Last time in Genesis, we saw how the people, under the leadership of Nimrod, united to rebel against the Lord. Instead of spreading out and replenishing the earth as God had commanded, they settled in Shinar and created their own religious system. They set out to build a tower that reached into heaven that they intended to be a place to worship the heavenly bodies. It was because of this that the Lord confused their language and scattered them throughout the earth into the various nations. Near the end of the chapter, we saw the account slow down and focus on Abram and his family. Abram’s father, Terah, Abram and his wife, Sarai, and Abram’s nephew, Lot, left Ur of the Chaldees to go into Canaan, but they stopped prior to arriving there in Haran (a city in the southern part of modern-day Turkey near the Syrian border). Abram is considered the father of the faith, but as we will see, he will have flaws. As we will also see, God was willing to work with Abram in spite of those flaws.
In chapter 11 we are not told why they were leaving for Canaan, but we find out in chapter 12, as well as in Acts 7, that God had appeared to Abram and told him to leave his native country in Ur, his family, and his father’s house. Haran was almost a sister city to Ur, and they were bound together by the worship of the same deity, the Babylonian moon-god. So, Abram and his family left Ur of the Chaldees on the calling of God, and settled in a city that was much like the one they had left. We have no biblical evidence that Abram was participating in the idolatrous practices of Ur, but, at the very least, they were familiar to him. We don’t know why he settled in Haran for a time, but given the fact that he left after his father died seems to indicate his father was part of what was holding him back. Probably one of the strongest pulls on Christians who want to serve the Lord and do what is right, is their own families. Nothing can put pressure on you like family members who are not fully on board with serving the Lord, or maybe they are not on board at all. Jesus stated, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother-in-law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.” (Matthew 10:34-36) It appears that Abram may have given into this pressure, at least for a time, until his father died. This is what you would call a delayed obedience. As we tell our children, delayed obedience is still disobedience. Abram was told to leave his family and his father’s house behind, so taking his father and nephew along may have been an act of disobedience as well. The Lord did not reprimand him for not going to Canaan immediately, but it may have delayed the blessings He had in store for him. His nephew, Lot, will also be a source of trouble for him later on.
In this calling that the Lord gave Abram while he was still in Ur of the Chaldees, He told him that He would bless him, make his name great, and make him into a great nation. He would be a blessing and all the families of the earth will be blessed in him. Those that blessed Abram would be blessed, and those that cursed him would be cursed. This is true of the physical descendants of Abram (the nation of Israel): A careful study of history shows that those nations and individuals who have blessed Israel have been blessed and those who have cursed them have been cursed. When the Greeks overran the land of Israel and desecrated the altar in the temple, they were soon conquered by Rome. When Rome killed Christians (many of them Jewish) and destroyed Jerusalem under Titus, Rome soon fell. Poland fell after its persecution of the Jews between the two world wars, Hitler’s Germany went down after its atrocities committed against the Jews, and Britain lost its empire when it broke its faith with the Jewish people.
This can even be seen in our own country today. Bill Koenig has written a book called “Eye to Eye” that shows the consequences of the United States trying to divide up the land of Israel. The incidences are too many and too close together to explain them away as mere coincidence. Several natural disasters in our nation happened within 24 hours of either us pressuring Israel to give up land for peace, or them withdrawing from land God has rightfully given them.
This is an important topic, because many Christians today are confused on God’s plans for the nation of Israel. Antisemitism is on the rise, even amongst conservatives. Almost all conservative politicians that I am aware of are in favor of Israel giving up land for peace, but it is a futile task since their enemies will not be happy until Israel ceases to exist.
