New Living Translation
Genesis 12:1
1The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.
Genesis 12:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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:
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you.
Context of Genesis 12:1
The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
Read all of Genesis 12Genesis 12:1 word by word
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהוָה֙ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם לֶךְ־לְךָ֛ מֵאַרְצְךָ֥ וּמִמּֽוֹלַדְתְּךָ֖ וּמִבֵּ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַרְאֶֽךָּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Now the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- had saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto Abramאַבְרָם'abrâm · AbramH87
- Get thee outיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- of thy countryאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and from thy kindredמוֹלֶ֫דֶתmôledeth · relativesH4138
- and from thy father’sאָב'âb · fatherH1
- houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
- that I will shewרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
Cross-references for Genesis 12:1
- Genesis 11:31One day Terah took his son Abram, his daughter-in-law Sarai (his son Abram’s wife), and his grandson Lot (his son Haran’s child) and moved away from Ur of the Chaldeans. He was headed for the land of Canaan, but they stopped at Haran and settled there.
- Genesis 15:7Then the Lord told him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.”
- Nehemiah 9:7“You are the Lord God, who chose Abram and brought him from Ur of the Chaldeans and renamed him Abraham.
- Isaiah 41:9I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away.
- Isaiah 51:2Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor, and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation. Abraham was only one man when I called him. But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.”
- Ezekiel 33:24“Son of man, the scattered remnants of Israel living among the ruined cities keep saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he gained possession of the entire land. We are many; surely the land has been given to us as a possession.’
- Joshua 24:2Joshua said to the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Long ago your ancestors, including Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River, and they worshiped other gods.
- Psalms 45:10Listen to me, O royal daughter; take to heart what I say. Forget your people and your family far away.
- Luke 14:26“If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.
- Acts 7:2This was Stephen’s reply: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. Our glorious God appeared to our ancestor Abraham in Mesopotamia before he settled in Haran.
- 2 Corinthians 6:17Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord. Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.
- Hebrews 11:8It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.
- Revelation 18:4Then I heard another voice calling from heaven, “Come away from her, my people. Do not take part in her sins, or you will be punished with her.
Commentaries on Genesis 12:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Get thee out of thy country - There is great dissension between commentators concerning the call of Abram; some supposing he had two distinct calls, others that he had but one. At the conclusion of the preceding chapter, Genesis 11:31, we find Terah and all his family leaving Ur of the Chaldees, in order to go to Canaan. This was, no doubt, in consequence of some Divine admonition. While resting at Haran, on their road to Canaan, Terah died, Genesis…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-9Verses 1-9 - 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…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1God calls Abram, and blesses him with a promise of Christ. (1-3) Abram departs from Haran. (4-5) He journeys through Canaan, and worships God in that land. (6-9) Abram is driven by a famine into Egypt, He feigns his wife to be his sister. (10-20) Verses 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…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1Abram knew that he should leave, but he did not know where he was going. Obedience required faith.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-201. Now the Lord had said unto Abram--It pleased God, who has often been found of them who sought Him not, to reveal Himself to Abraham perhaps by a miracle; and the conversion of Abraham is one of the most remarkable in Bible history. Get thee out of thy country--His being brought to the knowledge and worship of the true God had probably been a considerable time before. This call included two promises: the first, showing the land of his future posterity…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 12:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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