The ancient way of establishing a covenant was to “cut a covenant.”  The Hebrew word for “covenant” is “berîyth” and it is derived from a root word that means “to cut.” Ancient covenants were established by the cutting of animals into two parts. The contracting parties would then pass between the animal parts. They were basically saying, “If I don’t keep my end of the bargain, you can do to me what has been done to these animals.”

The covenant God made with Abraham in Genesis chapter 12 is sealed in Genesis 15:9-18, “And the LORD said unto him, take me a heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And Abram took unto Him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not. And when the fowls came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away. And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, a horror of great darkness fell upon him. And the LORD said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. 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. In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.”

In these verses, God pulls aside the curtain of the future through which only He can see, and reveals to Abraham events of his life and what his descendants are going to face. It must have been encouraging for Abraham to learn that he would have a long life, but it was almost certainly discouraging to hear that his descendants would spend four hundred years in slavery. In this conversation, God also guaranteed a certain parcel of land to the Children of Israel. That land has been a source of contention through the ages. While each of these items are important, the most crucial element is the covenant that God bound Himself to.

God instructed Abraham to kill a heifer, a goat, and a ram and cut them in two. The birds were not to be divided. But rather than God and Abraham both passing between the animals, God put Abraham into a deep sleep, so God alone passed between the animals.

This established the Abrahamic Covenant as an unconditional covenant, one that could not be broken by Abraham or his descendants. It was not dependent on what they did or did not do. It was sealed and guaranteed by God Himself apart from any human involvement.