Genesis 15:8-18
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 15
8But he said, 'Lord God, how may I know that I will possess it?' 9So He said to him, 'Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.' 10Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds. 11And birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.
12Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him.
13Then God said to Abram, 'Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years.
14But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions.
15As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.
16Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the wrongdoing of the Amorite is not yet complete.'
King James Version
9And 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.
10And 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.
11And when the fowls came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, a horror of great darkness fell upon him.
13And 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;
14And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
15And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
16But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
17And 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.
18In 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:
Christian Standard Bible
10So he brought all these to him, cut them in half, and laid the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut the birds in half.
11Birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.
12As the sun was setting, a deep sleep came over Abram, and suddenly great terror and darkness descended on him.
13Then the Lord said to Abram, "Know this for certain: Your offspring will be resident aliens for four hundred years in a land that does not belong to them and will be enslaved and oppressed.
14However, I will judge the nation they serve, and afterward they will go out with many possessions.
15But you will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age.
16In the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."
New Living Translation
Chapter 15
8But Abram replied, 'O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure that I will actually possess it?'
9The Lord told him, 'Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.'
10So Abram presented all these to him and killed them. Then he cut each animal down the middle and laid the halves side by side; he did not, however, cut the birds in half.
11Some vultures swooped down to eat the carcasses, but Abram chased them away.
12As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a terrifying darkness came down over him.
13Then the Lord said to Abram, 'You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years.
14But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth.
15(As for you, you will die in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.)
16After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.'
17After the sun went down and darkness fell, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses.
18So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, 'I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River —
English Standard Version
Chapter 15
8But he said, "O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess 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." 10And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. 11And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
13Then the Lord said to Abram, "Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
14But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
15As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
16And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete."
New International Version
10Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half.
11Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.
12As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.
13Then the Lord said to him, "Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there.
14But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.
15You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age.
16In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."
New King James Version
9So He said to him, “Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two.
11And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him.
13Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years.
14And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
15Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age.
16But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”