Genesis 15
15
God’s Agreement With Abram
1After all these things happened, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision. God said, “Abram, don’t be afraid. I will defend you and give you a great reward.”
2But Abram said, “Lord GOD, there is nothing you can give me that will make me happy, because I have no son. My slave Eliezer from Damascus will get everything I own after I die.” 3Abram said, “You have given me no son, so a slave born in my house will get everything I have.”
4Then the Lord spoke to Abram and said, “That slave will not be the one to get what you have. You will have a son who will get everything you own.”
5Then God led Abram outside and said, “Look at the sky. See the many stars. There are so many you cannot count them. Your family will be like that.”
6Abram believed the Lord, and because of this faith the Lord accepted him as one who has done what is right. 7He said to Abram, “I am the Lord who led you from Ur of Babylonia.#15:7 Ur of Babylonia Literally, “Ur of the Chaldeans.” A city in southern Babylonia. I did this so that I could give you this land. You will own this land.”
8But Abram said, “Lord GOD, how can I be sure that I will get this land?”
9God said to Abram, “We will make an agreement. Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old ram, a dove, and a young pigeon.”
10Abram brought all these to God. Abram killed these animals and cut each of them into two pieces. Then he laid each half across from the other half. He did not cut the birds into two pieces. 11Later, large birds flew down to eat the animals, but Abram chased them away.
12The sun began to go down and Abram got very sleepy. While he was asleep, a very terrible darkness came over him. 13Then the Lord said to Abram, “You should know this: Your descendants will live in a country that is not their own. They will be strangers there. The people there will make them slaves and be cruel to them for 400 years. 14But then I will punish the nation that made them slaves. Your people will leave that land, and they will take many good things with them.
15“You yourself will live to be very old. You will die in peace and will be buried with your family. 16After four generations your people will come to this land again and defeat the Amorites. That will happen in the future because the Amorites are not yet guilty enough to lose their land.”
17After the sun went down, it got very dark. The dead animals were still on the ground, each animal cut into two pieces. Then a smoking firepot#15:17 firepot A clay pot in which burning coals were placed to be used for starting new fires. and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the dead animals.#15:17 passed between … animals This showed that God “signed” or “sealed” the agreement he made with Abram. People showed that they were sincere in making an agreement by walking between the parts of animals that had been cut into pieces and saying something like, “May this same thing happen to me if I don’t keep the agreement.”
18So on that day the Lord made a promise and an agreement with Abram. He said, “I will give this land to your descendants. I will give them the land between the River of Egypt#15:18 River of Egypt That is, the stream called “Wadi El-Arish.” and the great river Euphrates. 19This is the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.”
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Genesis 15
15
Yahweh’s Covenant with Abram
1After these things the word of Yahweh came#Literally “was” to Abram in a vision, saying: “Do not be afraid, Abram; I am your shield, and your reward shall be very great.” 2Then#Or “And” Abram said, “O Yahweh, my Lord, what will you give me? I continue to be#Literally “I am going” childless, and my heir#Literally “the son of the inheritance of my house” is Eliezer of Damascus.” 3And Abram said, “Look, you have not given me a descendant, and here, a member of my household#Literally “a son of my house” is my heir.”#Literally “inheriting me” 4And behold, the word of Yahweh came to him saying, “This person will not be your heir,#Literally “inherit you” but your own son will be your heir.”#Literally “he who goes out from your body, he will inherit you” 5And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward the heavens and count the stars if you are able to count them.” And he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6And he believed in Yahweh, and he reckoned it to him as righteousness. 7And he said to him, “I am Yahweh, who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give this land to you, to possess it.” 8And he said, “O Yahweh God, how shall I know that I will possess it?” 9And he said to him, “Take for me a three-year-old heifer, and a three-year-old female goat, and a three-year-old ram, and a turtledove and a young pigeon.” 10And he took for him all these and cut them in pieces down the middle. And he put each piece opposite the other,#Literally “its companion” but the birds he did not cut. 11And the birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. 12And it happened that, as the sun went down,#Literally “to go” then a deep sleep fell upon Abram and, behold, a great terrifying darkness fell upon him. 13And he said to Abram, “You must surely know#Literally “knowing you must know” that your descendants shall be as aliens in a land not their own.#Literally “not to them” And they shall serve them#Some nation hostile to Abram’s descendants (Egypt in later history) and they#Some nation hostile to Abram’s descendants (Egypt in later history) shall oppress them four hundred years. 14And also that the nation which they#That is, Abram’s descendants serve I will judge. Then#Or “And” afterward they shall go out with great possessions. 15And as for you, you shall go to your ancestors#Or “fathers” in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16And the fourth generation shall return here, for the guilt of the Amorites is not yet complete.”#Literally “is not complete up to now” 17And after the sun had gone down and it was dusk, behold, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between those half pieces. 18On that day Yahweh made#Literally “cut” a covenant with Abram saying, “To your offspring I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates river, 19the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
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