Genesis 15 - 16 - Legacy Standard Bible

Genesis 15 - 16

Yahweh Cuts a Covenant with Abram

After these things the word of Yahweh came to Abram in a vision, saying,

“Do not fear, Abram,

I am a shield to you;

Your reward shall be very great.”

2 And Abram said, “O Lord Yahweh, what will You give me, as I go on being childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Since You have given no seed to me, behold, one born in my house is my heir.” 4 Then behold, the word of Yahweh came to him, saying, “This one will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.” 5 And He brought him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your seed be.” 6 Then he believed in Yahweh; and He counted it to him as righteousness. 7 And He said to him, “I am Yahweh who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it.” 8 And he said, “O Lord Yahweh, how may I know that I will possess it?” 9 So He said to him, “Bring Me a three year old heifer, and a three year old female goat, and a three year old ram, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 Then he brought all these to Him and split them into parts down the middle and laid each part opposite the other; but he did not split apart the birds. 11 Then the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away. 12 Now it happened that when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your seed will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will also judge the nation to whom they are enslaved, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. 16 Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.” 17 Now it happened that the sun had set, and it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces. 18 On that day Yahweh cut a covenant with Abram, saying,

“To your seed I have given this land,

From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:

19 the Kenite and the Kenizzite and the Kadmonite 20 and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Rephaim 21 and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Girgashite and the Jebusite.”

Sarai and Hagar

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian servant-woman whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, Yahweh has shut my womb from bearing children. Please go in to my servant-woman; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 And after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant-woman, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 4 So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. Then she saw that she had conceived, so her mistress became contemptible in her sight. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the violence done to me be upon you. I gave my servant-woman into your embrace, but she saw that she had conceived, so I became contemptible in her sight. May Yahweh judge between you and me.” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant-woman is in your hand; do to her what is good in your sight.” So Sarai afflicted her, and she fled from her presence. 7 Now the angel of Yahweh found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, Sarai’s servant-woman, where have you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” 9 Then the angel of Yahweh said to her, “Return to your mistress and humble yourself under her hands.” 10 Moreover, the angel of Yahweh said to her, “I will greatly multiply your seed so that they will be too many to be counted.” 11 And the angel of Yahweh said to her further,

“Behold, you are with child,

And you will bear a son;

And you shall call his name Ishmael,

Because Yahweh has heard your affliction.

And he will be a wild donkey of a man,

His hand will be against everyone,

And everyone’s hand will be against him;

And he will dwell in the face of all his brothers.”

13 Then she called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees”; for she said, “Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?” 14 Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. 15 So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Now Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him.