But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure that I will actually possess it?”
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Lord Yahweh, how will I know that I will inherit it?”
- KJV And he said, LORD God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?
- BSB But Abram replied, “Lord GOD, how can I know that I will possess it?”
- NKJV And he said, “Lord God, how shall I know that I will inherit it?”
- NASB But he said, “Lord God, how may I know that I will possess it?”
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
Abram asked how he could know he would truly inherit the land. His question seeks assurance, not denial, of God's promise.
Overview
Abram requests confirmation, much as believers seek assurance of God's promises. This is not faithless doubt but a desire for certainty, and God graciously responds with a solemn covenant ceremony. The Lord's willingness to provide a sign shows His tender accommodation to human weakness, strengthening faith with concrete pledges.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Luke 1:18Zacharias said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”
- Luke 1:34Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?”
- 2 Kgs 20:8Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What will be the sign that Yahweh will heal me, and that I will go up to Yahweh’s house the third day?”
- Isa 7:11“Ask a sign of Yahweh your God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.”
- Judg 6:17–24He said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, then show me a sign that it is you who talk with me.
- Judg 6:36–40Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have spoken,
- Ps 86:17Show me a sign of your goodness, that those who hate me may see it, and be shamed, because you, Yahweh, have helped me, and comforted me.
- Gen 24:2–4Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please put your hand under my thigh.
- Gen 24:13–14Behold, I am standing by the spring of water. The daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
- 1 Sam 14:9–10If they say thus to us, ‘Wait until we come to you!’ then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up to them.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 15:8 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.