Genesis 48 · Verse 4

Genesis 48:4

And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
Genesis 48:4, King James Version

Genesis 48:4 in other translations

BSBand told me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you; I will make you a multitude of peoples, and will give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.’
WEBand said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful, and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples, and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’
ASVand said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a company of peoples, and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
YLTand saith unto me, Lo, I am making thee fruitful, and have multiplied thee, and given thee for an assembly of peoples, and given this land to thy seed after thee, a possession age-during.
DARBYand he said to me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a company of peoples; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
BBEAnd said to me, Truly, I will make you fertile and give you increase and will make of you a great family of nations: and I will give this land to your seed after you to be their heritage for ever.
WebsterAnd said to me, Behold I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee, for an everlasting possession.

What does Genesis 48:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 48:3-4

3-4. God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz--The object of Jacob, in thus reverting to the memorable vision at Beth-el [Ge 28:10-15]--one of the great landmarks in his history--was to point out the splendid promises in reserve for his posterity--to engage Joseph's interest and preserve his continued connection with the people of God, rather than with the Egyptians.

Read the full comment on Genesis 48:3-4 →

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 48:1-7

The death-beds of believers, with the prayers and counsels of dying persons, are suited to make serious impressions upon the young, the gay, and the prosperous: we shall do well to take children on such occasions, when it can be done properly. If the Lord please, it is very desirable to bear our dying testimony to his truth, to his faithfulness, and the pleasantness of his ways. And one would wish so to live, as to…

Read the full comment on Genesis 48:1-7 →

Genesis 48:4 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
אֵלַ֗י'e.Laito meH413
הִנְנִ֤יhi.Nihere IH2005
מַפְרְךָ֙maf.re.Kha[am] about to make fruitful youH6509
וְהִרְבִּיתִ֔ךָve.hir.bi.Ti.khaand I will multiply youH7235
וּנְתַתִּ֖יךָu.ne.ta.Ti.khaand I will make youH5414
לִקְהַ֣לlik.Hal<into> a company ofH6951
עַמִּ֑ים'a.MimpeoplesH5971
וְנָ֨תַתִּ֜יve.Na.ta.Tiand I will giveH5414
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הָאָ֧רֶץha.'A.retzthe landH776
הַזֹּ֛אתha.Zot<the> thisH2063
לְזַרְעֲךָ֥le.zar.'a.Khato offspring yourH2233
אַחֲרֶ֖יךָ'a.cha.Rei.khaafter youH310
אֲחֻזַּ֥ת'a.chu.Zata possession ofH272
עוֹלָֽם\׃o.LamperpetuityH5769

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 48:4

  • Genesis 17:8

    And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

  • Genesis 35:11

    And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;

  • Genesis 28:3

    And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;

  • Genesis 28:13-15

    And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

  • Amos 9:14-15

    And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.

  • Genesis 13:15-16

    For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.

  • Genesis 32:12

    And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.

  • Exodus 1:7

    And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.

  • Genesis 12:2

    And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

  • Genesis 46:3

    And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:

  • Genesis 47:27

    And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly.

  • Genesis 17:13

    He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Behold I.
12:2; 13:15,16; 22:17; 26:4; 28:3,13-15; 32:12; 35:11; 46:3; 47:27
Ex 1:7,11
will give.
De 32:8; Am 9:14,15
everlasting.
17:8,13

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Genesis 48:3

    And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,

  • Genesis 48:4

    And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.

  • Genesis 48:5

    And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.

Read all of Genesis 48

Genesis 48:4 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y díjome: He aquí, yo te haré crecer, y te multiplicaré, y te pondré por estirpe de pueblos: y daré esta tierra á tu simiente después de ti por heredad perpetua.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
et m’a dit: Voici, je te ferai fructifier et je te multiplierai, et je te ferai devenir une assemblée de peuples, et je donnerai ce pays à ta semence, après toi, en possession perpétuelle.
German
Elberfelder 1871
und sprach zu mir: Siehe, ich will dich fruchtbar machen und dich mehren und dich zu einem Haufen Völker machen, und ich will dieses Land deinem Samen nach dir zum ewigen Besitztum geben.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
et ait: Ego te augebo et multiplicabo, et faciam te in turbas populorum: daboque tibi terram hanc, et semini tuo post te in possessionem sempiternam.