4:1 While Peter and John ¹  were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander ²  of the temple guard ³  and the Sadducees ⁴  came up ⁵  to them, 4:2 angry ⁶  because they were teaching the people and announcing ⁷  in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. 4:3 So ⁸  they seized ⁹  them and put them in jail ¹⁰  until the next day (for it was already evening). 4:4 But many of those who had listened to ¹¹  the message ¹²  believed, and the number of the men ¹³  came to about five thousand.

4:5 On the next day, ¹⁴  their rulers, elders, and experts in the law ¹⁵  came together ¹⁶  in Jerusalem. ¹⁷  4:6 Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and others who were members of the high priest’s family. ¹⁸  4:7 After ¹⁹  making Peter and John ²⁰  stand in their midst, they began to inquire, “By what power or by what name ²¹  did you do this?” 4:8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, ²²  replied, ²³  “Rulers of the people and elders, ²⁴  4:9 if ²⁵  we are being examined ²⁶  today for a good deed ²⁷  done to a sick man – by what means this man was healed ²⁸  – 4:10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ ²⁹  the Nazarene whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands before you healthy. 4:11 This Jesus ³⁰  is the stone that was rejected by you, ³¹  the builders, that has become the cornerstone. ³²  4:12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people ³³  by which we must ³⁴  be saved.”

4:13 When they saw the boldness ³⁵  of Peter and John, and discovered ³⁶  that they were uneducated ³⁷  and ordinary ³⁸  men, they were amazed and recognized these men had been with Jesus. 4:14 And because they saw the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say against this. ³⁹  4:15 But when they had ordered them to go outside the council, ⁴⁰  they began to confer with one another, 4:16 saying, “What should we do with these men? For it is plain ⁴¹  to all who live in Jerusalem that a notable miraculous sign ⁴²  has come about through them, ⁴³  and we cannot deny it. 4:17 But to keep this matter from spreading any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more ⁴⁴  to anyone in this name.” 4:18 And they called them in and ordered ⁴⁵  them not to speak or teach at all in the name ⁴⁶  of Jesus. 4:19 But Peter and John replied, ⁴⁷  “Whether it is right before God to obey ⁴⁸  you rather than God, you decide, 4:20 for it is impossible ⁴⁹  for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” 4:21 After threatening them further, they released them, for they could not find how to punish them on account of the people, because they were all praising ⁵⁰  God for what had happened. 4:22 For the man, on whom this miraculous sign ⁵¹  of healing had been performed, ⁵²  was over forty years old.

4:23 When they were released, Peter and John ⁵³  went to their fellow believers ⁵⁴  and reported everything the high priests and the elders had said to them. 4:24 When they heard this, they raised their voices to God with one mind ⁵⁵  and said, “Master of all, ⁵⁶  you who made the heaven, the earth, ⁵⁷  the sea, and everything that is in them, 4:25 who said by the Holy Spirit through ⁵⁸  your servant David our forefather, ⁵⁹ 

‘Why do the nations ⁶⁰  rage, ⁶¹ 

and the peoples plot foolish ⁶²  things?

4:26 The kings of the earth stood together, ⁶³ 

and the rulers assembled together,

against the Lord and against his ⁶⁴  Christ.’ ⁶⁵ 

4:27 “For indeed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together in this city against ⁶⁶  your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, ⁶⁷  4:28 to do as much as your power ⁶⁸  and your plan ⁶⁹  had decided beforehand ⁷⁰  would happen. 4:29 And now, Lord, pay attention to ⁷¹  their threats, and grant ⁷²  to your servants ⁷³  to speak your message ⁷⁴  with great courage, ⁷⁵  4:30 while you extend your hand to heal, and to bring about miraculous signs ⁷⁶  and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 4:31 When ⁷⁷  they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken, ⁷⁸  and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak ⁷⁹  the word of God ⁸⁰  courageously. ⁸¹ 

4:32 The group of those who believed were of one heart and mind, ⁸²  and no one said that any of his possessions was his own, but everything was held in common. ⁸³  4:33 With ⁸⁴  great power the apostles were giving testimony ⁸⁵  to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on them all. 4:34 For there was no one needy ⁸⁶  among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling ⁸⁷  them ⁸⁸  and bringing the proceeds from the sales 4:35 and placing them at the apostles’ feet. The proceeds ⁸⁹  were distributed to each, as anyone had need. 4:36 So Joseph, a Levite who was a native of Cyprus, called by the apostles Barnabas (which is translated “son of encouragement”), ⁹⁰  4:37 sold ⁹¹  a field ⁹²  that belonged to him and brought the money ⁹³  and placed it at the apostles’ feet.

