passed between the parts thereof - The contracting parties in the “covenant” (not here the law in general, but their covenant made before God in His house to emancipate their slaves, Jer 34:8, Jer 34:9) passed through the parts of the animal cut in two, implying that they prayed so to be cut in sunder (Mat 24:51; Greek, “cut in two”) if they should break the covenant (Gen 15:10, Gen 15:17).