Genesis 15:18-21

15:18 That day the Lord made a covenant ¹  with Abram: “To your descendants I give ²  this land, from the river of Egypt ³  to the great river, the Euphrates River – 15:19 the land ⁴  of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 15:20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 15:21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.” ⁵ 

Genesis 17:7-8

17:7 I will confirm ⁶  my covenant as a perpetual ⁷  covenant between me and you. It will extend to your descendants after you throughout their generations. I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸  17:8 I will give the whole land of Canaan – the land where you are now residing ⁹  – to you and your descendants after you as a permanent ¹⁰  possession. I will be their God.”

Genesis 22:16-18

22:16 and said, “‘I solemnly swear by my own name,’ ¹¹  decrees the Lord, ¹²  ‘that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 22:17 I will indeed bless you, ¹³  and I will greatly multiply ¹⁴  your descendants ¹⁵  so that they will be as countless as the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession ¹⁶  of the strongholds ¹⁷  of their enemies. 22:18 Because you have obeyed me, ¹⁸  all the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ¹⁹  using the name of your descendants.’”

Genesis 26:3-4

26:3 Stay ²⁰  in this land. Then I will be with you and will bless you, ²¹  for I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants, ²²  and I will fulfill ²³  the solemn promise I made ²⁴  to your father Abraham. 26:4 I will multiply your descendants so they will be as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them ²⁵  all these lands. All the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another using the name of your descendants. ²⁶ 

Genesis 28:13-14

28:13 and the Lord stood at its top. He said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of your father Isaac. ²⁷  I will give you and your descendants the ground ²⁸  you are lying on. 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, ²⁹  and you will spread out ³⁰  to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ³¹  using your name and that of your descendants. ³² 

Psalms 105:8-11

105:8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,

the promise he made ³³  to a thousand generations –

105:9 the promise ³⁴  he made to Abraham,

the promise he made by oath to Isaac!

105:10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,

to Israel as a lasting promise, ³⁵ 

105:11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan

as the portion of your inheritance.”

Luke 1:72-75

1:72 He has done this ³⁶  to show mercy ³⁷  to our ancestors, ³⁸ 

and to remember his holy covenant ³⁹  –

1:73 the oath ⁴⁰  that he swore to our ancestor ⁴¹  Abraham.

This oath grants ⁴² 

1:74 that we, being rescued from the hand of our ⁴³  enemies,

may serve him without fear, ⁴⁴ 

1:75 in holiness and righteousness ⁴⁵  before him for as long as we live. ⁴⁶ 

Hebrews 6:13-18

6:13 Now when God made his promise to Abraham, since he could swear by no one greater, he swore by himself, 6:14 saying, “Surely I will bless you greatly and multiply your descendants abundantly.” ⁴⁷  6:15 And so by persevering, Abraham ⁴⁸  inherited the promise. 6:16 For people ⁴⁹  swear by something greater than themselves, ⁵⁰  and the oath serves as a confirmation to end all dispute. ⁵¹  6:17 In the same way ⁵²  God wanted to demonstrate more clearly to the heirs of the promise that his purpose was unchangeable, ⁵³  and so he intervened with an oath, 6:18 so that we who have found refuge in him ⁵⁴  may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible for God to lie.

[15:18]  ¹ tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

[15:18]  ² tn The perfect verbal form is understood as instantaneous (“I here and now give”). Another option is to understand it as rhetorical, indicating certitude (“I have given” meaning it is as good as done, i.e., “I will surely give”).

[15:18]  ³ sn The river of Egypt is a wadi (a seasonal stream) on the northeastern border of Egypt, not to the River Nile.

[15:19]  ⁴ tn The words “the land” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[15:21]  ⁷ tn Each of the names in the list has the Hebrew definite article, which is used here generically for the class of people identified.

