[0:00] The Lord's Blessing And 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.
[0:48] Behold a smoking furnace and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. And the pieces there refer to the pieces of the animals that Abraham had cut asunder.
[1:03] So the smoking furnace and the burning lamp passed between those pieces. Now this chapter opens with Abraham in a state of fear and to some extent a state of confusion too.
[1:20] And the reason for that I think lies in this that he had made himself a considerable number of enemies due to the fact that he had just been at war.
[1:30] And he had been at war to rescue his own nephew Lot. And when the war was over no doubt Abraham felt tired and he felt a measure perhaps even of exhaustion.
[1:44] And if he felt lonely before in the land of Canaan no doubt he felt more lonely now. And he felt more exposed to danger than he had been before.
[1:54] Not only that after the war the king of Sodom had come to him and as a reward for Abraham's help he offered him all the goods that Abraham could take.
[2:06] Abraham refused it all. And he refused it all as an act of faith. He said, Abraham was a witness to God in that place.
[2:28] And he was going to witness to the fact that God was going to look after him. And that God was going to take care of him. And he wasn't going to take the wealth of Sodom. Especially. And the wealth of the king of Sodom.
[2:40] He was going to show that his hope and his reliance was upon God. So Abraham went away to his own place. And he had just refused that reward.
[2:51] And he felt an element of fear, tiredness and exhaustion. And perhaps one night when things were worst. Certainly it was during the night.
[3:02] God came to him. And came to him in a vision. In the opening words of chapter 15 if you just look at the verse. After these things. The word of the Lord came unto Abraham in a vision.
[3:16] Saying fear not Abraham. I am thy shield. Notice. Don't be afraid of your enemies. Don't be afraid of darkness.
[3:28] Don't be afraid of powers of wickedness. I am your shield. I am your defense in other words. I am your protector. And thy exceeding great reward.
[3:40] You have already lost the fertile lands. And you gave them to Lot. And now you have refused the vast wealth of the king of Sodom. But God says I know why you have done that.
[3:53] And you shall be rewarded for it all. For I am your exceeding great reward. And the believer often comes to a place where he knows that. That God is his reward.
[4:03] That we have so much spiritual wealth. Enrichment and nourishment in the Lord our God. And when others find their reward in corn and wine. And the abundance of this world's goods.
[4:15] The believer finds his reward in God. And whenever you make a sacrifice for God. God gives himself to you. That is the law of the kingdom. That is a spiritual law.
[4:27] You give for God. In any way at all. And God will come particularly near to you. And that's exactly what you find here. And in fact. If you read over Abraham's life.
[4:38] You constantly find this pattern. Test. Obedience. Reward. You find that constantly in Abraham's life.
[4:48] Test. He obeys. And there is a reward. Now. Now and again. There is a disobedience. And there is a chastisement. But usually. It is this pattern.
[4:59] Test. Obedience. And reward. And that's what you have here. God tests him. Will you take this wealth? Abraham says no. And God then comes near to him.
[5:10] In a vision. A vision of the night. And says to him powerfully. In his soul. I am thy shield. And I am thy exceeding. Great reward. Now this was a remarkable vision.
[5:22] That Abraham got here. He was no doubt most of the time. In a state in which we would call. A trance. Or ecstasy. When God revealed himself to him.
[5:33] In a state of trance. A vision. And you'll notice that this began. At night time. And it continued. Right through to the evening.
[5:45] Of the following day. Now that's not immediately obvious. But if you look carefully here. Notice in verse 5. God tells Abraham to go outside. And he brought him forth abroad.
[5:58] And said. Look now. Toward heaven. And tell the stars. If thou be able to number them. Now that tells us that when God came to him. In a vision.
[6:08] It was a vision of the night. Already. It was dark. He could look at the stars. And he could see them in their multitude. And if you look right down the chapter.
[6:19] To verse 12. To another part of the proceedings. We're told this. In verse 12. When the sun was going down. A deep sleep. Fell upon Abraham.
[6:30] So that has immediately put us into the following day. And into the following evening. When he gets the vision. It is dark. And by the time the whole thing is finished.
[6:40] A day has passed. And the following evening. Is coming upon Abraham. So he spends a whole day with God. In the most remarkable way. And God gives him.
