Infertility

Infertility, called barrenness, is the inability to conceive children; Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah and Elisabeth were barren until God opened the womb, and He makes the barren woman to keep house and to be a joyful mother of children. Modern fertility treatments such as IVF are not named in the Bible.

Barren women

• Genesis 11:30
  But Sarai was barren; she had no child.But Sarai was barren; she had no children.
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• Genesis 25:21
  And Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.Later, Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. And the LORD heard his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived.
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• Genesis 30:1-2
  ¹And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob. ²And Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God’s stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld children from you?”
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• Judges 13:2-3
  ²And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not.Now there was a man from Zorah named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, whose wife was barren and had no children. ³And the angel of the Lord appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.The angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “It is true that you are barren and have no children; but you will conceive and give birth to a son.
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• Luke 1:7
  And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well along in years.
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Grief and prayer

• 1 Samuel 1:10-11
  ¹⁰And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore.In her bitter distress, Hannah prayed to the LORD and wept with many tears. ¹¹And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.And she made a vow, pleading, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever come over his head.”
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• 1 Samuel 1:15-16
  ¹⁵And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.“No, my lord,” Hannah replied. “I am a woman oppressed in spirit. I have not had any wine or strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the LORD. ¹⁶Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; for all this time I have been praying out of the depth of my anguish and grief.”
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• Genesis 15:2-3
  ²And Abram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?But Abram replied, “O Lord GOD, what can You give me, since I remain childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.Abram continued, “Behold, You have given me no offspring, so a servant in my household will be my heir.”
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• Proverbs 30:15-16
  ¹⁵The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:The leech has two daughters: Give and Give. There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’: ¹⁶The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.Sheol, the barren womb, land never satisfied with water, and fire that never says, ‘Enough!’
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God opens the womb

• Genesis 21:1-2
  ¹And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken.Now the LORD attended to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised. ²For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised.
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• Genesis 30:22-23
  ²²And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb, ²³And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach:and she conceived and gave birth to a son. “God has taken away my shame,” she said.
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• 1 Samuel 1:19-20
  ¹⁹And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the Lord remembered her.The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to bow in worship before the LORD, and then returned home to Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her. ²⁰Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the Lord.So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the LORD.”
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• Luke 1:24-25
  ²⁴And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,After these days, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. She declared, ²⁵Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.“The Lord has done this for me. In these days He has shown me favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”
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The joyful mother

• Psalm 113:9
  He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD.He settles the barren woman in her home as a joyful mother to her children. Hallelujah!
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• 1 Samuel 2:5
  They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble.The well-fed hire themselves out for food, but the starving hunger no more. The barren woman gives birth to seven, but she who has many sons pines away.
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• Isaiah 54:1
  Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.“Shout for joy, O barren woman, who bears no children; break forth in song and cry aloud, you who have never travailed; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband,” says the LORD.
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Hope beyond children

• Isaiah 56:4-5
  ⁴For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;For this is what the LORD says: “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths, who choose what pleases Me and hold fast to My covenant— ⁵Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.I will give them, in My house and within My walls, a memorial and a name better than that of sons and daughters. I will give them an everlasting name that will not be cut off.
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• Romans 4:19-21
  ¹⁹And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb:Without weakening in his faith, he acknowledged the decrepitness of his body (since he was about a hundred years old) and the lifelessness of Sarah’s womb. ²⁰He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;Yet he did not waver through disbelief in the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.being fully persuaded that God was able to do what He had promised.
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• Hebrews 11:11
  Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.By faith Sarah, even though she was barren and beyond the proper age, was enabled to conceive a child, because she considered Him faithful who had promised.
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See also

• Sarah
• Children
• Mothers
• Prayer
• Pregnancy and babies

Notes

1. Verses are quoted in the translation chosen in the Translation menu at the top of the page. See Translations for sources and copyright notices.
2. Each reference links to the full chapter so the verse can be read in context.