²⁴ God heard their groaning and he remembered^(A) his covenant^(B) with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob.

¹⁶ and said, “I swear by myself,^(A) declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,^(B)

The Certainty of God’s Promise

¹³ When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself,^(A)

⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars^(A)—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring^[a] be.”^(B)

⁴ I will make your descendants^(A) as numerous as the stars in the sky^(B) and will give them all these lands,^(C) and through your offspring^[a] all nations on earth will be blessed,^[b](D)

⁷ The Lord appeared to Abram^(A) and said, “To your offspring^[a] I will give this land.^(B)”^(C) So he built an altar there to the Lord,^(D) who had appeared to him.