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Genesis 12:1-9

• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
  • Bereshit 12: Massoretic, Hebrew, Aramaic, JPS.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Navigating the Bible: Text/Rabbinic commentary and Divrei Torah.
  • "Call and Awakening," Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit.
  • Chapter X of The First Epistle to the Corinthians, Clement of Rome (ca. 96).
  • IV.XXI.1, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180) 
  • Chapter II, Adversus Judaeos, Tertullian (c. 198)
  • V.XV, The Refutation of all Heresies (Philosophumena), Hippolytus of Rome. (c. 225)
  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From Calvin's Commentary on Genesis.
    • "Should any one choose to understand this passage in a restricted sense, as if, by a proverbial mode of speech, they who shall bless their children or their friends, shall be called after the name of Abram, let him enjoy his opinion; for the Hebrew phrase will bear the interpretation, that Abram shall be called a signal example of happiness."
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "It was not enough for him to worship God in his heart, but it was expedient to declare by outward profession his faith before men, of which this altar was a sign."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "Canaan was not, as other lands, a mere outward possession, but a type of heaven, and in this respect the patriarchs so earnestly prized it."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "By deserting his country he lost his name there: care not for that, (saith God) but trust me, and I will make thee a greater name than ever thou couldst have had there."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "God was dealing with Abram not in his private and personal capacity merely, but with a view to high and important interests in future ages."
• Contemporary References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Commentary, Genesis 12:1-4a, Dennis Olson, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2011.
    • "The promise to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 12:1-4 marks one of the most dramatic transitions in the entire story of the Old Testament."
  • "Bold Blessing," Lizette Merchán, ucc.org: Sermon Seeds, lectionary citations, weekly theme, lectionary texts, bulletin back page, 2011.
    • "Little did Abram know, that this was to be his call in life — a call that would start a whole new beginning from the previous beginnings with Adam and Eve, and Noah. It must be noted that Abram was at the mature age of 75 years old when he actually set out, for better or worse, to find the Promised Land."
  • "Blessing the World," FaithElement discipleship system "setting the Bible free," 2011.
  • The Old Testament Readings: Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "This is the first in a series of five readings from the story of Abraham, Lot, Sarah and Hagar..."
  • The Lynchpin of the Bible, Reflections on Genesis 12:1-4a, John C. Holbert, Patheos, 2011.
    • "I name this brief passage in Genesis the lynchpin of the Bible, and by the Bible I mean both of the testaments."
  • "I'll Tell You When We Get There," Russell Rathbun, The Hardest Question, 2011.
    • "This is a remarkable text as we move through lent, towards death. It seems the inevitable fate for Abram, moving into and with utter barrenness. There is one more remarkable thing about this moving into the unknown, God is going with them."
  • Genesis 12:1-9, Pentecost 4, Commentary, Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "The promise given in Gen 12:1-3 is shown to come true in this story of Abram and Sarai. The great adventure is about to begin based on complete trust and obedience to God. We will discover later how Abram will be a blessing and a curse to other nations."
  • Genesis 12:1-4a, Studies on Old Testament texts from Series A, Ralph W. Klein, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
  • Commentary, Genesis 12:1-4a, Frank M. Yamada, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
    • "Something that all the cultures of the world share is ancestor stories."
  • The Old Testament Readings (Lent 2A): Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "This text is a turning point in the biblical story in general and the Genesis story in particular."
  • Commentary, (Lent 2A), Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "This form of unconditional/promissory covenant comes again in slightly different format through the tribes who lived in the Southern Kingdom of Judah and was picked up again in the exile."
  • "Abraham in Three Movements," The Journey with Jesus: Notes to Myself, Daniel B. Clendenin, Journey with Jesus Foundation, 2008.
    • "Our ultimate journey is to move from a self-regarding heart curved in on itself to an other-regarding openness to the love of God, a love for others, and a love for all His world."
  • Progressive Bible Study, Genesis 12:1-4, Pastor Dan, Street Prophets.
    • "How is God at work recreating the world around us? Where are the new names, the new lands, the new families? Where are the places of promise in the world?"
