Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves mean?”
Parallel translations
- KJV And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
- BSB and Abimelech asked him, “Why have you set apart these seven ewe lambs?”
- NKJV Then Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?”
- NASB Then Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs mean, which you have set by themselves?”
- NLT Abimelech asked, “Why have you set these seven apart from the others?”
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.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Exod 12:26It will happen, when your children ask you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’
- 1 Sam 15:14Samuel said, “Then what does this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the cattle which I hear mean?”
- Gen 33:8Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?” Jacob said, “To find favor in the sight of my lord.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 21:29 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.