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Genesis 15

God answers Abram’s questions with promises of offspring and land, sealing a covenant that includes a long wait and suffering.

Abram remains childless when YHWH speaks to him in a vision, promising protection and reward. Abram asks about an heir, and God promises offspring as numerous as the stars. Abram believes him, and God credits his faith as righteousness. The conversation turns to the land Abram will inherit. As darkness falls over prepared animal pieces, God foretells his descendants’ oppression and return, then makes a covenant with Abram, naming the boundaries of their promised land.

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1After these things the LORD’s word came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Don’t be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
2Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will you give me, since I go childless, and he who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?”
3Abram said, “Behold, you have given no children to me: and, behold, one born in my house is my heir.”
4Behold, the LORD’s word came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir, but he who will come out of your own body will be your heir.”
5The LORD brought him outside, and said, “Look now toward the sky, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” He said to Abram, “So your offspring will be.”
6He believed in the LORD, who credited it to him for righteousness.
7He said to Abram, “I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”
8He said, “Lord GOD, how will I know that I will inherit it?”
9He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10He brought him all these, and divided them in the middle, and laid each half opposite the other; but he didn’t divide the birds.
11The birds of prey came down on the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.
12When the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. Now terror and great darkness fell on him.
13He said to Abram, “Know for sure that your offspring will live as foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them. They will afflict them four hundred years.
14I will also judge that nation, whom they will serve. Afterward they will come out with great wealth;
15but you will go to your fathers in peace. You will be buried at a good old age.
16In the fourth generation they will come here again, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full.”
17It came to pass that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold, a smoking furnace and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
18In that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “I have given this land to your offspring, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates:
20the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
21the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Genesis 15:1God’s assurance of protection and reward opens the vision before Abram voices his concern about remaining childless.
Genesis 15:5The countless stars give visible scale to God’s promise of offspring while Abram still has no child.
Genesis 15:18The covenant names the land promised to Abram’s offspring after God has foretold their oppression and return.
Where this chapter reaches

Romans and James quote the statement that Abram believed God and was credited with righteousness, placing this verse within their discussions of faith. Exodus recounts the oppression and departure foretold here, while Deuteronomy recalls the promise of land to Abraham and his descendants.

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After reading the whole chapter

How do Abram’s questions and his belief shape your understanding of faith while waiting?

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What do the promised oppression and delayed return reveal about the covenant God makes with Abram?

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Questions people ask about Genesis 15

What does Genesis 15:6 mean by righteousness?

Verse 6 says Abram believed YHWH, who credited that belief to him for righteousness. The statement follows God’s promise of offspring while Abram remains childless. It describes God’s favorable reckoning of Abram through faith. Romans draws on this verse in explaining righteousness through faith.

What do the smoking furnace and flaming torch mean in Genesis 15?

The smoking furnace and flaming torch pass between the divided animals after darkness falls. The next verse identifies this event with YHWH making a covenant with Abram. These signs mark God’s presence and commitment to the promise. The text does not explain a separate meaning for each object.

Why does God tell Abram his descendants will suffer for four hundred years?

God tells Abram that his offspring will live as foreigners, serve another nation, and suffer affliction before leaving with wealth. Their return is also tied to the Amorites’ iniquity, which has not reached its full measure. The passage announces both suffering and judgment without explaining every reason for the delay.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).