The Beginning:
After the genealogy of Terah’s family, Abram is living in Haran with Sarai and his household. The LORD speaks to Abram, commanding him to leave his country and kindred and go to a land God will show him. The call comes with promises: God will make Abram into a great nation and make his name great.
The Middle:
God further declares that Abram will be blessed and become a channel of blessing, and that “all the families of the earth” will be blessed through him. Abram responds in faith and obedience: he departs Haran with Sarai, Lot, and their possessions. Entering Canaan, Abram travels to Shechem, where the LORD appears and promises the land to Abram’s offspring; Abram builds an altar there. He then moves toward Bethel and Ai, builds another altar, and calls on the name of the LORD.
The End:
Abram continues journeying through the land, moving toward the Negev. The immediate outcome is not the fulfillment of the promises but the establishment of a new direction for Abram’s life: he lives as a sojourner in the land God has promised. The story closes with Abram worshiping and advancing into Canaan under God’s word.
This narrative introduces God’s covenant purpose in history: God sovereignly chooses and calls Abram, not based on recorded merit, to form a people through whom divine blessing will extend to the nations. The promises of land, descendants, and blessing reveal God as faithful and purposeful, moving redemption forward through covenant relationship. Abram’s obedience and worship highlight faith as trustful response to God’s initiating word, even before visible fulfillment.
Abram’s command to leave “country…kindred…father’s house” reflects the ancient Near Eastern importance of kinship-based identity and inheritance. In that world, land, protection, and status were normally secured through one’s extended family network; Abram’s departure underscores the radical dependence required by God’s call and promise.
“Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” — Genesis 12:1
Answer the questions below. When you choose an option, you will see the result and an explanation.
1. What did the LORD command Abram to do when speaking to him in Haran?
2. Where did Abram build an altar after the LORD appeared and promised the land to Abram’s offspring?