How can we bless the Jewish people? Should we support them regardless of what they are doing? Certainly not. They are a secular nation, and in many ways just as sinful as we are in our nation. I believe we should first support them in their right to their land, both from a biblical perspective and that of international law. In chapter 12, God promised Abram the land of Canaan, and in chapter 17, He gave the land of Canaan to the Jews as an irrevocable gift. The land of Canaan consists of modern-day Israel, including the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In chapter 15, the Lord gave them land that was much larger. The border starts at the Nile River and extends all the way to the Euphrates. This includes modern-day Egypt, Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, part of Turkey, and all of Israel. Even under king David and Solomon, Israel never acquired this much land, but this is a promise of the Lord that will one day be fulfilled, probably during the Millennial Reign of Christ.
After WWI, Great Britain wanted to give a home land to the Jewish people as a favor to a particular Jew named Chaim Weizmann who had helped them during the war. So, they carved out land in the Middle East for the Jew that consisted of current-day Israel and Jordan under the Balfour Declaration of 1917. As a result of an Arab up-rising, Great Britain took back what is now Jordan, and gave the Jews what is now current-day Israel, including the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This is approximately ½ of 1% of the land in the Middle East. All the Arab nations, as well as the Jews, agreed. It was endorsed by the League of Nations in July Of 1922. It is the last international treaty agreed upon by all the Arab countries and the Jews. So then, as a matter of Divine right and international law, the land of Canaan belongs to the Jewish people. The West Bank and Gaza Strip should immediately be given back to the nation of Israel. Israel has every right to occupy this land and defend it, and more if the opportunity arises.
Do the Scriptures say anything about dividing up the land of Israel? Consider the following passages: “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land.” (Joel 3:1-2) “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye.’” (Zech 2:8) “And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” (Zech 12:3)
I hear many professing Christians speak against the Jewish people, accusing them of all sorts of evils ranging from controlling the world finances, being stingy and greedy, cheating non-Jews, and being Christ killers. This is on top of criticizing them for wanting to live in their own land. More recently, I have heard criticisms of Benjamin Netanyahu somehow being to blame for the Hamas attacks in attempt to secure his political office, and even connecting those in the Israeli government with Jeffrey Epstein. Although there are evil Jews just like there are evil Gentiles, many of these views have been held by antisemites for centuries. the more recent ones have been promoted by people like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, who have revealed themselves to be antisemitic. In fact, just recently, Tucker Carlson questioned former Conservative Party lawmaker Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg in an interview whether England benefitted from going to war with NAZI Germany in WWII (see here). So, although I cannot definitively state all these accusations are false, you do have to consider the source. Christians who truly engage in antisemitism are on the wrong side of the Scriptures, and may find themselves being disciplined by God. If they’re wrong, they’re wrong, and God has called out His own people numerous times for their sin. However, our calling them out should still be based on love and truth, not out of hatred for the Jew or any other people group for that matter. As for being Christ killers, the Jews delivered Him up, but the Romans were the ones who actually crucified Him. So then, both Jews and Gentiles were represented at the cross as being guilty of the blood of the Son of God. Humanity as a whole sent Jesus to the cross, and it is humanity who needs the salvation purchased for us there.
Having said all this, this passage ultimately has its fulfillment in Jesus Christ, the perfect Jew. The apostle Paul wrote to the Romans that we as Gentiles have been grafted into Israel by faith. Those who believe on Jesus Christ (Jew and Gentile) will indeed be blessed, but those who reject Him will be cursed. If we have believed on Jesus, we inherit eternal life and are heirs of all the promises of God, but to those who believe not stand condemned already and will spend eternity in Hell.
So, after Abram’s father died, Abram took his wife Sarai, Lot, and all that they owned, and made the four-hundred-mile journey into the land of Canaan. It states that Abram was 75 years old at this point. He stopped at a place named Shechem, as far as the Terebinth tree of Moreh. The Terebinth tree had several uses, but probably one of the most practical ones for tent dwellers would have been shade. In a time when air conditioning did not exist, shade would have been nice, and even necessary. Shechem sat between two mountains, and was in the middle of Canaan. It would later be associated with Jacob’s well, and in New Testament times was called Sychar, the place where Jesus met the woman at the well. The Scriptures tell us that the Canaanites, those descendants of Ham that we discussed in chapter 10, were in the land at this point.
