The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say, “and to seeds,” meaning many, but “and to your seed,” meaning One, who is Christ.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his offspring. He doesn’t say, “To descendants ”, as of many, but as of one, “To your offspring ”, which is Christ.
- KJV Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
- NKJV Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.
- NASB Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as one would in referring to many, but rather as in referring to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ.
- NLT God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring, singular, which Paul identifies as Christ. The promise finds its ultimate fulfillment in one person, Christ.
Overview
Paul draws attention to the singular 'offspring' (seed) in the promise to Abraham, applying it to Christ. While 'seed' can be collective, Paul stresses that the promise culminates in Christ, through whom blessing comes to all. This roots the entire promise of salvation in Christ as Abraham's true heir.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 24
- Gen 17:7–8I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
- Rom 4:13For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world was not given through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
- Luke 1:55as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”
- Gen 22:17–18I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Gal 3:27–29For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
- Rom 4:16Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may rest on grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
- Gen 26:3–4Stay in this land as a foreigner, and I will be with you and bless you. For I will give all these lands to you and your offspring, and I will confirm the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.
- Gen 12:7Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So Abram built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
- Gen 28:13–14And there at the top the LORD was standing and saying, “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you now lie.
- Gal 3:8The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”
- Gen 12:3I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you; and all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.”
- Gen 21:12But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to everything that Sarah tells you, for through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.
- Acts 3:25And you are sons of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers when He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.’
- Gen 13:15–16for all the land that you see, I will give to you and your offspring forever.
- Col 3:11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all and is in all.
- Gen 15:5And the LORD took him outside and said, “Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able.” Then He told him, “So shall your offspring be.”
- 1 Cor 12:12The body is a unit, though it is composed of many parts. And although its parts are many, they all form one body. So it is with Christ.
- Eph 4:15–16Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head.
- Rom 12:5so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another.
- Eph 5:29–30Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.
- 1 Cor 12:27Now you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a member of it.
- Gen 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
- Eph 5:32This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church.
- Col 2:19He has lost connection to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and knit together by its joints and ligaments, grows as God causes it to grow.
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Christ at the center
Christ became a curse for us to redeem us from the law's curse, that we might receive the Spirit and be sons — justified by faith in him, not by works.
How Galatians 3:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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