Bible Strands
Genesis 17:2
I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God addresses Abram at age ninety-nine, immediately after declaring Himself God Almighty and commanding Abram to walk blamelessly.
The words — The verb וְאֶתֵּנָ (ve'ettenah) literally means "I will give/make," and בְּרִיתִי (beriti) translates to "My covenant," forming the core declaration. The verb אַרְבֶּה (arbeh) means "I will multiply," intensified by the phrase בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד (bi'mod me'od) to indicate "exceedingly" or "with great strength."
The thread — This promise of multiplication directly continues the nation-building theme of Genesis 12:2 and the offspring promise of Genesis 13:16. It is immediately clarified in Genesis 17:4, where God defines the covenant as making Abram the father of many nations.
Why it lands — The text states God's unilateral commitment to establish the covenant and multiply Abram before any human action is recorded. It requires the reader to acknowledge that divine blessing and identity are initiated by God's word rather than derived from human merit.
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 my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
Cross-references
- Genesis 17:4 “As for Me, this is My covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
- 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.
- 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.
- Genesis 15:18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—
- Psalms 105:8 He remembers His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations—
- Genesis 22:17 I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Galatians 3:17 What I mean is this: The law that came 430 years later does not revoke the covenant previously established by God, so as to nullify the promise.
- Genesis 9:9 “Behold, I now establish My covenant with you and your descendants after you,