Genesis 15:1-19

Afterwards, the word of YAHWEH came to Abram in a vision and said, “Abram, don’t yield to fear, for I am your Faithful Shield and your Abundant Reward.” But Abram replied, “Lord YAHWEH, what good is your reward if I remain childless? I’m about to die without a son, and my servant, Eliezer of Damascus, will inherit all my wealth. A servant in my household will end up with everything because you have not given me any children.” Immediately, the word of YAHWEH came to him: “No! Eliezer will not be your heir. I will give you a son from your own body to be your heir.” Then YAHWEH brought him outside his tent and said, “Gaze into the night sky. Go ahead and try to count the stars.” He continued, “Your seed will be as numerous as the stars!” And Abram trusted every word YAHWEH had spoken! And because of his faith, YAHWEH credited it to him as righteousness. Then he said to him, “I am YAHWEH, who brought you out of the Babylonian city of Ur, to give you all this land to possess.” But Abram said, “Lord YAHWEH, how can I be sure that I can possess this land for myself?” YAHWEH said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a female goat, and a ram, each three years old, also a turtledove and a young pigeon.” So, Abram brought the animals to him and killed them. He cut them in two (except the birds) and laid each half opposite the other in two rows. Vultures swooped down upon the carcasses, but Abram stood there and drove the vultures away. As the heavy veil of night fell, Abram went into a deep state of sleep, and suddenly a great dreadful darkness surrounded him and he was filled with fear. Then YAHWEH said to Abram, “Know this: your descendants will live as strangers in a foreign country. They will be enslaved and mistreated for four hundred years. Afterward I will punish that nation for enslaving them, and your descendants will come out of slavery with untold wealth. You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and live a full life. And after the fourth generation, your descendants will return here; for then the sin of the Amorites will be ripe for judgment.” When the sun had set, and it was very dark, there suddenly appeared a smoking firepot and a blazing torch that passed between the split carcasses. On that day, YAHWEH entered into covenant with Abram: “I have given this land to your descendants, from the Egyptian border to the great river Euphrates, the entire land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites