Bio – Abraham

c. 2000 BC (or possibly 2200 BC)

Abram (meaning “exalted father” in Hebrew), who was later renamed Abraham (“father of many nations”), grew up in Ur in Mesopotamia. God called him to leave his country and his people and to take his wife, Sarah, and his nephew, Lot, to a new land, where he would be made the founder of a new nation.

Abraham obeyed unquestioningly. By this stage, he was in his mid-70s, and Sarah was not much younger, and they had not yet managed to have a child. After arriving in Canaan, they parted company with Lot, and many years passed without a child being born to Sarah, although God came to Abraham and renewed his promise that Abraham would inherit for his descendants all the land he could see in every direction.

Abraham had a son, Ishmael, by Sarah’s maid, at Sarah’s suggestion, as she believed she was too old to ever bear a child. Yet following the arrival of three strangers, and a pronouncement that Sarah would soon have a child—a pronouncement that made her laugh in disbelief—Sarah did in fact have a child, aged 90. Abraham was then 100 years old.

Their son, Isaac, was beloved to them both, but he was used in a final test of Abraham’s faith, for God told him to sacrifice the child that he had waited so long for. When asked to do something so unthinkable, Abraham had a heavy heart, but he did not falter, showing how complete his trust in God truly was. At the last moment, God sent a ram to be sacrificed in place of the boy, and he reaffirmed his covenant to Abraham because he had obeyed his commands.

Abraham was 175 years old when he died. He was buried with his wife in a cave in Hebron. He is one of the most important figures in religious history and plays a central role in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Abraham’s faith was astounding. He was prepared to leave his life in Ur just because God told him to. Despite his own advanced age and the age of his wife, Sarah, he still trusted that God would make good on his promise to make him the father of a great nation. He was even prepared to sacrifice his beloved son. He obeyed God’s commands unquestioningly, and for his faith and obedience he was blessed and rewarded beyond measure.

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