THE CHOICE OF ABRAM AND THE CHOICE OF CANAAN
Genesis 12.1 to 10 and 13.1 to 18
=Interpretation.= With this lesson the history of our people
begins. The Bible wishes us to see in the separation of Abram and
his clan from the parent tribe, and their migration to Canaan, not
a fortuitous circumstance, but the fulfilment of a divine plan
according to which God was to make of the descendants of Abram the
chosen people and of the land of Canaan the chosen land. Why Abram
was selected of all people is not clearly stated, but one trait of
his character is made very conspicuous here and in all subsequent
chapters, his implicit faith and obedience. The Rabbis emphasize
that, in bidding him to leave his land, God tells him merely to go
"to the land that I will show unto thee", without indicating what
land was meant. Again He promises him, "To thy seed will I give this
land", though Abram is childless. Nor was Abram permitted to believe
that his nephew Lot might have been intended by the promise, for,
when Abram's herdsmen and Lot's herdsmen quarrel, Lot chooses the
land of Sodom and not the promised land. In a word, God seems to
have selected Abram to be the father of the chosen people because
of his faith, his unquestioning willingness to submit to divine
guidance. A second trait of character that is made conspicuous is
his love of peace as illustrated in his relations with Lot.
=Aim.= The primary aim in teaching this lesson to the child should
be to inspire him with the thought that he is one of God's chosen
people, a descendant of Abram, and should prove himself worthy
of his descent by emulating Abram's obedience to God through his
obedience to Jewish law. The whole point of this narrative is lost
if the teacher fails to emphasize the fact that Abram is the father
of the Jewish people.
The secondary aim may well be to stimulate interest in Palestine as
the chosen land.
A third lesson that can be taught in this connection is the lesson
of the desirability of peace.
The last two aims however must be brought in incidentally, the
former as an indication of God's love for Abram and his descendants,
the latter as showing wherein Abram was worthy of being chosen.
=Suggestions to the teacher.= As the whole point of the narrative is
lost if the child is not made to feel the connection of the Jewish
people with Abram, take pains to explain what is meant by descent
and how a whole people can be descended from one man, by showing how
a man's grandchildren are usually more numerous than his children,
etc. It might be of advantage to use the blackboard for a graphic
illustration of this idea. Then, after having explained how God
expected to make a great nation of Abram's descendants, ask, "Do
any of you know what people today are the descendants of Abram?
Well, I will tell you. You and I and all who call themselves Jews
are descended from Abram. That is why we always speak of him as
our father Abram. Now don't you want me to tell you more about our
father Abram and about the great people that came from him and to
which we belong?"
Hereafter always call Abram "our father Abram", as he is almost
invariably called in Jewish literature אָנִינוּ אַבְרָהָם. This will
keep the child conscious of his descent from Abram, increase his
interest in him and make him feel that Biblical history is the
history of his own people.
As the motives for God's choice of Abram are but vaguely suggested
in the Bible, the teacher must make them more explicit. Call
attention to the fact that the world had again become corrupt, that
idolatry prevailed--and here it becomes necessary to explain what
idolatry means--in the House of Terah as elsewhere (see Joshua 24.
2), but that there was one man, Abram, who always obeyed God and
who, God knew, would instruct his children to do so. And therefore
God told him to leave his family and his people because he wanted to
make of him a great people that would always do as he told them and
not a foolish and wicked people like those among whom he lived.
The various _haggadic_ tales of the persecutions to which Abram was
subjected by Nimrod and even by his own father, while beautiful in
themselves and interesting to children should not be taught as part
of the lesson. (See foot-note to page 46.)
In order to make the narrative more vivid and impressive, God's call
to Abram and his promise (Genesis 12. 1 to 3) should be quoted in
the language of the Bible, as also Abram's words to Lot (Genesis 13.
9) and God's promise when Abram settled in Canaan (Genesis 13. 14 to
18).
When speaking of God's promise to give Abram the land of Canaan,
the teacher may digress somewhat to describe the main geographical
features of Palestine, showing children on the map where it is
situated and pointing out its main topographical characteristics, if
the children are of an age when they know how to interpret maps. The
description of the land should be such as to create an attachment
to it, dwelling on the variety of its climate, the beauty of its
scenery, and its fertility. Pictures of Palestine particularly of
the places associated with the life of Abram, should be shown.