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Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs, which you have set by themselves, mean?”
He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.”
Genesis 21:28-30 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Abraham took sheep and cattle, and gave them to Abimelech. Those two made a covenant. Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs, which you have set by themselves, mean?”
He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.” Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because they both swore an oath there. So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Abimelech rose up with Phicol, the captain of his army, and they returned into the land of the Philistines. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and called there on the name of Yahweh, the Everlasting God. Abraham lived as a foreigner in the land of the Philistines many days.
Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs, which you have set by themselves, mean?”
He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.”
And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
And Abraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock by themselves.
And Abimelech said unto Abraham: 'What mean these seven ewe-lambs which thou hast set by themselves?'
And he said: 'Verily, these seven ewe-lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that it may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.'
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On v28 28. And Abraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock…
28. And Abraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock by themselves. Moses recites another chief point of the covenant; namely, that Abraham made express provision for himself respecting the well, that he should have free use of its water. And he placed in the midst seven lambs, that the king being presented with the honorary gift, might approve and ratify the digging of the well. For the inhabitants might provoke a controversy, on the ground that it was not lawful for a private man, and a stranger, to dig a well; but now, when the public authority of the king intervened, Abraham’s peace was consulted, that no one might disturb him. Many understand lambs here to mean pieces of money coined in the form of lambs, but since mention has previously been made of sheep and oxen, and Moses now immediately subjoins that seven lambs are placed apart, it is absurd, in this connection, to speak of money.
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 On vv28–29 Gen 21:28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of…
Gen 21:28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
Ver. 28. By themselves.] Because for a distinct use; nothing concerning the covenant aforementioned.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On v30 That this care of Abraham’s was not superfluous may…
That this care of Abraham’s was not superfluous may appear from Gen 26:15.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv28–30 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba,.... Either Abraham or…
Wherefore he called that place Beersheba,.... Either Abraham or Abimelech, or both, called it so; or it may be read impersonally, "therefore the place was called Beersheba" (t), for two reasons, one implied, the other expressed; one was, because of the seven lambs before mentioned; so the Targum of Jonathan,"and therefore he called the well the well of seven lambs;''"Beer" signifying a well, and "sheba" seven; the other, and which is more certain, being expressed, is as follows:
because there they sware both of them; by the living God, to keep the covenant inviolably they had made between them.
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(t) "vocatus", V. L. Calvin, Piscator.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v28 Verse 28. Seven ewe lambs] These were either given…
Verse 28. Seven ewe lambs] These were either given as a present, or they were intended as the price of the well; and being accepted by Abimelech, they served as a witness that he had acknowledged Abraham's right to the well in question.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v30 30. Seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my…
30. Seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand — These seem to have been an additional present to bind the treaty at the well. The receiving of this gift would bind Abimelech by a most solemn stipulation. The Hebrew word for swear, in Gen_21:23-24, is the verbal form of the word for seven, and in its usual Niphal form (נשׁבע) means literally, to seven one’s self. This, perhaps, arose from the custom of confirming or sealing an oath by seven offerings or seven witnesses.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv28, 30 28. seven ewe lambs] The seven lambs which Abraham…
28. seven ewe lambs] The seven lambs which Abraham here sets apart are to be handed over to Abimelech, if he acknowledges Abraham as the possessor of the well, and ratifies the compact with an oath. The number “seven” (sheba‘) is one of the explanations of the name “Beer-sheba.”
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On v28 (28) Seven ewe lambs.—The word in Hebrew for swearing…
(28) Seven ewe lambs.—The word in Hebrew for swearing is a passive verb, literally signifying “to be sevened,” that is, done or confirmed by seven. In this ancient narrative we see a covenant actually thus made binding. Seven ewe lambs are picked out and placed by themselves, and by accepting these Abimelech bound himself to acknowledge and respect Abraham’s title to the well. Apparently this manner of ratifying an oath was unknown to the Philistines, as Abimelech asks, “What mean these seven ewe lambs?” but it is equally possible that this question was dictated by the rules of Oriental courtesy. When Abraham had picked out the lambs, it became Abimelech’s duty to ask what was the purpose of the act, which was then explained, and as soon as the lambs were accepted, the ratification was complete,
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v28 Vers. 28-30. And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of…
Vers. 28-30. And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves (designing by another covenant to secure himself against future invasion of Isis rights). And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that this peculiar kind of oath never occurs again in Old Testament history is no proof of the mythical character of the narrative (Bohlen); on the contrary, "that the custom existed in primitive Hebrew times is shown by the word Bvni, which had early passed into the language, and which would be inexplicable without the existence of such a custom" (Havernick)that I have digged this well.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v28 Abraham set seven female lambs of the flock by…
Abraham set seven female lambs of the flock by themselves
"Abraham separated seven female lambs from the flock"
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What is the meaning of these seven female lambs that you have set by themselves?
"Why have you separated these seven lambs from the flock?"
you will receive
"you will take"
from my hand
Here "hand" stands for Abraham. AT: "from me" (See: Synecdoche)
it may be a witness
The word "it" refers to the gift of seven lambs.
so that it may be a witness for me
The abstract noun "witness" can be stated as "to prove." AT: "to prove to everyone" (See: Abstract Nouns)
translationWords
Abraham
lamb
flocks
Abimelech
testimony
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.