^15:4But look,¹² the word of the Lord came to him: “This man¹³ will not be your heir,¹⁴ but instead¹⁵ a son¹⁶ who comes from your own body will be¹⁷ your heir.”¹⁸^15:5The Lord¹⁹ 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.”

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Footnotes

12 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.
13 The subject of the verb is the demonstrative pronoun, which can be translated “this one” or “this man.” That the Lord does not mention him by name is significant; often in ancient times the use of the name would bring legitimacy to inheritance and adoption cases.
14 Heb “inherit you.”
15 The Hebrew כִּי־אִם (ki-’im) forms a very strong adversative.
16 Heb “he who”; the implied referent (Abram’s unborn son who will be his heir) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
17 The pronoun could also be an emphatic subject: “whoever comes out of your body, he will inherit you.”
18 Heb “will inherit you.”
19 Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Now the word of the Lord came to him: “This one will not be your heir; instead, one who comes from your own body will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “Your offspring will be that numerous.”

NLTNew Living Translation

Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And behold, the word of Yahweh came to him saying, “This person will not be your heir, but your own son will be your heir.” And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward the heavens and count the stars if you are able to count them.” And he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

Public Domain