And Jehovah saith unto Abram, 'Go for thyself, from thy land, and from thy kindred, and from the house of thy father, unto the land which I shew thee.Genesis 12:1 Additional Translations
Clarke's Commentary on the BibleGet thee out of thy country - There is great dissension between commentators concerning the call of Abram; some supposing he had two distinct calls, others that he had but one. At the conclusion of the preceding chapter, Genesis 11:31, we find Terah and all his family leaving Ur of the Chaldees, in order to go to Canaan. This was, no doubt, in consequence of some Divine admonition. While resting at Haran, on their road to Canaan, Terah died, Genesis 11:32; and then God repeats his call to Abram, and orders him to proceed to Canaan, Genesis 12:1.
Dr. Hales, in his Chronology, contends for two calls: "The first," says he, "is omitted in the Old Testament, but is particularly recorded in the New, Acts 7:2-4 : The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was (at Ur of the Chaldees) in Mesopotamia, Before He Dwelt In Canaan; and said unto him, Depart from thy land, and from thy kindred, and come into the land (γην, a land) which I will show thee. Hence it is evident that God had called Abram before he came to Haran or Charran." The Second Call is recorded only in this chapter: "The Lord said (not Had said) unto Abram, Depart from thy land, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto The Land, הארץ HA-arets, (Septuagint, Την γην), which I will show thee." "The difference of the two calls," says Dr. Hales, "more carefully translated from the originals, is obvious: in the former the land is indefinite, which was designed only for a temporary residence; in the latter it is definite, intimating his abode. A third condition is also annexed to the latter, that Abram shall now separate himself from his father's house, or leave his brother Nahor's family behind at Charran. This call Abram obeyed, still not knowing whither he was going, but trusting implicitly to the Divine guidance."
Thy kindred - Nahor and the different branches of the family of Terah, Abram and Lot excepted. That Nahor went with Terah and Abram as far as Padan-Aram, in Mesopotamia, and settled there, so that it was afterwards called Nahor's city, is sufficiently evident from the ensuing history, see Genesis 25:20; Genesis 24:10, Genesis 24:15; and that the same land was Haran, see Genesis 28:2, Genesis 28:10, and there were Abram's kindred and country here spoken of, Genesis 24:4.
Thy father's house - Terah being now dead, it is very probable that the family were determined to go no farther, but to settle at Charran; and as Abram might have felt inclined to stop with them in this place, hence the ground and necessity of the second call recorded here, and which is introduced in a very remarkable manner; לך לך lech lecha, Go For Thyself. If none of the family will accompany thee, yet go for thyself unto That Land which I will show thee. God does not tell him what land it is, that he may still cause him to walk by faith and not by sight. This seems to be particularly alluded to by Isaiah, Isaiah 41:2 : Who raised up the righteous man (Abram) from the east, and called him to his foot; that is, to follow implicitly the Divine direction. The apostle assures us that in all this Abram had spiritual views; he looked for a better country, and considered the land of promise only as typical of the heavenly inheritance.
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had.
Genesis 11:31,32 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife...
Genesis 15:7 And he said to him, I am the LORD that brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.
Nehemiah 9:7 You are the LORD the God, who did choose Abram, and brought him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham;
Isaiah 41:9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called you from the chief men thereof, and said to you, You are my servant...
Isaiah 51:2 Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah that bore you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
Ezekiel 33:24 Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes of the land of Israel speak, saying, Abraham was one, and he inherited the land...
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Joshua 24:2,3 And Joshua said to all the people, Thus said the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelled on the other side of the flood in old time...
Psalm 45:10,11 Listen, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear; forget also your own people, and your father's house...
Luke 14:26-33 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters...
Acts 7:2-6 And he said, Men, brothers, and fathers, listen; The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia...
2 Corinthians 6:17 Why come out from among them, and be you separate, said the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out...
Revelation 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that you be not partakers of her sins...
Genesis 12:1 Parallel Commentaries
Abram Country Depart Family Father's Forth Guide House Household Kindred Leave Relatives Shew Show ThyselfAbram Country Depart Family Father's Forth Guide House Household Kindred Leave Relatives Shew Show ThyselfTHE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica®.Genesis 12:1 Mobile Bible
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