4And, hinei, the Devar Hashem came unto him saying, This shall not be thy yoresh; but he that shall come forth out of thine own body shall be thy yoresh.

5And He brought him forth outside, and said, Look now toward Shomayim, and count the kokhavim, if thou be able to number them; and He said unto him, So shall thy zera be.

6And he believed in Hashem; and He credited [emunah (faith)] to him as tzedakah (righteousness).

7And He said unto him, I am Hashem Who brought thee out of Ur Kasdim, to give thee ha'aretz hazot to be the yoresh of it.

8And he said, Adonoi Hashem, how can I have da'as that I will be its yoresh?

9And He said unto him, Bring Me a heifer meshuleshet, and a she goat meshuleshet, and a ram meshulash, and a dove, and a pigeon.

10And he brought unto Him all these, and divided them in two, and laid each half one opposite another; but the birds divided he not.

11And when the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, Avram drove them away.

12And when the shemesh was going down, a tardemah fell upon Avram; and, hinei, a horror of great darkness fell upon him.

13And Hashem said unto Avram, Know of a surety that thy zera shall be a ger in a land not their own, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them arba me'ot shanah;

14And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge; and afterward shall they come out with rechush gadol (great substance).

15And thou shalt go to thy avot in shalom; thou shalt be buried at a good old age.

16But in the fourth generation they shall come back here again; for the avon (iniquity) of the Emori (Amorite) is not yet full.

17And it came to pass, that, when the shemesh went down, and it was dark, hinei a smoking fire-pot, and a blazing torch passed between those pieces.

18On that day Hashem cut a brit (covenant) with Avram, saying, Unto thy zera have I given ha'aretz hazot, from the Wadi of Mitzrayim unto the great river, the river Euphrates:

19[the land of] the Keni, and the Kenizzi, and the Kadmoni,

20And the Chitti, and the Perizzi, and the Repha'im,

21And the Emori, and the Kena'ani, and the Girgashi, and the Yevusi.

THE ORTHODOX JEWISH BIBLE

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Genesis 15

God’s Covenant with Abram

(Romans 4:1–12; Hebrews 11:8–19)

1After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:

“Do not be afraid, Abram.

I am your shield,

your very great reward.”

2But Abram replied, “O Lord GOD, what can You give me, since I remain childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3Abram continued, “Behold, You have given me no offspring, so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

4Then the word of the Lord came to Abram, saying, “This one will not be your heir, but one who comes from your own body will be your heir.” 5And the Lord took him outside and said, “Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able.” Then He told him, “So shall your offspring be.”#15:5 Cited in Romans 4:18

6Abram believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.#15:6 Cited in Romans 4:3, Romans 4:22, Galatians 3:6, and James 2:23

7The Lord also told him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”

God Confirms His Promise

(Numbers 34:1–15; Romans 4:13–25)

8But Abram replied, “Lord GOD, how can I know that I will possess it?”

9And the Lord said to him, “Bring Me a heifer, a goat, and a ram, each three years old, along with a turtledove and a young pigeon.”

10So Abram brought all these to Him, split each of them down the middle, and laid the halves opposite each other. The birds, however, he did not cut in half. 11And the birds of prey descended on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. 12As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and suddenly great terror and darkness overwhelmed him.

13Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14But I will judge the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will depart with many possessions.#15:14 Cited in Acts 7:6–7 15You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age. 16In the fourth generation your descendants will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

17When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, behold, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch appeared and passed between the halves of the carcasses. 18On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates— 19the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.”

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Bereshis 15

Genesis 15