Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 21:8 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 8. 8And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Isaac grows, is weaned, and is celebrated at a great feast. The milestone completes the birth scene and creates the setting in which the household's unresolved inheritance conflict becomes visible.
Read It With
- Genesis 21:8–21
Read verses 8–10 with 21:1–7. Isaac's promised birth leads to growth and celebration; Sarah then sees Hagar's son and states an inheritance concern. Without what follows, the feast appears to be only an isolated family celebration.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Isaac's growth and weaning move the promised birth from infancy into the household stage where inheritance and belonging become urgent.
Read Genesis 21:8–10 together
Why these verses belong together: Isaac's feast supplies the setting, Sarah's ambiguous observation supplies the trigger, and her inheritance statement supplies the explicit rationale for expulsion.
Verse 8. 8 And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.
Verse 9. 9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.
Verse 10. 10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
What Remains True
Joyful milestones can expose unresolved questions of belonging, power, and responsibility that celebration alone cannot solve.
How It Can Shape Life
- Celebrate growth while also checking whether someone with less power is being displaced or treated as a threat.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 21:8–21 — Hagar and Ishmael Are Sent Away but PreservedSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
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, family relations, wilderness crisis, promises, growth, and canonical reception.
Exact location: Genesis 21:8–21 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 16; 17:18–21; 21:1–7, 22–34; 22; 25:9, 12–18; 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: Weaning, ambiguous conduct, enslavement, expulsion, inheritance, sonship, distress, hearing, age-flexible nouns, opened eyes, and bowman wording.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 21:8–21; lemmas and morphology for gamal, metsaheq, amah, garash, zera, qara, ra'a, shama, yeled, na'ar, paqach, and roveh qashshat
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Weaning context, metsaheq alternatives, Abraham's distress, Isaac's called seed, verse 14 syntax, cast language, bowshot, Hagar and boy voices, Ishmael wordplay, opened eyes, Paran, and Egyptian wife.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 21 and translator notes 15–39, especially notes on 21:8–20
Open NET Genesis 21 ↗