Genesis 12:3

_AND I WILL BLESS THEM THAT BLESS THEE, AND CURSE HIM THAT CURSETH THEE: AND IN THEE SHALL ALL FAMILIES OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED._ I will bless them that bless thee. His friends and his enemies would be regarded as the friends and enemies of God, who would reward their kindness and avenge their wrongs done to him as done to Himself. It is observable, however, that the former are mentioned in the plural, while the latter is in the singular; as if multitudes would be sure to bless, but few to curse him. AND IN THEE SHALL ALL FAMILIES OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED - Hebrew, of the ground. Knobel renders it 'all families of the land'-i.e, the Canaanites, who were some of them, the Gibeonites, incorporated with the people, and all of them benefited by the settlement, of Israel in their land. But this is a frittering away of the meaning of this clause, which really forms the climax in the series of...

3._And I will bless them that bless thee_. Here the extraordinary kindness of God manifests itself, in that he familiarly makes a covenant with Abram, as men are wont to do with their companions and equals. For this is the accustomed form of covenants between kings and others, that they mutually promise to have the same enemies and the same friends. This certainly is an inestimable pledge of special love, that God should so greatly condescend for our sake. For although he here addresses one man only, he elsewhere declares the same affection towards his faithful people. We may therefore infer this general doctrine, that God so embraced us with his favor, that he will bless our friends, and take vengeance on our enemies. We are, moreover, warned by this passage, that however desirous the sons of God may be of peace, they will never want enemies. Certainly, of all persons who ever conducted...

1-3 God made choice of Abram, and singled him out from among his fellow-idolaters, that he might reserve a people for himself, among whom his true worship might be maintained till the coming of Christ. From henceforward Abram and his seed are almost the only subject of the history in the Bible. Abram was tried whether he loved God better than all, and whether he could willingly leave all to go with God. His kindred and his father's house were a constant temptation to him, he could not continue among them without danger of being infected by them. Those who leave their sins, and turn to God, will be unspeakable gainers by the change. The command God gave to Abram, is much the same with the gospel call, for natural affection must give way to Divine grace. Sin, and all the occasions of it, must be forsaken; particularly bad company. Here are many great and precious promises. All God's prece...

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, and innumerable blessings be derived on all mankind through his _death_ and _intercession_....

- The Call of Abram 6. שׁכם _shekem_ Shekem, “the upper part of the back.” Here it is the name of a person, the owner of this place, where afterward is built the town called at first Shekem, then Flavia Neapolis, and now Nablous. אלון _'ēlôn_ “the oak;” related: “be lasting, strong.” מורה _môreh_ In Onkelos “plain;” Moreh, “archer, early rain, teacher.” Here the name of a man who owned the oak that marked the spot. In the Septuagint it is rendered ὑψηγήν _hupseegeen_. 8. בית־אל _bēyt_-_'êl_, Bethel, “house of God.” ים _yam_ “sea, great river, west.”...

EXPOSITION GENESIS 12:1 Designed to trace the outward development of God's kingdom on the earth, the narrative now concentrates its attention on one of the foregoing Terachites, whose remarkable career it sketches with considerable minuteness of detail, from the period of his emigration from Chaldea to his death at Hebron in the land of Canaan. Distinguished as a man of undoubted superiority both of character and mind, the head of at least two powerful and important races, and standing, as one might say, on the threshold of the historical era, it is yet chiefly as his life and fortunes connect with the Divine purpose of salvation that they find a place in the inspired record. The progress of infidelity during the four centuries that had elapsed since the Flood, the almost universal corruption of even the Shemits portion of the human family, had conclusi

AND I WILL BLESS THEM THAT BLESS THEE,.... Not the priests only that should bless his children, the children of Israel, as the Targum of Jonathan, but all men of all nations, and of every age, that speak well of him, commend him for his faith and holiness, and tread in his steps, these are blessed with faithful Abraham, Galatians 3:7. AND CURSE HIM THAT CURSETH THEE; here is a change of numbers, before the plural, here the singular, denoting, it may be, that many would bless him, and but few curse him, and that every individual person that did curse him should be cursed himself: the Targum of Jonathan wrongly restrains this to Balaam's cursing Abraham's children, and was cursed by God; Maimonides y thinks, there is no doubt to be made of it, that the Zabaeans, the idolatrous people Abram was brought up with, when he contradicted them, loaded him with curses and reproaches

We will read two or three passages in the Book of Genesis concerning God blessing his servant Abraham. Turn first to the twelfth chapter. Genesis 12:1. _Now the lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:_ It was God's intention to keep his truth and his pure worship alive in the world by committing it to the charge of one man, and the nation that should spring from him. In the infinite sovereignty of his grace, he chose Abraham, passing by all the rest of mankind, and elected him to be the depository of the heavenly light, that through him it might be preserved in the world until the days when it should be more widely scattered. It seemed essential to this end that Abraham should come right out from his fellow-countrymen, and be separate unto Jehovah, so the Lord said to hi

CHAPTER 12 THE FIRST EVENTS IN ABRAM'S LIFE _ 1. The call and the promise (Genesis 12:1)_ 2. Abram's obedience (Genesis 12:4) 3. The second communication of Jehovah (Genesis 12:7) 4. Abram in Egypt and first denial of Sarai (Genesis 12:10) We come now to a new beginning, the Abrahamic covenant. It marks the beginning of that wonderful race, the seed of Abraham, the people of Israel. Abraham's name is mentioned 74 times in the New Testament. How closely his history is interwoven into New Testament doctrine. This may be learned by consulting the following passages:...

THE CALL OF ABRAHAM, HIS MIGRATION TO CANAAN, AND YAHWEH'S PROMISE TO HIM. From J, except Genesis 12:4_ b_, Genesis 12:5, which is clearly from P. Abraham is called to leave country, kindred, and home for an unnamed land. His faith is thus challenged at the outset (Hebrews 11:8); at the call of God, without question or demur, he abandons the tangible certainties of the present for a vague destination, and the hazards of travel and settlement in a new land. But he goes in confidence, staking his all on the faithfulness of God's promise, that He would make of him a mighty nation, the incarnation of blessedness, to such a degree that all nations would bless themselves by him, that is, use his name in the invocation of blessin