CHAPTER XII _God calls Abram to leave Haran and go into Canaan_, 1; _promises to bless him, and through him all the families of_ _the earth_, 2, 3. _Abram, Sarai, Lot, and all their household, depart from Canaan_, 4, 5; _pass through Sichem_, 6. _God appears to him, and renews the promise_, 7.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:2. _I WILL MAKE OF THEE A GREAT NATION_] i.e., The Jewish people; _and make thy name great_, alluding to the change of his name from _Abram_, a high father, to _Abraham_, the father of a multitude.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:3. _IN THEE_] In thy posterity, in the _Messiah_, who shall spring from thee, shall all families of the earth be blessed; for as he shall take on him human nature from the posterity of Abraham, he shall taste death for every man, his Gospel shall be preached throughout the world, an... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:4. _AND ABRAM WAS SEVENTY AND FIVE YEARS OLD_] As Abram was now seventy-five years old, and his father Terah had just died, at the age of two hundred and five, consequently Terah must have been one hundred and thirty when Abram was born; and the seventieth year of his age mentioned... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:5. _THE SOULS THAT THEY HAD GOTTEN IN HARAN_] This may apply either to the persons who were employed in the service of Abram, or to the persons he had been the instrument of converting to the knowledge of the true God; and in this latter sense the Chaldee paraphrasts understood the... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:6. _THE PLAIN OF MOREH._] אלון _elon_ should be translated _oak_, not _plain_; the Septuagint translate την δρυν την υψηλην, the _lofty oak_; and it is likely the place was remarkable for a grove of those trees, or for one of a stupendous height and bulk. _THE CANAANITE WAS THEN I... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:7. _THE LORD APPEARED_] In what way this appearance was made we know not; it was probably by the great angel of the covenant, Jesus the Christ. The appearance, whatsoever it was, perfectly satisfied Abram, and proved itself to be supernatural and Divine. It is worthy of remark that... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:8. _BETH-EL_] The place which was afterwards called _Beth-el_ by Jacob, for its first name was _Luz_. See Genesis 28:19. בית אל beith El literally signifies _the house of God_. _AND PITCHED HIS TENT - AND - BUILDED AN ALTAR UNTO THE LORD_] Where Abram has a _tent_, there God must h... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:10. _THERE WAS A FAMINE IN THE LAND_] Of Canaan. This is the first famine on record, and it prevailed in the most fertile land then under the sun; and why? God made it desolate for the wickedness of those who dwelt in it. _WENT DOWN INTO EGYPT_] He felt himself a stranger and a pil... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:11. _THOU_ ART _A FAIR WOMAN TO LOOK UPON_] Widely differing in her _complexion_ from the swarthy Egyptians, and consequently more likely to be coveted by them. It appears that Abram supposed they would not scruple to take away the life of the husband in order to have the undisturb... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:13. _SAY, I PRAY THEE, THOU ART MY SISTER_] Abram did not wish his wife to tell a _falsehood_, but he wished her to suppress a part of the _truth_. From Genesis 20:12, it is evident she was his _step-sister_, i.e., his sister by his _father_, but by a different _mother_. Some suppos... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:15. _THE WOMAN WAS TAKEN INTO PHARAOH'S HOUSE._] _Pharaoh_ appears to have been the common appellative of the Cuthite shepherd kings of Egypt, who had conquered this land, as is conjectured, about seventy-two years before this time. The word is supposed to signify _king_ in the anci... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:16. _HE HAD SHEEP, AND OXEN, C._] As some of these terms are liable to be confounded, and as they frequently occur, especially in the Pentateuch, it may be necessary to consider and fix their meaning in this place. SHEEP צאן _tson_, from _tsaan_, to be _plentiful_ or _abundant;_ a... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:17. _THE LORD PLAGUED PHARAOH_] What these plagues were we know not. In the parallel case, Genesis 20:18, all the females in the family of Abimelech, who had taken Sarah in nearly the same way, were made barren; possibly this might have been the case here; yet much more seems to be... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Genesis 12:20. _COMMANDED HIS MEN CONCERNING HIM_] Gave particular and strict orders to afford Abram and his family every accommodation for their journey; for having received a great increase of cattle and servants, it was necessary that he should have the favour of the king, and his permissio... [ Continue Reading ]