0

In Genesis 12:1, 2, God calls Abram:

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

My question is: how was Abram sure that this call came from the true God and not a false one? Was this an act of faith?

Improve this question
1
  • Only those can answer this question who, themselves, have received a call by God Almighty (the 'God of Glory' as Stephen describes it) and know what it feels like. Others will simply speculate, who have never known the reality, which will be merely the expression of an uneducated opinion. The text alone will not reveal the secret. I suggest this is a question for SE-Christianity, myself.
    – Nigel J
    Commented Aug 21, 2023 at 1:33

4 Answers 4

Reset to default
2

I note in Heb 11:8, 9, we have the following inspired commentary:

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.

Thus, the act of Abraham in leaving his home country to travel afar was definitely an act of faith! This answers the second question.

The first question is more difficult - how did Abraham recognize the voice of God and thus know that it was not a false God or false spirit? - We are not told so we do not know for sure.

However, we do know that on this and one other occasion (there were probably many more) Abraham recognized the voice of God. The other famous occasion was when God told him to sacrifice his son, Isaac (Gen 22).

All that can be said, is that as a prophet of God, Abraham knew the voice of God when he heard it.

Improve this answer
0

I think it also goes back to the fact that he was chosen meaning whatever he did , he had already been predestined to do and that God was by his side.So yeah he had God and faith to help him in the decision.

Improve this answer
1
  • Welcome to Biblical Hermeneutics! I recommend going through the Help Center's sections on both asking and answering questions.
    – agarza
    Commented Aug 20, 2023 at 23:35
0

How did Abram know that the call was from the true God and not a false one? One reason must be the clarity of the call: it was not simply an "impression", and it was not from a false God, because idols do not speak.

We know that Abraham's faith grew over the years, as he had multiple encounters with God, and multiple revelations of the enormous blessings God promised to bring. When God called him to sacrifice Isaac, imagine how confident he must have been that this was the voice of the true God!

Improve this answer
1
  • Welcome to Biblical Hermeneutics! and thank you for your contribution. When you get a chance, please take the tour to understand how the site works and how it is different than others. I also recommend going through the Help Center's sections on both asking and answering questions.
    – agarza
    Commented Aug 21, 2023 at 13:24
0

I guess that when you hear the Voice of God, you have at least a little certainty that it was God. I think that His Voice gives a overwhelming impression. It is life-changing.

And also, the God of Noah was not foreign to people back then. They would recognize Him among other gods. We know, from the Bible, that there was at least one priest of the Living God: Melchizedek. And if there is a priest, there were also followers of Him.

Improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.