Bible Strands
Genesis 12:2
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks to Abram immediately after commanding him to leave his country, kindred, and father's household (Gen 12:1). This is the promise that follows the command.
The words — The verb אֲבָרֶכְךָ (ʾăvārekhā, "I will bless you") becomes the noun בְּרָכָה (bərākhāh, "a blessing") by verse's end, shifting Abram from recipient to agent.
The thread — The same "great name" and "blessing" language recurs in Genesis 18:18 and is applied to the nations in Galatians 3:14.
Why it lands — The promise is tethered to the command in verse 1: Abram must leave before he can become. The blessing is not earned; it is received in motion and then passed outward.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 7:9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make for you a name like that of the greatest in the land.
- Galatians 3:14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
- Genesis 18:18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and through him all the nations of the earth will be blessed.
- Genesis 17:4 “As for Me, this is My covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
- Genesis 28:3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a company of peoples.
- Genesis 35:11 And God told him, “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation—even a company of nations—shall come from you, and kings shall descend from you.
- Genesis 46:3 “I am God,” He said, “the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there.
- Genesis 26:4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed,
- Genesis 24:35 “The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become rich. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys.
- Genesis 13:16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.