The fowls came to devour them; whereby is signified, either,
1. The disturbance and distraction which good men are exposed to in the service of God from evil spirits and men; or rather,
2. The great peril of Abram's posterity, who were not only torn in pieces like these sacrifices, but even the remainder of them were likely to be devoured by the Egyptians, whose king is compared to an eagle, the chief of the birds of prey, Ezekiel 17:1-24. Abram drove them away by the blast of his mouth, as the Hebrew word signifies; representing Abram's conquest over all his enemies by faith and prayer, whereby he engaged God to be the Preserver and Deliverer of his people.