Genesis Chapter 12
"Abram's Promise?"
Context:
God commands Abram to leave his home to begin a great kingdom; the promised land. Famine strikes, and Abram relocates to Egypt but after being caught in a lie the Pharaoh has him leave, but only after God’s intervention.
Chief People:
- God
- Abram
- Sarai
- Pharaoh of Egypt
Choice Verses:
GENESIS 12:1
The LORD had said to Abram, 'Go from your country, your people and your father's household to the land I will show you.
- This is God’s first test of Abram, he is told to leave everything he knows; his homeland, his fellow countryman, and his extended family. This also implies that Abram was living with his father Terah, as he commanded him to leave his father’s household.
GENESIS 12:2
I will make you into ; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
- This seems to be hard for anyone to pass up, and God makes it clear he has something monumental planned for Abram. God begins a series of huge and powerful promises to Abram. Abram will not only be pivotal in the creation of a great nation, he will also be renowned. More importantly, he will also have God’s blessing. What is also important to note in this verse is that God tells Abram that Abram will also be a blessing to others.
GENESIS 12:3
I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
- This verse I believe implies God will bless all the families, or "peoples," of the earth, and curse those that curse him. Whatever is meant here, God's promises are not dependent on Abram's actions, or obedience, or goodness, or worthiness. God simply says He will do these things to and through Abram. Period. (Hebrews 6:13–18)
GENESIS 12:4
So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.
- Without question, Abram does as God Commanded, and he takes with him his nephew. Abram leaves his country, his people, and his home and heads toward whatever God has in store for him. He trusts God, which is the essence of the Bible's depiction of faith (Psalm 31:6) (1 Peter 2:6; 2) (Corinthians 3:4). By today's standards 75 years old is considered old, but not as much as today. A lesson here though is that it’s never too late to serve God.
GENESIS 12:5
He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
- All the possessions they had accumulated suggests that Abram was a man of wealth. This does not say “what little” possessions, but “all”. Also of note, Abram also took the people they had acquired, which I believe to be his servants and/or slaves. This would also indicate a man of wealth. The fact that he also brought his nephew Lot, I'd assume Abram was like a father figure to Lot, since Lot’s father had died.
GENESIS 12:6
Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.
- The land of Canaan, which would become the Promised Land. In Shechem, Abram goes to a tree called the oak of Moreh. The Hebrew term moreh means "teacher."
GENESIS 12:7
The LORD appeared to Abram and said, 'To your offspring I will give this land.' So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
- It is possible this tree was in an oak grove used by the Canaanites in their religious cults. It was a common practice of these cults to use nature, including trees, to seek messages from their gods. The fact that this is where the Lord sent Abram here may have been symbolic to a change coming to Canaan. A changing of the guard of sorts, from the Canaanites cult worship and false Gods, to the Promise Lands. Whatever the reason, it was significant, as God appeared to Abram.
GENESIS 12:9
Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.
- In Hebrew, the name Negev means “dry land”. Negev is a hot, dry region in the southern part of Israel, and today, Negev is the largest region in the modern state of Israel. This verse does not specifically say Abram settled there, but he continued his journey towards Negev. In any case, Abram has now journeyed across much of the land which God has promised to his offspring.
GENESIS 12:10
Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.
- Severe famine was not uncommon in this region, the southern part of Israel receives less than eight inches of rainfall each year. Relocating was a matter of survival.
GENESIS 12:11
As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, 'I know what a beautiful woman you are.
- Abram begins here by acknowledging to Sarai that she is a woman of great beauty. In the next verse, he will tell her why that's a problem.
GENESIS 12:12
When the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me but will let you live.
- His concern seems to be that those interested in taking Sarai as their own wife might choose to kill her husband in order to make her available. This must have been a common occurrence in this age, being that Abram was so concerned, and especially with the Promise of God to him of a great nation. Perhaps this is a lesson to us that even those of great faith sometimes have doubts.
GENESIS 12:13
Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.
