^7:5He⁷ did not give any of it to him for an inheritance,⁸ not even a foot of ground,⁹ yet God¹⁰ promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him,¹¹ even though Abraham¹² as yet had no child. ^7:6But God spoke as follows: ‘Your¹³ descendants will be foreigners¹⁴ in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for four hundred years.¹⁵^7:7But I will punish¹⁶ the nation they serve as slaves,’ said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there¹⁷ and worship¹⁸ me in this place.’¹⁹

Read in Logos

Footnotes

7 Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
8 Grk “He did not give him an inheritance in it.” This could be understood to mean that God did not give something else to Abraham as an inheritance while he was living there. The point of the text is that God did not give any of the land to him as an inheritance, and the translation makes this clear.
9 Grk “a step of a foot” (cf. Deut 2:5).
10 Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 An allusion to Gen 12:7; 13:15; 15:2, 18; 17:8; 24:7; 48:4. On the theological importance of the promise and to his descendants after him, see Rom 4 and Gal 3.
12 Grk “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
13 Grk “that his”; the discourse switches from indirect to direct with the following verbs. For consistency the entire quotation is treated as second person direct discourse in the translation.
14 Or “will be strangers,” that is, one who lives as a noncitizen of a foreign country.
15 A quotation from Gen 15:13. Exod 12:40 specifies the sojourn as 430 years.
16 κρίνω 5.b.α states, “Oft. the emphasis is unmistakably laid upon that which follows the Divine Judge’s verdict, upon the condemnation or punishment: condemn, punish … Ac 7:7 (Gen 15:14).”
17 The words “of there” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. A quotation from Gen 15:14.
18 Or “and serve,” but with religious/cultic overtones ( λατρεύω).
19 An allusion to Exod 3:12.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child. And God spoke to this effect—that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years. ‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’

NIVNew International Version (2011)

He gave him no inheritance here, not even enough ground to set his foot on. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. God spoke to him in this way: ‘For four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’

CSBChristian Standard Bible

He didn’t give him an inheritance in it—not even a foot of ground—but he promised to give it to him as a possession, and to his descendants after him, even though he was childless. God spoke in this way: His descendants would be strangers in a foreign country, and they would enslave and oppress them for four hundred years. I will judge the nation that they will serve as slaves, God said. After this, they will come out and worship me in this place.

NLTNew Living Translation

“But God gave him no inheritance here, not even one square foot of land. God did promise, however, that eventually the whole land would belong to Abraham and his descendants—even though he had no children yet. God also told him that his descendants would live in a foreign land, where they would be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. ‘But I will punish the nation that enslaves them,’ God said, ‘and in the end they will come out and worship me here in this place.’

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And he did not give him an inheritance in it—not even a footstep—and he promised to give it to him for his possession, and to his descendants after him, although he did not have a child. But God spoke like this: ‘His descendants will be foreigners in a foreign land, and they will enslave them and mistreat them four hundred years, and the nation that they will serve as slaves, I will judge,’ God said, ‘and after these things they will come out and will worship me in this place.’

KJV 1900King James Version

And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child. And God spake on this wise, That his seed should sojourn in a strange land; and that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them evil four hundred years. And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

Public Domain