Genesis 21:1-8·~1 min

The Birth of Isaac

The Lord keeps His word to Sarah, and Isaac is born at the promised time. Abraham names him, circumcises him, and the chapter marks the child's birth against Abraham's old age.

N¹ow the LORD attended to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised. ²So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised. ³And Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore to him. ⁴When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him. ⁵Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

Sarah receives Isaac's birth with astonished joy and speaks of laughter where barrenness once stood. As the child is weaned, Abraham marks the moment with a great feast.

⁶Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.” ⁷She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.” ⁸So the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned.

Section summaryThe Lord fulfills what He promised by giving Sarah a son at the appointed time, and Abraham receives Isaac with obedience and joy. Sarah names the wonder of his birth with laughter, and the section ends with a feast as the child grows.

Role in the chapterThis opening section resolves a long-held promise and sets Isaac in clear view as the child God has given. It anchors the whole chapter in fulfillment before the tensions that follow.