[6:52] A most remarkable sign. And a most remarkable blessing. Throughout the period of one day. Can we say it was the Sabbath. When John the apostle.
[7:02] Was in Patmos. For his faith. Suffering there for his faith. We're told that he was in the spirit. On the Lord's day. And on the Lord's day of rest. Christ revealed himself to John.
[7:14] In his glory. And showed him. What was about to come to pass. And that's exactly what you have here. God draws near to this man. For a whole day. And he opens the scroll of providence.
[7:26] To some degree. And he shows Abraham. What is to come to pass. For a whole day. Abraham has close. And blessed fellowship. With God. Isn't it always.
[7:36] Well worth. Doing. What the Lord requires. Now. Interestingly. When God comes near to Abraham. And says. I am your shield.
[7:47] And your reward. This works. In a strange way. On Abraham. What it makes him do. And I have no doubt. That this is God's intention. What it makes him do. Is it makes him. Pour out his heart.
[7:59] To God. Because something is troubling him. And what Abraham says. In essence. To God. Is this. He says. What. Reward. Can be meaningful. To me.
[8:10] When I am still. Childless. And not only that. I am on the verge. Of making. My steward. Eliasier. Of Damascus. My heir.
[8:21] To be heir. Of all my property. And all my possessions. Verse 3. Abraham said. Behold. To me. Thou hast given. No seed. And lo.
[8:32] One born. In my house. Is my heir. Now. For Abraham. What mattered. Wasn't material possessions.
[8:43] It wasn't rewards. Of that kind. It was just one thing. And that was the fulfillment. Of God's spiritual promises. Abraham wanted. A son.
[8:54] A son of blessing. A godly son. That would himself. Be the father. Of a godly seed. That would one day. Bring the Messiah. The savior of the world.
[9:05] Into the world. That's what Abraham wanted. He looked for spiritual things. From his spiritual God. And that was the reward. That he had an eye to. And he pours out his heart.
[9:17] Before God. He's been waiting years. For this son. And this son. Still hasn't appeared. Now it's interesting. That. He doesn't. Pour out his disillusionment.
[9:28] To other people. He doesn't try. And infect other people. With his own disillusionment. About the promises of God. As we are sometimes. Prone to do. What he does. Is he pours out his heart.
[9:40] To God himself. Now don't you forget. That God wants to hear that. I know there's a way. In which it is not right. To complain. But there is another way. In which you absolutely must.
[9:51] Take your complaints. Before God. The Lord. Wants to hear. Your feelings. And your thoughts. As they are. What time. My heart. Is overwhelmed.
[10:02] And in perplexity. Do thou me lead. Unto the rock. That higher is than I. Abraham goes. With his perplexity. To God. Where is my son. Where is the seed.
[10:13] And where is the blessing. For years. I've wandered. A stranger. And a pilgrim. In this place. I fought wars. I've done this. And that. But where.
[10:23] Is the seed. Where is the blessing. And where is the promise. And just to emphasize. His own promise. God says to him. No.
[10:35] Not Eliezer. He will not be your heir. But he that shall come forth. Out of thine own bowels. Or really. Out of your own inward parts.
[10:45] Or if you like. From your own loins. He that shall come forth. Out of your own inward parts. He shall be thine heir. In other words. Abraham. What I said. I said.
[10:56] I mean what I say. And I say what I mean. And he takes Abraham. Out of his house. Now Abraham must have had this vision. Inside his tent. God takes him out.
[11:07] And in verse 5. He says look towards heaven. And tell the stars. If you are able to number them. And he said to him. So shall. Your seed be. And you can imagine the wonder of that.
[11:20] In a clear. Middle Eastern sky. Through the night. Looking up. And seeing the brightness. Of the stars. You know. It's something that's very often lost.
[11:30] In the modern world. I think I mentioned this. Some time ago. When we're surrounded. With street lighting. On all sides. You sometimes forget. What glory. Actually belongs. To the stars.
[11:41] When you see them. Against the backdrop. Of the pitch blackness. All around. You see it still. Of course. In country areas. And things of that kind. Very often in cities. This is lost. But when you look up.
