Genesis 15
1 His itaque transactis, factus est sermo Domini ad Abram per visionem dicens: Noli timere, Abram: ego protector tuus sum, et merces tua magna nimis.
After all this had happened, God spoke to Abram in a vision, telling him, “Don't be afraid, Abram! I am your protector, and your truly great reward!”
2 Dixitque Abram: Domine Deus, quid dabis mihi? ego vadam absque liberis, et filius procuratoris domus meæ iste Damascus Eliezer.
But Abram replied, “Lord God, what good is whatever you give me? I don't have any children, and the heir to all that I have is Eliezer of Damascus.”
3 Addiditque Abram: Mihi autem non dedisti semen, et ecce vernaculus meus, hæres meus erit.
Abram went on to complain, “Look! You haven't given me any children, so a servant from my household has to be my heir!”
4 Statimque sermo Domini factus est ad eum, dicens: Non erit hic hæres tuus, sed qui egredietur de utero tuo, ipsum habebis hæredem.
But then the Lord told him, “This man won't be your heir. Your heir will be your very own son.”
5 Eduxitque eum foras, et ait illi: Suspice cælum, et numera stellas, si potes. Et dixit ei: Sic erit semen tuum.
The Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up at the sky. See if you can count the stars! That's how many descendants you will have!”
6 Credidit Abram Deo, et reputatum est illi ad justitiam.
Abram trusted what the Lord said, and so the Lord counted Abram as being in a right relationship with him.
7 Dixitque ad eum: Ego Dominus qui eduxi te de Ur Chaldæorum ut darem tibi terram istam, et possideres eam.
The Lord also told him, “I am the Lord, who led you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land for you to own.”
8 At ille ait: Domine Deus, unde scire possum quod possessurus sim eam?
“But Lord God, how can I be certain that I will own it?” Abram asked.
9 Et respondens Dominus: Sume, inquit, mihi vaccam triennem, et capram trimam, et arietem annorum trium, turturem quoque et columbam.
The Lord told him, “Bring me a cow, a goat, and a ram, all of them three years old, together with a dove and a young pigeon.”
10 Qui tollens universa hæc, divisit ea per medium, et utrasque partes contra se altrinsecus posuit; aves autem non divisit.
So Abram took and killed the three animals. Then he cut them in half, and placed each half opposite the other. However, he didn't cut the birds in half.
11 Descenderuntque volucres super cadavera, et abigebat eas Abram.
When vultures flew down on the carcasses, Abram frightened them off.
12 Cumque sol occumberet, sopor irruit super Abram, et horror magnus et tenebrosus invasit eum.
As the sun went down, a deep sleep came over Abram, and at the same time a dense and terrifying darkness fell on him.
13 Dictumque est ad eum: Scito prænoscens quod peregrinum futurum sit semen tuum in terra non sua, et subjicient eos servituti, et affligent quadringentis annis.
The Lord explained to Abram, “You can be absolutely sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be slaves and mistreated for 400 years.
14 Verumtamen gentem, cui servituri sunt, ego judicabo: et post hæc egredientur cum magna substantia.
However, I will punish the nation that makes them slaves, and later on they will leave, taking many valuable possessions with them.
15 Tu autem ibis ad patres tuos in pace, sepultus in senectute bona.
But as for you, you will die in peace and be buried, having lived a good long life.
16 Generatione autem quarta revertentur huc: necdum enim completæ sunt iniquitates Amorrhæorum usque ad præsens tempus.
Four generations later your descendants will come back here to live, because right now the sins of the Amorites have not reached their full extent.”
17 Cum ergo occubuisset sol, facta est caligo tenebrosa, et apparuit clibanus fumans, et lampas ignis transiens inter divisiones illas.
After the sun set and it grew dark, suddenly a smoking furnace and a flaming torch appeared and passed between the halves of the animal carcasses.
18 In illo die pepigit Dominus fœdus cum Abram, dicens: Semini tuo dabo terram hanc a fluvio Ægypti usque ad fluvium magnum Euphraten,
This is how the Lord made an agreement with Abram that day and promised him, “I'm giving this land to your descendants. It extends from the Wadi of Egypt to the great Euphrates River,
19 Cinæos, et Cenezæos, Cedmonæos,
and includes the territory of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,
20 et Hethæos, et Pherezæos, Raphaim quoque,
Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,
21 et Amorrhæos, et Chananæos, et Gergesæos, et Jebusæos.
Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.”
