1After these things hath the word of Jehovah been unto Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Fear not, Abram, I [am] a shield to thee, thy reward [is] exceeding great.’

2And Abram saith, ‘Lord Jehovah, what dost Thou give to me, and I am going childless? and an acquired son in my house is Demmesek Eliezer.’

3And Abram saith, ‘Lo, to me Thou hast not given seed, and lo, a domestic doth heir me.’

4And lo, the word of Jehovah [is] unto him, saying, ‘This [one] doth not heir thee; but he who cometh out from thy bowels, he doth heir thee;’

5and He bringeth him out without, and saith, ‘Look attentively, I pray thee, towards the heavens, and count the stars, if thou art able to count them;’ and He saith to him, ‘Thus is thy seed.’

6And he hath believed in Jehovah, and He reckoneth it to him — righteousness.

7And He saith unto him, ‘I [am] Jehovah who brought thee out from Ur of the Chaldees, to give to thee this land to possess it;’

8and he saith, ‘Lord Jehovah, whereby do I know that I possess it?’

9And He saith unto him, ‘Take for Me a heifer of three years, and a she-goat of three years, and a ram of three years, and a turtle-dove, and a young bird;’

10and he taketh to him all these, and separateth them in the midst, and putteth each piece over against its fellow, but the bird he hath not divided;

11and the ravenous birds come down upon the carcases, and Abram causeth them to turn back.

12And the sun is about to go in, and deep sleep hath fallen upon Abram, and lo, a terror of great darkness is falling upon him;

13and He saith to Abram, ‘knowing — know that thy seed is a sojourner in a land not theirs, and they have served them, and they have afflicted them four hundred years,

14and the nation also whom they serve I judge, and after this they go out with great substance;

15and thou — thou comest in unto thy fathers in peace; thou art buried in a good old age;

16and the fourth generation doth turn back hither, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.’

17And it cometh to pass — the sun hath gone in, and thick darkness hath been — and lo, a furnace of smoke, and a lamp of fire, which hath passed over between those pieces.

18In that day hath Jehovah made with Abram a covenant, saying, ‘To thy seed I have given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Phrat,

19with the Kenite, and the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite,

20and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Rephaim,

21and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Girgashite, and the Jebusite.’

maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society

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Genesis 15

God Makes a Covenant With Abram

1Some time later, Abram had a vision. The Lord said to him,

“Abram, do not be afraid.

I am like a shield to you.

I am your very great reward.”

2But Abram said, “Lord and King, what can you give me? I still don’t have any children. My servant Eliezer comes from Damascus. When I die, he will get everything I own.” 3Abram continued, “You haven’t given me any children. So this servant of mine will get everything I own.”

4Then a message from the Lord came to Abram. The Lord said, “When you die, what you have will not go to this man. You will have a son of your own. He will get everything you have.” 5The Lord took Abram outside and said, “Look up at the sky. Count the stars, if you can.” Then he said to him, “That’s how many children will be born into your family.”

6Abram believed the Lord. The Lord was pleased with Abram because he believed. So Abram’s faith made him right with the Lord.

7He also said to Abram, “I am the Lord. I brought you out of Ur in the land of Babylon. I will give you this land to have as your very own.”

8But Abram said, “Lord and King, how can I know I will have this land as my own?”

9So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a young cow, a goat and a ram. Each must be three years old. Bring a dove and a young pigeon along with them.”

10Abram brought all of them to the Lord. Abram cut them in two and placed the halves opposite each other. But he didn’t cut the birds in half. 11Then large birds came down to eat the dead bodies of the animals and birds. But Abram chased the large birds away.

12As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep. A thick and scary darkness covered him. 13Then the Lord said to him, “You can be sure of what I am about to tell you. For 400 years, your family who comes after you will be strangers in another country. They will become slaves there and will be treated badly. 14But I will punish the nation that makes them slaves. After that, they will leave with many possessions. 15But you will die in peace. You will join the members of your family who have already died. And you will be buried when you are very old. 16Your children’s grandchildren will come back here. That’s because the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached the point where I must punish them.”

17The sun set and it became dark. Then a burning torch and a pot filled with smoking coals appeared. They passed between the pieces of the animals that had been cut in two. 18On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram. He said, “I am giving this land to your family who comes after you. It reaches from the River of Egypt to the great Euphrates River. 19It includes the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20Hittites, Perizzites and Rephaites. 21The Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites also live there.”

Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®

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Genesis 15

Genesis 15