[11:52] In blackness. And you see the wonder. And the glory. Of the stars. And as the psalmist tells us. God created them. He called them forth. And he named them. One by one.
[12:03] He knows them. Every one of them. From one vast expanse. To the other. The Lord. Who brought them forth. Named them. And he knows them. Everything about them. So he says.
[12:13] Shall your seed be. In other words. I have called them forth too. I know your children. And I know your seed. And of course. It refers to spiritual children. Spiritual seed.
[12:24] I have named them. Even now. One by one. They are in my covenant. All of them. And they shall be born. And they shall be saved. And they shall all be taken to glory. No Abraham.
[12:35] The son. Shall come forth. Out of your own bowels. And we are told gloriously. In verse 6. That Abraham believed. In the Lord.
[12:46] And the Lord. Counted it to him. For righteousness. Now that is a very important verse. I will come back to it later on. Abraham just believed. God. And that was counted to him.
[13:00] As his righteousness. That made him a good man. That made him an upright man. That made him a man justified with God. That he just believed. What God said.
[13:12] Abraham believed God. And it was counted to him. For righteousness. But you know. It wasn't finished at that. It wasn't finished at that. God wasn't finished with Abraham there.
[13:24] Because what the Lord does. Is he gives Abraham. A sign. That all this. Is going to come to pass. And the sign. Is one of the most remarkable signs.
[13:36] That we have anywhere. In the whole of the scriptures. And I think when we fully understand. What is happening in this sign. With the animals being cut up. And so on. We get an insight.
[13:46] A great insight. Into what God has done. For ourselves. In his son. Because that. Is really. What it is all about. God gives him. A sign.
[13:58] And the sign is this. That he enters into. A special. Relationship with him. That is based upon the cutting up. Of animals. Now I want to look at this.
[14:10] With you. More closely. And may the Lord. Bless it. To our hearts. We'll look first. At the preparation. That Abraham had to make. Secondly. The strange interval.
[14:22] In darkness. And then thirdly. And especially. The way that this covenant. Is sealed. And that's the words. Of our text. In verse 17. This is the sealing. Or the ratification.
[14:33] Of the covenant. It came to pass. When the sun went down. And it was dark. Behold. A smoking furnace. And a burning lamp. That passed. Between the pieces.
[14:44] Now. Let's take first. The preparation. God asks Abraham. To do something. Or he commands him. To do something. Verse 9.
[14:56] Now listen. God said to him. Take me. A heifer. Of three years old. And a she goat. Of three years old. And a ram.
[15:07] Of three years old. A turtle dove. And a young pigeon. Now for Abraham. That's it. He doesn't have to be told anymore. Because he knows exactly.
[15:18] What he has to do. This is nothing unusual. He knows. That when God asks him. To take these animals. He knows. That God. Is expecting him.
[15:28] To cut up. These animals. To cut them. Lengthways. And to place. One part of the animal. Over here. And the other half. Of the animal. Over here.
[15:40] That is what God. Requires. Of Abraham. To do. In other words. This. Is what was called. Cutting. A covenant. Covenant. Now a covenant.
[15:50] Is an agreement. Simply that. It is an agreement. And when people. In the ancient world. In the ancient eastern world. When they were entering into a special relationship.
[16:01] That was. Very significant. It involved some substantial thing. When they were entering into an important agreement. They would make a covenant. Or literally. They would cut a covenant.
[16:12] And the idea of cutting a covenant. Comes from this action. Of dividing. The animal. In two. When they made this relationship. When they were sealing it. They would cut.
[16:23] An animal in two. Place one half on one side. And one half. On the other. Now. When that was done. What would happen. Was this. Both people.
[16:35] The people who were making the agreement. Would walk. In between. The pieces. Of the animal. They would walk. Back. And four. And when they walked like that.
[16:47] Through the pieces of the animal. In between the pieces. They were making a statement. And the statement that they were making. Was simply this. Let.
[16:57] The fate of these animals. Befall me. May I be slain. Even as they are slain. If I do not keep my covenant.
[17:08] If I do not fulfill. My obligations. And do my side of it. Then may I be slain. May I be devoured. Or may I be destroyed. And that's what always happened.
[17:21] The pieces were set apart. And the two parties. Walked. In the midst of them. Let it be me. If I don't. Fulfill it.
[17:32] Now this is an awful thing. And that reminds us. That it was a sacred covenant. Something that you are committing. Your life to as it were. When you are entering into it. It was an oath.
[17:44] Now the strange thing. About it. When Abraham does all that here. Is this. That nobody. Walks in between the pieces. Or you could put it this way.
[17:55] That for a whole day. At least. Nobody. Walks. Through the pieces. Abraham. Abraham. Does this. We believe. At the beginning of the day.
[18:06] We believe. He saw. The stars. In the sky. Late on. In the night. That in the morning. He would have gathered. The animals. And he would have cut them up.
[18:18] And then he waits. And he waits. Nothing happens. God doesn't tell him. To walk through the pieces. Of the animal. And neither does God himself.
[18:29] Walk. Between the pieces. Of the animal. The only thing. That happens. Is this. That some birds. Come down. From heaven. To try to devour. The sacrifice.
[18:41] Now of course. If these birds. Are interested. In the meat. Of a heifer. And of a ram. And a goat. That tells us. That it is not. An ordinary bird. It is a vulture.
[18:53] It is a bird. Of carrier. It is a bird. Of prey. And so. Abraham. Has a difficult time. Somewhere on his own. In the heat. Of the day. When it becomes.
[19:03] Searing hot. He has difficulty. Keeping the vultures. Away from the pieces. Of the covenant. That God has put. To the side. And that is a figure. Perhaps. For the way. In which the enemies.
[19:14] Of the gospel. Try to destroy. The covenant relation. Between God. And his people. Because Satan. Comes in many forms. As a bird. Of prey. And as a vulture.
[19:24] To devour. And to destroy. Destroy. And he tries. To destroy. Ourselves. And to destroy. Our faith. And Abraham. Fights away. These birds. And he keeps them. At bay. And he does it.
[19:35] Until he is absolutely. Exhausted. He does it. Until the evening. Comes. And then. When the evening. Comes. God. Causes him. To fall.
[19:46] Into a deep. Sleep. Or a deep. Slumber. You will notice. In verse 12. We will read. Verses 11. And 12. And when the fowls. Came down.
[19:56] Upon the carcasses. Abraham. Drove them away. And when the sun. Was going down. A deep sleep. Fell. Upon Abraham. And lo.
[20:07] A horror. Of great. Darkness. Fell. Upon him. And when this horror. Came upon him. It was a strange thing. Abraham was. Brought into a deep sleep.
[20:19] And he felt. Terror. He felt a sense. Of terror. And when he felt. That sense of terror. God said to him. You people. Your spiritual.
[20:29] Children. Are going to be strangers. For 400 years. In a strange land. But afterwards. I'll bring them out. You yourself.
[20:40] Will die in peace. But for four. Come out again. Because the iniquity. Of the Amorites. Is not. Yet. Full. You know.
[20:51] There's an interesting thing there. And I think we should look at it. What's God telling Abraham here? Well. It's the same old truth. And it's still new. The truth is this.
[21:02] That all God's people. Enter blessing. Through tribulation. It was going to be true for Abraham. It was going to be true for his children. It's true for ourselves.
[21:13] That through much tribulation. We must enter into the kingdom of God. Look friends. The Christian life. Is just not promised. To be a smooth. Easy one.
[21:24] No. It involves the vultures. It involves Satan. It involves principalities. And powers. And I say that. Because it's one of the most misleading things. In the world. To tell people.
[21:36] Whether from the pulpit. Or from anywhere else. That if you become a Christian. It's all plain sailing. For some reason. That idea always persists. And it's not right. It's not right. And very many people say.
[21:47] That the Christian life. Is a kind of cop out. It's for people. Who wish to escape. The reality of the world. They call it escapism. As though Christianity. Was escaping. The real life. With all its difficulties.
[21:58] And problems. Well not so. Not so. The Christian life. Is just not like that. It gives you. A new set of problems. A different set of problems. Praise God. That it gives you. The God.
[22:08] Who knows the solution. To the problems. And it gives you. Christ. Who strengthens you. To face them. But it just doesn't promise you. An easy path. It does not. It requires. Putting a cross on your back.
