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Genesis 21:30

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 21:30 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And he said, These seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that it may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And he said, These seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that it may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
Genesis 21:30 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 21

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
27And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech. And they two made a covenant.
28And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
30And he said, These seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that it may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
31Wherefore he called that place Beer-sheba. Because there they sware both of them.
32So they made a covenant at Beer-sheba. And Abimelech rose up, and Phicol the captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
33And [Abraham] planted a tamarisk tree in Beer-sheba, and called there on the name of Jehovah, the Everlasting God.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And he said, etc.] That is, Abraham replied to Abimelech: for these seven ewe lambs shall thou take of my hand; as a present from him, to be retained as his own: that they may be a witness to me that I have digged this well: these were to be a testimony that the well that had been taken away from Abraham was one that he had dug, and was his property, and which Abimelech acknowledged by his acceptance of these seven lambs; and very probably Abraham received a note from the hand of Abimelech, owning his reception of the seven lambs, and his title to the well, which these were a witness of.”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification