Sarah

29And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.

Abram and Nahor both got married. Abram's wife was named Sarai. Nahor's wife was named Milcah. Milcah was Haran's daughter. Haran was also the father of Iscah.

30But Sarai was barren; she had no child.

But Sarai could not have babies. She had no children.

31And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.

Terah took his son Abram with him. He also took his grandson Lot, the son of Haran. He took Sarai too, who was Abram's wife. They left Ur to go to the land of Canaan. But they came to a place called Haran and stayed there.

10And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.

Food ran out in that land, and people went hungry. So Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while. The hunger in his land was very bad.

11And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon:

When they were almost in Egypt, Abram talked to his wife Sarai. He said, "Look, I know you are a beautiful woman."

12Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.

"When the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'She is his wife.' Then they will kill me, but they will let you live."

13Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.

"Please say that you are my sister. Then they will treat me well because of you. My life will be saved because of you."

14And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair.

So Abram came into Egypt. The Egyptians looked at Sarai and saw she was very beautiful.

15The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house.

Pharaoh's leaders saw her too. Pharaoh was the king of Egypt. They told the king how lovely she was. So Sarai was taken to Pharaoh's house.

16And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.

Pharaoh treated Abram well because of her. Abram was given sheep, cows, donkeys, camels, and servants, both men and women.

17And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram’s wife.

But the LORD sent terrible sicknesses on Pharaoh and everyone in his house. This happened because of Sarai, Abram's wife.

18And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?

So Pharaoh sent for Abram. He said, "What have you done to me? Why didn't you tell me she was your wife?"

19Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.

"Why did you say, 'She is my sister'? I took her to be my own wife. Here is your wife. Take her and go."

20And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.

Then Pharaoh gave orders to his men about Abram. They sent Abram away with his wife and everything he owned.

1Now Sarai Abram’s wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.

Sarai was Abram's wife. She had never had any children. She had a servant girl from Egypt named Hagar.

2And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

Sarai said to Abram, "God has not let me have a baby. Please have a baby with my servant Hagar. Then maybe I can have a family through her." Abram did what Sarai said.

3And Sarai Abram’s wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.

By now Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan. Sarai took Hagar, her Egyptian servant, and gave her to Abram to be his wife.

4And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.

Abram and Hagar had a baby starting to grow inside her. When Hagar knew this, she began to look down on Sarai.

5And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.

Sarai said to Abram, "This hurt is your fault. I gave my servant to you. Now she knows she is having a baby. She looks down on me. Let God decide who is right, you or me."

6But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.

Abram said, "Your servant belongs to you. Do what you think is best." Then Sarai was very mean to Hagar. So Hagar ran away from her.

15And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.

God also said to Abraham, "Do not call your wife Sarai anymore. Her name will now be Sarah."

16And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.

"I will be good to her. I will give you a son through her. Whole nations will come from her, and some of her family will be kings."

17Then 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?

Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground and laughed. He thought, "Can a man of a hundred have a baby? Can Sarah have a baby at ninety?"

18And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!

Then Abraham said to God, "Please let Ishmael live and be blessed by you!"

19And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.

God said, "No, your wife Sarah really will have a son. Name him Isaac. I will keep my promise with him and his children forever."

20And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

"I have heard what you asked about Ishmael. I will be good to him. His family will grow very large. He will have twelve sons who become rulers, and he will become a great nation."

21But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

"But my promise will go on through Isaac. Sarah will give birth to him at this same time next year."

22And he left off talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.

When God finished talking with Abraham, he went up and away from him.

1And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

The LORD came to Abraham near the big trees of Mamre. Abraham was sitting in his tent door in the hot part of the day.

2And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,

He looked up and saw three men standing nearby. He ran from the tent door to meet them. He bowed down low, with his face toward the ground.

3And said, My LORD, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:

He said, "My lord, if you are pleased with me, please stay. Do not pass by your servant."

4Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

"Let someone bring a little water. Wash your feet and rest under the tree."

5And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.

"I will bring you some bread to make you feel strong again. After that you can go on your way. That is why you came by my home." They said, "Yes. Do what you said."

6And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.

Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. He said, "Quick! Take three big scoops of our best flour. Mix it and bake bread."

7And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.