[22:19] It requires. Taking footsteps. Behind the Lord. Jesus Christ. It requires. Going out. Beyond the camp. And suffering. The reproach of Christ. There. But I'll tell you friends. That is a blessed thing.
[22:31] Because whatever. Is in your cup. And however hard it is. However the terror. That takes hold of you. Or the great darkness. That comes upon you. God comes near.
[22:43] In such a way. As to compensate. For all that. And you Christian friend. Who are passing through. A dark. Dark time. Let me tell you.
[22:54] That God will come near you in it. And he'll come near you in it. In such a way. As to more than compensate. For the darkness. That has come upon you. The greater the darkness.
[23:06] Of your providence. The brighter God shines. When he comes. Remember that. You seek him. And he will show himself to you. Just like that. God says to Abraham.
[23:18] 400 years. They'll be enslaved. In Egypt. Why? Well there's two reasons for that. The first reason is this.
[23:30] I speak sometimes about. Killing two birds with one stone. We use that expression. I killed two birds with one stone. Well God is always doing that. With one event.
[23:41] He's accomplishing many. Many different things. That's what he's doing here too. First. This 400 years. Was going to teach his own people. It was going to prepare them.
[23:53] It was going to shape them. And it was going to teach them. And that's the way God brings us. It's not an easy matter. To make us better people. Or to sanctify us. God has to bring us.
[24:04] Through strange paths. And strange providences. And he has to put us through hardship. Just to teach us. To teach us. To bend us and shape us. He's going to put you.
[24:15] As a stone. Into his temple. He takes you out of the quarry. But he's got to knock the edges off. He's got to put a shape on you. Whether you're big or small. He's got to put a shape on you.
[24:25] That will enable you. To take your place in this temple. And God will chip away. Until he has the stone that he wants. He will perfect you. And this bondage was to teach his church.
[24:37] To bring them through a path. That they would learn. Dependence upon God. Because that's the big lesson we always have to learn. Not to rely on yourself. But to rely on God.
[24:49] And many is a path you have to take. Before you're weaned off yourself. And weaned off people. Until you are just put on solidly. The Lord Jesus Christ. The other reason for this 400 years.
[25:03] Is a profound one. It's a solemn one. He says the iniquity of the Amorites. Is not yet full. The Amorites.
[25:14] Were one of the Canaanite people. The most notorious. For their wickedness. And God was going to give them time. And he was going to give them space.
[25:25] Why? Because God is not willing. That any should perish. But that all should come to repentance. God knew. That they would only get worse.
[25:36] But only after 400 years. Were the Canaanites ready to be destroyed. And until they had reached that pitch. God would leave them. Give them time.
[25:48] And give them space. That my friend. Is the grace. And the mercy of God. That is a long long time. To bear with a people. Who were evil.
[25:59] Who were depraved. Given over to every kind of licentiousness. Every kind of idolatry. And every kind of evil. God gave them space to repent. And he gave them time.
[26:11] Put that to yourself. As an individual. Have you ever thought. That God is giving you time. You conclude. Well I'm doing this and that. And there's no punishment.
[26:22] In fact. It doesn't matter. How much I live my life. Against the way the Bible tells me. I'm prospering. And things are going all right with me. Have you ever thought of it the other way? Have you ever thought.
[26:33] That God is good to you. To lead you to repentance? The scriptures tell us. That the goodness of God. Leads us. Or as it means in the Greek. Is designed. To lead you.
[26:44] The goodness of God to you. Is designed. To lead you to repentance. But what do you do with it? You spurn it. You abuse it. You treat it lightly. You think nothing of it.
[26:54] When God is good to you. When God is merciful to you. He's calling you to himself. In the midst of all that. And you still resist him. Friend. When the cup is full. And when your iniquity is full.
[27:06] God will cut you down. And as I said before. When his hand. Is trembling over you. It's as though he didn't know. How to smite. But once he smites.
[27:18] It's as though he never knew. How to be gracious. It is like that. With God. And make sure. Before your iniquity is full. That you rather come.
