LESSON 8
Genesis for Today: Chapters 12-13
by Herb Drake

Copyright (c) 1998, 2020, Herb Drake.

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The Calling of Abram/Abraham

As pointed out in the previous chapter, a long time elapsed between the Babel judgment and the appearance of Abram. The people were scattered and they could no longer communicate with a common language. While one may have different opinions on whether Adam, Noah, etc., were actual historical figures or were just part of Genesis's method of conveying abstract material through story, we can regard the characters in Chapter 12 and following as actual historical figures. In other words, Chapter 12 ends the "primeval" portion of Genesis and begins the "patriarchal" portion of the book.

Abram came out of a place called "Ur of the Chaldeans," but the exact location is in dispute. The date would probably be c. 1900 BC, also in dispute. It is virtually certain that he came from a people who practiced idol worship, and it is unknown how Abram managed to break from that tradition. The rabbi's have a fascinating speculation, which follows:

In those days people thought that there were many gods. They even made images, or idols, of wood, stone, or metal, and foolishly believed that these were gods who had made the universe, and had even made them. One evening Abraham was walking about just as the stars came out, one by one. He was struck by their beauty, and thought "Surely these are gods." But soon the moon rose, full and bright, and her radiance obscured the stars. Then Abraham thought, "No, this must be god." But at last the dawn came and the moon paled, and Abraham said, "Surely the moon can not be god, for its light has become dim and weak." But at evening the sun sank, and once more the stars appeared. Then Abraham thought long and hard, and finally the truth dawned upon him, that none of these, beautiful though they were, could be god; that there must be some power of good and love behind all these, whose servants they were and whose law they obeyed, and this must be God. So he bowed down and worshipped the one God of all the uinverse. Then it was that God first callled to him to be a blessing unto all mankind. [From Julian Morgenstern, The Book of Genesis, a Jewish Interpretation, Second edition (New York: Schoken Books, 1965, p. 101.]

God's call of Abram begins Chapter 12, and it is a mix of blessing and a command to travel long distances across difficult terrain. That Abram heeded the call is remarkable considering his advanced age of 75 years. He was accomanied by Lot, his wife Sarai, and his entire clan of people and lifestock. That Sarai was barren and also of advanced probably caused Abram to wonder how God would bring about the blessing that had been promised; perhaps, as we see later, he understood the blessing to be implemented through a proxy of some kind.

The blessing of Abram, extending to limitless future generations, will become a "who's got the button?" theme for the entire balance of Genesis. Through which of many children and grand children will it pass? We will find that the blessing is constantly under threat, and we wonder "will this be the bearer of the promise?" as each new child is born. Don't miss the dramatic tension that arises as you continue through the reading of the book.

Abram's response to God's call is immediate, and his devotion is evident in the alters that he builds along the way, God continuing to re-enforce the blessing. But he falters when he encounters famine, and changes his destination to Egypt--the place of safety to which our biblical protagonists so often take refuge when famine or other threats arise. He comes to the attention of the pharoah because of his wife, Sarai, who's beauty is so great that Abram creates a fiction that she is his sister out of fear for his own skin. For Sarai to pass as his wife or sister, she must be well along in years, but tradition holds that her beauty was especially evident in the lovlinesss of her hands. We see Abram's faith in God at a low point at this point in the story, a weakening of his trust in God. Even the pharoah's behavior shows more integrety that does Abram's. God extracts Sarai from the situation in a manner that forces Agram to leave Egypt with the Pharoh's curses ringing in his ears.

The Ending of the Story of Lot

It is probably best to interrupt the story of Abraham and look at his nephew, Lot, as a contrast with his uncle, Abram. Chapter 13 show some parity between the assets of Lot and Abram as Lot's story resumes, and the need for them to separate due to the immensity of each of their flocks. Abram shows generosity when he offers the choice to Lot, subordinating his own economic interests to his nephew. This was something he was not obliged to do, as it was his right as the clan leader to make the decision himself. But we can suppose that he knew him well enough to fully expect Lot to choose the way ye did -- to move into the Jordan valley, toward Sodom. Abram goes in the opposite direction and enters Canaan, where God intended him to go in the first place and where God re-affirms his blessing.

Lot seems to get closer and closer to Sodom, and when we get to Chapter 19 we find him living inside the city and is reluctant to leave when warned of God's plan to destroy it due to its licentiousness. As they flee the city's destruction, Lot's wife ignores the warning to not look back. She does this not to get a better view the destruction, but because she was missing the life they had had there. Her judgment takes place immediately. Lot's story then disappears from Genesis as he ends his days an old widower, fearful of his own shadow, living in isolation in a cave. The last we see of him is as a drunken tool of incest, manipulated by his daughters for their own purposes. From this shameful episode will emerge the Moabites and Ammonites.

Genesis 9-11 | Genesis 14-15