Richard Harris
Abraham
Search results
Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jews and God; in Christianity, he is the spiritual progenitor of all believers, whether Jewish or non-Jewish; and in Islam, he is a link in the chain of Islamic prophets that begins with ...
- Abraham
Learn about the life of Abraham, the father of faith and the patriarch of the Jewish and Christian people. Discover his calling, his family, his trials, his blessings, and his legacy in this biblical overview.
- Overview
- The critical problem of a “biography” of Abraham
- The biblical account
Abraham was the first of the Hebrew patriarchs and a figure revered by the three great monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. According to the biblical account, Abraham was called by God to leave his country and his people and journey to an undesignated land, where he became the founder of a new nation.
Where was Abraham from?
The Bible states that Abraham was raised in “Ur of the Chaldeans” (Ur Kasdim). Most scholars agree that Ur Kasdim was the Sumerian city Ur, today Tall al-Muqayyar (or Tall al-Mughair), about 200 miles (300 km) southeast of Baghdad in lower Mesopotamia. He lived for a while in Harran, before settling near Hebron in Canaan.
What was Abraham’s family like?
According to the Bible, when Abraham settled in Canaan with his wife, Sarah, he was 75 and childless, but God promised that Abraham’s “seed” would inherit the land and become a nation. He had a son, Ishmael, by his wife’s maidservant, Hagar, and, when Abraham was 100, he and Sarah had a son, Isaac.
What is Abraham best known for?
There can be no biography of Abraham in the ordinary sense. The most that can be done is to apply the interpretation of modern historical finds to biblical materials so as to arrive at a probable judgment as to the background and patterns of events in his life. This involves a reconstruction of the patriarchal age (of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph; early 2nd millennium bce), which until the end of the 19th century was unknown and considered virtually unknowable. It was assumed, based on a presumed dating of hypothetical biblical sources, that the patriarchal narratives in the Bible were only a projection of the situation and concerns of a much later period (9th–5th century bce) and of dubious historical value.
Several theses were advanced to explain the narratives—e.g., that the patriarchs were mythical beings or the personifications of tribes or folkloric or etiological (explanatory) figures created to account for various social, juridical, or cultic patterns. However, after World War I, archaeological research made enormous strides with the discovery of monuments and documents, many of which date back to the period assigned to the patriarchs in the traditional account. The excavation of a royal palace at Mari, an ancient city on the Euphrates, for example, brought to light thousands of cuneiform tablets (official archives and correspondence and religious and juridical texts) and thereby offered exegesis a new basis, which specialists utilized to show that, in the biblical book of Genesis, narratives fit perfectly with what, from other sources, is known today of the early 2nd millennium bce but imperfectly with a later period. A biblical scholar in the 1940s aptly termed this result “the rediscovery of the Old Testament.”
According to the biblical account, Abram (“The Father [or God] Is Exalted”), who is later named Abraham (“The Father of Many Nations”), a native of Ur in Mesopotamia, is called by God (Yahweh) to leave his own country and people and journey to an undesignated land, where he will become the founder of a new nation. He obeys the call unquestioningly and (at 75 years of age) proceeds with his barren wife, Sarai, later named Sarah (“Princess”), his nephew Lot, and other companions to the land of Canaan (between Syria and Egypt).
There the childless septuagenarian receives repeated promises and a covenant from God that his “seed” will inherit the land and become a numerous nation. Eventually, he not only has a son, Ishmael, by his wife’s maidservant Hagar but has, at 100 years of age, by Sarah, a legitimate son, Isaac, who is to be the heir of the promise. Yet Abraham is ready to obey God’s command to sacrifice Isaac, a test of his faith, which he is not required to consummate in the end because God substitutes a ram. At Sarah’s death, he purchases the cave of Machpelah near Hebron, together with the adjoining ground, as a family burying place. It is the first clear ownership of a piece of the promised land by Abraham and his posterity. Toward the end of his life, he sees to it that his son Isaac marries a girl from his own people back in Mesopotamia rather than a Canaanite woman. Abraham dies at the age of 175 and is buried next to Sarah in the cave of Machpelah.
Are you a student? Get Britannica Premium for only 24.95 - a 67% discount!
Learn More
- André Parrot
Learn who Abraham was, why he was important, and how he struggled with God's call to be the father of many nations. Discover how Abraham's faith and obedience are examples for Christians today.
- Lesli White
As recorded in the Bible, Abraham (or Avraham, אברהם) the Hebrew was guided by G‑d to the Holy Land, where he was chosen to be the progenitor of the Jewish nation. Together with his wife, Sarah, he taught people about the existence of a G‑d who is one and cannot be seen. His legacy was carried on by his son, Isaac, whom he almost ...
- The Covenant betweenthe PartsFollowing those incidents, Abraham fears that he has perhaps“used up” his share of Divine favor. In a dramatic revelation known as theCovenant Betw...
- Circumcision and ThePromise of A ChildWhen Abraham is 99 years old, G‑d commands him to undergocircumcision and to perform the procedure on all the males of his household,including the...
- Sarah’S Second Abductionand The Birth of IsaacIn an incident eerily similar to what happened so manydecades prior, Abraham and Sarah relocate to Gerar. Again fearing that thelocal monarch will...
- The Final Test: Abraham’Ssacrifice of IsaacThroughout his life, Abraham suffers greatly. G‑d challengeshim with no less than 10 tests (read: What Were Abraham’s 10 Tests?), culminating inthe...
- Sarah’S Passing andthe Hebron PurchaseAfter living a full and rich life of 127 years, Sarah passesaway in the city of Hebron. In the presence of the residents of the city (Hitites), Abr...
- Isaac and Abrahamboth MarryAlthough Sarah does not live to see Isaac build a family,Abraham is determined to make it happen—in the best way possible. Rather thanmatch up his...
Sep 22, 2023 · Learn about the life and faith of Abraham, the friend of God and the father of many nations. Discover how God called him, blessed him, and made a covenant with him in the Old Testament.
Jun 22, 2020 · In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Abraham is a venerated patriarch whose relationship with God provides the foundational story for God's beneficial relationship with humanity. According to biblical tradition (and some say myth), Abraham (c. 20th century BCE) was born in or near the city of Ur in Mesopotamia, most likely in southern Chaldea.
People also ask
Was Abraham a good person?
Is there a biography of Abraham?
Who was Abraham in the Bible?
What is the relationship between Abraham and God?
