Notes on Genesis 15
Gen 15:1 After 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.
Truly there is no greater reward than having the presence of God Himself within
our innermost being. Before Christ, this was only possible for a few people who
sought after God and stood alone against all others who preferred to live in sin
with no repentance or remorse. Through Christ God can be the exceeding great
reward for all those who believe in the one God sent to save us from sin, Jesus
(Yeshua) Christ.
Gen 15:2 And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go
childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
Abraham knew that the inheritance was not going to become his in his natural
lifetime so he wondered how God was going to bless him with a seed that would
bless the whole world if he didn't have any children.
Gen 15:3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one
born in my house is mine heir.
Gen 15:4 And, 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.
Since both Sarah and Abraham were very old, it seemed unlikely that they could
bear children. God is able to work in things that are naturally impossible.
Gen 15:5 And 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.
Gen 15:6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for
righteousness.
Abraham's faith is what made him a righteous person, not because of any good
works or inheritance by birth. It is hard for the world to understand faith.
Atheists must wonder how we can believe in a God we cannot see and do not always
feel His presence. They must wonder how we can still believe in His literal
second coming, His marvelous creation, and how we can gather together in joyful
worship and praise to someone we never see. It is because of a thing called
faith. This faith ushers in His presence, grants us victory over sin, opens the
door to the infilling of the Holy Spirit and gives us not only peace in this
life but the hope of life eternal.
Gen 15:7 And 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.
Gen 15:8 And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?
This seems to indicate doubt here as opposed to the faith mentioned above but we
must consider that perhaps, Abraham was trying to verify or make sure what He
heard God speak was really God speaking and not his imagination or a dream
caused by something other than God. Today every voice we hear and every thought
we think is not necessarily the Holy Spirit speaking. That is why the bible
speaks of trying the spirits. He gave us the written word for us to have a
resource to go to. God will not go opposite His word. That is one way we can
tell the bible is true because of the witness of the Holy Spirit and also
because it has been tried and found to be faithful in leading us into
righteousness.
It is when the bible is set aside and something else is substituted that we fall
into trouble.
Gen 15:9 And 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.
Gen 15:10 And 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.
Gen 15:11 And when the fowls came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them
away.
Sometimes when God gives us a command, the enemy (Satan) will try to hinder our
fulfilling the command.
Gen 15:12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and,
lo, a horror of great darkness fell upon him.
Not all things we get from God is going to be pleasant. Some times there are
warnings and prophecies of darkness.
Gen 15:13 And 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;
God saw that the promised seed of Abraham would come into trouble. He knew that
the future descendants of Abraham would fall away from the truth and become
captive to other nations. When Jacob and his sons first went into Egypt, they
had a good life but later on a king rose up who didn't know Joseph and they
began to afflict the Israelites.
This may have been the result of Abraham going down to Egypt for substance
during the famine. There are scriptures warning of trusting in Egypt. We now
think of Egypt as the world. We trust too much in the world for help instead of
God.
In spite of Abraham's failure at times though, we see that his heart is what God
looked at. God saw a man who desired to be righteous and sought God continually
even though he often made mistakes. God saw his heart. Abraham believed in God.
He was saved by faith in God.
We too suffer the consequences of our mistakes or sins even though our faith in
Jesus saves our soul from eternal destruction because of our sins. We still may
see the natural consequences of bad decisions. For instance a person who spend
his life on drugs and alcohol may come to Christ and be saved but his body might
still retain the harm done by substance abuse.
There have been occasions when the body is healed by the power of God when a
person comes to Christ but that doesn't always occur. That is when faith kicks
in again and we trust in God.
It takes just as much faith to believe in God when things do not work out the
way we might desire as it does to see miracles in the name of Jesus that occur
instantly.
Gen 15:14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and
afterward shall they come out with great substance.
Even though God will allow unbelieving nations to take over and bring judgment
to His own chosen people, He also brings punishment to the nations that do the
harm to His people.
We never want to be part of persecuting anyone. God has not given up on the
Jewish people. Many of them are coming to Christ today. I know it can't be
because of the love the Christian church has shown in the past toward them. It
has to be God Himself that is bringing them into the knowledge of their Messiah,
Yeshua (Jesus). The church has failed for the most part to win Jews to their own
Messiah.
God will severely judge those that persecute His people. His people can be
either the chosen elect (Israel) or those that were adopted into the vine
(Israel) by faith in Jesus Christ. To become children of God by faith one has to
be "born again" by the spirit of God. To become "born again" one must repent of
sin and believe in the one God sent to redeem us from sin, Jesus Christ. We must
believe in Jesus as God who came in human flesh, born of a virgin, died for our
sins, and rose from the dead and is forever at the right hand of the Father. To
deny the deity of Jesus Christ is to deny salvation for one's own soul for
eternity. This is true whether we are Jew or Gentile.
Gen 15:15 And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in
a good old age.
Gen 15:16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the
iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
God didn't allow Abraham to take over the land of Canaan at this time because He
was still waiting until the Amorites or Canaanites went to the point of no
return when they were past repentance. That is usually when a nation is
destroyed. When it gets to the point that their sin is so great that they refuse
to listen to God or repent of sin.
America please watch out. Right now we allow abortion and sexual immorality
without repentance. If we ever get to the place where we persecute either Jews
or born again Christians, America will be history.
Gen 15:17 And 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.
God Himself passed between the pieces of offering. God Himself will make the way
for the salvation of all mankind through the promised seed of Abraham. This is
Jesus. God Himself will return the promised land to the seed of Abraham in the
future from the river of Egypt to the river Euphrates. There is nothing any
nation can do to keep this from happening at the appointed time.
Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George Bush, Tony Blair, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Syria,
Egypt, and all other countries in the world cannot permanently remove the land
God promised to Israel. What God promises cannot be overturned. It will happen
just as He says it will and woe to us who stand it the way. I understand
that the above American presidents are only trying to usher in peace. I
know the intent or their hearts is well meaning and honorable but it is in vain.
Forcing Israel to trade land for peace will not bring peace. Israel
will not obtain peace until the Prince of Peace returns visibly. Even so
come Lord Jesus.
Gen 15:18 In 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:
Gen 15:19 The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites,
Gen 15:20 And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims,
Gen 15:21 And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the
Jebusites.
When God gives His promises, He remembers that promise for eternity. Praise the
Lord.