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SERIES A -- YHVH’S PIONEERS -- LESSON 9

FAITH AND FEAR

JOURNEY TO A NEW LAND

From Genesis 12:1–13:4

After Abram’s father died, YHVH Commanded him: [Go forth from your land, from your relatives and from your father’s household to a land I will show you. I will bring forth a great nation from you; I will bless you and make your name famous. You will become a great blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. In you all families of the earth shall be blessed.] At the age of seventy-five Abram left Haran as YHVH Commanded, taking Lot with him. He also took his wife Sarai, as well as the servants and possessions he had acquired in Haran. With this caravan, Abram travelled to the land of Canaan. Abram’s caravan went through Canaan to Shechem and camped near the oak of Moreh, a territory which was occupied by the Canaanites at that time. There Adonai appeared to Abram and spoke to him. [I will give this land to your descendants,] Adonai promised Abram. As a memorial to Adonai’s visit, Abram built an altar there. From Shechem Abram moved onward to the hill country east of Bethel and west of Ai. When Abram had set up camp he built another altar to Adonai, and he worshiped Adonai there. Then Abram moved southward again, passing slowly toward the Negeb. But a severe famine came to the land, so Abram and his family moved to Egypt to live there for a while. As they approached Egypt, Abram had a talk with Sarai. [I realize that you are a very beautiful woman,] Abram told her. [When the Egyptians see you, they may want to kill me and take you alive. Tell them that you are my sister so the Egyptians will show favour to me and spare my life because of you.] When Abram and his caravan arrived in Egypt, the people noticed the beautiful woman with him. Pharaoh’s officers noticed her, too and spoke highly of her to the king. Before long Sarai was taken to Pharaoh’s palace. Because of Sarai, Abram was rewarded richly with gifts of flocks, herds, donkeys, male and female slaves and camels. But Adonai sent great plagues to Pharaoh’s household while Sarai lived there. Pharaoh called for Abram. [Why didn’t you tell me that she is your wife?] he demanded. [Why did you say that she is your sister so that I might have married her? Now take your wife and go.] Pharaoh told his men to escort Abram and his people out of the land. So, Abram left with Sarai, Lot, and all of his possessions, moving back to the Negeb. By this time Abram was very wealthy, for he had livestock and much silver and gold. From the Negeb they moved northward again as far as Bethel, to the place where he had camped before, between Bethel and Ai.

COMMENTARY

UR: ABRAHAM’S HOMETOWN

When we meet Abram, we meet one of the great figures of history. Muslims, Christians, Torah believers and Jews look on Abram as the father of their faith. Abram did have great faith. He left his homeland, trusting YHVH’s Promises to him. But even Abram knew fear. When a famine came fear drove Abram from the land YHVH had given him. And fear caused Abram to cower before Pharaoh, Egypt’s king, and utter lies. Throughout his childhood and youth, Abraham lived in or near the city of Ur. It was probably at least a thousand years old at that time, and was an important centre of Mesopotamia, the region around and between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. In its early years, including the time of Abraham, Mesopotamia’s southern section was called Sumer and was inhabited by the Sumerians, the dominant people of Mesopotamia. Later Babylon dominated Mesopotamia, and still later, Assyria. After Assyria fell, the land was ruled by the Persians, then Greeks, then Romans. Ur was one of the most important cities of Sumer. It was built on the banks of the Euphrates River and was surrounded by a complicated system of man-made canals. An oval wall protected it from attack. Fields beyond the wall supplied the city with food. The most striking building in Ur was a ziggurat, a great tiered tower similar to the Tower of Babel, but three stories instead of seven. This ziggurat, originally about seventy feet high, was dedicated to Nanna, the moon god of Ur. Nanna was considered the true “owner” and ruler of the city. The human king was Nanna’s representative before the people. He was also responsible for maintaining order and providing military protection. Each morning the king held court to hear the grievances of the people. By modern standards the average person in Ur lived poorly. A house was usually a one-story mud-brick building without windows. Crowded among its neighbouring houses, it faced a narrow, muddy street without sewers or pavement. Streets in the public sector of the city were broad and well-travelled. The public marketplace or bazaar was a bustling centre of activity. The Sumerians gathered there for trade and to exchange news. Farmers brought their produce in from the fields and offered a great variety of food. Onions, apples, barley and fish were displayed side by side with exotic wares imported from India or what is now Iran, brought there by travelling merchants. Although minor transactions were handled without receipts, important business deals were recorded by professional scribes on clay tablets. The aristocracy of Ur lived comfortably, attended by slaves and surrounded with luxurious works of Sumerian art. These works of art have been discovered in the tombs of nobles and may be seen today. The Sumerians developed an advanced system of writing with which they recorded their growth and history. Much of what is known today about Abraham’s neighbours comes from their own written records unearthed from the ruins of ancient Ur.

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