Genesis 15:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

NIV: Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.

NASB: And birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

CSB: Birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.

NLT: Some vultures swooped down to eat the carcasses, but Abram chased them away.

KJV: And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.

NKJV: And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

In response to Abram's question about how he would know that he and his offspring would possess the land, as God had promised, the Lord told Abram to bring five specific animals before Him. Abram did so and then proceeded to cut the heifer, goat, and ram (all three years old) in half and to lay each half opposite the other. He did not cut the turtledove or pigeon in half. Some scholars believe the symbolism of this ritual was meant to highlight the promise made, as if saying "may I be so destroyed if I break my part of this covenant." Others see it as an expression of unity: passing "inside" the sacrificial animals.

However, something dreadful happens that threatened to derail this covenant ritual between God and Abram. Each of the five animals chosen for the ritual were "clean" animals that would be appropriate, especially under the Law, to use as a sacrifice before God. But before the ritual is ended, a group of unclean birds of prey descend upon the remains of the animals. Abram is forced to drive them away. This seems to be an omen of the coming 400-year affliction of Abram's descendants described by the Lord's prophecy in the following verses.

Genesis 15:1–21 falls between Abram's heroic rescue of Lot in Genesis 14 and his less-than-heroic choice to have a child with his wife's servant in chapter 16. Chapter 15 features Abram's hard questions to the Lord about how the lofty promises of uncountable descendants and possession of the land will be kept. God responds, in part, by formalizing His covenant promises to Abram with an elaborate ritual. He also reveals to Abram details about the difficult circumstances his descendants will face before they come back to take possession of the land ''in the fourth generation.''

Genesis 15 consists entirely of a long encounter between the Lord and Abram. When the ''word of the Lord'' comes to Abram in a vision to bring reassurance of God's support for him, Abram takes the opportunity to press God with questions. Abram asks both about his childlessness and how he can know he will one day possess the land of Canaan. God responds, and Abram believes. God's response includes leading Abram through a covenant ritual involving slaughtered animals, as well as a prophecy about the future of Abram's descendants before the time will come to occupy the Promised Land.

Where Genesis 14 was an action-packed story of war and rescue, Genesis 15 consists of a single conversational encounter between the Lord and Abram. This concludes with the formalizing of God's covenant promises to Abram in a dramatic covenant ritual. Abram respectfully asks the Lord some hard questions about how the seemingly impossible promises might be kept. God responds and Abram believes. In addition, God reveals to Abram a prophecy about the difficult future his descendants will face as servants in another country before returning to take possession of the land of Canaan.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.