Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!”
Parallel translations
- WEB Besides hope, Abraham in hope believed, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, “So will your offspring be.”
- KJV Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
- BSB Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
- NKJV who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”
- NASB In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”
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
Against all natural hope, Abraham hoped and believed God's promise of many descendants. Genuine faith trusts God despite impossible circumstances.
Overview
Paul describes Abraham believing 'in hope' even when there was no human basis for hope, resting on God's word, 'So will your offspring be' (Genesis 15:5). His faith looked past visible obstacles to the promise of God. This models the persevering trust to which all believers are called as they rely on God's sure word.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Rom 8:24For we were saved in hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for that which he sees?
- Gen 15:5–6Yahweh brought him outside, and said, “Look now toward the sky, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” He said to Abram, “So will your offspring be.”
- Rom 5:5and hope doesn’t disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
- Acts 27:25Therefore, sirs, cheer up! For I believe God, that it will be just as it has been spoken to me.
- Mark 5:35–36While he was still speaking, people came from the synagogue ruler’s house saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher any more?”
- Prov 13:12Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when longing is fulfilled, it is a tree of life.
- Rom 4:17As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.” This is in the presence of him whom he believed: God, who gives life to the dead, and calls the things that are not, as though they were.
- Ezek 37:11Then he said to me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.
- 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.”
- Ruth 1:11–13Naomi said, “Go back, my daughters. Why do you want to go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?
- Rom 4:19Without being weakened in faith, he didn’t consider his own body, already having been worn out, (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.
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Christ at the center
Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.
How Romans 4:18 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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