[27:29] To the Lord Jesus Christ. Confessing your sins. And finding the blessedness. And the forgiveness. That there is in him. He says here. In the fourth generation.
[27:39] They will come back out. Because the iniquity of the Amorites. Is not yet full. When it is. They shall be destroyed. And you shall inherit the land. Just one last wee word on this.
[27:52] God gives promises like this. And they do good for his people. For years to come. I was talking recently. To someone who said that. He had heard promises.
[28:02] When he was just a young Christian. And only now. Was he feeding on them. And that's something like. 30 to 40 years. Since he first heard them. Only now. Is he feeding on these things.
[28:14] See when God said this. They shall come back. In the fourth generation. Did that do Abraham good? Well I suppose it did. But who did it do the most good for? Well you go into that hut.
[28:26] In Egypt. Go into the hut. Of a man called Amred. Amram. And his wife. Jochebed. They've just given birth to a son. And Pharaoh wants all the sons destroyed.
[28:37] But they looked at that son. And they looked in his face. And they said. He is a beautiful child. It means a proper child. It means really a child. Blessed by God.
[28:49] And what were they looking at. When they said that. They were looking at this promise. That in the fourth generation. They shall come out. The people of God were waiting.
[29:00] They were travailing. Prevailing in prayer. To give birth to the Messiah. Who was going to bring them out of Egypt. And when this child is born. The promise came through Moses. In him.
[29:11] They would pass out of Egypt. And go on their way. Through the wilderness. So God's words like that. It is in our heart. And when we need it.
[29:22] Out it comes. And it does us good. It's like that. We store it. And suddenly. Out it comes. And it feeds our soul. To the earth. And it comes out. And it comes out. Now then.
[29:32] This all happened to Abraham. After he had been fighting. To keep the birds away. From the sacrifice. And then suddenly. He comes out. Of his deep sleep.
[29:43] And when he comes out of it. In verse 17. I want you to notice this carefully. It came to pass. That when the sun went down. And it was dark.
[29:54] It was the second evening. Behold a smoking furnace. And a burning lamp. That passed between the pieces. Now what that tells us is this.
[30:07] Just when it was getting dark. He went into a trance again. And he saw the suffering of the church. And then suddenly. He's brought out of it. And it's pitch black again.
[30:20] Around him. Are the pieces of the animals. And nothing has happened. And then. Out of heaven. As it were. Not even as it were. But actually so. Out of heaven. Suddenly this appeared.
[30:32] There is a smoking furnace. Or literally. An oven. A smoking oven. And a burning lamp. Or literally. A lamp of fire. That appears.
[30:43] To him from nowhere. But it comes from heaven. And it suddenly passes. In between the pieces. It makes its way. Right through the divided carcasses.
[30:54] Of the animals. And passes back again. And then disappears. From Abraham's vision. It is an amazing sight. And it's all the more brilliant. When you conceive of it.
[31:04] Against the darkness. Of the Middle Eastern night. There the lamp appears. A smoking lamp. And it passes in. Between the pieces.
[31:16] Now. What does this mean? Well first of all. What about the oven. And the torch. Themselves. Now the oven.
[31:27] Refers here. To the kind of small. Cylindrical. Clay ovens. That they had. And out of it. Was coming. Smoke. And a fiery torch.
[31:39] Now obviously. It was a thing. That was difficult. To describe. And it's described. More or less. As it appeared. To Abraham. What he's conscious of. Is smoke. Cloudiness.
[31:49] And a lamp. Of fire. That is burning. Brightly. And it all seems. To speak of glory. Of majesty. And of power. God.
[31:59] And there's no doubt. But that this is a visible. Emblem. Of the presence. Of God. Himself. How often God. Appears. In the old testament.
[32:10] As a fire. And as a cloud. God appears. As a fire. Because he is holy. Because his holiness. Is untouchable. God consumes.
[32:22] He is a consuming fire. He is absolutely. Pure. He is altogether righteous. And he is altogether holy. And he appears. As a cloud. Because he is mysterious.
[32:34] He is impenetrable. He is unfathomable. No one can by searching. Find out the almighty God. His purposes. Are hidden to him. There are things.
