The Covenant in Darkness

For some reason, I decided to start reading through the Bible in August, so I'm in the middle of Genesis. I've read and taught about Genesis 15 so many times because it contains the affirmation of God's covenant promises to Abraham. However, when I read this a few days ago, I was struck by something I never noticed before.

In v. 5, it appears that it is night. God takes Abraham outside and tells him that his descendants will be more numerous than the stars of the sky. It seems that God woke Abraham up for this discussion. There does not seem to be a pause for Abraham to go back to bed before he is instructed to cut a cow, a goat, and a ram in half. He also kills a turtledove and a pigeon.

Now, for those of you who know me, I am not at all inclined towards animal husbandry. However, a three-year-old cow alone can weigh around a thousand pounds. Abraham has to kill all of these animals and then cut the first three in half. I cannot begin to imagine how exhausted he was at the end of this process. To literally hack these carcasses in two so that they can be lined up before God would take incredible physical strength, and Abraham was already tired. He hasn't slept much.

So he obeys God...and nothing happens. Birds of prey (i.e., vultures and other unclean birds) swoop down to have lunch, and Abraham drives them away. This entire passage seems to be focusing on the fact that Abraham is doing this by himself. He has hundreds of servants, but the passage seems to indicate that he undertakes this task of obedience alone. Abraham stays there all day, and finally, as the sun is going down, God shows up.

We expect God to arrive and praise Abraham for his faithfulness and diligence. That is the response I want when I am obedient. I want God to be impressed by how hard I have worked. I want to see the results and fruit. Unfortunately for Abraham (and often for us), that is not what happens. It says a deep sleep fell on Abraham (v. 12) and a dreadful and great darkness. This deep sleep is the same word used in Genesis 2:21 when God put Adam to sleep to create Eve. There was no escaping this vision.

God doesn't begin by praising Abraham for his hard work. No, he starts by promising Abraham that his descendants will be sojourners, slaves, and afflicted for 400 years. I don't know what Abraham was feeling, but I definitely would have been wondering what happened to the promises of chapter twelve. The land, the great name, the great nation...and now slavery?

Still, God has a promise to fulfil. In 15:14, he assures Abraham that his descendants will be delivered and they will return to the promised land. The sun has now set completely. A smoking fire pot and flaming torch passed between the halves of the animals that Abraham had killed many hours ago. Some have said these represent the fires of Egyptian trials and the light of deliverance. However, smoke and fire often represent God's presence. Regardless, God met Abraham in the dark and in his obedience.

I'm not sure if Abraham knew he was preparing a sacrifice when he killed all of these animals, but that seems to be what is happening here. Abraham brought the animals, and God brought the fire. Covenants were not ratified without blood, and this is no exception. God had made Abraham promises, but he is 100% clear here in chapter fifteen that he is entering into a covenant relationship with Abraham and his descendants.

Now, the next several chapters are reminders of the fact that even those of us who have a covenant relationship with God can still fail. Abraham turns around in chapter 16 and fails to trust God to provide the son of promise.

However, focusing back on chapter fifteen briefly, obedience did not bring immediate blessing. It brought exhaustion, darkness, and a measure of holy terror. For those who feel they have done their part...you've killed the sacrifice and are waiting on God to work, just know that darkness and oppression might be the first stop. We are privileged to know the end of Abraham's story. God did keep his promises. It is harder for us to trust in the middle of dead animals, plans, dreams, relationships, and darkness. But our God is Light. He will provide the fire, and he will keep his promises.