Abraham

Identity

Abraham is called by Scripture 'the friend of God' (Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23) and 'the father of all them that believe' (Romans 4:11). Born Abram at Ur of the Chaldees, he was called by God to leave his father's house and go to a land he did not know (Genesis 12:1). To him were given the three great covenant promises: a land, a nation, and a blessing for all families of the earth (Genesis 12:2-3).

Name and titles

'Abram' — Avram in Hebrew — means 'exalted father.' At the covenant of circumcision (Genesis 17:5) God renames him 'Abraham' — Avraham — 'father of a multitude.' Scripture also calls him 'the Hebrew' (Genesis 14:13), 'a mighty prince' (Genesis 23:6), and 'the friend of God.'

Historical period

• c. 2166 BC (traditional) — Born at Ur of the Chaldees, son of Terah (Genesis 11:26-32).
• c. 2091 BC — Called by God at Haran; departs for Canaan (Genesis 12:1-9); the promise given.
• c. 2090 BC — First altar at Shechem (Genesis 12:7).
• c. 2085 BC — Rescues Lot; blessed by Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the most high God (Genesis 14).
• c. 2081 BC — The covenant of pieces (Genesis 15) — 'And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.'
• c. 2067 BC — Ishmael born to Hagar (Genesis 16).
• c. 2054 BC — The covenant of circumcision; renamed Abraham (Genesis 17).
• c. 2054 BC — The three visitors at Mamre; the promise of Isaac (Genesis 18).
• c. 2054 BC — Intercedes for Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:16-33).
• c. 2066 BC (variant) — Isaac born to Sarah when Abraham is 100 (Genesis 21).
• c. 2050 BC — The binding of Isaac on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22) — 'God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.'
• c. 1991 BC — Dies at 175 years, buried at Machpelah with Sarah (Genesis 25:7-11).

Scripture appearances

• Genesis 12 (KJV) The call and the promise.
• Genesis 14 (KJV) Melchizedek blesses Abraham.
• Genesis 15 (KJV) The covenant of pieces; 'he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.'
• Genesis 17 (KJV) The covenant of circumcision; the change of name.
• Genesis 18 (KJV) The three visitors; intercession for Sodom.
• Genesis 22 (KJV) The binding of Isaac.
• Romans 4 (KJV) Paul's great exposition of Abraham's faith as the ground of Christian justification.
• Galatians 3 (KJV) Paul: 'they which be of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.'
• Hebrews 11:8-19 (KJV) Faith of Abraham commended.
• James 2:23 (KJV) 'Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.'

Connected Places

• Ur of the Chaldees — the city of his birth (traditional site in southern Iraq).
• Haran — the city of his father Terah's later years.
• Shechem — the site of his first altar in Canaan.
• Mount Moriah — the mountain of the binding of Isaac; identified in 2 Chronicles 3:1 with the temple mount in Jerusalem.
• Jerusalem — the temple mount is Moriah of Genesis 22.
• Machpelah at Hebron — the burial cave of Abraham and Sarah.
• Egypt — where he sojourned during a famine (Genesis 12:10).

Connected People

• Sarah — his wife.
• Isaac — his son of promise.
• Ishmael — his son of Hagar.
• Melchizedek — king of Salem and priest of the most high God, who blessed him.
• Christ Jesus — his descendant after the flesh (Matthew 1:1); the true Isaac.
• Moses — the lawgiver who inherited the Abrahamic covenant.
• Paul — the great expositor of Abraham's faith.

Salvation history role

• The father of the faithful — the model of Christian justification by faith.
• The recipient of the three-fold promise fulfilled in Christ.
• The type of the Father who did not spare His own Son (Romans 8:32 echoes Genesis 22:12).
• The recipient of the Melchizedekian blessing that prefigures the Christian priesthood (Hebrews 7).

Christian tradition

• Named in the Roman Canon of the Mass: "the sacrifice of Abraham our father in faith."
• The Akedah (binding of Isaac) is read in every Byzantine and Latin Easter Vigil.
• Melchizedek and the offering of bread and wine to Abraham (Genesis 14:18) is read in Christian tradition as a type of the Eucharist.
• The Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions all trace themselves to Abraham.

Household reflection

Abraham teaches the household that faith is not a feeling but a going. God said "get thee out" and he went. The household walks toward promises it cannot yet see.

When a decision seems too big and the way seems too dark, remember: Abraham was seventy-five years old when God first called him. It is never too late for a household to hear the voice of God.

Room connections

Where this entry meets the household in the wider house of CrossAIHub.

• Read (Library) — Read Genesis 12, 15, 17, 18, and 22 as the household's Abraham unit.
• Pray (Chapel) — Pray with Melchizedek's blessing (Genesis 14:19-20) before Sunday Communion.
• Family (Kitchen Table) — At the Easter Vigil, read Genesis 22 aloud — the household's Akedah.
• Sing (Choir Room) — Sing 'The God of Abraham Praise' (Thomas Olivers, 1770).
• Learn (Workshop) — Study Romans 4 and Galatians 3 — Paul on the faith of Abraham.

Further reading

Genesis 12-25 in the KJV.

Romans 4 and Galatians 3.

Hebrews 11:8-19.

Augustine, City of God, Book XVI.

Elsewhere in the Atlas

• Moses
• Christ Jesus
• Jerusalem
• Egypt
• Genesis 1 — Creation
• Noah — his covenant ancestor
• Return to the atrium — the Atlas's main room.