[32:45] In his heart. That no man. Can ever probe. Or investigate. So at the one level. He burns. Before us. In his holiness. But then again. That is mixed. Or mingled. With a cloud. That seems to say.
[32:56] Don't try. Too far. To come in here. Who can dwell. With everlasting burnings. Who that can search out God. Or who can fathom him out.
[33:07] And interestingly. I was referring to this. Somewhere else recently. The word cloud. In Hebrew. Means a secret thing. Or an impenetrable thing. In fact.
[33:17] The same word. Was used for magic. And for the black arts. The word cloud. Simply to bring before us. The obscurity. The mystery.
[33:28] The mystery. Of the holiness of God. Now what I want you to notice. Is this. God comes down. On Mount Sinai. In fire. And in smoke. Here too.
[33:40] He comes in fire. And in smoke. And you'll notice. That it's a smoking oven. In other words. The cloud. There. Is a dark one.
[33:51] It is like smoke. Belching. Out of an oven. That is burning. Now I think what that brings before us. Is this. That God. Reveals himself to Abraham.
[34:04] In his judgment. One thing that might help us. To understand this. Is this. Remember when Israel. Were going through the wilderness. God went in front of them.
[34:16] In a pillar of cloud. And fire. And we're told that. That pillar of cloud. And fire. Gave light. To the Israelites. But then one day.
[34:27] Something happened. When the Egyptians. Were catching up with them. This pillar of cloud. And fire. Moved. From the front. Of the army of Israel. And it went behind them. So that it stood.
[34:38] In between. The Israelites. And the Egyptians. And we're told this. Listen. That this pillar of cloud. Gave light. To God's people. But that it was dark.
[34:51] To the Egyptians. In other words. It was a bright cloud. To God's people. But it was a dark. Cloud of judgment. To those who were not. The Lord's.
[35:01] There was a lot. We could say about that. But we'll just have to leave it there. The important point is. That this cloud. Could take upon itself. The appearance. Of a threatening. Dark. Judgmental.
[35:13] Smoke. And that is precisely. The way that God. Appears to Abraham. Out of the blue. As it were. There is this dark. Smoking. Oven. And a lamp of fire.
[35:25] That appears. And passes. Between. The pieces. Now that's. A wonderful thing. This holy God. Of judgment. Actually himself.
[35:35] Passes. In between. The pieces. Of the animal. Remember. What the meaning. Of that was. It is God. Saying. May I be. As these animals.
[35:46] Are. If I do not. Fulfill. My covenant. Obligation. May I be. As it were. Devoured. If I do not.
[35:58] Do. What I have promised. You. That I will do. Notice. Abraham doesn't. Pass in. Between the pictures. I mentioned that. And I emphasized it. That when a covenant.
[36:08] Is made. Both parties. Pass in. And they both. Promise. To do that part. Here. Abraham. Just doesn't move. All Abraham does. Is he stands.
[36:19] And he witnesses. This remarkable thing. That God. Passes. In between. The pieces. And says. May the curse. Of the covenant. Fall upon me.
[36:31] If my word. To you. Abraham. Does not. Come. To pass. Now. There's even more. To it. Than that. There's more.
[36:42] To it. Than that. How. Well. I suppose. You have to. Ask the question. Well. How could God. Do that. How could God.
[36:52] Say such a thing. Or how could God. Take upon himself. I say that. With reverence. How could he. Take it. Upon himself. To pass. Through the pieces. Of an animal. And to say. Let the curse. Fall upon me.
[37:04] Well. The secret. To it. Lies in this. Look at the animals. That are cut up. Look at the kind of animals. That they are. You've got a heifer. Verse 9.
[37:15] You've got a goat. You've got a ram. You've got a turtle dove. And you've got a pigeon. Now. There's one thing. True. About all these animals. One thing.
[37:27] They were all animals. Used. For sacrifice. The heifer. The ram. The turtle dove. The pigeon. The goat. They were all. Clean.
[37:38] Sacrificial. Animals. You've got a pigs. There. zoom in a less. Thank you. Thank you. You fue. Cool. Good. Good. Heh. Good. Look at Datum. There.
[37:49] Lockess. All right. Support wow. Is it me?
[38:01] Nice. Bye. Dear God. Thank you. Right. Thank you.