  • "Leave Your Country," The Journey with Jesus: Notes to Myself, Daniel B. Clendenin, Journey with Jesus Foundation.
    • "Our ultimate journey is to move from a self-regarding heart curved in on itself to an other-regarding openness to the love of God, a love for others, and a love for all His world. That, of course, is a journey that lasts a lifetime."
  • "The Blessing of Abram," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Lectionary Resource for Catholics.
    • "These verses begin the high point of Genesis: the story of Abraham."
  • "Birth of a Covenant," Torah Commentary by Rabbi Shai Held. BeliefNet.
    • "God tells Abram to leave the comforts of home and go out to repair himself--and the entire world."
  • "The Call of Abraham," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed textual notes.
  • Commentary, Genesis 12:1-9, Mark Throntveit, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
    • "What could God possibly do to counter the spread of sin that dominated the story in Genesis 3 through 11?"
    "The Journey Without, The Journey Within: Ignorance, Inclusion and Impotence," The Journey with Jesus: Notes to Myself, Daniel B. Clendenin, Journey with Jesus Foundation, 2008.
    • "How does the journey metaphor speak to you? Where are you on your spiritual journey?"
  • Desert Scribblings, Genesis 12:1-9, Geoff McElroy.
    • "Call, covenant, journey.  In these things we see revealed the activity of God, the One who calls us, who makes relationship with us, and who guides us wherever we go."
  • "Abraham: The Father of Us All," The Journey with Jesus: Notes to Myself, Daniel B. Clendenin, Journey with Jesus Foundation, 2005.
    • "In his journey into the unknown, Abraham embraced ignorance, relinquished control, and chose to live with confidence in God's promise to bless him in a new and strange place."
  • "Commentary on Genesis 12:1-9: Second Sunday After Pentecost," by Dennis Bratcher at the Christian Resource Institute. 
    • "This chapter recounting God?s call and promise to Abraham, and Abraham?s response, is the pivotal event in the book of Genesis, the theological hinge between sin and grace."
  • Parshah Lech-Lecha, text, commentary & articles from Chassidic Masters, sermons, etc from Chabad Lubavitch.
  • Parshas Lech Lecha, Divrei Torah from The Project Genesis Torah Study. Index to numerous Orthodox articles and studies on Genesis 12:1 - 17:27.
  • Parshat Lech Lecha, articles and commentary by the Jewish Community of Atlanta, at The Torah From Dixie.
  • "Mission among Muslims: Another Chosen People," Herbert Zorn, Word & World Texts in Context, 1996.
    • "Fifty years ago, Mission among Muslims would have been described as mission to Muslims..."
  • "The Call of Abram," from the Biblical Studies Foundation.
    • "While what was to be left behind was crystal clear, what lay ahead was distressingly devoid of detail."
  • Genesis 12:1-9, Proper 10A: Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • Genesis 12:1-4a, Lent 2: Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
• Articles & Background:
  • "Call and Promise," program highlights, discussion & reflection questions and more from the Bill Moyers PBS series Genesis: A Living Conversation.
    • "'What really matters is not whether Abraham is good or bad or cowardly or heroic, but that God pursues His design for the welfare of the human family with people like that -- in other words, people like us.' - Lewis Smedes."
  • "The Meaning of Vocation," A.J. Conyers, (other resources at) "Vocation," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2004.
    • "'Vocation' is distorted by two disastrous misunderstandings: a secularized idea of 'career' and a monastic concept of the religious life."
  • "Biblical Perspectives on the Land," Dennis T. Olson, Word & World, 1986.
  • "The Ancestor in Danger: But Not the Same Danger," David J.A. Clines.
  • "Abraham and Sarah," a discussion between Robert Alter, Father Alexander A. DiLella O.F.M., and Kenneth A. Mathews at Genesis Reconsidered by Time.com.
  • "A Thrice-Told Tale: Genre, Theme, and Motif," David L. Petersen, Biblical Research, 1973.
    • "We must pass beyond a preliminary label "episode in the patriarchal saga" to a fuller understanding of a text by studying plot, character, setting, and theme."
  • "Terminologische Verknüpfungen und Genesis 12:1-3," W. Warning, Biblica 81 (2000).
    • "Technical word combinations based on the terms `Abram', `nation', `clan', `to bless', `large' and `to walk' allow one to recognize a close linguistic relationship between the primeval history and the introductory words of the story of the patriarchal narrative."
  • Abraham and Sarah, from And Adam Knew Eve: A Dictionary of Sex in the Bible.
• Recommended articles from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are linked below. ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices.
  • Baden, Joel S. "The Morpho-Syntax of Genesis 12:1-3: Translation and Interpretation," Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2010.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
    
