Teaching Material.—Genesis 11:27 to 12:9; James 2:23.
Pupil’s Reading.—Genesis 11:31 to 12:9; James 2:23.
Memory Text.—By faith Abram, when he was called, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. Hebrews 11:8a, c.
LIGHT FROM OTHER BIBLE PASSAGES
Joshua 24:1-3; Nehemiah 9:7, 8; Isaiah 41:8-10; 51:1, 2; Micah 7:20; Acts 3:25; 7:1-5; Romans 4:13; Galatians 3:6-9; James 2:23.
FROM THE COMMENTATORS
Either during the reign of Hammurabi, or shortly before he established his rule, the migration of Abram from the Babylonian city called “Ur of the Chaldees” in the biblical narrative, into the land of Canaan, is supposed to have occurred.... Though he and his descendants, for a long period, were dwellers in tents, living a nomadic tribal life, like that of their near relatives, the nomadic Arabs, he had come from a country of considerable civilization, where writing and the keeping of records were common, and he had not left that state of civilization behind, ... for “the power and influence of Babylonia had been firmly established for centuries throughout the length and breadth of western Asia.”—The Rise and Fall of Nations, J. N. Larned.
With the spirit of the true prophet, Abraham leaves behind all that men usually cherish most and sets out on his long journey. In Canaan also he disregards his personal interests and is intent only upon knowing and doing the will of God.
Self-sacrificing, courageous, obedient to the voice of God—he is supremely worthy to be the father of a prophetic nation. Blessed was the race that had such a character held up thus prominently before it!—Heroes and Crises of Early Hebrew History, Charles Foster Kent.
In the simple, unhesitating faith with which Abram acted at once and to the fullest, on every intimation of the Divine Will, lay the supreme distinction which gained him his two unique titles—the “Father of the Faithful,” and “The Friend of God.”—Old Testament Characters, Geikie.