Page 8 - Advanced Biblical Backgrounds Revised

It was from this city that God asked Abram to move his family to a new promised land that God would
show him (Genesis 12:1). God promised Abram a land, multiple descendants, blessings, and a “seed”
who would come to be the Savior of all mankind. In obedience and faith, Abraham packed up his goods,
and with his wife, Sarah, and nephew, Lot, along with his father, Terah journeyed up the Fertile
Crescent, finally arriving in Haran or Harran, a city whose ruins lie within present-day Turkey. Note that
there is a large desert between Abram’s starting point in Ur to his final destination in Shechem. All
travelers going to Egypt had to travel this route.

Haran was a place where Terah and Abram temporarily settled. He lived there until he was 75 years old
before continuing his journey south. Although Abram’s nephew Lot accompanied him to Canaan, other
descents of Terah remained in the area where Abraham’s grandson, Jacob, sought his parent’s relatives,
namely Laban, for
whom he worked
twenty years in Haran
(Genesis 31:55). Also,
Abraham sought a wife
for Isaac from the
family of Nahor, who
was his older brother
living in Haran (Genesis
11:27-32). So Haran is
a significant location on
our map in Bible geography and history!

Abraham and Ancient Mesopotamia
Abraham was a man of his culture who Yahweh called into a
special relationship. As Abraham followed Yahweh, the
relationship became closer, and he realized Yahweh was not going
to allow Abraham to worship other gods. Yahweh made a covenant
with Abraham, and Abraham responded in faith. We know from
Romans 4 that God credited Abraham’s faith as righteousness and
blessed him. Abraham came out of a background that worshipped
many gods and revered the ancestors and their deities. Often The ruins of Haran. To the right is a mud-
following the one true God means we have to say no to parts of our brick Beehive Village similar to the houses
culture and heritage that do not honor God. built there in ancient Haran. Located in
Sanliurfa, Turkey.

Ancient Mesopotamia 101
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVf5kZA0HtQ

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