The Christian life is not knowing exactly what the future holds, but knowing Him Who holds the future. Much more important than where he was, God was concerned with who he was, and in Whom he trusted. Are there conventions to indicate a new item in a list? Hence, his desire to keep up his connection with Abram, who was called of God. Why are non-Western countries siding with China in the UN? It would be many years before Abram would fully grasp that this heir that God had promised would come from the union of he and Sarai. For some reason, Terah and his family stopped short of Canaan, and remained in Haran. Terahs migration was partly perhaps a movement of a tribe of the Semites northwards (see Note on Genesis 11:28), made restless by the Elamites, who about this time overran Western Asia; but chiefly it had a religious motive: for Ur was the especial seat of the worship of the moon-god, Sin; and though Terah had not attained to the purity of Abrahams faith, yet neither was he altogether an idolater. God, in His electing grace, chose Abram to follow Him, while he was going his own way. Pharsal. Then came he out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Charran; and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell" Acts 7:2-4. they came unto Harantwo days' journey south-southeast from Ur, on the direct road to the ford of the Euphrates at Rakka, the nearest and most convenient route to Palestine. The first eleven chapters have often been called primeval history. The last chapters are known as patriarchal history. While the effect of mans sin has become increasingly widespread, the fulfillment of the promise of God in Genesis 3:15 has become more selective. Terah left the city of Ur probably for two reasons: 1. Therefore, the failures are not mentioned. But we know from Stephens words that the call came to Abram at Ur (Acts 7:2). From Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. (m) Geograph. When Terah died, Abraham was free to set out from Haran on his way to Canaan. Genesis 11:27-32 gives a genealogy leading up to Abram and Sarai, beginning with Terah, Abram's father. The early Church regarded Him as the Logos, the second person of the Deity; and only a few of the fathers, such as Augustine and Jerome, thought of a created angel (vid., Hengstenberg, Christol. In Genesis 11, we read that Terah came from Ur of the Chaldeans. 134 Cassuto, the great Jewish scholar disagrees. God said it. The tent is thus the symbol of the pilgrim. Abrams early history is partly that of his gradual disentanglement from country, kindred and fathers house, a process not completed until the end of chapter 13. Derek Kidner, Genesis (Chicago: InterVarsity Press, 1967), p. 113. That is what is implied in the Jewish oral tradition about Abe. At the same time, it does not follow from this use of the expression Maleach Jehovah, that the (particular) angel of Jehovah was essentially one with God, or that Maleach Jehovah always has the same signification; for in Malachi 2:7 the priest is called Maleach Jehovah, i.e., the messenger of the Lord. God had called him to gather his family and leave Ur behind. 129 Cyrus Gordon has suggested that the true Ur of Genesis 11:31 is to be found in northern Mesopotamia, probably northeast of Haran. Terah ends up dying in Haran. Since Abram was unwilling or unable to leave his father's house, God took Abram's father in death (11:32). The Chaldeans, no longer in existence, predate Israel. - On the other hand, the objection is raised, that in the New Testament, which is confessedly the Greek rendering of , is always a created angel, and for that reason cannot be the uncreated Logos or Son of God, since the latter could not possibly have announced His own birth to the shepherds at Bethlehem. Who the messenger or angel of Jehovah was, must be determined in each particular instance from the connection of the passage; and where the context furnishes no criterion, it must remain undecided. (3) The Christians walk is a pilgrimage. Christian faith grows. Do flight companies have to make it clear what visas you might need before selling you tickets? Abraham was the tenth generation from Noah through Shem and was born 352 years after the Deluge, in 2018 B.C.E. How long have you been a Christian, my friend? verse 6). Abram, like Paul, and true believers of every age, would acknowledge that it was God Who sought him out and saved him, on the basis of divine grace. So far as we can tell, then, Terah was an idolater, like those of his days. Specifically, Stephen's comment, in reply to the high priest (Acts 7:1), is based on Jewish oral tradition, and was recognized by the Jewish High Counsel (called the "Sanhedren"). Why was Abraham promised land that belonged to others (Genesis 12)? Of this long period his seed was to be a stranger in a land that was not theirs for four hundred years Genesis 15:13. He does not invest heavily in that which will not last. Can you fathom the fact that after leaving Haran for Canaan, God worked in Abrams life for one hundred years? First, the emphasis of Hebrews 11 is on faith. They sought blessing in the product of their own labors, rather than in the promise of God. The second promise of the Abrahamic Covenant was that of a great nation coming from Abram. Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal (Joshua 8:30). 131 The city of Ur on the lower Euphrates River was a large population center, and has yielded extensive information in the royal tombs which were excavated under the direction of Sir Leonard Wooley and the sponsorship of the British Museum and the museum of Pennsylvania University. We should not find this discouraging, but consistent with our own reluctance to put our future on the line in active, aggressive, unquestioning faith. Terah was just too old, by that time, to actually make any life in Canaan, and might even have died from the long journey that would have been required to get all the way to Canaan. Is this inconsistent with the words of the writer to the Hebrews? And later in the story Rachel, Terah's great-great-granddaughter, does seem keen to hold on to the Teraphim (household idols) as if they were a family heirloom (Gen 31:19). God commanded Terah to leave Ur of Chaldees for the land of Canaan in Genesis 11:31. b. By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going (Hebrews 11:8). ------------------------------------------------------------. Though proceeding by easy stages, the aged patriarch seems to have been exhausted by the length and the difficulty of the way. David saw Him by the threshing-floor of Araunah, standing between heaven and earth, with the sword drawn in His hand and stretched out over Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 21:16); and He appeared to Zechariah in a vision as a rider upon a red horse (Zechariah 1:9.). Here was the basis for the great name that God would give to Abram. 