Exodus: A Group StudySample

What is this passage saying?

As Abram struggles with trusting God’s promises for an heir, God reiterates that Abram will have descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. God performs a “cutting the covenant” ceremony, telling Abram of his descendants’ future and reassuring him that He will keep His covenant promises.

What is this passage teaching?

In the Ancient Near East, a “cutting the covenant” ceremony was often used to seal or confirm a covenant relationship. Two parties would gather, cut a series of animals in half, and then walk through the pathway between the two pieces. By walking through the “blood path,” each party was declaring that if they failed to keep the terms of the covenant, they deserved the same end as the sacrificed animals. However, in this covenant ceremony, God alone walked through the blood path (Genesis 15:17). God was declaring that only He was responsible for keeping the covenant promises He made.

How do I respond?

Despite the dark days of enslavement and affliction to come (Genesis 15:13), God alone walked through the blood path, declaring His faithfulness to fulfill every covenant promise. Abram’s doubt in the promises of God would only worsen with the news that his descendants would be afflicted for four hundred years. God met Abram’s doubt with a complete assurance that He would accomplish every promise. Like many things in the Scriptures, this scene of grace and faithfulness is a shadow of something far greater. In this passage, we are reminded that Jesus Christ also walked through a blood path to seal a new and greater covenant than the one with Abram. Through His sacrificial death, Jesus paid the price of our sinful rebellion and delivered us from sin, death, and hell. Through his resurrection, Jesus secured every promise of God, guaranteeing abundant and eternal life for all those who follow Him. No matter the doubt in your heart or the darkness of your days, Jesus has walked through the blood path on your behalf, securing every promise of God towards you.