5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property. 5:2 He ⁹⁴  kept back for himself part of the proceeds with his wife’s knowledge; he brought ⁹⁵  only part of it and placed it at the apostles’ feet. 5:3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled ⁹⁶  your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back for yourself part of the proceeds from the sale of ⁹⁷  the land? 5:4 Before it was sold, ⁹⁸  did it not ⁹⁹  belong to you? And when it was sold, was the money ¹⁰⁰  not at your disposal? How have you thought up this deed in your heart? ¹⁰¹  You have not lied to people ¹⁰²  but to God!”

5:5 When Ananias heard these words he collapsed and died, and great fear gripped ¹⁰³  all who heard about it. 5:6 So the young men came, ¹⁰⁴  wrapped him up, ¹⁰⁵  carried him out, and buried ¹⁰⁶  him. 5:7 After an interval of about three hours, ¹⁰⁷  his wife came in, but she did not know ¹⁰⁸  what had happened. 5:8 Peter said to her, “Tell me, were the two of you ¹⁰⁹  paid this amount ¹¹⁰  for the land?” Sapphira ¹¹¹  said, “Yes, that much.” 5:9 Peter then told her, “Why have you agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out!” 5:10 At once ¹¹²  she collapsed at his feet and died. So when the young men came in, they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 5:11 Great ¹¹³  fear gripped ¹¹⁴  the whole church ¹¹⁵  and all who heard about these things.

5:12 Now many miraculous signs ¹¹⁶  and wonders came about among the people through the hands of the apostles. By ¹¹⁷  common consent ¹¹⁸  they were all meeting together in Solomon’s Portico. ¹¹⁹  5:13 None of the rest dared to join them, ¹²⁰  but the people held them in high honor. ¹²¹  5:14 More and more believers in the Lord were added to their number, ¹²²  crowds of both men and women. 5:15 Thus ¹²³  they even carried the sick out into the streets, and put them on cots and pallets, so that when Peter came by at least his shadow would fall on some of them. 5:16 A crowd of people from the towns around Jerusalem ¹²⁴  also came together, bringing the sick and those troubled by unclean spirits. ¹²⁵  They ¹²⁶  were all ¹²⁷  being healed.

5:17 Now the high priest rose up, and all those with him (that is, the religious party of the Sadducees ¹²⁸ ), ¹²⁹  and they were filled with jealousy. ¹³⁰  5:18 They ¹³¹  laid hands on ¹³²  the apostles and put them in a public jail. 5:19 But during the night an angel of the Lord ¹³³  opened ¹³⁴  the doors of the prison, ¹³⁵  led them out, ¹³⁶  and said, 5:20 “Go and stand in the temple courts ¹³⁷  and proclaim ¹³⁸  to the people all the words of this life.” 5:21 When they heard this, they entered the temple courts ¹³⁹  at daybreak and began teaching. ¹⁴⁰ 

Now when the high priest and those who were with him arrived, they summoned the Sanhedrin ¹⁴¹  – that is, the whole high council ¹⁴²  of the Israelites ¹⁴³  – and sent to the jail to have the apostles ¹⁴⁴  brought before them. ¹⁴⁵  5:22 But the officers ¹⁴⁶  who came for them ¹⁴⁷  did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported, ¹⁴⁸  5:23 “We found the jail locked securely and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them, ¹⁴⁹  we found no one inside.” 5:24 Now when the commander ¹⁵⁰  of the temple guard ¹⁵¹  and the chief priests heard this report, ¹⁵²  they were greatly puzzled concerning it, ¹⁵³  wondering what this could ¹⁵⁴  be. 5:25 But someone came and reported to them, “Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the temple courts ¹⁵⁵  and teaching ¹⁵⁶  the people!” 5:26 Then the commander ¹⁵⁷  of the temple guard ¹⁵⁸  went with the officers ¹⁵⁹  and brought the apostles ¹⁶⁰  without the use of force ¹⁶¹  (for they were afraid of being stoned by the people). ¹⁶² 

