Genesis 16:10

10 And the angel of Yahweh said to her, "{I will greatly multiply} your offspring, so that they cannot be counted for [their] abundance."

Genesis 16:10 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 16:10

And the angel of the Lord said unto her
The same as before, who, by what follows, appears to be Jehovah himself:

I will multiply thy seed exceedingly;
not that she should have many children herself, for that she had more than this one she now went with, is not certain; but that that seed she had conceived should be exceedingly multiplied, and he should have a numerous posterity, as he had twelve princes sprung from him, the heads of Arab nations:

that it shall not be numbered for multitude;
such the Turks are at this day, supposed to be the seed of Ishmael, Hagar's son.

Genesis 16:10 In-Context

8 And he said to Hagar, the servant of Sarai, "{From where} have you come, and where are you going?" And she said, "I am fleeing from the presence of Sarai my mistress."

9 Then the angel of Yahweh said to her, "Return to your mistress and submit yourself under {her authority}."

10 And the angel of Yahweh said to her, "{I will greatly multiply} your offspring, so that they cannot be counted for [their] abundance."

11 And the angel of Yahweh said to her: "Behold, you are pregnant and shall have a son. And you shall call his name Ishmael, for Yahweh has listened to your suffering.

12 And he shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand [will be] against everyone, and the hand of everyone [will be] against him, and he will live {in hostility with all his brothers}."

Footnotes

• [a] Literally "multiplying I will multiply"