Genesis 15:4-5
Context15:4 But look, 1 the word of the Lord came to him: “This man 2 will not be your heir, 3 but instead 4 a son 5 who comes from your own body will be 6 your heir.” 7 15:5 The Lord 8 took him outside and said, “Gaze into the sky and count the stars – if you are able to count them!” Then he said to him, “So will your descendants be.”
1 tn The disjunctive draws attention to God’s response and the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, translated “look”) mirrors Abram’s statement in v. 3 and highlights the fact that God responded to Abram.
2 tn The subject of the verb is the demonstrative pronoun, which can be translated “this one” or “this man.” That the
3 tn Heb “inherit you.”
4 tn The Hebrew כִּי־אִם (ki-’im) forms a very strong adversative.
5 tn Heb “he who”; the implied referent (Abram’s unborn son who will be his heir) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn The pronoun could also be an emphatic subject: “whoever comes out of your body, he will inherit you.”
7 tn Heb “will inherit you.”
8 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the