1After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” (Ge 26:24; Ps 3:3; Ps 18:2; Ps 84:11; Ps 119:114; Da 10:12; Lu 1:13; Lu 1:30)2But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue[1] childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”3And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” (Ge 14:14)4And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son[2] shall be your heir.” (Ge 17:16)5And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” (Ge 22:17; Ge 26:4; Ex 32:13; De 1:10; De 10:22; 1Ch 27:23; Ps 147:4; Ro 4:18; Heb 11:12)6And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. (Ps 106:31; Ro 4:3; Ro 4:9; Ro 4:22; Ga 3:6; Jas 2:23)7And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” (Ge 11:31; Ge 12:1; Ne 9:7; Ps 105:42; Ps 105:44; Ac 7:2)8But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” (Jud 6:17; 2Ki 20:8; Ps 86:17; Isa 7:11; Lu 1:18)9He 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.”10And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. (Le 1:17; Jer 34:18)11And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.12As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. (Ge 2:21)13Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. (Ex 1:11; Ex 3:7; Ex 12:40; Ac 7:6; Ga 3:17)14But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. (Ex 6:6; Ex 12:36; Ps 105:37)15As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. (Ge 25:8)16And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.” (1Ki 21:26; Da 8:23; Am 2:9; Mt 23:32; 1Th 2:16)17When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.18On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give[3] this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, (Ge 12:7; Ge 13:15; Ge 24:7; Ge 26:4; Ex 23:31; Nu 34:2; De 1:7; De 34:4; Jos 1:4; Ne 9:8)19the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,20the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,21the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
Genesis 15
New International Version
The Lord’s covenant with Abram
1After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield,[1] your very great reward.[2]’2But Abram said, ‘Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit[3] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?’3And Abram said, ‘You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.’4Then the word of the Lord came to him: ‘This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.’5He took him outside and said, ‘Look up at the sky and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring[4] be.’6Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.7He also said to him, ‘I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.’8But Abram said, ‘Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I shall gain possession of it?’9So the Lord said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.’10Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half.11Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.12As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.13Then the Lord said to him, ‘Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and ill-treated there.14But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterwards they will come out with great possessions.15You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age.16In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.’17When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking brazier with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.18On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, ‘To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi[5] of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates –19the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,20Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,21Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.’
Genesis 15
King James Version
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.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.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.
Genesis 15
New International Reader’s Version
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 frightening 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 River Euphrates.19It includes the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,20Hittites, Perizzites and Rephaites.21The Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites also live there.’