Genesis 15:1-10

God's Covenant with Abram

1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: ¹"Fear not, Abram, I am ²your shield; your reward shall be very great."

2 But Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue^[a] childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?"

3 And Abram said, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and ³a member of my household will be my heir."

4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: "This man shall not be your heir; ⁴your very own son^[b] shall be your heir."

5 And he brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and ⁵number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, ⁶"So shall your offspring be."

6 And ⁷he believed the LORD, and ⁸he counted it to him as righteousness.

7 And he said to him, "I am the LORD who ⁹brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans ¹⁰to give you this land to possess."

8 But he said, "O Lord GOD, ¹¹how am I to know that I shall possess it?"

9 He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."

10 And he brought him all these, ¹²cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But ¹³he did not cut the birds in half.

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Genesis 15:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 15

This chapter informs us of a gracious appearance of God to Abram, and of a kind promise made unto him, Ge 15:1; of Abram's request for an heir, Ge 15:2,3; of an answer to it, that he should have one, and even a numberless seed, Ge 15:4,5; which he gave credit to, Ge 15:6; upon which he has a fresh promise of the land of Canaan, Ge 15:7; of his inheriting of which he desires a sign, and this was given him, Ge 15:8-12; and at the same time it was predicted to him how long his posterity should be afflicted in a land not theirs, and afterwards come out with great substance, Ge 15:13-16; and the grant of the land of Canaan to his seed is renewed, Ge 15:17-21.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 13

1. Genesis 26:24; Daniel 10:12; Luke 1:13, 30
2. Psalms 3:3; Psalms 18:2; Psalms 84:11; Psalms 119:114
3. Genesis 14:14
4. Genesis 17:16
5. Psalms 147:4
6. Genesis 22:17; Genesis 26:4; Exodus 32:13; Deuteronomy 1:10; Deuteronomy 10:22; 1 Chronicles 27:23; Hebrews 11:12; Cited Romans 4:18
7. Romans 4:9, 22; Galatians 3:6; James 2:23
8. Cited Romans 4:3; [Psalms 106:31]
9. Genesis 11:31; Genesis 12:1; Nehemiah 9:7, 8; Acts 7:2-4
10. Psalms 105:42, 44
11. [Judges 6:17; 2 Kings 20:8; Psalms 86:17; Isaiah 7:11-13; Luke 1:18]
12. Jeremiah 34:18, 19
13. Leviticus 1:17

Footnotes 2

[a]. Or I shall die
[b]. Hebrew what will come out of your own loins

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.