It was here that God appeared to Abram again and told him that his descendants would inherit the land of Canaan. Notice, God did not speak to Him again until Abram had stepped out in faith and went to Canaan, another possible indicator he was delaying his obedience. Often times the Lord will speak to us and tell us to do something, and He waits for us to obey Him before He gives us further direction. Abram then built an altar unto the Lord who had appeared to him there. After this, he moved to a mountain east of Bethel, between Bethel and Ai. It is the highest part of the land in that area, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem. It seems that Abram was in the habit of building altars to the Lord. Worshiping and seeking the Lord was a regular part of Abram’s life. Abram had a special relationship with the Lord, and no doubt this was part of it.
Next the Scriptures state that there was a famine in the land of Canaan, and Abram went down into Egypt to live. Prior to entering into Egypt, Abram asked his wife Sarai to tell the Egyptians that she was his sister. Sarai apparently was a beautiful woman, and Abram was afraid they would kill him for her sake so that one of them could take her to wife. He was willing to have his wife lie, or as we will find out later, tell a half truth. Apparently, she was his half-sister, something that was permitted in those days. They had the same father, but not the same mother. We also have to conclude that Abram was either willing to allow his wife to commit adultery by marrying another man, or he was willing to tempt the Lord by placing his wife in a compromising situation in hopes that the Lord would bail them out. The Lord did protect her in this case, but we are not guaranteed such protection from the consequences of our own stupidity. Jesus, when He was tempted by the devil to jump off the pinnacle of the temple, responded, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” (Mat 4:7) Abram did all this to save his own neck. Whatever his intentions were, this was a major lapse of faith on his part.
Sure enough, once they were in Egypt, the Egyptians saw how beautiful Sarai was, and they recommended her to Pharaoh. She was then taken into Pharaoh’s harem. The Lord then plagued Pharaoh and his household greatly, and Pharaoh eventually figured out that it was because of Sarai. He rebuked Abram for what he had done, and understandably so. He could have taken her to wife and been guilty of adultery unknowingly. It’s pretty bad when you have to be rebuked by a pagan king. Pharaoh charged all the men not to touch Abram or his wife, and sent Abram and all he had away.
It might seem as if Abram got away with this stunt, but if you notice in verse 16, Abram received livestock and men and women servants in the exchange. One of those women servants was likely a woman named Hagar, and as the story unfolds, we will see that she will be a major source of grief for Abram and Sarai.
There’s a couple of things we can come away with here: First, God does look after His people the nation of Israel, but at the end of the day, it still comes down to a personal decision, what are you going to do with Jesus? All the families of the earth will be blessed in Abram depending on what they do with the Son of God. If you receive Jesus, you will be blessed, and if you reject Him, you will be cursed. That is the only unforgiveable sin, to reject the Spirit’s witness of the Son, and refusing to place your faith in Jesus for salvation. Jesus paid for every other sin on the cross, so your faith in Him and His sacrifice takes care of everything else.
Second, we can learn from Abram’s mistakes. It doesn’t pay to be dishonest, especially when our dishonesty places others in a place of compromise or sin. This dishonesty will continue in Abram, and will also be present in his children and grandchildren. By the time we get to Jacob and Esau, we will see how big of problem this will become.
Third, God did not stop using Abram because of his failures. God would continue to use Abram, not because he was somehow good enough, but because he was a man of faith. At the end of the day, Abram still believed God and did what He said. This is an encouragement for us who have failures and weaknesses as well.
In summary, we see in this chapter God’s calling on Abram, and a reminder that this man of faith was still a man. In the next chapter we will see the Lord expound more to Abram on his plans for him and his descendants.
Additional Links
What is the land that God promised to Israel?
Middle East: War And Peace - Part 1 This is probably the best series I have heard on the whole Israeli/Palestinian conflict. It was given by Jon Courson at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa several years ago.
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