By Faith in Promise: Genesis Chapter 15 Bible Study

Introduction

Welcome back to The Daily Manna!

Today we continue our journey with Abraham. So far, we’ve seen him step out in faith, trust God over appearances, and act boldly in crisis.

In Genesis 15, Abraham faces a new challenge: the promise of descendants seems impossible because he has no children. Here, faith becomes trust in God’s promises even when circumstances suggest otherwise.

Before reading on, take a moment to read Genesis 15 in full as this is a study companion to the Bible and not a substitute for reading God's word. 

Summary of Genesis 15

Genesis 15:1–6 – God reassures Abram, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” Abram questions how he can have a child, and God credits his faith as righteousness.

Genesis 15:7–11 – God reminds Abram of His promise: the land will belong to his descendants. Abram believes, and God instructs him to prepare a covenant ritual, symbolizing the certainty of His word.

Genesis 15:12–16 – God reveals that Abram’s descendants will be strangers in a foreign land for 400 years, but promises to bring them back.

Genesis 15:17–21 – God formalizes the covenant with a solemn ritual, confirming that He alone will fulfill His promise.

Key Themes and Meaning

Faith Believes the Impossible

 Genesis 15:1-8 NIV

[1] After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” [2] But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” [3] And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” [4] Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” [5] He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” [6] Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. [7] He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” [8] But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” 

Abraham’s faith is not based on sight or circumstances. His faith is based on a deep trust in God’s word. Abram believed God's word before anything came to pass even when things physically looked impossible. And God credited Abraham's faith to him as righteousness just for believing and trusting. 

Faith sometimes requires believing in God’s promises before you see evidence, just as Abraham did. 

God’s Promises Are Sure

Genesis 15:7-8 NIV

[7] He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” [8] But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?”

 here Abram asks how can I know? How many times has God promised us something and we ask that same question? And here's where something really interesting happens: 

Genesis 15:9-10 NIV

[9] So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” [10] Abram 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. 

For those of you who don't know what's going on here, God answers Abram by cutting a covenant. I feel like this needs to be addressed further. Let's see what a cutting covenant is and why it's so important. 

Cutting a covenant is something people did in ancient times, kind of like a handshake when they promise something to each other or a contract but a little more brutal than that. A reference to this is in Jeremiah 34:18-20 NIV: 

[18] Those who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between its pieces. [19] The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf, [20] I will deliver into the hands of their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.

Breaking a covenant is a very severe consequence. It's making an oath between two parties and anyone who breaks their part in the promise is better off dead. It's saying may I be like this carcass that we walk between if I break this promise. This sounds really harsh and scary coming from God. However here's where the goodness of God comes into play and it is awesome take a look: 

Genesis 15:12, 17-21 NIV

[12] As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 

(Skipping a few verses where God tells Abraham his plan for his descendants and judgement that falls on different lands involving his descendants, covering in the next section). 

[17] When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. [18] On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates— [19] the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, [20] Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, [21] Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”

Here we see that God puts Abram in a deep sleep. The parts we skip is what we will go over in the next section which is what's going to happen to his descendants later before they come into possession of the promised Land. He also tells Abraham that he will go to his ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age. Here's where things start showing how loving and great our God really is. After he put a room to sleep when the sun had set and darkness fell a smoking fire pot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces of the dead animal carcasses. 

What does this mean? It means that not only did God cut covenant with Abram, but he And only he walked through the cut in half carcasses of the animal. This means that God alone made the covenant to Abram. There was no conditions that Abram had to follow. How awesome is that? 

To go a little bit further in this God cut Covenant with man. Man broke our end of the Covenant many times. Instead of man dying in the place where we should have. God came down in human form and took the death that we should have had. All he asks is that we believe the Lord. To believe that he came down in the form of man as the son of God, died for our sins. And then rose up again defeating death. 

Folks, We have a God who's not only willing to love us but willing to go beyond pursuing us to show us how much he loves us.. He's willing to lay down his life for us. All we have to do is believe. All he asks is for our love in return. This is how crazy and how extreme God's love for us goes. 

Keep in mind God's doing this to help Abram understand that he is making a covenant or a promise to him. 

Patience and Perseverance

Now we are going to address the verses that I skipped from the section above. 

Genesis 15:13-16 NIV

[13] Then 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. [14] But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. [15] You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age. [16] In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”

 

There is a lot to unpack here. So after Abram fell into a deep sleep and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him, This is when the Lord tells him to know for certain that 400 years his descendants will be strangers in a country not of their own and they will be enslaved and mistreated. Here we see that the promise that God gives to Abraham is going to take time. Very rarely does God give us everything he promises all at once. And very rarely does he give us the specifics of everything that will happen. 

However God has a plan to bring Abram's descendants back to the promised land. He will punish the nation they serve as slaves and afterward they will come out with great possessions. At first glance this seems really harsh. However the reason he will be punishing this nation that will enslave Abraham's descendants is out of judgment. Notice how it also says that the time of the amorites has not yet come. This means that they will also be facing judgment at some point as well. God is all-knowing and just, He's seen all the wickedness that nations do. In time they will face judgment. 

It's a common theme throughout the Bible for God to use the good and the bad of this world to bring about his will. Even from the nations that face judgment. We see examples of this in the Bible: 

Pharaoh (Exodus 9:16) 

King Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 25:9)

Cyrus the Great (Isaiah 45:1)

Judas Iscariot (Luke 22:21–22)

Righteousness Through Faith

Genesis 15:5-6 NIV

[5] He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” [6] Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

God credits Abraham’s belief as righteousness, showing that our right standing with God comes through faith, not works. This principle points forward to Christ, the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promises. I just feel like this needed to be repeated. 

Reflection for Today

Are there areas in your life where God’s promises seem impossible?

Do you trust Him even when the evidence doesn’t match His word?

How can you cultivate patience and confidence that God’s timing is perfect?

What “covenants” or promises of God do you need to cling to in faith today?

Closing

Genesis 15 reminds us that faith is more than belief. It is trusting God’s promises fully, even when life suggests otherwise.

Abraham’s story encourages us to believe in God’s faithfulness, patiently wait for His timing, and recognize that our righteousness comes from trusting Him.

Prayer

Lord, thank You for Your promises, which are sure and eternal.

Help us to walk by faith, believing even when we cannot see the outcome.

Give us patience in waiting, courage in uncertainty, and hearts tha

t trust Your faithfulness.

May our lives reflect the righteousness that comes through faith, just as Abraham experienced.

Amen.