Sevenfold promises. I. OF THE FEE - INCARNATE JEHOVAH TO ABRAM . 1. A great inheritance. 2. A great posterity. 3. A great name. 4. A great blessing. 5. A great alliance. 6. A great defense. 7. A great influence. II. OF THE INCARNATE WORD TO HIS DISCIPLES . 1. The kingdom of heaven. 2. Divine consolation. 3. Inheritance of the earth. 4. Divine satisfaction. 5. Divine mercy. 6. The vision of God. ... read more
So (literally, and) Abram departed —from Ur of the Chaldees, or from Haran ( vide supra )— as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him . Lot's name being repeated here because of his connection with the ensuing narrative. And Abram was seventy and five years old —literally, a son of five years and seventy years (cf. Genesis 7:6 )— when he departed —literally, in his going forth upon the second stage of his journey— from Haran . read more
The Chaldaean emigrant. I. THE CALL OF GOD . Whether spoken in a dream or distinctly articulated by a human form, the voice which summoned Abram to emigrate from Ur was recognized by the patriarch to be Divine; and so is the gospel invitation, which through the medium of a written word has been conveyed to men, essentially a message from the-lips of God. The call which Abram received was— 1. Distinguishing and selecting— coming to him alone of all the members of Terah's... read more
- The Call of Abram6. שׁכם shekem Shekem, “the upper part of the back.” Here it is the name of a person, the owner of this place, where afterward is built the town called at first Shekem, then Flavia Neapolis, and now Nablous. אלון 'ēlôn “the oak;” related: “be lasting, strong.” מורה môreh In Onkelos “plain;” Moreh, “archer, early rain, teacher.” Here the name of a man who owned the oak that marked the spot. In the Septuagint it is rendered ὑψηγήν hupseegeen.8. בית־אל bēyt-'êl, Bethel,... read more
Genesis 12:3. In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed This promise crowned all the rest; for it pointed at the Messiah, “in whom all the promises are yea and amen.” Now, with what astonishing exactness has God fulfilled these promises, and yet how unlikely it was, at the time they were made, that they should be fulfilled! Surely we need no other proof that the historian wrote by inspiration of God! read more
Genesis 12:4. So Abram departed He was not disobedient to the heavenly vision. His obedience was speedy and without delay, submissive and without dispute. So should ours be to him who says, “Deny thyself, take up thy cross, and follow me.” read more
11:27-15:21 ABRAM’S ENTRY INTO THE PROMISED LANDAbram obeys God’s call (11:27-12:9)From the nations of the world God now chose one man through whom he would build a new nation, which, in turn, would be the means of bringing his blessing to the whole world (see 12:2-3). God’s chosen man, Abram (later called Abraham), lived originally in the idolatrous city of Ur in ancient Babylonia. Although others in his family worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2), Abram worshipped the one true God and obeyed him... read more
thee. To Abraham personally. See note on Genesis 50:24 . read more
seventy and five. The Law was 430 years "after" this (Exodus 12:40 . Galatians 1:3 , Galatians 1:17 ). Abram 100 when Isaac born, and 105 when Isaac recognized as his "seed" (Genesis 21:12 ). This 25 + 5 explains the 400 years of Genesis 15:13 and Acts 7:6 . See note on Genesis 15:13 . read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 12:2-3
And I will make of thee a great nation . A compensation for leaving his small kindred. The nation should be great And I will bless thee . Temporally (Pererius, Murphy), with every kind of good (Rosenmüller), in particular with offspring (Vatablus); but also spiritually (Rupertus, Bush), in the sense; e.g; of being justified by faith, as in Galatians 3:8 (Candlish). The blessing was a recompense for the deprivations entailed upon him by forsaking the place of his birth and kindred... read more