Genesis 12:1
King James Version (KJV)
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
Translations
Genesis 12:1 - Amplified Bible
NOW [in Haran] the Lord said to Abram, Go for yourself [for your own advantage] away from your country, from your relatives and your father's house, to the land that I will show you.
Genesis 12:1 - American Standard Version
Now Jehovah said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy fathers house, unto the land that I will show thee:
Genesis 12:1 - Bible in Basic English
Now the Lord said to Abram, Go out from your country and from your family and from your father's house, into the land to which I will be your guide:
Genesis 12:1 - Darby Bible
And Jehovah had said to Abram, Go out of thy land, and from thy kindred, and from thy father`s house, to the land that I will shew thee.
Genesis 12:1 - English Standard Version
Now the
Genesis 12:1 - King James Version
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
Genesis 12:1 - La Biblia de las Americas
Y el SEÑOR dijo a Abram:
Vete de tu tierra,
de entre tus parientes
y de la casa de tu padre,
a la tierra que yo te mostraré.
Genesis 12:1 - The Message
God told Abram: "Leave your country, your family, and your father’s home for a land that I will show you.
Genesis 12:1 - New American Standard Bible
Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you;
Genesis 12:1 - Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy
Y el SEÑOR dijo a Abram:
"Vete de tu tierra,
De entre tus parientes
Y de la casa de tu padre,
A la tierra que Yo te mostraré.
Genesis 12:1 - World English Bible
Now Yahweh said to Abram, "Get out of your country, and from your relatives, and from your father`s house, to the land that I will show you.
Genesis 12:1 - Young's Living Translation
And Jehovah saith unto Abram, `Go for thyself, from thy land, and from thy kindred, and from the house of thy father, unto the land which I shew thee.
Genesis 12:1 - Additional Comments
Chapter 12 is the pivotal chapter of Genesis. From this point on God centers His attention upon one man, Abraham, and his family. Previously, God had dealt with the creation of the Universe and the beginnings of the human race, but now He turns His attention to the nation that would be His own. We turn from the rebelliousness of man to the salvation through Abraham's family.
Chapters 12-50 are intensely personal accounts of family life in the ancient world. They show us real, human characters living their lives with all of the problems and successes common to life and dealing with a real, personal God.
Abram was 10 generations from Noah. Any knowledge or faith in God must have carried through those 10 generations. What a faith in God Abram must have had to obey the Lord with such a life changing request. And this is only the beginning of situations where we see Abram trust God (e.g. birth of Isaac in Gen 15, 21, sacrifice of Isaac in Gen 22). Abram's faith was not based on any Scripture, for none yet existed - the Pentateuch was written by Moses, yet about 500 years away. It was by word of mouth.
The genealogy to Jesus starts with Abram, and does not consider any before him (see Matt 1:2). This is the true beginning of a nation, as God promised. In somewhat the same way, we each are beginning a nation. We should not only consider what legacy we are leaving with our children, but with what legacy is our nation being built. Abram's began with faith, obedience, and trust.
Notice that God did not lay out the plan for Abram ahead of time; He would not reveal the destination until later. Again, more evidence of Abram's great trust in God.
A person back then would be raised and grow old with all the family together, evidenced by it making note that his leaving would be leaving his family. Yet Abram overcame any struggle with this and obeyed.
What burdens do we carry that would prevent us from obeying? Are they financial (e.g. debt)? emotional? trusting in wrong things for security? We would again have to ask this question in the situation where Abram went to sacrifice Isaac.
Most of us become very comfortable with life as we know it, and resist change. Because we don't like change, when change is forced upon us, much of the time it can shake the foundation of our faith. Have you ever experienced a change that forced you to reevaluate your relationship with God?
Would we have difficulty obeying because we fear change? Tell me about some of the transitions you've experienced in your life that were fearful to you. What brought you to the point that you made the change? Tell me about any transitions you chose NOT to make because they were fearful to you, and why.
Remember Heb 11:1 - faith is being certain of what we don't know or can't see.
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