and all their substance that they had gathered, and the
souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth
to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of
Canaan they came. And Abram passed through the land unto
the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the
Canaanite was then in the land. And the Lord appeared
unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this
land: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who
appeared unto him. And he removed from thence unto a
mountain on the east of Beth-el, and pitched his tent,
having Beth-el on the west, and Hai on the east: and
there he builded an altar unto the Lord, and called upon
the name of the Lord. And Abram journeyed, going on
still toward the south.'
GENESIS xii. 1-9.


I


We stand here at the well-head of a great river--a narrow channel,
across which a child can step, but which is to open out a broad
bosom that will reflect the sky and refresh continents. The call of
Abram is the most important event in the Old Testament, but it is
also an eminent example of individual faith. For both reasons he is
called 'the Father of the Faithful.' We look at the incident here
mainly from the latter point of view. It falls into three parts.

1. The divine voice of command and promise.--God's servants have to
be separated from home and kindred, and all surroundings. The