Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on Genesis 17:5
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
Neither shall thy name be any more called Abram, etc.] Which signifies an “high father”, which name he bore for many years before he was the father of anyone: but thy name shall be Abraham: with all addition of the letter h inserted into it, and makes the last syllable two, “raham”: which word in the Arabic language, as Hottinger f1062 observes, signifies “numerous” f1063; so that with this addition his name Abraham may be interpreted, the father of a numerous offspring; and with this agrees the reason of it, as follows: for a father of many nations have I made thee; not that he was so already in fact, but in the purpose and promise of God, ( <450417>Romans 4:17); Abraham has not only been the father of many nations, in a literal sense, as before observed, but in a mystical sense, of the whole world; that is, of all in it that believe, whether Jews or Gentiles; and so the Rabbins f1064 interpret it: at first, they say, he was the father of Aram, and therefore his name was called Abram, but now he is the father of the whole world, and therefore called Abraham; and so Maimonides f1065 himself says, quoting this passage, “behold he is the father of the whole world, who are gathered under the wings of the Shechinah.”
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