα σου.”

Septuagint, Swete’s text, First1KGreek transcription (with reading errors), CC BY-SA 4.0

Genesis 15:5, word by word

He brought himיּוֹצֵאyotse

bring out

To lead someone out: "I led you out of Egypt".

Where else “yotse” appears
outsideחוּצָchutsa

outside

What lies outside the house, the city or the camp.

Where else “chutsa” appears
and saidיֹּאמֶרyomer

say

To say with the mouth to someone what one thinks or wants, or to answer him.

Where else “yomer” appears
“Lookהַבֶּטhabet

look

Look intently, gaze; regard, pay attention to.

Where else “habet” appears
toward the heavensשָּׁמַיְמָshamayma

sky

The high space seen above the earth, where the birds, clouds, sun and stars are.

Where else “shamayma” appears
and countסְפֹרsefor

count

To number one by one in order to know how many there are.

Where else “sefor” appears
the starsכּוֹכָבִיםkochavim

star

Star.

Where else “kochavim” appears
you are ableתּוּכַלtuchal

be able

To have the strength, the permission or the opportunity to do something.

Where else “tuchal” appears
willיִהְיֶהyihye

be

To be: "I will be their Elohim".

Where else “yihye” appears
your offspring beזַרְעֶzare

offspring

The children, grandchildren and whole line that come from someone.

Where else “zare” appears

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Quotation · Romans 4:18

Paul quotes the last words of Genesis 15:5, spoken after telling Abram to count the stars.

See them side by side

Genesis 15:5

5He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And he said to him, “So will your offspring be.”

Romans 4:18

18He believed, in hope against hope, so that he would become the father of many nations according to what had been said: So your offspring will be.

The context

4And look, the word of YHWH came to him, saying, “This one will not be your heir; but one who will come out from your own body, he will be your heir.”

5 · This verse (above)

6And he believed in YHWH, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Read all of Genesis 15

To study Genesis 15 in a group

  1. 1. What it says

    What did YHWH promise Abram about his descendants, and how did Abram respond (vv. 5-6)?

  2. 2. What it means

    What relation does the text show between Abram’s faith and its being counted to him as righteousness (v. 6)?

  3. 3. How I live it

    Which promise of Elohim is hard for you to believe today, and how can you talk with him about it?

How to use it