June 13th: Genesis 15
Genesis 15
The term in Hebrew for making a treaty or covenant is literally to "cut a covenant." You can see this on full display in today's reading in which Abram is told to cut a heifer, goat, and ram in half and lay them out so that there is a path in between.
This was a standard way for a covenant to be made in the ancient world. The two leaders would meet in the path between the dead animals to establish the treaty or covenant. This symbolized how serious this was, that if either party broke the covenant they could expect to die as the animals had.
What is different in today's reading is that Abram didn't meet with God in the middle of the dead animals. Only God walked through the path of the sacrificed animals. God was showing that this was a one way covenant. God was establishing it and Abram was receiving it. God does the same thing for us in baptism! He comes to us and brings us into the New Covenant and we, like Abram, are simply there receiving.
The term in Hebrew for making a treaty or covenant is literally to "cut a covenant." You can see this on full display in today's reading in which Abram is told to cut a heifer, goat, and ram in half and lay them out so that there is a path in between.This was a standard way for a covenant to be made in the ancient world. The two leaders would meet in the path between the dead animals to establish the treaty or covenant. This symbolized how serious this was, that if either party broke the covenant they could expect to die as the animals had.
What is different in today's reading is that Abram didn't meet with God in the middle of the dead animals. Only God walked through the path of the sacrificed animals. God was showing that this was a one way covenant. God was establishing it and Abram was receiving it. God does the same thing for us in baptism! He comes to us and brings us into the New Covenant and we, like Abram, are simply there receiving.
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