“He said: My Lord God, how can I know that I will inherit it?” (Genesis 15:8). “He said: My Lord God, how can I know” – Rabbi Ḥiyya ben Rabbi Ḥanina said: [Abraham said this] not like someone who is complaining, but rather, he said to Him: ‘By what merit [will I inherit it]?’ He said to him: ‘By means of the atonements that I will provide for your descendants.’ “He said to him: Take for Me three calves, and three goats, and three rams, and a dove, and a young pigeon” (Genesis 15:9).
“He said to him: Take for Me three calves” – He showed him three types [of atonement] involving bulls, three types involving goats, and three types involving rams: Three types involving bulls: the bull of Yom Kippur;45See Leviticus 16:3. the bull that is brought for the transgression of any of the mitzvot;46See Leviticus 4:13–21. and the beheaded calf.47See Deuteronomy 21:1–8. Three types involving goats: the goats of the festivals;48See Numbers 28:22–29:38. the goats of the New Moon;49See Numbers 28:15. and the goat offered by the individual.50See Numbers 15:27.
Three types involving rams: the definite guilt offering;51See Leviticus 5:15, 5:20–25, 19:20–21. the provisional guilt offering;52See Leviticus 5:17–18. and the lamb offered by the individual.53See Leviticus 4:32. “And a dove, and a young pigeon.”54See Leviticus 5:7. “He took all these for Him. He divided them in the middle, and placed each half opposite the other; but the birds he did not divide” (Genesis 15:10).
“He took all these for him” – Rabbi Shimon bar Yoḥai and the Rabbis, Rabbi Shimon bar Yoḥai says: He showed him all the [other] types of atonement, but the tenth of an ephah [meal offering]55See Leviticus 5:11. He did not show him. The Rabbis say: He showed him the tenth of an ephah as well. It is stated here: “He took all these [eleh] for Him” and it is stated elsewhere: “You shall bring the meal offering that is prepared of these [eleh] to the Lord” (Leviticus 2:8).56The word eleh, found in both verses, forms the basis of a verbal analogy, suggesting that the meal offering is alluded to here as well.
“But the birds he did not divide” – the Holy One blessed be He showed him that [the head of] the bird burnt-offering is to be severed57The bird is slaughtered so that the neck is cut all the way through, the head being almost severed. but [the head of] the bird sin-offering is not to be severed.58The slaughter of this bird sacrifice does not pierce through the entire neck (see Leviticus 5:8). Since the birds brought by Abraham alluded to the atonement of a bird sin-offering, he did not cut it in two.