Abraham Covenant

 Covenant With Abram

Genesis 15

9 So 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.”

10 Abram 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. 11 Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.

12 As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 

13 Then 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 mistreated there. 

14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 1

What is the Reward God's promises in v1 ?

Genesis 15 is a foundation chapter in the Bible. God's promise to Abram through Covenant. ( blood sealed contract ).

• God's Reassurance : v1 Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very reward shall be great.  ( May be Abram was anxious over being childless or fear of retaliation from the kings he had recently defeated, )

  • God Himself as the Reward ( v1 ). His presence and relationship.

  • God blessed Abram promised him a son from is his own flesh and blood.

  • God's promise of innumerable descendants or offspring. 

  • God Credited Abram as "Righteousness".

  • God's fulfillment of  Promise Land. 

God's Covenant

The "cut in two" refers to an ancient Near Eastern ritual for "cutting a covenant"(Hebrew: karat berit). 

In this ceremony, a sacrificial animal was split down the middle, and the parties making the agreement walked between the pieces. This was an ancient oath, essentially saying: "May I be cut in pieces like this animal if I break my word". 

Jeremiah 34: 8-20

• (v. 8–11): King Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem pledged to release Hebrew slaves, a promise they initially kept but quickly reneged on by forcing them back into servitude.

• (v. 15–16): God condemns this reversal, noting that after a brief, righteous repentance, the people "profaned" His name by re-enslaving those they had just freed

• (v. 18-20)  18 Those who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between its pieces. 19 The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf, 20 I will deliver into the hands of their enemies who want to kill them. 

Because they broke this vow once the Babylonian threat seemed to pass, V 20 concludes that God would literally fulfill the curse they had called upon themselves.

By walking between the "pieces of the calf," the leaders were performing a self-maledictory oath. They were symbolically saying: "If I do not keep this promise to free my slaves, let me be cut in two just like this animal"

Bible confirms that Nebuchadnezzar returned, captured Jerusalem, and burned it to the ground.

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Genesis 15:9–12

God tells Abraham to bring a heifer, a goat, a ram, a dove, and a pigeon. Abraham cuts the larger animals in two and arranges the halves opposite each other, creating a path in the middle—exactly like the ritual in Jeremiah.

The Difference:

In Jeremiah 34, the leaders ( Judah and Jerusalem, The Priests and All the People ), walked between the pieces to vow they would free their slaves. 

But in Abraham’s vision:

• Abraham is asleep: A "deep sleep" falls over him (v. 12). He does not walk through the pieces.

• God passes through: In the form of a smoking firepot and a blazing torch, God alone passes between the pieces (v. 17).

Because only God passed through the pieces while Abram slept, HE was taking the entire burden of the covenant on Himself. He was effectively saying, "Even if dedscendants of Abraham break this deal, I will pay the price".

New Covenant: Jesus Takes the Curse

The Old Covenant required repeated, daily sacrifices of animals as a reminder of the people’s sin. 

But, as Scripture says, “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4).

Jesus took the penalty for broken covenants upon himself, acting as the sacrifice.

Jesus Sacrifice:

1 Peter 2:24: He "bore our sins in his body on the tree"

2 Corinthians 5:21: God made him who had no sin "to be sin for us" 

Galatians 3:13: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by "becoming a curse for us"

The New Covenant in Blood:

Jesus, as God in the flesh, was "cut off" (crucified) to pay the penalty for humanity's broken covenants, fulfilling the promise God made to Abram.

The New Covenant was Sealed in Blood by the Lamb of God. (Not of a calf or or any other animals )

Jesus came to establish a “better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22), a “new covenant” that Jesus said was in His blood. 

Jesus shed His blood on the cross to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29) and ratify the new covenant between God and man.

Jesus took the cup and said to His disciples, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:27–28).

Luke 22:20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood"

Hebrews 9:15 15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

Hebrews 9:22 22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Fulfilling the Promise:

Through his death, Jesus provides the blessings promised to Abraham for all people.

Galatians 3:14 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

Colossians 1:20: ... by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Just as God passed through the animal pieces in Genesis 15 while Abraham slept (showing God alone would guarantee the promise), Jesus' death is a unilateral act. ( A one-sided, voluntary act, without requiring the agreement or prior consent of another.)

He takes the "curse" of the broken covenant upon Himself to secure the blessing for his people.

By identifying this cup with His blood, Jesus claimed to be the true Passover Lamb whose sacrifice provides permanent rescue from sin.