5:27 When they had brought them, they stood them before the council, ¹⁶³  and the high priest questioned ¹⁶⁴  them, 5:28 saying, “We gave ¹⁶⁵  you strict orders ¹⁶⁶  not to teach in this name. ¹⁶⁷  Look, ¹⁶⁸  you have filled Jerusalem ¹⁶⁹  with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood ¹⁷⁰  on us!” 5:29 But Peter and the apostles replied, ¹⁷¹  “We must obey ¹⁷²  God rather than people. ¹⁷³  5:30 The God of our forefathers ¹⁷⁴  raised up Jesus, whom you seized and killed by hanging him on a tree. ¹⁷⁵  5:31 God exalted him ¹⁷⁶  to his right hand as Leader ¹⁷⁷  and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. ¹⁷⁸  5:32 And we are witnesses of these events, ¹⁷⁹  and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey ¹⁸⁰  him.”

5:33 Now when they heard this, they became furious ¹⁸¹  and wanted to execute them. ¹⁸²  5:34 But a Pharisee ¹⁸³  whose name was Gamaliel, ¹⁸⁴  a teacher of the law who was respected by all the people, stood up ¹⁸⁵  in the council ¹⁸⁶  and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time. 5:35 Then he said to the council, ¹⁸⁷  “Men of Israel, ¹⁸⁸  pay close attention to ¹⁸⁹  what you are about to do to these men. 5:36 For some time ago ¹⁹⁰  Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men joined him. He ¹⁹¹  was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and nothing came of it. ¹⁹²  5:37 After him Judas the Galilean arose in the days of the census, ¹⁹³  and incited people to follow him in revolt. ¹⁹⁴  He too was killed, and all who followed him were scattered. 5:38 So in this case I say to you, stay away from these men and leave them alone, because if this plan or this undertaking originates with people, ¹⁹⁵  it will come to nothing, ¹⁹⁶  5:39 but if ¹⁹⁷  it is from God, you will not be able to stop them, or you may even be found ¹⁹⁸  fighting against God.” He convinced them, ¹⁹⁹  5:40 and they summoned the apostles and had them beaten. ²⁰⁰  Then ²⁰¹  they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them. 5:41 So they left the council rejoicing because they had been considered worthy ²⁰²  to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name. ²⁰³  5:42 And every day both in the temple courts ²⁰⁴  and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news ²⁰⁵  that Jesus was the Christ. ²⁰⁶ 

12:1 Now the Lord said ¹  to Abram, ² 

“Go out ³  from your country, your relatives, and your father’s household

to the land that I will show you. ⁴ 

12:2 Then I will make you ⁵  into a great nation, and I will bless you, ⁶ 

and I will make your name great, ⁷ 

so that you will exemplify divine blessing. ⁸ 

12:3 I will bless those who bless you, ⁹ 

but the one who treats you lightly ¹⁰  I must curse,

and all the families of the earth will bless one another ¹¹  by your name.”

12:4 So Abram left, ¹²  just as the Lord had told him to do, ¹³  and Lot went with him. (Now ¹⁴  Abram was 75 years old ¹⁵  when he departed from Haran.) 12:5 And Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew ¹⁶  Lot, and all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired ¹⁷  in Haran, and they left for ¹⁸  the land of Canaan. They entered the land of Canaan.

