Genesis 15
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Genesis 15 returns to God's promise after the events of chapter 14. In a vision, the LORD addresses Abram's childlessness, compares his future descendants to the stars, and records Abram's trust as righteousness. The chapter then moves into a covenant scene involving animals, darkness, fire signs, and a promise of land.
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Genesis 15:1-6The Promise and the Stars
1After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. 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? 3And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. 4And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 5And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. 6And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
After chapter 14, the LORD speaks to Abram in a vision and tells him not to fear. Abram remains childless and names a household heir, but God says his heir will come from his own body. The child, mother, and timing are still unnamed.
God brings Abram outside and tells him to count the stars if he can: “So shall thy seed be.” Verse 6 records Abram's belief in the LORD and says it was reckoned to him as righteousness. The contrast moves from childlessness to a future multitude.
Genesis 15:7-11The Covenant Animals
7And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. 8And he said, LORD God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? 9And 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, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. 10And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not. 11And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.
Abram asks how he will know the land promise. God tells him to bring specific animals; Abram divides the larger animals, leaves the birds whole, and drives away the birds that come down. The passage does not explain every ritual detail.
Genesis 15:12-21Future Sojourn and Covenant
12And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him. 13And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; 14And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. 15And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. 16But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. 17And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. 18In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: 19The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, 20And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, 21And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.
During the deep sleep, God tells Abram that his descendants will be strangers in another land and afflicted for four hundred years. God will judge the nation they serve, and the descendants will return when Amorite iniquity is not yet full. Fire signs pass between the pieces, and the LORD makes a covenant about land and descendants.
Where this echoes in Scripture
The Promise and the Stars
- Romans 4:3-5, 23-25Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness... Jesus our Lord... was raised again for our justification.Paul quotes Genesis 15:6, contrasts wage and reckoning, and applies the discussion to faith in the God who raised Jesus.
- James 2:21-23Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?... Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.James cites the same verse while reflecting on Abraham's later obedience.
- Hebrews 11:11-12Therefore sprang there even of one... so many as the stars of the sky in multitude.Hebrews recalls the star-like multitude promised to Abraham and Sarah.
The Covenant Animals
- Jeremiah 34:18-19When they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof.A later biblical scene involving divided animals and an oath. It offers context without supplying every detail of Genesis 15.
- Genesis 12:1, 7Get thee out of thy country... Unto thy seed will I give this land.Genesis 15:7 recalls Abram's earlier call and land promise.
Future Sojourn and Covenant
- Acts 7:6-7His seed should sojourn in a strange land... they should bring them into bondage... four hundred years.Stephen repeats the future-sojourn language and the promise of departure.
- Exodus 12:35-36, 40-41They spoiled the Egyptians... the sojourning of the children of Israel... was four hundred and thirty years.Exodus connects the later departure and possessions with this promise while giving its own stated chronology.
- Hebrews 6:13-18When God made promise to Abraham... he sware by himself.Hebrews reflects on God's oath to Abraham without providing a detailed interpretation of Genesis 15's fire signs.