Genesis 15
1599 Geneva Bible
15 1 The Lord is Abram’s defense and reward. 6 He is justified by faith. 13 The servitude and deliverance out of Egypt is declared. 18 The land of Canaan is promised the fourth time.
1 After these things, the [a]word of the Lord came unto Abram in a (A)vision, saying, Fear not, Abram, I am thy buckler, and thine exceeding (B)great reward.
2 And Abram said, [b]O Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of mine house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
3 Again Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: wherefore lo, a servant of mine house shall be mine heir.
4 Then behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This man shall not be thine heir, but one that shall come out of thine own bowels, he shall be thine heir.
5 Moreover he brought him forth and said, (C)Look up now unto heaven, and tell the stars if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
6 And Abram (D)believed the Lord, and he counted that to him for righteousness.
7 Again he said unto him, I am the Lord, that brought thee out of (E)Ur, of the Chaldeans, to give thee this land to inherit it.
8 And he said, O Lord God, [c]Whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?
9 Then he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, a turtle dove also and a pigeon.
10 So he took all these unto him, and [d]divided them in the midst, and laid every piece one against another: but the birds divided he not.
11 Then fowls fell on the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.
12 And when the sun went down, there fell an heavy sleep unto Abram: and lo, [e]a very fearful darkness fell upon him.
13 Then he said to Abram, (F)Know for a surety, that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, (G)[f]four hundred years, and shall serve them: and they entreat them evil.
14 Notwithstanding, the nation whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
15 But thou shalt go unto thy fathers in peace, and shalt be buried in a good age.
16 And in the [g]fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the [h]wickedness of the Amorites is not yet full.
17 Also when the sun went down, there was a darkness: and behold, a smoking furnace, and a firebrand, which went between those pieces.
18 (H)In that same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land: (I)from the river of Egypt unto the great river [i]Euphrates.
19 Then Kenites, and the Kenezzites, and the Kadmonites,
20 And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims,
21 The Amorites also, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.
Footnotes
- Genesis 15:1 Or, the Lord spake to Abram.
- Genesis 15:2 His fear was not only lest he should not have children, but lest the promise of the blessed seed should not be accomplished in him.
- Genesis 15:8 This is a particular motion of God’s Spirit, which is not lawful for all to follow, in asking signs: but was permitted to some by a peculiar motion, as to Gideon and Hezekiah.
- Genesis 15:10 This was the old custom in making covenants, Jer. 34:18, to the which God added these conditions, that Abram’s posterity should be as torn in pieces, but after they should be coupled together: also that it should be assaulted, but yet delivered.
- Genesis 15:12 Hebrew, a fear of great darkness.
- Genesis 15:13 Counting from the birth of Isaac to their departure out of Egypt: Which declareth that God will suffer his to be afflicted in this world.
- Genesis 15:16 Or, after four hundred years.
- Genesis 15:16 Though God suffer the wicked for a time, yet his vengeance falleth upon them, when the measure of their wickedness is full.
- Genesis 15:18 Hebrew, Perath.
Genesis 15
Contemporary English Version
The Lord's Promise to Abram
15 Later the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision, “Abram, don't be afraid! I will protect you and reward you greatly.”
2 But Abram answered, “Lord All-Powerful, you have given me everything I could ask for, except children. And when I die, Eliezer of Damascus will get all I own.[a] 3 You have not given me any children, and this servant of mine will inherit everything.”
4 The Lord replied, “No, he won't! You will have a son of your own, and everything you have will be his.” 5 (A) Then the Lord took Abram outside and said, “Look at the sky and see if you can count the stars. That's how many descendants you will have.” 6 (B) Abram believed the Lord, so the Lord was pleased with him and accepted him.
The Lord Makes Another Promise to Abram
7 The Lord said to Abram, “I brought you here from Ur in Chaldea, and I gave you this land.”
8 Abram asked, “Lord God, how can I know the land will be mine?”
9 Then the Lord told him, “Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a dove, and a young pigeon.”
10 Abram obeyed the Lord. Then he cut[b] the animals in half and laid the two halves of each animal opposite each other on the ground. But he did not cut the doves and pigeons in half. 11 And when birds came down to eat the animals, Abram chased them away.
12 (C) As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and everything became dark and frightening. 13-15 (D) Then the Lord said:
Abram, you will live to an old age and die in peace.
But I solemnly promise that your descendants will live as foreigners in a land that doesn't belong to them. They will be forced into slavery and abused for 400 years. But I will terribly punish the nation that enslaves them, and they will leave with many possessions.
16 Four generations later,[c] your descendants will return here and take this land, because only then will the people who live here[d] be so sinful that they deserve to be punished.
17 Sometime after sunset, when it was very dark, a smoking cooking pot[e] and a flaming fire passed between the two halves of each animal. 18 (E) At that time the Lord made an agreement with Abram and told him:
I will give your descendants the land east of the Shihor River[f] on the border of Egypt as far as the Euphrates River. 19 They will possess the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaites, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.
Footnotes
- 15.2 And … own: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 15.10 cut: In Hebrew “cut” sounds something like “agreement.” What follows shows that the Lord is making an agreement with Abram.
- 15.16 Four generations later: This may refer to the “400 years” of verses 13-15.
- 15.16 people who live here: The Hebrew text has “Amorites,” a name sometimes used of the people who lived in Palestine before the Israelites.
- 15.17 smoking cooking pot: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. The smoke and fire represent the presence of the Lord.
- 15.18 Shihor River: See Joshua 13.2-7.
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