5.) We gather also that the Divine summons came to Abram in Ur (see Genesis 15:7; Nehemiah 9:7; Acts 7:2), but we learn in Genesis 12:1 that his final destination was not then definitely told him. Genesis 2:5). The incongruity of God's covenant with Abram in Gen 12:1? in 1971. Five years? And lastly, it appeared still more manifestly in the twin sons born by Rebekah to Isaac, of whom the first-born, Esau, was rejected, and the younger, Jacob, chosen to be the heir of the promise; and this choice, which was announced before their birth, was maintained in spite of Isaac's plans, or that Jacob, and not Esau, received the blessing of the promise. It is difficult to believe that Abrams public act of worship was not noted and viewed with particular interest by the Canaanites. People came to offer sacrifices to these idols, or to buy them, and Terah had a thriving business. As the writer to the Hebrews put it, he went out, not knowing where he was going (Hebrews 11:8). (Tomkins Studies on Times of Abraham, 55ff.). Over 40 Old Testament references are made to Abraham. Abram was told in detail what he must leave behind. - Terah takes the lead in this emigration, as the patriarch of the family. Planned Maintenance scheduled March 2nd, 2023 at 01:00 AM UTC (March 1st, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup, Ticket smash for [status-review] tag: Part Deux. I see Terah took Abram, Lot & Sarai to go to Canaan, & died on route in Haran, seemingly before God spoke to Abram to leave his country. Do you realize that it was probably years from the time Abram was called in Ur until he ended up in Canaan. - From these varying forms of appearance it is evident that the opinion that the Angel of the Lord was a real angel, a divine manifestation, "not in the disguise of angel, but through the actual appearance of an angel," is not in harmony with all the statements of the Bible. Do what God tells you to do in the most sensible way you know how. He must leave his country, his relatives, and his fathers house. Abe replied something like, "I saw that remaining idol in the corner smash all the others. Our permanent home is not to be found in this world, but in the one that is to come, in the presence of our Lord (cf. As Stephen stood before his unbelieving Jewish brethren, he recounted the history of Gods chosen people, beginning with the call of Abraham: And he said, Hear me, brethren and fathers! Map of Ancient Mesoptomia (Courtesy israel-a-history-of.com). Chapter 12 begins a new division in the book of Genesis. No stop along the path was irrelevant or without purpose. 32 Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran. Abrams life is a growth in faith developed under delayed fulfillment of divine promises. So, according to that oral history, Abe one day waited for Terah to go out of Terah's idol-making shop, and then Abe smashed all the idols except the biggest one that stood prominently in the corner of the shop. Gordons view is held by Harold G. Stiflers, A Commentary on Genesis (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1976), pp. The angel of God, who shows the sacred seer the heavenly Jerusalem, and who is supposed to say, "Behold, I come quickly" (Revelation 22:7), and "I am Alpha and Omega" (Revelation 22:13), refuses in the most decided way the worship which John is about to present, and exclaims, "See I am thy fellow-servant: worship God.". (r) Cartwright's Preacher's Travels, p. 14, 15. As we turn our attention to Genesis chapter 12 let us do so with an eye to Abraham as an example of the walk of faith. On the form in which God appeared, in most instances, nothing is related. So Terah was finally convinced to believe that Shem's advice was right. All he had to rely upon was God, Who had revealed Himself to him. Three major promises are contained in verses 2 and 3: a land; a seed; and a blessing. However, Abraham discouraged potential customers from buying the idols, explaining to them the futility of worshipping statues that were only fashioned that very day. That settles it. The preacher said it could be said even shorter. God was going to make a new nation, not merely revise an existing one. The death of Haran, his oldest son, loosened his attachment to the land of his birth. Ur was in the southern part of Mesopotamia, and was the starting point for Abraham's journey to Canaan. But Terah was influenced by other motives to put himself at the head of this movement. But here are a few possibilities. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there. In Genesis chapter 11, we are told that Terah, his son Abram, his grandson Lot and his daughter-in-law Sarai left their hometown called the Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the Land of Canaan. In the year 1921 B.C. Acts 7:2-4 supports this single call theory: The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham when he was in Do not expect that God will indicate each turn in the road with a clearly marked sign. And, most important, I can find hope for a person like myself. Did Abraham leave Haran before or after his father died? He obeyed unquestioningly the commands of God, from whom he received repeated promises and a covenant that his "seed" would inherit the land. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. ), which were repeated throughout the whole of the Old Testament, and even occurred, though only in vision, in the case of the prophet Zechariah. There are many speculations on why Terah took his family, left the Ur of the Chaldeans and headed for Canaan. Vos, Genesis and Archaeology, pp. Thus, he seems to have rejected Stephens words flatly. The appearances of the angel of Jehovah (or Elohim) cannot have been essentially different from those of Jehovah (or Elohim) Himself; for Jacob describes the appearances of Jehovah at Bethel (Genesis 28:13.) ), or of "Elohim," and the "angel of Elohim" (Genesis 21:17; Genesis 31:11, etc. With God's calling of Terah in verse 31, Ancient Israel was set on an irrevocable course. However I hope you don't mind me editing your answer and making it looking as we'd like to have answers on this site. 2 And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, 3 And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee. On the other hand, Gods command was deliberately vague. 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