thy kindred, and out of thy father’s house[1], and come into the land which I will show thee, and I will make of thee[2] a great nation. I will bless thee, and magnify thy name, and thou shalt be blessed, and in thee shall all the nations of the world be blessed.” [3]
The father of Abram had gone from Ur in Chaldea, and taken up his abode in Haran[4], with his relatives; but as idolatry had at last made its way even into that family, the Lord called ‘Abram forth from amongst his kindred. Abram believed the word of the Lord, and instantly set out for Chanaan, taking with him Sarai, his wife, and Lot[5], his nephew, and his servants and his herds of cattle. After a long journey, he arrived in the land of Chanaan, and came to Sichem (Fig. 5). He was then seventy-five years old. Chanaan, on account of its beauty and fertility, was called a land flowing with milk and honey. There the Lord appeared again to Abram and said to him: “To thy seed will I give this land.’’ Henceforth[6] Chanaan was also called the Promised Land [7]. Abram, wishing to show his gratitude, raised in that place an altar to the Lord.
- ↑ Thy father's house. God commanded Abram to do this, because idolatry prevailed in his own country, and even among his own kindred. He wished moreover to test Abram’s obedience and trust in Him.
- ↑ Make of thee. i. e. thy descendants shall be a great nation.
- ↑ Blessed. From Abram was to descend the Redeemer who would bring grace and blessing to all mankind.
- ↑ Haran. On the upper Euphrates. See Gen. 11, 31 — 32.
- ↑ Lot. i. e. his brother’s son. Lot’s father was dead.
- ↑ Henceforth, i. e. from the time God promised it to Abram’s descendants.
- ↑ Promised Land. We Christians call it the Holy Land, because it was there that our Lord lived, laboured and suffered. In geography it is called Palestine. This important country is situated at the east end of the Mediterranean Sea, and occupies a very small space in the eastern hemisphere. It is only about 140 miles long from north to south , and 40 miles broad, and is about as large as Wales. It is bounded on the north by the mountains of Lebanon; on the south by the deserts of Arabia; on the west by the Mediterranean; and on the east by the Syrian deserts. God, in Ilis wisdom, appointed this land to be the abode of His chosen people, because it was so well suited to their peculiar vocation. The land of Chanaan is pretty well shut in on all sides by mountains, sea and deserts, and this seclusion made it more easy for the people of God to keep themselves aloof from heathen nations, and preserve intact the true faith. On the other hand Chanaan was situated in the centre of the then known world, so that it was easy to spread among all nations, first, the promise of the Redeemer, and later on, the preaching of the Gospel.
