Genesis 12:6-7

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Genesis 12:6-9

One would have expected that Abram having had such an extraordinary call to Canaan some great event should have followed upon his arrival there, that he should have been introduced with all possible marks of honour and respect, and that the kings of Canaan should immediately have surrendered their crowns to him, and done him homage. But no; he comes not with observation, little notice is taken of him, for still God will have him to live by faith, and to look upon Canaan, even when he was in... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 12:6

And Abram passed through the land ,.... Entering the northern part of it, as appears by his going southward, Genesis 12:9 he went on unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh ; the place afterwards called Shechem, from a prince of that name in the times of Jacob; and so it was called when Moses wrote, and therefore, by way of anticipation, calls it so here; it was about the middle of the land of Canaan, and the same with Sychar, a city of Samaria, in the times of Christ, John... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 12:7

And the Lord appeared unto Abram ,.... Perhaps in an human form, and so it was the Son of God; for whenever there was any visible appearance of a divine Person, under the former dispensation, it seems to be always of the essential Word, that was to be incarnate, and who spake with an articulate voice: and said, unto thy seed will I give this land ; the whole of it inhabited by Canaanites and others; and it was for this end chiefly that Abram was called out of Chaldea into Canaan, to be... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 12:6

The plain of Moreh - אלון elon should be translated oak, not plain; the Septuagint translate την δρυν την ὑψηλην , the lofty oak; and it is likely the place was remarkable for a grove of those trees, or for one of a stupendous height and bulk. The Canaanite was then in the land - This is thought to be an interpolation, because it is supposed that these words must have been written after the Canaanites were expelled from the land by the Israelites under Joshua; but this by no means... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 12:7

The Lord appeared - In what way this appearance was made we know not; it was probably by the great angel of the covenant, Jesus the Christ. The appearance, whatsoever it was, perfectly satisfied Abram, and proved itself to be supernatural and Divine. It is worthy of remark that Abram is the first man to whom God is said to have shown himself or appeared: In Ur of the Chaldees, Acts 7:2 ; and 2. At the oak of Moreh, as in this verse. As מורה Moreh signifies a teacher, probably this... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 12:6

Verse 6 6.And Abram passed through the land. Here Moses shows that Abram did not immediately, on his entering into the land, find a habitation in which he might rest. For the expression passed through, and the position of the place (Sichem) to which he passed, show that the length of his journey had been great. Sichem is not far from Mount Gerizim, which is towards the desert of the Southern region. Wherefore, it is just as Moses had said, that the faith of Abram was again tried, when God... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 12:7

Verse 7 7.And the Lord appeared unto Abram. He now relates that Abram was not left entirely destitute, but that God stretched forth his hand to help him. We must, however, mark, with what kind of assistance God succours him in his temptations. He offers him his bare word, and in such a way, indeed, that Abram might deem himself exposed to ridicule. For God declares he will give the land to his seed: but where is the seed, or where the hope of seed; seeing that he is childless and old, and his... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 12:6

And Abram passed through —literally, passed over, or traveled about as a pilgrim (cf. Hebrews 11:9 ) in— the land unto (or as far as) the place of Sichem . A prolepsis for the place where the city Shechem (either built by or named after the Hivite prince, Genesis 34:2 ) was afterwards situated, viz; between Ebal and Gerizim, in the middle of the land; "the most beautiful, perhaps the only very beautiful, spot in Central Palestine" (Stanley's 'Sinai and Palestine,' 5:234). The... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 12:6-9

Revelations. We here enter upon the more special history of Divine appearances. Hitherto the word is described simply as a word—"The Lord said;" now we connect with the word distinct appearances. The plain of Moreh will be ever memorable as the first scene of such revelations. The altar which Abram erected was to the Lord who appeared unto him, i.e. in commemoration of the vision. Thus the long line of theophanies commences. The great lesson of this record is the worship of man... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 12:6-10

The promised land. I. WANDERINGS . Entering Canaan from the north, the Chaldsean emigrant directs his progress steadily towards the south, removing from station to station till he reaches the furthest limit of the land. This wandering life to the patriarch must have been II. TRIALS . Along with ceaseless peregrinations, more or less exacting in their nature, trials of another and severer sort entered into the texture of the patriarch's experience in the promised land. The... read more

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