Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 16:15 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 15. 15And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son’s name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Hagar bears Abram a son, and Abram names him Ishmael. The birth and name fulfill the wilderness announcement, though the narrative does not explain how Abram learned the name or how Hagar's return unfolded.
Read It With
- Genesis 16:1–16
Read verses 10–11 and 15–16. The messenger promises offspring and commands the name; Hagar bears the son; Abram uses the instructed name; the age notice dates the fulfillment.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The scene returns from wilderness speech to household history as Hagar bears the promised son and Abram gives the instructed name.
Read Genesis 16:15–16 together
Why these verses belong together: Birth, naming, and Abram's age close the episode and date its fulfillment.
Verse 15. 15 And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son’s name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.
Verse 16. 16 And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Abram's use of the name does not prove that every household relationship was reconciled or that Sarai's oppression had ended.
What Remains True
God's hearing can be remembered through fulfilled words even when the story leaves painful relational questions unresolved.
How It Can Shape Life
- Acknowledge genuine signs of faithfulness without rewriting the surrounding coercion, silence, or unfinished consequences as though everything became healthy.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 16:1–16 — Hagar Flees and Encounters the God Who SeesSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
Where care is needed
The text does not tell how Abram received the naming instruction or describe the household conversation after Hagar returned.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed wording, narrative sequence, names, promises, birth, chronology, and canonical connections.
Exact location: Genesis 16:1–16 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 12:10–20; 15; 17; 21; 25; Exodus 1–3; and Galatians 4:21–31
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Enslaved-woman terminology, built-up wordplay, wife status, light-in-eyes idiom, oppression and submission verbs, messenger language, Ishmael, verse 12, El Roi, and well name.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 16:1–16
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Household-building idiom, wife and servant terminology, contempt, accusation, oppression, Shur, messenger, submission, Ishmael, verse 12 alternatives, El Roi, and Beer-lahai-roi.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 16 and translator notes 1–33
Open NET Genesis 16 ↗