Genesis 12:10 (GNV)

Passage

Then there came a famine in the land: therefore Abram went downe into Egypt to soiourne there: for there was a great famine in the lande.

Nearby Context

Genesis 12:8 Afterward remouing thence vnto a moutaine Eastward from Beth-el, he pitched his tent hauing Beth-el on the Westside, and Haai on the East: and there he built an altar vnto the Lord, and called on the Name of the Lord.

Genesis 12:9 Againe Abram went forth going and iourneying toward the South.

Genesis 12:10 Then there came a famine in the land: therefore Abram went downe into Egypt to soiourne there: for there was a great famine in the lande.

Genesis 12:11 And when he drewe neere to enter into Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, Beholde nowe, I know that thou art a faire woman to looke vpon:

Genesis 12:12 Therefore it will come to passe, that when the Egyptians see thee, they will say, She is his wife: so will they kill me, but they will keepe thee aliue.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "came", "famine", "land", "therefore", "abram", "went", "downe", and "egypt". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "came" and "famine", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "Againe Abram went forth going and iourneying..." into verse 11's "And when he drewe neere to enter...", so "came" and "famine" belong inside that flow. In Genesis context, the local focus is creation, human rebellion, covenant promise, and God's providence.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "came" and "famine" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.