Abraham ran out to his cows. He picked a young calf that was soft and good. He gave it to a servant, who hurried to cook it.

8And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

Then he brought thick milk, fresh milk, and the cooked meat. He set the food in front of the men. He stood near them under the tree while they ate.

9And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.

They asked him, "Where is your wife Sarah?" He said, "She is in the tent."

10And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.

One of them said, "I will come back about this time next year. Then your wife Sarah will have a son." Sarah was behind him, listening at the tent door.

11Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.

Abraham and Sarah were both very old. Sarah was past the age when women have babies.

12Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?

So Sarah laughed quietly inside herself. She thought, "I am worn out, and my husband is old too. Could I really have such a happy thing now?"

13And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?

The LORD said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh? She said, 'Can I really have a baby when I am so old?'"

14Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.

"Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will come back at the right time, about a year from now. And Sarah will have a son."

15Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.

Sarah was scared, so she said, "I did not laugh." He said, "No. You did laugh."

1And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

Abraham moved south. He lived between two places called Kadesh and Shur. Then he stayed for a while in a town called Gerar.

2And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

Abraham said about his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." So Abimelech, the king of Gerar, sent men to bring Sarah to him.

3But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man’s wife.

But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream. God said, "You are as good as dead. The woman you took is another man's wife."

4But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

Abimelech had not gone near her yet. He said, "Lord, will you kill a whole nation that did nothing wrong?"

5Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

"Didn't Abraham tell me she was his sister? She said he was her brother. My heart was honest. My hands did nothing wrong."

6And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

God said in the dream, "Yes, I know your heart was honest. That is why I kept you from sinning against me. I did not let you touch her."

7Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

"Now give the man his wife back. He is a prophet, someone who speaks for God. He will pray for you, and you will live. If you do not give her back, you and all your people will surely die."

8Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.

Early the next morning Abimelech called all his servants. He told them everything that had happened. The men were very afraid.

9Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.

Then Abimelech called Abraham in. He said, "What have you done to us? What wrong did I do to you? You brought a terrible sin on me and my kingdom. You did something to me that should never be done."

10And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

Abimelech also asked Abraham, "What were you thinking when you did this?"

11And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake.

Abraham said, "I thought nobody in this place respects God. I thought they would kill me so they could take my wife."

12And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

"Besides, she really is my sister. We have the same father, but not the same mother. And she became my wife."

13And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

"God sent me away from my father's house to wander. I asked Sarah to be kind to me. I said, 'Everywhere we go, tell people I am your brother.'"

14And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.

So Abimelech brought sheep and cattle, and servants, both men and women. He gave them to Abraham. He also gave Sarah back to him.

15And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.

Abimelech said, "Look, this is my land. Live anywhere you like."

16And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved.

To Sarah he said, "I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver. This shows everyone that you did nothing wrong. No one can blame you now."

17So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

Then Abraham prayed to God. God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his women servants. They could have babies again.

18For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham’s wife.

The LORD had stopped every woman in Abimelech's house from having babies. He did this because of Sarah, Abraham's wife.

1And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.

The LORD did for Sarah just what he had promised. He kept his word.

2For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

Sarah became pregnant. She had a baby boy for Abraham when he was old. It happened at the very time God had said.

3And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

Abraham named the baby boy Isaac.

4And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.

When Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him. This was a small cut on the body that God told Abraham's family to make.

5And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

Abraham was one hundred years old when Isaac was born.

6And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.

Sarah said, "God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears about this will laugh with me."

7And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.

She said, "Nobody would have told Abraham that Sarah would feed a baby. But I gave him a son when he was old."

8And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.

The boy grew. One day he stopped drinking his mother's milk. That same day Abraham made a big feast.

9And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.

Hagar came from Egypt. She had a son with Abraham too. Sarah saw that boy making fun of Isaac.

10Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.

So Sarah said to Abraham, "Send that servant woman and her son away. Her son will not share what belongs to my son Isaac."

11And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.

This made Abraham very sad, because Ishmael was his son too.

12And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

God said to Abraham, "Do not be sad about the boy or about your servant. Do what Sarah tells you. Your family line will be counted through Isaac."

13And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

"I will also make the servant woman's son into a big nation, because he is your son too."