Well, you've made it through the confusing babble of the Tower of Babel and made it to the first big transition in the Bible. The genealogy of chapter 11 gives way now to the story of the patriarchs (and matriarchs!) of the Hebrew faith.
Before we dive right in to this new section of Scripture, it is very important to remember that while the stories of the ancestors are set in the long ago time period of 2000 B.C., they weren't actually written down until sometime between 500 B.C. - 300 B.C.
While ancient cultures were much better than modern people at memorizing stories and passing them on, it is important to note that ancient people did not value the same kinds of stories and reports that modern people do. The stories of the Patriarchs should not be considered "history" as we know it, but rather more like legends. They undoubtedly contain information passed on through the generations, but their primary purpose was not to record facts but to tell the important story of the origins of the Hebrew religion.
As we will soon see, the writers and editors who actually assembled all the various oral traditions, also took the opportunity to address contemporary concerns, important to the Hebrew people at that time. They did this by inserting or changing certain details in the story to suit their own purposes.
The result is like a big casserole! The story of the patriarchs is a rich treasure trove containing faith, philosophy, culture, politics, and a bit of history as well with source material that spans many centuries. So let's get started!
Chapters 12 - 15
Before we dive right in to this new section of Scripture, it is very important to remember that while the stories of the ancestors are set in the long ago time period of 2000 B.C., they weren't actually written down until sometime between 500 B.C. - 300 B.C.
While ancient cultures were much better than modern people at memorizing stories and passing them on, it is important to note that ancient people did not value the same kinds of stories and reports that modern people do. The stories of the Patriarchs should not be considered "history" as we know it, but rather more like legends. They undoubtedly contain information passed on through the generations, but their primary purpose was not to record facts but to tell the important story of the origins of the Hebrew religion.
As we will soon see, the writers and editors who actually assembled all the various oral traditions, also took the opportunity to address contemporary concerns, important to the Hebrew people at that time. They did this by inserting or changing certain details in the story to suit their own purposes.
The result is like a big casserole! The story of the patriarchs is a rich treasure trove containing faith, philosophy, culture, politics, and a bit of history as well with source material that spans many centuries. So let's get started!
Chapters 12 - 15
Abram leaves Mesopotamia for the land of Canaan.
Usually the great hero of modern story or movie is rugged, handsome, and in his thirties. Abram, however, is said to be 75 when the Lord calls to him and tells him to leave his home and move to a new land down south in Canaan. Amazingly, the story here does not describe Abram's reaction other than to say that "Abram went, as the Lord had told him." At this point, contemporary readers might be frustrated already by this ancient story-telling style which does not include the psychology or inner emotion of our central character. While I encourage you to reflect on how you might feel in Abram's situation, remember that anything we come up with is our own speculation that we read into the story.
In verse 7 of chapter 12, we get the very first promise from the Lord, which in this particular source material, does not take the shape of a formal covenant. That will come later in the story from other oral traditions. What you should focus on, however, is that Abram isn't required to do anything! This is pure grace on the part of God.
In verse 7 of chapter 12, we get the very first promise from the Lord, which in this particular source material, does not take the shape of a formal covenant. That will come later in the story from other oral traditions. What you should focus on, however, is that Abram isn't required to do anything! This is pure grace on the part of God.
God's promise to Abram
It's at this point that things start to get fairly weird. The author explains that due to a famine, Abram and Sarai traveled down to Egypt. It is reasonable to assume that this move was not an unusual one for many people surrounding the ancient civilization of Egypt, which we know from ruins, enjoyed many periods of prosperity due to the fertile fields along the Nile river.
What is strange is that our hero, in fear of his own life, passes Sarai off as his sister. For those of us who read the Bible as Holy Scripture, it is upsetting to see an important ancestor of our faith making dubious moral choices in the face of difficult circumstances. With this story, and many more to come in the whole Bible, we see evidence of human frailty and we must accept it as such. Perhaps we can even see ourselves in characters like Abraham!
In regards to the story-telling, the tension here is that God's promise that Abram's offspring will inherit the land of Canaan is now under threat. Sarai is the property of a powerful king, and it appears that God's promise will come to nothing. It is easy to imagine the pleasure a Hebrew audience would take from this story that depicts the Lord as the powerful ally of their ancestor who comes to his rescue in a foreign land.
In chapter 13, we truly meet for the first time a character only mentioned before; Abram's nephew Lot. Modern readers should note, that the real importance of this story is to explain the origins of the Moabites and Ammonites. Living on plains east of the Jordan river, they were considered distant relatives of the Hebrew people by the kingdom of Israel, and Lot and Abram are the point of connection. Here in story form, we see the explanation as to why the Hebrews live west of the river, and the Moabite people to the east.
In chapter 14 there is a long list of various kings and cities to which they belong. If you'd rather not get bogged down in all this geography, all you need know is that this section describes areas of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), the land east of the Jordan River (modern country of Jordan), and the land of Canaan (modern Israel).
