Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who gave you birth. When I called him, he was but one; then I blessed him and multiplied him.
Parallel translations
- WEB Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who bore you; for when he was but one I called him, and I blessed him, and made him many.
- KJV Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
- NKJV Look to Abraham your father, And to Sarah who bore you; For I called him alone, And blessed him and increased him.”
- NASB “Look to Abraham your father And to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain; When he was only one I called him, Then I blessed him and multiplied him.”
- NLT Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor, and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation. Abraham was only one man when I called him. But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.”
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
God points to Abraham and Sarah, recalling how He blessed one man and made him many, as grounds for hope.
Overview
The 'rock' and 'quarry' of v.1 are identified as Abraham and Sarah, from whom God built a multitude though they began as one childless couple. Remembering this assures the exiles that God can again multiply His people from a small remnant. Paul builds on Abraham's faith and offspring to show that all who believe, including Gentiles, are his children in Christ (Romans 4; Galatians 3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Ezek 33:24“Son of man, those living in the ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as a possession.’
- Gal 3:9–14So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
- Rom 4:1–5What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, has discovered?
- Heb 11:8–12By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going.
- Gen 24:1By now Abraham was old and well along in years, and the LORD had blessed him in every way.
- Gen 18:11–13And Abraham and Sarah were already old and well along in years; Sarah had passed the age of childbearing.
- Isa 29:22Therefore the LORD who redeemed Abraham says of the house of Jacob: “No longer will Jacob be ashamed and no more will his face grow pale.
- Gen 13:14–17After Lot had departed, the LORD said to Abram, “Now lift up your eyes from the place where you are, and look to the north and south and east and west,
- Gen 22:17I 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.
- Gen 15:1–2After these events, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”
- Gen 24:35“The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become rich. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys.
- Gen 15:4–5Then the word of the LORD came to Abram, saying, “This one will not be your heir, but one who comes from your own body will be your heir.”
- Gen 12:1–3Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.
- Rom 4:16–24Therefore, 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.
- Neh 9:7–8You are the LORD, the God who chose Abram, who brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him the name Abraham.
- Josh 24:3But I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and led him through all the land of Canaan, and I multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac,
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Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 51:2 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.