[17:7]  ¹⁰ tn The verb קוּם (qum, “to arise, to stand up”) in the Hiphil verbal stem means “to confirm, to give effect to, to carry out” (i.e., a covenant or oath; see BDB 878-79 s.v. קוּם).

[17:7]  ¹¹ tn Or “as an eternal.”

[17:7]  ¹² tn Heb “to be to you for God and to your descendants after you.”

[17:8]  ¹³ tn The verbal root is גּוּר (gur, “to sojourn, to reside temporarily,” i.e., as a resident alien). It is the land in which Abram resides, but does not yet possess as his very own.

[17:8]  ¹⁴ tn Or “as an eternal.”

[22:16]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “By myself I swear.”

[22:16]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the oracle of the Lord.” The phrase refers to a formal oracle or decree from the Lord.

[22:17]  ¹⁹ tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite verbal form (either an imperfect or cohortative) emphasizes the certainty of the blessing.

[22:17]  ²⁰ tn Here too the infinitive absolute is used for emphasis before the following finite verb (either an imperfect or cohortative).

[22:17]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew term זֶרַע (zera’) occurring here and in v. 18 may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.

[22:17]  ²² tn Or “inherit.”

[22:17]  ²³ tn Heb “gate,” which here stands for a walled city. To break through the gate complex would be to conquer the city, for the gate complex was the main area of defense (hence the translation “stronghold”).

[22:18]  ²² tn In the Hebrew text this causal clause comes at the end of the sentence. The translation alters the word order for stylistic reasons.

[22:18]  ²³ tn Traditionally the verb is taken as passive (“will be blessed”) here, as if Abraham’s descendants were going to be a channel or source of blessing to the nations. But the Hitpael is better understood here as reflexive/reciprocal, “will bless [i.e., pronounce blessings on] themselves/one another” (see also Gen 26:4). Elsewhere the Hitpael of the verb “to bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 12:2 predicts that Abram will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae. For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11. Earlier formulations of this promise (see Gen 12:2; 18:18) use the Niphal stem. (See also Gen 28:14.)

[26:3]  ²⁵ tn The Hebrew verb גּוּר (gur) means “to live temporarily without ownership of land.” Abraham’s family will not actually possess the land of Canaan until the Israelite conquest hundreds of years later.

[26:3]  ²⁶ tn After the imperative “stay” the two prefixed verb forms with prefixed conjunction here indicate consequence.

[26:3]  ²⁷ tn The Hebrew term זֶרַע (zera’) occurring here and in v. 18 may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.

[26:3]  ²⁸ tn The Hiphil stem of the verb קוּם (qum) here means “to fulfill, to bring to realization.” For other examples of this use of this verb form, see Lev 26:9; Num 23:19; Deut 8:18; 9:5; 1 Sam 1:23; 1 Kgs 6:12; Jer 11:5.

[26:3]  ²⁹ tn Heb “the oath which I swore.”

[26:4]  ²⁸ tn Heb “your descendants.”

[26:4]  ²⁹ tn Traditionally the verb is taken as passive (“will be blessed”) here, as if Abraham’s descendants were going to be a channel or source of blessing to the nations. But the Hitpael is better understood here as reflexive/reciprocal, “will bless [i.e., pronounce blessings on] themselves/one another” (see also Gen 22:18). Elsewhere the Hitpael of the verb “to bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 12:2 predicts that Abram will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae. For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11. Earlier formulations of this promise (see Gen 12:2; 18:18) use the Niphal stem. (See also Gen 28:14.)

[28:13]  ³¹ tn Heb “the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.” The Hebrew word for “father” can typically be used in a broader sense than the English word, in this case referring to Abraham (who was Jacob’s grandfather). For stylistic reasons and for clarity, the words “your father” are supplied with “Isaac” in the translation.

[28:13]  ³² tn The Hebrew term אֶרֶץ (’erets) can mean “[the] earth,” “land,” “region,” “piece of ground,” or “ground” depending on the context. Here the term specifically refers to the plot of ground on which Jacob was lying, but at the same time this stands by metonymy for the entire land of Canaan.

