Abraham knows his covenant with the Lord will be fulfilled through his offspring, but he has no children. The Lord reassured him saying, “Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:5-6). The apostle Paul uses this example to argue that his faith allows God to impute righteousness to him, supporting the idea that righteousness comes of faith and grace. (See Romans 4). “He considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb.”
Because of Abraham’s faith he is given a sign of the covenant. The Hebrew word for covenant is beriyth, and its basic meaning is “to cut.” This seems somewhat paradoxical, since we are not seeking to “cut ties” with the Lord, but rather to bond with Him. But Bible scholars have suggested this means nothing more than merely eating together. Think of pie. A whole pie is not good for much, except maybe a practical joke of throwing a pie in the face. But when the pie is cut, it can be enjoyed and shared by all. And the nice thing about sharing the Lord’s piece of the pie is its enormous size! God’s covenant is eternal and infinite. D&C 84:38 says, “And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.” His blessings are infinite in nature, yet he can number His creations (Moses 1:37). Mathematically speaking, an infinite number divided by any finite number is still infinity!
Think of family dinnertime bonding. This is a vanishing tradition, yet when practiced, it brings families together in a communal shared meal. The food is divided and passed around the table. This is why ancient Israel and practicing Jews today participate in feasts, such as Passover, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashana), and Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). Think of the sacrament, as bread is broken into pieces and passed among the congregation. And always think of Him who was Sacrificer, High Priest, and Sacrifice to provide that shared communal meal.
Let’s look at the rest of the story in Genesis 15. The Lord said,
“Take me an 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 he 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 carcases, Abram drove them away.
“And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.
“And he 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
“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.” (Genesis 15:9-13,16-18).
Abraham took the heifer, goat, and ram and cut the animals into pieces and laid them beside each other. When the sun went down and darkness fell upon him, the dark side of the vision came to him. Covenant Israel would be taken into bondage in Egypt but would return to their land of promise after four generations, meaning four hundred years. The sign of the covenant was a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. The smoking furnace could be the pillar of a cloud, and the burning lamp could be the pillar of fire which went before them and led the Israelites out of bondage. (Exodus 13:21).
A similar sign, or token, is mentioned in Jeremiah 34:18 in a covenant context:
“And I will give the men (into the hand of their enemies) that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof.”
In 3 Nephi chapters 20 and 21, the Savior miraculously produces bread and wine for the sacrament. He breaks the bread into pieces and then delivers a message about the scattering and gathering of the house of Israel. Let’s look at the phrases dealing with separation, cutting, and tearing into pieces relating to the scattering of Israel:
. . . the remnants, which shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the earth (20:13)
treadeth down and teareth in pieces (20:16)
all thine enemies shall be cut off (20:17)
thou shalt beat in pieces many people (20:19)
the sword (for cutting) of my justice shall hang over them at that day (20:20)
every soul who will not hear that prophet shall be cut off (20:23)
which blessing upon the Gentiles shall make them mighty above all, unto the scattering of my people (20:27)
they shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant (21:11)
if he go through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces (21:12)
all their enemies shall be cut off (21:13)
I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee (21:14)
I will cut off the cities of thy land (21:15)
I will cut off witchcrafts out of thy land (21:16)
Thy graven images I will also cut off (21:17)
them will I cut off from among my people (21:20)
who are scattered upon all the face of the land (21:24)
Now let’s look at the covenant to gather Israel:
then shall the remnants, which shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the earth, be gathered in (20:13)
I will gather my people together as a man gathereth his sheaves into the floor (20:18)
I have covenanted with them that I would gather them together in mine own due time (20:29)
Then will the Father gather them together again (20:33)
So shall he sprinkle (gather) many nations (20:45)
I shall gather in, from their long dispersion, my people (21:1)
they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob (21:22)
then shall they assist my people that they may be gathered in (21:24)
with the Father to prepare the way whereby they may come unto me (21:27)
whereby his people may be gathered home to the land of their inheritance (21:28)
Conclusion: Because of the Fall we have been cut off and separated from the presence of God. The atonement of Jesus Christ reunites us and brings us back into His presence. His atonement takes us when we are broken and makes us whole. This is His covenant with scattered Israel.