12:6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the oak tree ¹⁹  of Moreh ²⁰  at Shechem. ²¹  (At that time the Canaanites were in the land.) ²²  12:7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants ²³  I will give this land.” So Abram ²⁴  built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

12:8 Then he moved from there to the hill country east of Bethel ²⁵  and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and worshiped the Lord. ²⁶  12:9 Abram continually journeyed by stages ²⁷  down to the Negev. ²⁸ 

12:10 There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt ²⁹  to stay for a while ³⁰  because the famine was severe. ³¹  12:11 As he approached ³²  Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “Look, ³³  I know that you are a beautiful woman. ³⁴  12:12 When the Egyptians see you they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me but will keep you alive. ³⁵  12:13 So tell them ³⁶  you are my sister ³⁷  so that it may go well ³⁸  for me because of you and my life will be spared ³⁹  on account of you.”

12:14 When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 12:15 When Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. So Abram’s wife ⁴⁰  was taken ⁴¹  into the household of Pharaoh, ⁴²  12:16 and he did treat Abram well ⁴³  on account of her. Abram received ⁴⁴  sheep and cattle, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

12:17 But the Lord struck Pharaoh and his household with severe diseases ⁴⁵  because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 12:18 So Pharaoh summoned Abram and said, “What is this ⁴⁶  you have done to me? Why didn’t you tell me that she was your wife? 12:19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her ⁴⁷  to be my wife? ⁴⁸  Here is your wife! ⁴⁹  Take her and go!” ⁵⁰  12:20 Pharaoh gave his men orders about Abram, ⁵¹  and so they expelled him, along with his wife and all his possessions.

16:1 Now Sarai, ¹  Abram’s wife, had not given birth to any children, ²  but she had an Egyptian servant ³  named Hagar. ⁴  16:2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Since ⁵  the Lord has prevented me from having children, have sexual relations with ⁶  my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her.” ⁷  Abram did what ⁸  Sarai told him.

16:3 So after Abram had lived ⁹  in Canaan for ten years, Sarai, Abram’s wife, gave Hagar, her Egyptian servant, ¹⁰  to her husband to be his wife. ¹¹  16:4 He had sexual relations with ¹²  Hagar, and she became pregnant. ¹³  Once Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despised Sarai. ¹⁴  16:5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You have brought this wrong on me! ¹⁵  I allowed my servant to have sexual relations with you, ¹⁶  but when she realized ¹⁷  that she was pregnant, she despised me. ¹⁸  May the Lord judge between you and me!” ¹⁹ 

16:6 Abram said to Sarai, “Since your ²⁰  servant is under your authority, ²¹  do to her whatever you think best.” ²²  Then Sarai treated Hagar ²³  harshly, ²⁴  so she ran away from Sarai. ²⁵ 

16:7 The Lord’s angel ²⁶  found Hagar near a spring of water in the desert – the spring that is along the road to Shur. ²⁷  16:8 He said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” She replied, “I’m running away from ²⁸  my mistress, Sarai.”

16:9 Then the Lord’s angel said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit ²⁹  to her authority. 16:10 I will greatly multiply your descendants,” the Lord’s angel added, ³⁰  “so that they will be too numerous to count.” ³¹  16:11 Then the Lord’s angel said to her,

“You are now ³²  pregnant

and are about to give birth ³³  to a son.

You are to name him Ishmael, ³⁴ 

for the Lord has heard your painful groans. ³⁵ 

16:12 He will be a wild donkey ³⁶  of a man.

He will be hostile to everyone, ³⁷ 

and everyone will be hostile to him. ³⁸ 

He will live away from ³⁹  his brothers.”

16:13 So Hagar named the Lord who spoke to her, “You are the God who sees me,” ⁴⁰  for she said, “Here I have seen one who sees me!” ⁴¹  16:14 That is why the well was called ⁴²  Beer Lahai Roi. ⁴³  (It is located ⁴⁴  between Kadesh and Bered.)