  • Barrick, William D., "The Integration of Theology with Bible Translation," Master's Seminary Journal, 2001.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
    
  • Brueggemann, Walter, "Dialogue between Incommensurate Partners: Prospects for Common Testimony," Journal of Ecumenical Studies, 2001.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Cohn, Robert L., "Negotiating (with) the Natives: Ancestors and Identity in Genesis," Harvard Theological Review, 2003.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Eslinger, Lyle, "Prehistory in the Call to Abraham," Biblical Interpretation, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Essex, Keith H., "The Abrahamic Covenant," Master's Seminary Journal, 1999.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Greenberg, Ivan, "The Maturation of Covenant in Judaism and Christianity," The Living Pulpit, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hamilton, James M, Jr., "The Seed of the Woman and the Blessing of Abraham," Tyndale Bulletin, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
    
  • Holladay, William L., "A New Beginning: Abraham," The Christian Century, 1996.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hunter, Alastair G., "Father Abraham: A Structural and Theological Study of the Yahwist's Presentation of the Abraham Material," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1986.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Jones, L. Gregory, "Going and Staying," The Christian Century, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Klein, Ralph W., "Call, Covenant, and Community: The Story of Abraham and Sarah," Currents in Theology and Mission, 1988.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Mays, James L., "God Has Spoken: A Meditation on Genesis 12:1-4," Interpretation, 1960.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Miller, Patrick D., Jr., "Syntax and Theology in Genesis 12:3a," Vetus Testamentum, 1984.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Olson, Dennis T., "Biblical Perspectives on the Land," Word & World, 1986.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Petersen, David L., "Genesis and Family Values," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Shenk, Calvin E., "God's Intention for Humankind: The Promise of Community," Mission Studies, 1988.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wirzba, Norman, "The Dark Night of the Soil: An Agrarian Approach to Mystical Life," Christianity and Literature, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Zorn, Herbert, "Mission among Muslims: A Sermon Series," Word & World, 1996.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Reviews:
  • Review: R. Christopher Heard, Dynamics of Diselection: Ambiguity in Genesis 12 - 36 and Ethnic Boundaries in Post-Exilic Judah. Society of Biblical Literature, 2001. Reviewed by E.T. Mullen and Phillip Sherman (2 reviews) in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature.
  • Review: Lothar Ruppert, Genesis, ein kritischer und theologischer Kommentar: 11,27 - 25, 18. Echter Verlag, 2002. Reviewed by David L. Petersen in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature. (Review is in English.)
  • Review: Thomas L. Thompson, The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives: The Quest for the Historical Abraham. Trinity Press International, 2002. Review by John VanSeters in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature.
  • Review: Keith N. Grüneberg, Abraham, Blessing and the Nations: A Philological and Exegetical Study of Genesis 12:3 in its Narrative Context. deGruyter, 2003. Review by David Mclain Carr in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature.
  • Review: Keith N. Grüneberg, Abraham, Blessing and the Nations: A Philological and Exegetical Study of Genesis 12:3 in its Narrative Context. deGruyter, 2003. Review by Walter A. Vogels, in The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2004.
• Sermons:
  • "Dependable Faith," Robert J. Elder, Restoring the Future, SermonSuite.
  • "Abraham: The Father of Three Religions," from an Old Testament Sermon Series, Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington - Sermons from Seattle.
  • "Coping with Change," Nancy Detweiler, The Center for Progressive Christianity.
  • "The Influence of Influence," 30 Good Minutes, Rabbi Herbert Bronstein, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 1995.
• With Children:
  • "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," Mar 20, 2011, Union Presbyterian Seminary. Connections: Genesis 12:1-4a and Grandfather's Journey by Alan Say.
  • "Abraham - Father of Many Nations," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
  • "Abram Leaves Home," The Children's Chapel.
  • "Abraham Receives a Promise from God," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
  • "God Calls Abram," children's study, puzzles, coloring sheet, etc. Higher Praise Christian Center.
  • "Journey to Faith," Jim Kerlin, childrensermons.com.
  • "Word Search on Genesis 12," Don Crownover's Bible Puzzles.
  • Genesis 12:4, memory verse activity, MSSS Crafts and Resources for Bible Stories.
• Drama:
  • "We Are on Our Way," A Children's Drama Based on the Abraham Story, by Helen Walter, Reformed Worship.
  • "The Captain's Promise," Michele Pitman, dramatix.
• Liturgy:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Clip Art, Genesis 12:2, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
  • Clip Art, Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld woodcuts, World Mission Collection, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.
• Hymns and Music:
  • Contemporary/Praise Song suggestions, Together to Celebrate, David MacGregor.
  • Hymn selections (United Methodist) and more from Hymnsite.com.
  • At Oremus Hymnal:
    • Lift up your heads, ye mighty gates
    • Rejoice, O land, in God thy might
    • Songs of praise the angels sang
    • Thanks to God whose Word was spoken
    • The God of Abraham praise
    • Thy way, not mine, O Lord
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
  • Abraham
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
  • Abraham
  • Call
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of Genesis

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©2010 and 2011, Jenee Woodard