Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 16:5 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 5. 5And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Sarai blames Abram for the conflict and appeals to the LORD to judge between them. Her words show that the arrangement has fractured the household, but the exact scope of 'my wrong' is disputed.
Read It With
- Genesis 16:1–16
Read verses 2–6. Sarai proposed the plan and Abram accepted it; Hagar conceived; Sarai felt dishonored; Abram returned authority to Sarai; and oppression followed. Reading only verse 5 could hide their shared participation and the consequence for Hagar.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Hagar's changed regard prompts Sarai to accuse Abram and invoke divine judgment, shifting the conflict from unspoken tension to direct blame.
Read Genesis 16:4–6 together
Why these verses belong together: Pregnancy, lowered regard, accusation, transferred authority, oppression, and flight form the household conflict's escalation.
Verse 4. 4 And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
Verse 5. 5 And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.
Verse 6. 6 But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Sarai's appeal does not record the LORD endorsing her accusation or her later oppression of Hagar.
What Remains True
Shared wrongdoing is not resolved by shifting all responsibility to one participant or to the person with least power.
How It Can Shape Life
- When a plan harms relationships, name your own participation before using accusation, religious language, or authority to protect yourself from accountability.
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? probable
Where care is needed
The referent and tone of 'my wrong' and the exact content of Sarai's accusation remain debated.
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 ↗