16:15 So Hagar gave birth to Abram’s son, whom Abram named Ishmael. ⁴⁵  16:16 (Now ⁴⁶  Abram was 86 years old ⁴⁷  when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.) ⁴⁸ 

18:1 The Lord appeared to Abraham ¹  by the oaks ²  of Mamre while ³  he was sitting at the entrance ⁴  to his tent during the hottest time of the day. 18:2 Abraham ⁵  looked up ⁶  and saw ⁷  three men standing across ⁸  from him. When he saw them ⁹  he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed low ¹⁰  to the ground. ¹¹ 

18:3 He said, “My lord, ¹²  if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by and leave your servant. ¹³  18:4 Let a little water be brought so that ¹⁴  you may all ¹⁵  wash your feet and rest under the tree. 18:5 And let me get ¹⁶  a bit of food ¹⁷  so that you may refresh yourselves ¹⁸  since you have passed by your servant’s home. After that you may be on your way.” ¹⁹  “All right,” they replied, “you may do as you say.”

18:6 So Abraham hurried into the tent and said to Sarah, “Quick! Take ²⁰  three measures ²¹  of fine flour, knead it, and make bread.” ²²  18:7 Then Abraham ran to the herd and chose a fine, tender calf, and gave it to a servant, ²³  who quickly prepared it. ²⁴  18:8 Abraham ²⁵  then took some curds and milk, along with the calf that had been prepared, and placed the food ²⁶  before them. They ate while ²⁷  he was standing near them under a tree.

18:9 Then they asked him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” He replied, “There, ²⁸  in the tent.” 18:10 One of them ²⁹  said, “I will surely return ³⁰  to you when the season comes round again, ³¹  and your wife Sarah will have a son!” ³²  (Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, not far behind him. ³³  18:11 Abraham and Sarah were old and advancing in years; ³⁴  Sarah had long since passed menopause.) ³⁵  18:12 So Sarah laughed to herself, thinking, ³⁶  “After I am worn out will I have pleasure, ³⁷  especially when my husband is old too?” ³⁸ 

18:13 The Lord said to Abraham, “Why ³⁹  did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really ⁴⁰  have a child when I am old?’ 18:14 Is anything impossible ⁴¹  for the Lord? I will return to you when the season comes round again and Sarah will have a son.” ⁴²  18:15 Then Sarah lied, saying, “I did not laugh,” because she was afraid. But the Lord said, “No! You did laugh.” ⁴³ 

18:16 When the men got up to leave, ⁴⁴  they looked out over ⁴⁵  Sodom. (Now ⁴⁶  Abraham was walking with them to see them on their way.) ⁴⁷  18:17 Then the Lord said, “Should I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? ⁴⁸  18:18 After all, Abraham ⁴⁹  will surely become ⁵⁰  a great and powerful nation, and all the nations on the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ⁵¹  using his name. 18:19 I have chosen him ⁵²  so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep ⁵³  the way of the Lord by doing ⁵⁴  what is right and just. Then the Lord will give ⁵⁵  to Abraham what he promised ⁵⁶  him.”

18:20 So the Lord said, “The outcry against ⁵⁷  Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so blatant ⁵⁸  18:21 that I must go down ⁵⁹  and see if they are as wicked as the outcry suggests. ⁶⁰  If not, ⁶¹  I want to know.”

18:22 The two men turned ⁶²  and headed ⁶³  toward Sodom, but Abraham was still standing before the Lord. ⁶⁴  18:23 Abraham approached and said, “Will you sweep away the godly along with the wicked? 18:24 What if there are fifty godly people in the city? Will you really wipe it out and not spare ⁶⁵  the place for the sake of the fifty godly people who are in it? 18:25 Far be it from you to do such a thing – to kill the godly with the wicked, treating the godly and the wicked alike! Far be it from you! Will not the judge ⁶⁶  of the whole earth do what is right?” ⁶⁷ 

18:26 So the Lord replied, “If I find in the city of Sodom fifty godly people, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

18:27 Then Abraham asked, “Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord ⁶⁸  (although I am but dust and ashes), ⁶⁹  18:28 what if there are five less than the fifty godly people? Will you destroy ⁷⁰  the whole city because five are lacking?” ⁷¹  He replied, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”

18:29 Abraham ⁷²  spoke to him again, ⁷³  “What if forty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”

18:30 Then Abraham ⁷⁴  said, “May the Lord not be angry ⁷⁵  so that I may speak! ⁷⁶  What if thirty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

