GENESIS 11.32-12.6 you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."• 4 So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. · ·Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go 12from · your country and your kin­ dred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a bless­ ing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and _a Or by_you all the families of the earth shall bless the one wlio curses you-1 will curse; and in- themselves 12.1-3: The LoRD's calf and promise to Abraham initiates a I major new movement in the story of Genesis. This is the first of three divine speeches in which a patriarch is given travel directions and promises of blessing (12·.1-3; 26.2-5; 46.1-4; see also 31.3,13). The combination of command (v. 1) and promise (vv. 2-3) implies that the LORD's fulfillment of the promise will follow upon Abraham's fulfill~ menT:of the command. 1: This command to Abraham is similar to, and may have been rnodele'i:I ori, tl:ie later c;livine command for Jacob to return to the "tand of your ancestors and to your kindred" (31.3) and to "the land of your birth" (31.13). 2: The promise that a great nation will come from Abraham stands in tension with S'arah's barrenness in 11.30. Much of the following narrative revolves around this tension. Nation implies not just a numerous people (cf. 13.16; 15.5; etc.), but a politically independent social grou~. I will bless you, involves giving Abraham the power to flourish in flocks, other riches, and offspring (12.16; 13.2,5,16; etc.; cf. Job 42.12-13). And make your name great, to have one's name made great is to become famous. The LORD promises Abraham a fame similar to that promised to Israelite kings (2 Sam 7.9; 1 Kings 1.47). Thus Abraham, as heir of Shem (see p.20-26n.)- which means "name" in Hebr~w-gains the great "name" that the peoples at Babel had fptilely sought for themselves (cf. 11.4). So that you will be a blessing, implies that those associated with Abraham and his heirs will flourish as well. Later Laban (30.27-30) and Potiphar (39.5) will both gain blessing through their association with Abraham's heirs. 3: Th~ugh obscured in the translation, the promise to curse the one who curses Abra­ ham is a slight modification of a similar formula. Whereas the parallel texts (e.g., 27.29; Num 24.9) speak of God cursing the one who curses, the LORD in this text promises to curse anyone who even "treats [Abraham] lightly." In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed has been a particularly important passage in the Christian tradition. Building on the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint, Paul interpreted this a's a blessing of the Gentiles throhgh Abraham (Gal 3.8). Yet the closest analogies to tl'iis promise sqggest that th~ alternate translation, by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves, i.e., they will say "may we be like Abraham," is probably closer to the meaning of the Hebrew. Like 48.20, it envisions other nations of the world looking to Abraham's great blessing and wishing a similar one on themselves (see Ps 72.17). Later in the narrative we see this kind of recognition of Abraham and his heirs' special blessing by foreigners like Abi~elech (26.28), Laban (30.27), Potiphar 0 (39.3!...5), Joseph's jailer (39.21-23), Pharaoh (Ex 1.9), Jethro (Ex 18.10-12), and Balaam (24.1). 12.4-9: Abraham's first journey to the land. 46-5: Part of the Priestly Abraham narrative. 1 27 HEBREW BIBLE] MARK 1.4-,:f.l 6 MAR:K l.l 7..!.L38 casting a net into the sea-for they were fi~hermen. l7 And Jesus said to them, "Fol­ ldw me and I will 'make you fish for· peo­ plei !' 18 And immediately they left tneirnets and followe<l liim. 19 As he went a little far­ th'.dr, he saw James son·of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in'their boat mend­ ing the net,s. 20Jmmediately he called them; ~d they left their futher Zebedee in the boilt with the hired,men,1and followed him. 16 As Jesus passed alqng the Sea of Gali~ lee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew 1.16-20: Call of disciples (Mt 4.18-22; Lk 5.1-11; 1n 1.35-42). Sea of Galilee· or the Lake of Gennesaret is a latge,lake in a deep basin mostly surrounded by high hills. Simon, al~d called Peter (3.16). [ 59 NEW TESTAMENT ) [ 58 NEW TESTAMENT] The Blood Cloe 1536 destitute, you serve your guests generously, and you help the deserving who are afflicted by misfortune.' "She then accompanied him to her .cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal, who, dur­ ing the period of ignorance in pre-Islamic Arabia, became a Christian and used 96 to write the scriptures in Arabic. He would write from the Gospel in Hebrew as much as God willed for him to write. He was then an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadijah said to him, 'O my cousin! Listen co the story of your The Blood Clot nephew.' Waraqah asked, 'O my nephew! What have you seen?' The Messen­ ger of God described what he saw. Waraqah said, 'This is the Ntimus [from the al-~laq. Greek nomos, indicating a revealed law] that God sent to Moses. I wish I were young and could live until the time when your people will drive you out.' The Messengerof God said, 'Will they drive me out?' Waraqah replied, 'Yes, no man has come with something similar to what, 'you have brought but that he was created with hostility and enmity; and ifl should remain alive till chat day, chen l-"Alaq is an early Makkansurah. ;rbe first five verses are considered by I would firmly support you'" (Bg, IK, Q). The surah begins with an injunction A most co be the first verses of1:he,~ran co be revealed; the remaining to recite (vv. 1-5) followed by an admonition of mankind in general (vv. 6-8) verses were revealed later in the Makkan period when opposition to and a more specific admonition of those who prevent others from practicing the revelation arose among the leaders of the ~aysh. This initial revelation is religion (vv. 9-16). It concludes with a challenge to those who call upon what is said co have taken place during the last third of the month of Ramadan, in 610 ocher than God to protect them (vv. 17-19). of the Christian era, twelve years before the migration to Madinah (hijrah) in 611, which marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. According to the Prophet's wife 0A'ishah, "The first thing that began hap­ pening with the Messenger of God from the revelation were dreams he would see in his sleep that would come true. He would not see any dream except that it would come to be, like the break of day in the morning. Then seclusion be­ came beloved to him. So he used to go to the cave of[Mount] l::!ira' and devote himself to worship there for a number of nights, and would bring provisions. Then he would return to [his wife] Khadijah and replenish his provisions for a similar number of nights. This continued until the revelation suddenly came tO 0 him while he was in the cave ofl::!ira • "The Archangel [Gabriel] came to him while he was in the cave and said, 'Recite!' The Messenger of God said, 'I replied, "I am not a reciter."' Then he said, 'So he seized me and pressed me until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said, "Recite!" So I replied, "I am not a reciter." Then he pressed me a second time until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said, "Recite!" So I replied, "I am not a reciter." Then he pressed me a third time until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said, "Recite in the Name of thy Lord Who created" until he reached that which he knew not.' "Then he [the Prophet] returned with those verses and with his heart trembling until he reached Khadijah and said, 'Cover me, cover me.' So they wrapped him up until his fear went away. Then he said co Khadijah, 'What is wrong with me?' and told her what had happened and said, 'I fear for my soul.' She replied, 'Never! By God, God will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your relatives, you speak the truth, you help the poor and the al-'Alaq 96:6-19 1537 96:6-19 The Blood Clot 1538 . \ .. .. considers himself beyond need. 0) Truly unto thy Lord is the return. 0 Hast In ch~ ~ame of c;;od,. the Corppassionat~1 the M~rci~ul thou seen him who prohibits ® a slave when he prays? @ Hast thou seen if J • ' 0 Recite in the Name of thy Lord Who created, 0 created man from a blood he does so out of guidance,@ or to enjoin reverence? @ Hast thou seen ifhe • • I I I • I ~ clot .