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| 1 After these things hath the word of Jehovah been unto Abram in a vision, saying, 'Fear not, Abram, I [am] a shield to thee, thy reward [is] exceeding great.' |
Fear not, Abram: – Do not be afraid of any attempts at vengeance on the part of the kings you have just conquered. R3944:3
I am thy shield – "When he giveth quietness who then can make trouble." (Job 34:29) R3944:4
Great reward – In a sense, I will give myself to you and that will constitute your greatest possible reward. R3944:4
To have God for a friend and counselor and guide is to be esteemed far beyond every earthly interest and blessing. R2853:6
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| 2 And Abram saith, 'Lord Jehovah, what dost Thou give to me, and I am going childless and an acquired son in my house is Demmesek Eliezer.' |
Eliezer of Damascus – Type of the holy Spirit. F171
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| 3 And Abram saith, 'Lo, to me Thou hast not given seed, and lo, a domestic doth heir me.' |
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| 4 And lo, the word of Jehovah [is] unto him, saying, 'This [one] doth not heir thee; but he who cometh out from thy bowels, he doth heir thee;' |
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| 5 and He bringeth him out without, and saith, 'Look attentively, I pray thee, towards the heavens, and count the stars, if thou art able to count them;' and He saith to him, 'Thus is thy seed.' |
And tell the stars – "Star differeth from star in glory." (1 Cor. 15:41) R2067:4
So shall thy seed – The heavenly seed, the Little Flock. R2854:5
Including also the Great Company. R2067:4
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| 6 And he hath believed in Jehovah, and He reckoneth it to him righteousness. |
And he believed – The word signifies more than "belief"; it has the thought of a rest of faith. R3944:5
God must have had some dealings with Abraham before he believed or there would have been nothing for him to believe. R5206:6
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| 7 And He saith unto him, 'I [am] Jehovah who brought thee out from Ur of the Chaldees, to give to thee this land to possess it;' |
To inherit it – In the future; for Stephen states, "He gave him none inheritance in it"-yet. (Acts 7:5) R3945:4
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| 8 and he saith, 'Lord Jehovah, whereby do I know that I possess it ' |
Whereby shall I know – What outward signs and evidences will help my faith to grasp these great promises. R3945:4
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| 9 And He saith unto him, 'Take for Me a heifer of three years, and a she-goat of three years, and a ram of three years, and a turtle-dove, and a young bird;' |
A young pigeon – A bird is usually considered young up to one year old. Figuring thus, the ages of these animals represent 11 years. Eleven prophetic years of 360 literal years each equals 3960 years, the time from the giving of the covenant to Abraham until the year 1915. R3957:5*
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| 10 and he taketh to him all these, and separateth them in the midst, and putteth each piece over against its fellow, but the bird he hath not divided; |
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| 11 and the ravenous birds come down upon the carcases, and Abram causeth them to turn back. |
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| 12 And the sun is about to go in, and deep sleep hath fallen upon Abram, and lo, a terror of great darkness is falling upon him; |
Of great darkness – Representing the sufferings of the Lord's people in the present time. R3946:4
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| 13 and He saith to Abram, 'knowing know that thy seed is a sojourner in a land not theirs, and they have served them, and they have afflicted them four hundred years, |
Thy seed – If Levi could pay tithes to Melchizedek while in the loins of Abraham (Heb. 7:9, 10), then the children of Israel could sojourn in Abraham's loins.HG104:5
Afflict them – They were not afflicted all that time, nor in Egypt all that time. The 400 years covers the dwelling in a land that was not theirs, and also the serving and the affliction. HG104:5[HG104]
400 years – Beginning with Ishmael's mockery of Isaac 30 years after the covenant with Abram, when Isaac was 5 years old, and ending with the Exodus. R2482:3*
400 prophetic years equals 144,000 days. R2482:3*
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| 14 and the nation also whom they serve I judge, and after this they go out with great substance; |
Will I judge – In the plagues of Egypt, illustrating the law of retribution. R2306:1
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| 15 and thou thou comest in unto thy fathers in peace; thou art buried in a good old age; |
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| 16 and the fourth generation doth turn back hither, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.' |
Of the Amorites – Who had a prior hold on the land. R3945:6
Is not yet full – Each nation was permitted to go only so far in sin and there was stopped. R1270:5, R1779:2
The Lord would not bring Israel into their land because the iniquity of the Canaanites was not yet come to the full. R1270:5
"When the transgressors are come to the full." (Dan. 8:23) C97
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| 17 And it cometh to pass the sun hath gone in, and thick darkness hath been and lo, a furnace of smoke, and a lamp of fire, which hath passed over between those pieces. |
That, when the sun – Symbolically the Gospel light, the truth. D590[D590]
A burning lamp – Symbolizing the divine presence. R3945:5[R3945]
Passed between those – Representing the Lord's swearing by a covenant or sacrifice of life-blood to the promise he had given. R3945:5[R3945]
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| 18 In that day hath Jehovah made with Abram a covenant, saying, 'To thy seed I have given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Phrat, |
Covenant with Abram – The Sarah covenant is the Abrahamic covenant in its highest and special sense. Q170:4
The Abrahamic covenant included particularly the spiritual seed, but shadowed forth an earthly seed also. Q170:6
Unto thy seed – As their possession in the Millennial age. R3944:3, R3945:2,3
This land – Equal to half of Europe. Q792:2
Solomon extended the boundaries of his kingdom to the full limits set by the Lord prophetically long before. R5722:2
River of Egypt – The Nile. Q792:2
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| 19 with the Kenite, and the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite, |
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| 20 and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Rephaim, |
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| 21 and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Girgashite, and the Jebusite.' |
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