Romans 4:18

“He 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.”
Romans 4:18 · direct translation from the Greek

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With the Greek beneath

Heὃςbelieved,ἐπίστευσενinἐπ’hopeἐλπίδιagainstπαρ’hope,ἐλπίδαso thatεἰς τὸhe would becomeγενέσθαι αὐτὸνthe fatherπατέραof manyπολλῶνnationsἐθνῶνaccording toκατὰwhat had been said:τὸ εἰρημένονSoΟὕτωςyour offspringτὸ σπέρμα σουwill be.ἔσται

Quotation · Genesis 15:5

Go to Genesis 15:5

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

Romans 4:18, word by word

believedἐπίστευσενepisteusen

trust

To trust in God or in Jesus.

Where else “episteusen” appears

hopeἐλπίδιelpidi

hope

Hope: confidence in what God will do.

Where else “elpidi” appears

he would becomeγενέσθαιgenesthai

become

To turn into something new, different from before.

Where else “genesthai” appears

the fatherπατέραpatera

originator

One who starts something or whom others follow.

Where else “patera” appears

of manyπολλῶνpollōn

many

A great number of people or things.

Where else “pollōn” appears

nationsἐθνῶνethnōn

nation

A people with its own land, language and customs.

Where else “ethnōn” appears

what had been saidεἰρημένονeirēmenon

say

To express something in words to others.

Where else “eirēmenon” appears

your offspringσπέρμαsperma

offspring

Someone's children and descendants.

Where else “sperma” appears

will beἔσταιestai

To be: says who or what something is.

Where else “estai” appears

Translation note

Genesis 15:5.

Parallel passages

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

Quotation · Genesis 15:5

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

See them side by side

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.

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.”

The context

17(as it is written: I have made you a father of many nations) in the presence of the God whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls the things that do not exist as though they existed.

18 · This verse (above)

19And without weakening in faith, he considered his own body dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb;

Read all of Romans 4

To study Romans 4 in a group

1. What it says
What does Paul say happened to Abraham when he believed God? (vv. 3, 20-22)
2. What it means
Why does Paul use the example of Abraham to speak of faith? What does he want to show? (vv. 1-3, 9-12)
3. How I live it
Abraham kept trusting although it seemed impossible (vv. 18-21). In what situation is trust hard for you, and what would help you keep hoping?

How to use it