[28:14]  ³⁴ tn This is the same Hebrew word translated “ground” in the preceding verse.

[28:14]  ³⁵ tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew; Jacob is addressed as the representative of his descendants.

[28:14]  ³⁶ tn Theoretically the Niphal stem can be translated either as passive or reflexive/reciprocal. (The Niphal of “bless” is only used in formulations of the Abrahamic covenant. See Gen 12:2; 18:18; 28:14.) Traditionally the verb is taken as passive here, as if Jacob were going to be a channel or source of blessing. But in other formulations of the Abrahamic covenant (see Gen 22:18; 26:4) the Hitpael replaces this Niphal form, suggesting a translation “will bless (i.e., pronounce blessings upon) themselves/one another.” The Hitpael of “bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 28:14 predicts that Jacob will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae (see Gen 12:2 and 18:18 as well, where Abram/Abraham receives this promise). For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11.

[28:14]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and they will pronounce blessings by you, all the families of the earth, and by your offspring.”

[105:8]  ³⁷ tn Heb “[the] word he commanded.” The text refers here to God’s unconditional covenantal promise to Abraham and the patriarchs, as vv. 10-12 make clear.

[105:9]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “which.”

[105:10]  ⁴³ tn Or “eternal covenant.”

[1:72]  ⁴⁶ tn The words “He has done this” (referring to the raising up of the horn of salvation from David’s house) are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to allow a new sentence to be started in the translation. The Greek sentence is lengthy and complex at this point, while contemporary English uses much shorter sentences.

[1:72]  ⁴⁷ sn Mercy refers to God’s loyal love (steadfast love) by which he completes his promises. See Luke 1:50.

[1:72]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “our forefathers”; Grk “our fathers.” This begins with the promise to Abraham (vv. 55, 73), and thus refers to many generations of ancestors.

[1:72]  ⁴⁹ sn The promises of God can be summarized as being found in the one promise (the oath that he swore) to Abraham (Gen 12:1-3).

[1:73]  ⁴⁹ tn This is linked back grammatically by apposition to “covenant” in v. 72, specifying which covenant is meant.

[1:73]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “forefather”; Grk “father.”

[1:73]  ⁵¹ tn Again for reasons of English style, the infinitival clause “to grant us” has been translated “This oath grants” and made the beginning of a new sentence in the translation.

[1:74]  ⁵² tc Many important early mss (א B L W [0130] Ë^1,13 565 892 pc) lack “our,” while most (A C D [K] Θ Ψ 0177 33 Ï pc) supply it. Although the addition is most likely not authentic, “our” has been included in the translation due to English stylistic requirements.

[1:74]  ⁵³ tn This phrase in Greek is actually thrown forward to the front of the verse to give it emphasis.

[1:75]  ⁵⁵ sn The phrases that we…might serve him…in holiness and righteousness from Luke 1:74-75 well summarize a basic goal for a believer in the eyes of Luke. Salvation frees us up to serve God without fear through a life full of ethical integrity.

[1:75]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “all our days.”

[6:14]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “in blessing I will bless you and in multiplying I will multiply you,” the Greek form of a Hebrew idiom showing intensity.

[6:15]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “he”; in the translation the referent (Abraham) has been specified for clarity.

[6:16]  ⁶⁴ tn The plural Greek term ἄνθρωποι (anqrwpoi) is used here in a generic sense, referring to both men and women, and is thus translated “people.”

[6:16]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “by something greater”; the rest of the comparison (“than themselves”) is implied.

[6:16]  ⁶⁶ tn Grk “the oath for confirmation is an end of all dispute.”

[6:17]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “in which.”

[6:17]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “immutable” (here and in v. 18); Grk “the unchangeableness of his purpose.”

[6:18]  ⁷⁰ tn Grk “have taken refuge”; the basis of that refuge is implied in the preceding verse.