While the focus of this short story is Abram's rescue of his nephew Lot, held captive in the ensuing battle, what is of real interest to us is the mysterious figure of Melchizedek. He is called both the king and priest of Salem, which most likely refers to the ancient Canaanite city that would become Jerusalem. Your Bible most likely has translated verse 18 in a way similar to the following, "And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High."
In Hebrew, Melchizedek's allegiance is actually a little more ambiguous. "el'elyon" could mean God most High, or a god (as in another one) most high. Does he worship Abram's God? Or is he the pagan priest/king of another Canaanite god? The text isn't clear. Jewish interpreters have puzzled over this section and come to different interpretations. And you should note, that when we get to the New Testament book of Hebrews, that author will also spend a great deal of time interpreting Melchizidek, the first priest mentioned in the Bible, as a forerunner to Jesus himself. In any event, he is a memorable character because he takes on a great deal of symbolism for both Jews and Christians alike.
In chapter 14 there is a long list of various kings and cities to which they belong. If you'd rather not get bogged down in all this geography, all you need know is that this section describes areas of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), the land east of the Jordan River (modern country of Jordan), and the land of Canaan (modern Israel).
While the focus of this short story is Abram's rescue of his nephew Lot, held captive in the ensuing battle, what is of real interest to us is the mysterious figure of Melchizedek. He is called both the king and priest of Salem, which most likely refers to the ancient Canaanite city that would become Jerusalem. Your Bible most likely has translated verse 18 in a way similar to the following, "And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High."
In Hebrew, Melchizedek's allegiance is actually a little more ambiguous. "el'elyon" could mean God most High, or a god (as in another one) most high. Does he worship Abram's God? Or is he the pagan priest/king of another Canaanite god? The text isn't clear. Jewish interpreters have puzzled over this section and come to different interpretations. And you should note, that when we get to the New Testament book of Hebrews, that author will also spend a great deal of time interpreting Melchizidek, the first priest mentioned in the Bible, as a forerunner to Jesus himself. In any event, he is a memorable character because he takes on a great deal of symbolism for both Jews and Christians alike.
The Priest/King Melchizidek blesses Abram
Now that we have reached chapter 15 we see the first story repetition in the Abraham cycle. Recall that we just heard God promise Abram land and offspring in chapter 12. This is basically the same story but from a different oral tradition, so the writers and editors of Genesis, rather than leave one version out, decide to double up and include both versions! This will happen many different times throughout the stories of the Old Testament, not just in Genesis.
In this version, God not only makes a promise to Abram, God also makes it official by sealing it with a covenant ceremony. Reading verses 7-21, you may wonder just what the heck is going on. It's not obvious to the modern reader, because it is based on a play on words in the Hebrew. To make a covenant, the phrase in Hebrew means to "cut a covenant". Taking the pieces of the cut up animals and making a path in between the pieces, two people making a political alliance or agreement would walk between the pieces together; the threat is implicit that "may this be done to you if you break our promise".
But in contrast to the cutting of a covenant between two Middle Eastern tribal leaders, notice that God causes Abram to fall asleep, and that God Himself passes between the pieces alone as represented by the smoking fire pot and flaming torch. Abram, then, takes on none of the risk of the covenant upon himself. Like the account in chapter 12, this version of the story is pure grace! God makes promises and swears upon Himself only. This is good news for humanity! I only wish I could find an illustration of God as the fire pot passing between the cut up animal carcasses while Abram sleeps nearby. If you are an artist, I encourage you to try your hand at depicting this strange Biblical scene!
Ok, that's it for now! Stay tuned for the next blog post where the story of our ancestors gets much more complicated with the birth of Ishmael and the fate of the cities Sodom and Gomorrah.
In this version, God not only makes a promise to Abram, God also makes it official by sealing it with a covenant ceremony. Reading verses 7-21, you may wonder just what the heck is going on. It's not obvious to the modern reader, because it is based on a play on words in the Hebrew. To make a covenant, the phrase in Hebrew means to "cut a covenant". Taking the pieces of the cut up animals and making a path in between the pieces, two people making a political alliance or agreement would walk between the pieces together; the threat is implicit that "may this be done to you if you break our promise".
But in contrast to the cutting of a covenant between two Middle Eastern tribal leaders, notice that God causes Abram to fall asleep, and that God Himself passes between the pieces alone as represented by the smoking fire pot and flaming torch. Abram, then, takes on none of the risk of the covenant upon himself. Like the account in chapter 12, this version of the story is pure grace! God makes promises and swears upon Himself only. This is good news for humanity! I only wish I could find an illustration of God as the fire pot passing between the cut up animal carcasses while Abram sleeps nearby. If you are an artist, I encourage you to try your hand at depicting this strange Biblical scene!
Ok, that's it for now! Stay tuned for the next blog post where the story of our ancestors gets much more complicated with the birth of Ishmael and the fate of the cities Sodom and Gomorrah.