By Douglas K. Wilson, Ph.D.
Professor of Biblical Studies, University of Mobile
PROMISED
Genesis 12:1–5; 13:11–18
God keeps His promises. When God establishes a covenant with humanity, He follows through. Genesis 6:18 records the first mention of covenant (berith), which God promised to Noah prior to the flood and then ratified afterward. Following the Noahic covenant, God’s next covenant is with Abram. But who was Abram?
Move (12:1–5a)
Abram was one of three sons of Terah. Terah lived in the region of Mesopotamia, near the southern end of the Euphrates River. He was a descendant of Noah’s son Shem and an idol worshipper (Josh. 24:2). The family had moved from Ur in the south to the northern part of Mesopotamia, and the place was named for Abram’s brother Haran, who had previously died (11:27–31).
God chose Abram to be the recipient of His promise. Abram would become the father of a multitude, and his descendants would be heirs to the promised land. He was to leave dad and his inheritance behind and go to a land he had not yet seen (Heb. 11:8).
This covenant is multifold. Not only did God promise land to Abram, but He also promised greatness: a great nation, a great name and a conduit of blessing to others. Abram was 75 years old when he left his family, though his nephew Lot also came with him. Together they traveled with Sarai, Abram’s wife, toward the land of Canaan.
Separate (13:11–13)
Abram was a man of faith, believing the words that God promised him and acting upon His instructions.
When he arrived in Canaan, he built altars and called upon the Lord when he stopped to set up camp (12:7, 8; 13:4). He was also aware that the inhabitants of the land were watching him and his family (12:6; 13:7).
When division arose between Abram’s herdsmen and Lot’s herdsmen, Abram knew that separation was the best means of protecting family unity and providing for the needs of their flocks.
Family disunity fails to demonstrate living faith, so Abram chose humility and allowed Lot to choose the direction to take his livestock. Lot chose the Jordan valley between the central highlands of Canaan and the Trans–Jordanian highlands east of the river.
Claim (14–18)
Look. What a promise God makes to Abram! North, south, east and west — your descendants will be heirs to this land, He says.
God promised Abram his seed would settle in this land. Many translations choose to translate “your seed” as “your offspring” for these promises, including the Christian Standard Bible.
However, the Apostle Paul explains that these promises about the seed of Abraham are intentionally singular because they are intended to point to Jesus (see Gal. 3:15–18).
Legacy. God promised this 75-year-old man that his seed would inherit this land. Abram trusted God to keep His word, but it must have been hard to imagine having descendants as numerous as dust particles.
Living. Abram received God’s promises by faith. Not only did he believe that the Lord would give the land to his descendants, but he also trusted God to bless him during his own lifetime. So he went back near the first place where he called upon the Lord in Canaan — near the Oaks of Mamre — and he settled there with Sarai (12:6; 13:18).
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