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Genesis 21:11

The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Parallel Translations

  • WEB World English Bible

    The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.

  • KJV King James Version

    And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.

  • JPS JPS Tanakh (1917)

    And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight on account of his son.

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Cross-references (5)

Passages linked to Genesis 21:11 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.

  • Hebrews 12:11 All chastening seems for the present to be not joyous but grievous; yet afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
  • Genesis 17:18 Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”
  • Matthew 10:37 He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me isn’t worthy of me.
  • Genesis 22:1-2 After these things, God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” He said, “Here I am.” He said, “Now take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go into the land of Moriah. Offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will tell you of.”
  • 2 Samuel 18:33 The king was much moved, and went up to the room over the gate, and wept. As he went, he said, “My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! I wish I had died for you, Absalom, my son, my son!”

Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)

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Explain this verse (12 sources)

Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.

John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 11. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s…

11. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight. Although Abraham had been already assured, by many oracles, that the blessed seed should proceed from Isaac only; yet, under the influence of paternal affection, he could not bear that Ishmael should be cut off, for the purpose of causing the inheritance to remain entire to him, to whom it had been divinely granted; and thus, by mingling two races, he endeavored, as far as he was able, to confound the distinction which God had made. It may truly seem absurd, that the servant of God should thus be carried away by a blind impulse: but God thus deprives him of judgment, not only to humble him, but also to testify to all ages, that the dispensing of his grace depends upon his own will alone. Moreover, in order that the holy man may bear, with greater equanimity, the departure of his son, a double consolation is promised him. For, first, God recalls to his memory the promise made concerning Isaac; as if he would say, it is enough and more than enough, that Isaac, in whom the spiritual benediction remains entire, is left. He then promises that he will take care of Ishmael, though exiled from his paternal home; and that a posterity shall arise from him which shall constitute a whole nation. But I have explained above, on the seventeenth chapter (Genesis 17:1,) what is the meaning of the expression, ‘The seed shall be called in Isaac.’ And Paul, (Romans 9:8,) by way of interpretation, uses the word reckoned, or imputed. And it is certain that, by this method, the other son was cut off from the family of Abraham; so that he should no more have a name among his posterity. For God, having severed Ishmael, shows that the whole progeny of Abraham should flow from one head. He promises also to Ishmael, that he shall be a nations but estranged from the Church; so that the condition of the brothers shall, in this respect, be different; that one is constituted the father of a spiritual people, to the other is given a carnal seed. Whence Paul justly infers, that not all who are the seed of Abraham are true and genuine sons; but they only who are born of the Spirit. For as Isaac himself became the legitimate son by a gratuitous promise, so the same grace of God makes a difference among his descendants. But because we have sufficiently treated of the various sons of Abraham on the seventeenth chapter, the subject is now more sparingly alluded to.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 21:11 And the thing was very grievous in…
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Because of his tender affection to him, and God’s…
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And God said unto Abraham,.... Either by an articulate…
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain The thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight -…
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Gen 21:11. The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s…
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain For his son. He does not express any concern…
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 11. Very grievous — Abraham’s affection for Ishmael was…
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 11. And the thing was very grievous] Lit. “was…
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (11) The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight.—Heb.,…
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And the thing (literally, the word, i.e. Sarah"s proposal)…
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 21:11-13 Abraham was upset by Sarah’s demand to oust…

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