Genesis 17:17

17:17 Then Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground and laughed ¹  as he said to himself, ²  “Can ³  a son be born to a man who is a hundred years old? ⁴  Can Sarah ⁵  bear a child at the age of ninety?” ⁶ 

Genesis 17:24

17:24 Now Abraham was 99 years old ⁷  when he was circumcised; ⁸ 

Luke 1:7

1:7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, ⁹  and they were both very old. ¹⁰ 

Luke 1:18

1:18 Zechariah ¹¹  said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? ¹²  For I am an old man, and my wife is old as well.” ¹³ 

Luke 1:36

1:36 “And look, ¹⁴  your relative ¹⁵  Elizabeth has also become pregnant with ¹⁶  a son in her old age – although she was called barren, she is now in her sixth month! ¹⁷ 

Romans 4:18-21

4:18 Against hope Abraham ¹⁸  believed ¹⁹  in hope with the result that he became the father of many nations ²⁰  according to the pronouncement, ²¹  “so will your descendants be.” ²²  4:19 Without being weak in faith, he considered ²³  his own body as dead ²⁴  (because he was about one hundred years old) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 4:20 He ²⁵  did not waver in unbelief about the promise of God but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God. 4:21 He was ²⁶  fully convinced that what God ²⁷  promised he was also able to do.

Hebrews 11:11-12

11:11 By faith, even though Sarah herself was barren and he was too old, ²⁸  he received the ability to procreate, ²⁹  because he regarded the one who had given the promise to be trustworthy. 11:12 So in fact children ³⁰  were fathered by one man – and this one as good as dead – like the number of stars in the sky and like the innumerable grains of sand ³¹  on the seashore. ³² 

Hebrews 11:19

11:19 and he reasoned ³³  that God could even raise him from the dead, and in a sense ³⁴  he received him back from there.

[17:17]  ¹ sn Laughed. The Hebrew verb used here provides the basis for the naming of Isaac: “And he laughed” is וַיִּצְחָק (vayyitskhaq); the name “Isaac” is יִצְחָק (yitskhaq), “he laughs.” Abraham’s (and Sarah’s, see 18:12) laughter signals disbelief, but when the boy is born, the laughter signals surprise and joy.

[17:17]  ² tn Heb “And he fell on his face and laughed and said in his heart.”

[17:17]  ³ tn The imperfect verbal form here carries a potential nuance, as it expresses the disbelief of Abraham.

[17:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “to the son of a hundred years.”

[17:17]  ⁵ sn It is important to note that even though Abraham staggers at the announcement of the birth of a son, finding it almost too incredible, he nonetheless calls his wife Sarah, the new name given to remind him of the promise of God (v. 15).

[17:17]  ⁶ tn Heb “the daughter of ninety years.”

[17:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “the son of ninety-nine years.”

[17:24]  ⁸ tn Heb “circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin” (also in v. 25).

[1:7]  ⁹ sn Elizabeth was barren. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth are regarded by Luke as righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly (v. 6). With this language, reminiscent of various passages in the OT, Luke is probably drawing implicit comparisons to the age and barrenness of such famous OT personalities as Abraham and Sarah (see, e.g., Gen 18:9-15), the mother of Samson (Judg 13:2-5), and Hannah, the mother of Samuel (1 Sam 1:1-20). And, as it was in the case of these OT saints, so it is with Elizabeth: After much anguish and seeking the Lord, she too is going to have a son in her barrenness. In that day it was a great reproach to be childless, for children were a sign of God’s blessing (cf. Gen 1:28; Lev 20:20-21; Pss 127 and 128; Jer 22:30). As the dawn of salvation draws near, however, God will change this elderly couple’s grief into great joy and grant them the one desire time had rendered impossible.

[1:7]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).

[1:18]  ¹¹ tn Grk “And Zechariah.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[1:18]  ¹² tn Grk “How will I know this?”

[1:18]  ¹³ tn Grk “is advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).

[1:36]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “behold.”

[1:36]  ¹⁵ tn Some translations render the word συγγενίς (sungeni") as “cousin” (so Phillips) but the term is not necessarily this specific.

[1:36]  ¹⁶ tn Or “has conceived.”

[1:36]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren.” Yet another note on Elizabeth’s loss of reproach also becomes a sign of the truth of the angel’s declaration.

[4:18]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:18]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “who against hope believed,” referring to Abraham. The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:18]  ²⁰ sn A quotation from Gen 17:5.

[4:18]  ²¹ tn Grk “according to that which had been spoken.”

[4:18]  ²² sn A quotation from Gen 15:5.

[4:19]  ²³ tc Most mss (D F G Ψ 33 1881 Ï it) read “he did not consider” by including the negative particle (οὐ, ou), but others (א A B C 6 81 365 1506 1739 pc co) lack οὐ. The reading which includes the negative particle probably represents a scribal attempt to exalt the faith of Abraham by making it appear that his faith was so strong that he did not even consider the physical facts. But “here Paul does not wish to imply that faith means closing one’s eyes to reality, but that Abraham was so strong in faith as to be undaunted by every consideration” (TCGNT 451). Both on external and internal grounds, the reading without the negative particle is preferred.

[4:19]  ²⁴ tc ‡ Most witnesses (א A C D Ψ 33 Ï bo) have ἤδη (hdh, “already”) at this point in v. 19. But B F G 630 1739 1881 pc lat sa lack it. Since it appears to heighten the style of the narrative and since there is no easy accounting for an accidental omission, it is best to regard the shorter text as original. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

[4:20]  ²⁵ tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here.

[4:21]  ²⁶ tn Grk “and being.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:21]  ²⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:11]  ²⁸ tn Grk “past the time of maturity.”

[11:11]  ²⁹ tn Grk “power to deposit seed.” Though it is not as likely, some construe this phrase to mean “power to conceive seed,” making the whole verse about Sarah: “by faith, even though Sarah herself was barren and too old, she received ability to conceive, because she regarded the one who had given the promise to be trustworthy.”

[11:12]  ³⁰ tn Grk “these”; in the translation the referent (children) has been specified for clarity.

[11:12]  ³¹ tn Grk a collective “the sand.”

[11:12]  ³² sn An allusion to Gen 22:17 (which itself goes back to Gen 15:5).

[11:19]  ³³ tn Grk “having reasoned,” continuing the ideas of v. 17.

[11:19]  ³⁴ tn Grk “in/by a symbol.”