The firepot and torch, the cut covenant and the borders
Says וַיְהִי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ בָּאָה וַעֲלָטָה הָיָה is “and the sun had gone, and thick darkness came” (“n.f. thick darkness”); the Greek has “φλὸξ ἐγένετο” (“a flame came”). וְהִנֵּה תַנּוּר עָשָׁן וְלַפִּיד אֵשׁ is “and behold, an oven of smoke and a torch of fire” (BSB “a smoking firepot and a flaming torch”), אֲשֶׁר עָבַר בֵּין הַגְּזָרִים הָאֵלֶּה, “which passed between these pieces,” with a singular verb.
Says In 15:18 בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא כָּרַת יְהוָה אֶת־אַבְרָם בְּרִית is “on that day the Lord cut with Abram a covenant”; the Greek has “ἐκεῖ” (“there”) for “on that day.” לְזַרְעֲךָ נָתַתִּי is “to your seed I have given,” a perfect. The land runs מִנְּהַר מִצְרַיִם עַד־הַנָּהָר הַגָּדֹל נְהַר־פְּרָת, “from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.” The lexicon takes the first river as “i.e., si vera l., the Nile” and proposes reading “brook” (nakhal) of Egypt.
Says 15:19–21 lists ten peoples, each with the article, from הַקֵּינִי to הַיְבוּסִי, including הַקַּדְמֹנִי (“(Easterners)”) and הָרְפָאִים (“n.pr.gent. old race of giants”). The Greek adds “καὶ τοὺς Εὐαίους” (“and the Hivites”), and the Samaritan text in von Gall’s edition has ואת החוי.
Implies The Lord cuts the covenant, and the grant is stated in the perfect, as already given to Abram’s seed.
Uncertain Which stream “the river of Egypt” names is not settled by the verse. No lean is taken here.
Claims
- Saysוַיְהִי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ בָּאָה וַעֲלָטָה הָיָה is “and the sun had gone, and thick darkness came” (“n.f. thick darkness”); the Greek has “φλὸξ ἐγένετο” (“a flame came”). וְהִנֵּה תַנּוּר עָשָׁן וְלַפִּיד אֵשׁ is “and behold, an oven of smoke and a torch of fire” (BSB “a smoking firepot and a flaming torch”), אֲשֶׁר עָבַר בֵּין הַגְּזָרִים הָאֵלֶּה, “which passed between these pieces,” with a singular verb.
- SaysIn 15:18 בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא כָּרַת יְהוָה אֶת־אַבְרָם בְּרִית is “on that day the Lord cut with Abram a covenant”; the Greek has “ἐκεῖ” (“there”) for “on that day.” לְזַרְעֲךָ נָתַתִּי is “to your seed I have given,” a perfect. The land runs מִנְּהַר מִצְרַיִם עַד־הַנָּהָר הַגָּדֹל נְהַר־פְּרָת, “from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.” The lexicon takes the first river as “i.e., si vera l., the Nile” and proposes reading “brook” (nakhal) of Egypt.
- Says15:19–21 lists ten peoples, each with the article, from הַקֵּינִי to הַיְבוּסִי, including הַקַּדְמֹנִי (“(Easterners)”) and הָרְפָאִים (“n.pr.gent. old race of giants”). The Greek adds “καὶ τοὺς Εὐαίους” (“and the Hivites”), and the Samaritan text in von Gall’s edition has ואת החוי.
- ImpliesThe Lord cuts the covenant, and the grant is stated in the perfect, as already given to Abram’s seed.
- UncertainWhich stream “the river of Egypt” names is not settled by the verse. No lean is taken here.
Citations
- OSHB CC BY 4.0 Gen 15:17–21 (WLC/OSHB; morph HC/Ncfsa HVqp3ms HVqp3ms HVqp1cs)
- BSB public domain Gen 15:17–21 (BSB)
- BDB CC BY 4.0 BDB 1906, p. 759 (leaf n782), archive.org hebrewenglishlex00browuoft, s.v. H5939 “n.f. thick darkness”; checked against the printed page (scan)
- BDB CC BY 4.0 BDB 1906, p. 625 (leaf n648), archive.org hebrewenglishlex00browuoft, s.v. H5104 “i.e., si vera l., the Nile”; checked against the printed page (scan)
- BDB CC BY 4.0 BDB 1906, p. 870 (leaf n893), archive.org hebrewenglishlex00browuoft, s.v. H6935 “(Easterners)”; checked against the printed page (scan)
- BDB CC BY 4.0 BDB 1906, p. 952 (leaf n975), archive.org hebrewenglishlex00browuoft, s.v. H7497 “n.pr.gent. old race of giants”; checked against the printed page (scan)
- BDB CC BY 4.0 BDB 1906, s.v. H3940 (no Gen 15 page claimed)
- von Gall, Sam. Pent. public domain Gen 15:21, main text; Samaritan text, von Gall p. 24 (leaf n537), archive.org vonGall_SamaritanPentateuch, checked against the printed page (scan)
- LXX (Swete) CC BY-SA 4.0 Gen 15:17–21, text and apparatus. LXX: Swete, vol. 1 (1901), p. 24 (leaf n55). Checked against the printed page (scan).
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2026-11-12
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