Genesis
Chapter
15
{Note:
Abram has grown afraid. Probably he is afraid of counter attacks by
Chedorlaomer or consequences of rebuking the 'rewards' of the king of
Sodom. This chapter is a great declaration of the principal of 'do
not worry' - rely on the Lord.}
{Verses
1-7: First Cure for Worry - Word of God}
1^~After
these sayings/things {dabar},
the
word {dabar} of Jehovah/God came unto Abram in a vision,
saying
{'amar},
"Fear
not, Abram, I {God} am your shield,
{you're worried about Chedorlaomer coming back, why worry? I am
your shield}
and
your exceeding great reward
{maybe the king of Sodom is maligning him for rebuking the reward.
And, maybe Abram was thinking about all that money kind of
Sodom offered you? Why worry? I will reward you.}."
{Note: This was God's solution to his anxiety and worry. It still applies to us today. Put your faith in God and His communication to you. Today is through His Word.}
{Complaining
Follows Worry}
2^~And
Abram said {'amar},
"
'Adonay/Lord Jehovah/God,
what
will You give me,
seeing
I go childless,
and
the 'son' {ben} of my household
{meaning his current heir is the 'foreman of ranch' who grew up in
his household}
is
this Eliezer of Damascus?"
{Blaming
Follows Worry and Complaining - Abram is Blaming the Lord}
3^~
And Abram said,
"Behold,
You have given me no seed.
And,
lo, one born in my house {Eliezer} is my heir."
{God's
Promise - His Heir is His Flesh and Blood Son}
4^~And,
behold . . . the Word {dabar} of Jehovah/God
came
unto him {Abram}, saying {'amar},
"This
{Eliezer} shall not be your heir {yarash},
but
He that shall come forth
out
of your own genitals/'inner being' { me`ah}
shall
be your heir."
{Note: God's challenge to Abram. You are miserable through worry (mental attitude sinning). Are you going to worry or rely on Me?}
{Three
Illustrations that God Keeps His Word}
5^~And
He {God} brought him {Abram} forth outside,
and
said {'amar},
"Look
now toward heaven, and count {caphar} the stars,
if
you are able to number them."
And
He said unto him,
"So
shall your seed/descendents be."
{Note: Abram was told to look at the stars. If you can count those stars you would have some idea of all the nations that will come from your body.}
{First
Mention of Salvation - Abram's Salvation Recalled - See also Romans
Chapters 4,5, and 6 Particularly 4:3}
6^~
And he {Abram}
already
'had been caused to believe'
{'aman - Hiphil causative perfect tense - 'had been caused to
believe in the past with results that last forever}
in
Jehovah/God.
And
He kept on crediting/imputing/counting
{chashab - Qal imperfect tense - 'kept on crediting'}
it
{belief in God} to him for righteousness {divine righteousness}.
{Note: God took control of Abram's life back in Ur of the Chaldees. That was when Abram was caused to believe in Him. And, this has been what RBT believes to be a mistake by the followers of Calvin (per RBT Calvin did not teach this at all). Did Abram believe from His free will, or did God 'cause' those who do believe to believe? Actually, this is a red herring issue. God will explain it in heaven if He chooses. What the real issue is . . . is what is salvation? Salvation is belief in God. Why? Because that is God's plan. Does the pot question the potter? So, if you believe in God, you are saved. In the Church Age, we discover that the only manifest member of the Godhead is Jesus Christ. There are no works or gimmicks or jumping through hoops of any kind. Salvation is a gift from God NOT from works (but because of one Work - Jesus Christ, lamb without spot, going to the cross as a substitute for you). And, it is very, very simple. Faith in Christ. When you believe in Jesus Christ, you are saved and are in Union with Him. You share in all that He is and forever will be - you will rule with Him, He is the High Priest forever - you are a Royal Priest of His, He is the First-fruits - and you share in His blessings, He has a resurrection body - you have one like His, He has everlasting life - you have everlasting life - on and on - more than you can think or imagine.}
7^~And
He {God} said {'amar} unto him {Abram},
"I
. . . {am} Jehovah/God
Who
brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees,
to
give you this land {'erets} to inherit {it} {yarash}.
{Verses
8-11: Second Cure for Worry - Doctrine - Person and Work of the Lord}
8^~And
he {'Adonay} said {'amar},
'Adonay/Lord
Jehovah/God,
how
shall I keep on understanding/knowing {yada`}
that
I shall inherit {it} {yarash}?
{Note: God answers Abram's request in the next verse. This tells us why God required animal sacrifice. Before the canon of scripture was completed, Abram requested a way to 'keep on understanding' that he was to inherit from God. God uses the 'instruments of worship' as teaching tools to remind the Jews of all that He has promised them. Once Christ went to the cross - the 'shadow' of his sacrifice was replaced with the 'reality' and there is to be no more animal sacrifice.}
{Five
'Types' of Christ}
9^~And
He {God} said unto him {Abram},
"Take
an heifer {'eglah} of three years old {shalash}
{Abram is already saved. Abram needs rebound. The heifer
represents the rebound offering so it is mentioned first},
{and}
a she goat {`ez} of three years old
{Now in fellowship - need occupation with Christ - the she goat
represents the reconciliation offering - removal of the barrier
between God and man},
{and}
a ram {'ayil} of three years old
{So in fellowship - continuing with the need occupation with
Christ - the ram represents the propitiation offering - God is
NOT satisfied with Abram's work or the work of any of us - but
only the work of Christ on the cross},
{and}
a turtledove {towr} {and} a young pigeon {gowzal}
{These two speak of the person of Jesus Christ. Note in the next
verse they are NOT divided. The turtledove speaks of the deity
of Christ. The young pigeon speaks of the humanity of Christ.
and the two can NOT be divided - the uniqueness of the God/
Man Jesus Christ - the Hypostatic Union.}.