18:31 Abraham ⁷⁷  said, “Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”

18:32 Finally Abraham ⁷⁸  said, “May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak just once more. What if ten are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”

18:33 The Lord went on his way ⁷⁹  when he had finished speaking ⁸⁰  to Abraham. Then Abraham returned home. ⁸¹ 

21:1 The Lord visited ¹  Sarah just as he had said he would and did ²  for Sarah what he had promised. ³  21:2 So Sarah became pregnant ⁴  and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the appointed time that God had told him. 21:3 Abraham named his son – whom Sarah bore to him – Isaac. ⁵  21:4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, ⁶  Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded him to do. ⁷  21:5 (Now Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.) ⁸ 

21:6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. ⁹  Everyone who hears about this ¹⁰  will laugh ¹¹  with me.” 21:7 She went on to say, ¹²  “Who would ¹³  have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have given birth to a son for him in his old age!”

21:8 The child grew and was weaned. Abraham prepared ¹⁴  a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. ¹⁵  21:9 But Sarah noticed ¹⁶  the son of Hagar the Egyptian – the son whom Hagar had borne to Abraham – mocking. ¹⁷  21:10 So she said to Abraham, “Banish ¹⁸  that slave woman and her son, for the son of that slave woman will not be an heir along with my son Isaac!”

21:11 Sarah’s demand displeased Abraham greatly because Ishmael was his son. ¹⁹  21:12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be upset ²⁰  about the boy or your slave wife. Do ²¹  all that Sarah is telling ²²  you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted. ²³  21:13 But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too.”

21:14 Early in the morning Abraham took ²⁴  some food ²⁵  and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He put them on her shoulders, gave her the child, ²⁶  and sent her away. So she went wandering ²⁷  aimlessly through the wilderness ²⁸  of Beer Sheba. 21:15 When the water in the skin was gone, she shoved ²⁹  the child under one of the shrubs. 21:16 Then she went and sat down by herself across from him at quite a distance, about a bowshot ³⁰  away; for she thought, ³¹  “I refuse to watch the child die.” ³²  So she sat across from him and wept uncontrollably. ³³ 

21:17 But God heard the boy’s voice. ³⁴  The angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, “What is the matter, ³⁵  Hagar? Don’t be afraid, for God has heard ³⁶  the boy’s voice right where he is crying. 21:18 Get up! Help the boy up and hold him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” 21:19 Then God enabled Hagar to see a well of water. ³⁷  She went over and filled the skin with water, and then gave the boy a drink.

21:20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21:21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran. ³⁸  His mother found a wife for him from the land of Egypt. ³⁹ 

21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you ⁴⁰  in all that you do. 21:23 Now swear to me right here in God’s name ⁴¹  that you will not deceive me, my children, or my descendants. ⁴²  Show me, and the land ⁴³  where you are staying, ⁴⁴  the same loyalty ⁴⁵  that I have shown you.” ⁴⁶ 

21:24 Abraham said, “I swear to do this.” ⁴⁷  21:25 But Abraham lodged a complaint ⁴⁸  against Abimelech concerning a well ⁴⁹  that Abimelech’s servants had seized. ⁵⁰  21:26 “I do not know who has done this thing,” Abimelech replied. “Moreover, ⁵¹  you did not tell me. I did not hear about it until today.”

21:27 Abraham took some sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech. The two of them made a treaty. ⁵²  21:28 Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs apart from the flock by themselves. 21:29 Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these ⁵³  seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” 21:30 He replied, “You must take these seven ewe lambs from my hand as legal proof ⁵⁴  that I dug this well.” ⁵⁵  21:31 That is why he named that place ⁵⁶  Beer Sheba, ⁵⁷  because the two of them swore ⁵⁸  an oath there.

21:32 So they made a treaty ⁵⁹  at Beer Sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, returned ⁶⁰  to the land of the Philistines. ⁶¹  21:33 Abraham ⁶²  planted a tamarisk tree ⁶³  in Beer Sheba. There he worshiped the Lord, ⁶⁴  the eternal God. 21:34 So Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for quite some time. ⁶⁵