Welcome to Bible Fiber, where we explore the textures and shades of the biblical tapestry. I’m Shelley Neese, president of The Jerusalem Connection, a Christian organization dedicated to sharing the stories of Israel’s people, both ancient and modern. I’m also the author of the book Bible Fiber, a 52-week study of the Twelve Minor Prophets, available on Amazon.
For the past four years, we’ve embarked on a chapter-by-chapter exploration of prophetic texts. Now, we are starting a one-year sprint through the first five books of the Bible, the Torah. We are following the weekly Jewish reading calendar—the oldest Bible reading challenge that exists. This week’s Torah portion is called Lech Lecha, which means “Go forth,” and it centers on God’s call on Abraham’s life. It covers Genesis 12:1–17:27.
After the biblical flood and the failed ambition of the Tower of Babel, God changes His strategy for engaging with humanity. Instead of a universal covenant with all of creation, God narrows His focus to one person: a man named Abraham from a land called Ur of the Chaldeans. The opening words of this portion are simple, but they set a new course for all human history: “The Lord said to Abraham, ‘Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.’”
God doesn’t fully explain His plan to Abraham. He simply says, “Go forth” or “lech lecha.” Abraham, a model of faith and obedience, sets out for the land God will reveal. He leaves behind his entire world to follow a promise into a land he has never seen. Abraham was called to leave the height of civilization, the sophistication of Ur. To follow God, Abraham had to abandon the very highest human accomplishments and security, venturing into an unknown, backwater land with no guarantee of safety or prosperity.
Furthermore, the land to which Abraham was called—Canaan—was a very different landscape. It was predominantly rural, a patchwork of small city-states and tribes. The area was characterized by rugged hills, sparse settlements, and a mostly agrarian economy—hardly the urban sophistication Abraham had left behind. Canaan was a land of potential but also lacked centralized political authority or infrastructural stability. Abraham’s leap of faith was thus even more remarkable.
Jewish tradition recounts that even as a young man, Abraham recognized the folly of idol worship. According to a famous passage in the Midrash, Abraham’s father, Terah, was engaged in idol-making and idol worship. As a youth, Abraham entered his father’s shop and, seeing the idols, broke them all except for the largest—placing an axe in its hand to make it appear as though it had destroyed the others. When his father confronted him, Abraham declared that the idols were powerless and had no real existence. Instead, Abraham believed in the one true God. This act of defiance set Abraham apart from his environment. He was a pioneer of monotheism.
The Promises: A New Beginning for All Nations
In return for his obedience, God gave Abraham three magnificent promises: land, descendants, and a universal blessing. God told him, “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
This promise is the start of God’s redemptive plan—the beginning of God extending Himself into the human world. Through Abraham, God would bring a people into covenant with Himself. The blessing that began with Adam and was nearly wiped out in Noah’s day now rests on one man, with the divine promise that it would extend to “all peoples on earth.” For Christians, this promise is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, a descendant of Abraham, who brings God’s blessing to everyone.
Imperfect Faith: The Human Side of Abraham
After God commands Abraham to leave his homeland and travel to the land of Canaan, Abraham obeys and begins this journey of faith. He takes Sarai, his wife, and his nephew Lot, along with their household.
The next significant episode in Genesis reveals the complexities of Abraham’s character and highlights his flaws. During a famine, Abraham and Sarah travel into Egypt. Fearing for his life because of Sarah’s beauty and the dangerous political climate, Abraham instructs her to say she is his sister. When Pharaoh and his officials take Sarah because they see her beauty, God intervenes by afflicting Pharaoh and his household with serious plagues. This divine punishment causes Pharaoh to realize that Sarah is Abraham’s wife. He confronts Abraham about the deception.
It’s one of those strange stories in the Bible. Abraham’s fear of the Egyptians overrides his trust in God’s protection. As a result, his actions put Sarah in danger. In the end, it is Pharaoh—who shows more fear of God—who acted rightly and released Sarah.
The Covenant of the Pieces: God’s Unilateral Promise
The most significant theological moment in this portion is in Genesis 15. Abraham is still without an heir, and he questioned how God will fulfill His promise that his descendants will become a great nation. In this moment, God makes a covenant with him. He instructs Abraham to take several animals, cut them in two, and lay the halves opposite each other. This was a sacred ritual in the ancient Near East—both parties to a covenant would walk between the slaughtered animals. It symbolized that failing to uphold the agreement would result in suffering the same fate.
What is remarkable is what happens next. As Abraham falls into a deep sleep, the text says, “A smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.” In this divine act, God alone, represented as fire and smoke, walks through the divided animals. This signifies that the covenant is unilateral—not based on Abraham’s ability to keep the promise, but entirely on God’s faithfulness.
The Foundation of Faith
The Abrahamic covenant forms the foundation of God’s plan to bring salvation to the entire world. When God called Abraham, He made promises that extended far beyond personal blessing. He committed to making Abraham the father of many nations, blessing him, and establishing an eternal relationship with his descendants.
Importantly, Scripture reveals that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was not an afterthought but was actually foretold in advance to Abraham. Paul emphasizes this in Galatians 3:8: “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and it proclaimed the gospel in advance to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed through you.’”
From the very beginning, God’s plan involved the Jewish people as the initial recipients and carriers of His message. The Gospel is rooted in the promise that through Abraham’s seed—ultimately fulfilled in Christ—all nations would be blessed. Israel’s purpose was never to be discarded or superseded; rather, it was to serve as the conduit through which God’s redemptive plan would be revealed to the entire world. The Gospel proceeds from the Jews, and their ongoing role remains vital in God’s covenantal purpose of blessing all humanity through Jesus Christ.
That’s it for this week. Join me next week as we read Genesis 18:1–22:24, a continuation of the relationship between Abraham and God, which is called Vayera.
Shabbat Shalom and Am Yisrael Chai.