{Note: This tells us why God required animal sacrifice. Before the canon of scripture was completed, Abram requested a way to 'keep on understanding' that he was to inherit from God. God uses the 'instruments of worship' as teaching tools to remind the Jews of all that He has promised them.}
10^~And
he {Abram} took unto Him all these,
and
divided them in the middle
{picture of rebound and Occupation with Christ - emphasis on
reconciliation and propitiation},
and
laid each {half} piece one against another.
But
the birds, he {Abram} did not divide.
{Note: The sacrifice practice of the large animals was to cut them into two parts with the blood pouring toward the middle.}
{Picture
of Satanic Attacks when You are in Fellowship}
11^~
And when the vultures came down upon the carcasses,
Abram
drove them away.
{Note: Worry is an attack on the Plan of God after salvation. Abram was in fellowship after rebound so he drove away the attacks of satanic emissaries. Satan has his disciples who are always trying to get you out of fellowship - in view here is through worry.}
{Verses
12-21: Third Cure for Worry - Prophesy}
{Abram's
Problem with Night Mares}
12^~And
when the sun was going down,
a
deep sleep fell upon Abram {relaxed - no worry}.
And,
lo, an horror of great darkness fell {upon him}
{peace upset with a nightmare}.
{Note: What is the nightmare about? The future of his progeny. God cures his worry with prophecy of Israel's future (Abram's descendents).}
{Prophesy
of the Egyptian Bondage}
13^~And
He {God} said {'amar} unto Abram,
"Knowing
. . . you shall know
{yada' yada' - double of a word in Hebrew is very strong - 'absolute
confidence in this prophecy coming true'}
that
your seed shall be a stranger in a land
that
is not theirs {Egypt},
and
shall serve them {slaves}.
And
they shall afflict them four hundred years
{prophecy of the 400 years of slavery in Egypt before the Exodus
Generation RBT says 4 generations - Levi, Ko-hath, Amran,
Moses}.
{Note: Knowledge of the future (particularly eternity future) gives the believer assurance in time - absolute confidence. So prophecy is important to believers in time! Elimination of worry!}
{Prophesy
of the Exodus}
14^~And
also that nation {gowy},
whom
they shall serve {slavery}, will I judge.
And
afterward shall they {Exodus Generation}
come
out with great substance/wealth.
{Prophesy
of Abram's Long Life and then Dying Grace}
15^~And
you shall go to your fathers in peace.
You
shall be buried in a good old age.
{Prophesy
of the Jews Returning to the Land}
16^~
But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again
{return to Palestine}.
For
the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full {shalem}
{because Amorites missionary work postponed the judgment of the
Amorites about 400 years until they would revert back to their old
ways - which God knew They would}.
{Are
you Going to be a Smudge Pot or a Flaming Torch?}
17^~And
it came to pass, that, when the sun went down,
and
it was dark {speaks of pressure and adversity},
behold
. . . a 'smoky lamp'/'smudge pot' {'ashan tannuwr}
{throws out smoke but no light},
{and}
a 'burning bright torch'
{a bright light for others to see}
passed
between those pieces
{believers 'walk between the pieces' which is a picture of belief
and salvation}.
{Note: If you worry, you are a smoky lamp - you give off no Light in times of trouble to help yourself and others. If you rely on the Lord, you are a bright Torch. You are calm and stable and great in adversity both for you and for those around you.}
{First
Statement of the Palestinian Covenant - Describes the Inheritance of
the Land}
18-21^~In
the same day Jehovah/God
made
a covenant with Abram, saying {'amar},
Unto
your seed have I given this land,
from
the river of Egypt
unto
the great river - the river Euphrates . . . 19^~
the
{land of the} Kenites
{who lived in the area between southern Palestine and the
mountains of Sinai},
{and}
the {land of the} Kenizzites,
{and}
the {land of the} Kadmonites, 20^~
{and}
the {land of the} Hittites,
{and}
the {land of the} Perizzites,
{and}
the {land of the} Rephaims, 21^~
{and}
the {land of the} Amorites,
{and}
the {land of the} Canaanites,
{and}
the {land of the} Girgashites,
{and}
the {land of the} Jebusites.
{Note: Why does this statement come as Abram is 'failing' and 'worrying' and having night mares?? That is the point. It comes when Abram neither earns it or deserves it. It is all by the Grace of God.}
{Note: The Palestinian covenant is also mentioned in three other passages - Numbers 34, Deuteronomy 30, and Joshua 1.}
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