- In a way, this was not a complete lie, Sarai was Abram’s half sister, She was the daughter of his father, but not of his mother. Regardless if this was a half truth, or half lie, I believe this allows us moral authority to lie for the preservation of life. Abram had every reason to believe his life could be in danger had he told the truth, so he told a half truth. The Bible speaks of Lying for the sake of life when God instructs the Prophet Samuel to lie to King Saul. (1 Samuel 16:1-3)
GENESIS 12:14
When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that Sarai was a very beautiful woman.
- This confirms Abram’s fear about his wife’s beauty. The Egyptians did indeed notice how attractive Sarai was.
GENESIS 12:15
And when Pharaoh's officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace.
- Abram's great fear immediately comes to be. His wife’s beauty was noticed so much so that she was brought to the Pharaoh. Apparently Abram’s plan to say he was her brother was so that he’d be able to deny any request for her hand in marriage, while protecting his own life in return, If he was her husband they could simply kill him, and take her, but as her brother they’d have to receive his permission.
GENESIS 12:16
He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.
- This verse implies that the Pharaoh not only had taken Sarai into his palace, but made her his wife. The simple fact that Abram acquired so many gifts from the Pharaoh tells us this was a payment for marriage, and this was common practice in this time. Abram may indeed be alive, but he has lost his wife. There is no indication the Pharaoh asked for permission, he just took what he wanted, and paid bridal tribute after. Abram failed to trust the Lord to provide a solution he could not see. This is a classic example of good intentions being perverted by foolish actions (Job 5:13).
GENESIS 12:17
But the LORD inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Abram's wife Sarai.
- Although Abram did not put his trust in God when He said he would protect him, God still took control, and stepped in to right Abram’s wrong.
GENESIS 12:18
So Pharaoh summoned Abram. 'What have you done to me?' he said. 'Why didn't you tell me she was your wife?
- The Pharaoh comes to see two truths here; the first that the serious diseases were due to his Marriage to Sarai, and the second that Sahai was actually Abram’s wife. The pharaoh’s anger is understandable, but how he came to both conclusions is not exactly told
GENESIS 12:19
Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!
- Although the Pharaoh gave back Abram’s wife, we do not know if it was because he was an honorable man and respected the union of a husband and wife, or he feared God. Although upset, the Pharaoh passed blame squarely on Abram. Abram’s lack of any recorded response speaks to his acknowledged guilt. This story foreshadows the future interaction between another Pharaoh and Moses.
GENESIS 12:20
Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.
- In the end, with God’s help, all works out. Abram has his wife back, and he appears to be leaving with more than what he came with; no mention of returning the gifts the Pharaoh gave Abram are mentioned in return. An unintentional aspect of the story is God's use of flawed people, whom He blesses despite their sins.
Crucial Words
- Moreh - Is often understood to mean "teacher" or "oracle", referring to the owner of the tree or the land on which it grew.
Cross Reference
- (Hebrews 6:13–18) “13 When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised. 16 People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.”
- (Psalm 31:6) “I hate those who cling to worthless idols; as for me, I trust in the Lord.”
- (1 Peter 2:6) “For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”
- (2 Corinthians 3:4) “Such confidence we have through Christ before God.”
- (1 Samuel 16:1-3) “1 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” 2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”
- (Job 5:13) “He catches the wise in their craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are swept away.”
Questions:
- Genesis 12:1 Why did God choose Abram for his future plans?
- Genesis 12:3 God tells Abram that those who curse him will be cursed, so does that just apply to Abram, or is there more implied there?
- Genesis 12:3 If blessed, how does this square with all the suffering Jews have, and do suffer.
- Genesis 12:4 Why had Abram taken his nephew Lot with him?
- Genesis 12:6 Why did Abram go to this tree?
- Genesis 12:7 What was the significance to God appearing to Abram?
- Genesis 12:12 Why would Abram be concerned when God has promised him many descendants?
- Genesis 12:18 Why did Abram remain silent on the truth about Sarai?
- Genesis 12:18 How did the Pharaoh know that The disease was from the marriage, and how did he know Sarai was Abram’s wife?
Christ seen (or mentioned)?
No
Central Lessons(s), and Timeless Truth(s):
- Everyone can commit sin, regardless of one’s level of faith.
Conclusion:
- Trust in God