Genesis 17:17

15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, do not call her Sarai, for her name is to be Sarah.

16 And I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will descend from her.”

Abraham fell facedown. Then he laughed and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah give birth at the age of ninety?”

18 And Abraham said to God, “O that Ishmael might live under Your blessing!”

19 But God replied, “Your wife Sarah will indeed bear you a son, and you are to name him Isaac. I will establish My covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB
Abraham fell facedown. Then he laughed and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah give birth at the age of ninety?”
KJV
Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
WEB
Then Abraham fell on his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to him who is one hundred years old? Will Sarah, who is ninety years old, give birth?”
ASV
Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
DARBY
And Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall [a child] be born to him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?
BLB
And Abraham fell on his face, and he laughed, and he said in his heart, “To a son of a hundred years shall [a child] be born? Or [shall] Sarah, a daughter of ninety years, bear [a child]?”
ÅB
Da falt Abraham på sitt ansikt og lo, og han sa ved seg selv: Skulle en som er hundre år gammel, få barn? Og skulle Sara, som er nitti år gammel, føde?
OTB
Da bøyde Abraham seg ned og lo, mens han tenkte i sitt hjerte: “Kan et barn bli født til en mann som er hundre år gammel? Og kan Sara, som er nitti år gammel, føde et barn?”
B1930
Da falt Abraham på sitt ansikt og lo, og han sa ved sig selv: Skulde en som er hundre år gammel, få barn? Og skulde Sara, som er nitti år gammel, føde?

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

  • Genesis 18:12

    So she laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

    Read in context
  • Genesis 21:6

    Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.”

    Read in context
  • Romans 4:19–20

    Without weakening in his faith, he acknowledged the decrepitness of his body (since he was about a hundred years old) and the lifelessness of Sarah’s womb.

    Read in context
  • John 8:56

    Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day. He saw it and was glad.”

    Read in context
  • Revelation 11:16

    And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God,

    Read in context
  • Genesis 17:3

    Then Abram fell facedown, and God said to him,

    Read in context
  • Ezekiel 1:28

    The appearance of the brilliant light all around Him was like that of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell facedown and heard a voice speaking.

    Read in context
  • Revelation 5:8

    When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

    Read in context