The Birth of Isaac
1Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. 2Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. 3Abraham gave the name Isaac21:3 Isaac means he laughs. to the son Sarah bore him. 4When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. 5Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
6Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away
8The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”
11The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring21:12 Or seed will be reckoned. 13I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.”
14Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.
15When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she21:16 Hebrew; Septuagint the child began to sob.
17God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
19Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.
The Treaty at Beersheba
22At that time Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. 23Now swear to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants. Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”
24Abraham said, “I swear it.”
25Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized. 26But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”
27So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty. 28Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, 29and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”
30He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness that I dug this well.”
31So that place was called Beersheba,21:31 Beersheba can mean well of seven and well of the oath. because the two men swore an oath there.
32After the treaty had been made at Beersheba, Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces returned to the land of the Philistines. 33Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Eternal God. 34And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.
Isaks fødsel
1Herren velsignede Sara, som han havde lovet: 2Hun blev gravid og fødte Abraham en søn i hans alderdom—på det tidspunkt, som Gud havde sagt. 3Abraham kaldte sin søn Isak. 4På ugedagen21,4 I Mellemøsten og Afrika tæller man dagene inklusivt. Udtrykket „på den ottende dag” svarer derfor til „syv dage efter” på dansk. Det er ugedagen efter fødslen. efter fødslen omskar Abraham sin søn Isak, sådan som Gud havde pålagt ham. 5Abraham var på det tidspunkt 100 år gammel.
6Ved den lejlighed sagde Sara: „Gud har fået mig til at le! Og alle, som hører om det her, vil le sammen med mig. 7Hvem turde sige til Abraham, at jeg kunne få et barn? Men nu har jeg født ham et barn i hans alderdom.”
Hagar og Ishmael sendes væk
8Drengen voksede til og blev vænnet fra. I den anledning holdt Abraham en stor fest. 9Men da Sara opdagede, at Ishmael drillede hendes søn Isak, 10sagde hun til Abraham: „Jag den slavekvinde og hendes søn bort, for slavekvindens søn skal ikke have del i arven sammen med min søn, Isak.” 11Det blev Abraham meget oprørt over, for Ishmael var trods alt også hans søn.
12Men Gud sagde til Abraham: „Vær ikke bekymret for slavekvinden og hendes søn. Gør som Sara siger! For det er gennem Isak, din slægt skal opbygges. 13Men jeg vil også gøre slavekvindens søn til et stort folk, fordi han er din søn.”
14Tidligt næste morgen kom Abraham med en pose mad og en skindsæk med vand til Hagar og drengen. Han anbragte provianten på hendes skulder og sendte dem af sted. De vandrede rundt på lykke og fromme i Be’ershebas ørken. 15Da vandbeholdningen slap op, efterlod hun drengen udmattet i skyggen af en busk. 16Så gik hun omkring hundrede meter væk og satte sig ned. „Jeg kan ikke holde ud at se ham dø,” sagde hun og brast i gråd.
17Men Gud hørte drengens klynken, og Herrens engel råbte fra Himlen: „Hagar, hvad er der i vejen? Du skal ikke være bange! Gud har hørt drengens klynken, dér hvor han ligger. 18Gå hen og hjælp ham op og trøst ham. Hans efterkommere skal blive et stort folk.” 19I det samme åbnede Gud hendes øjne, så hun fik øje på en kilde med vand. Hun fyldte straks vandsækken og gav drengen noget at drikke.
20-21Gud velsignede drengen. Han voksede op i Parans ørken og blev en dygtig bueskytte. Hans mor fandt en pige til ham fra Egypten, som han giftede sig med.
En pagt mellem Abraham og Abimelek
22Omkring den tid blev Abraham opsøgt af kong Abimelek og hans hærfører Pikol. „Der er ingen tvivl om, at Gud er med dig i alt, hvad du foretager dig,” sagde Abimelek. 23„Jeg vil derfor bede dig sværge i Guds navn, at du aldrig vil handle forræderisk imod mig eller mine børn eller børnebørn. Jeg har været loyal over for dig, så sværg nu på, at du altid vil være loyal over for mig og mit land, hvor du bor som gæst.”
24„Det sværger jeg på!” svarede Abraham. 25Men derefter beklagede han sig over, at Abimeleks folk med vold havde tilranet sig en af hans brønde. 26Dertil svarede Abimelek: „Det havde jeg ingen anelse om! Siden jeg ikke har hørt om det før, ved jeg ikke, hvem der er ansvarlig i den sag. Hvorfor har du ikke sagt det til mig noget før?”
27Derpå gav Abraham kong Abimelek nogle får og køer som tegn på den pagt, han indgik med ham. 28Men da Abraham satte yderligere syv lam til side, 29spurgte Abimelek: „Hvad vil du gøre med dem?” 30„De syv lam er en særlig gave—og en offentlig bekræftelse på, at brønden tilhører mig,” svarede Abraham. 31Fra da af kaldte man brønden Be’ersheba,21,31 Det betyder: „pagtsbrønden” eller „syvbrønden”. for det var der, de indgik deres pagt.
32Efter at pagten var indgået, vendte Abimelek og hans hærfører Pikol tilbage til filistrenes land. 33Men Abraham plantede en tamarisk ved pagtsbrønden, og tilbad Herren, den evige Gud, på det sted. 34Abraham boede som fremmed i filistrenes land i lang tid.
