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But look,[a] the Lord’s message came to him: “This man[b] will not be your heir, but instead[c] a son[d] who comes from your own body will be your heir.” The Lord[e] took him outside and said, “Gaze into the sky and count the stars—if you are able to count them!” Then he said to him, “So will your descendants be.”

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 15:4 tn The disjunctive draws attention to God’s response and the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, translated “look”) mirrors Abram’s statement in v. 3 and highlights the fact that God responded to Abram.
  2. Genesis 15:4 tn The subject of the verb is the demonstrative pronoun, which can be translated “this one” or “this man.” That the Lord does not mention him by name is significant; often in ancient times the use of the name would bring legitimacy to inheritance and adoption cases.
  3. Genesis 15:4 tn The Hebrew כִּי־אִם (ki ʾim) forms a very strong adversative.
  4. Genesis 15:4 tn Heb “he who.”
  5. Genesis 15:5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.