God guided Abraham by commanding him to leave Ur and go to a land He would show him, stopping him at Haran until his father died, and then bringing him into Canaan where He showed him the land and promised it to him.
God did not give Abraham a map or name the destination in advance. He simply said, “Get thee out of thy country… unto a land that I will shew thee.” Abram went in faith, though he took his father and nephew along. God paused the journey at Haran until Terah died, then brought Abram, at age 75, into the land of Canaan and later showed him the full extent of the land from the high ground.
Genesis 12:1 — God's original instruction to Abram is the foundation of the answer: leave everything and go to a land that He would show him.
Genesis 12:4-5 — Shows Abram's actual departure from Haran at age 75 and his entry into the land of Canaan.
Genesis 13:14-15 — Describes how God later showed Abraham the full extent of the land from the high ground and promised it to him.
In Genesis 12:1, while Abram was still in Ur of the Chaldees, the Lord said to him, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee.” God did not name the destination in the command; He told Abram to go to a land that He would show him. Genesis 11:31-32 records that Abram's father Terah took the family out of Ur toward the land of Canaan, but they came to Haran and dwelt there, and Terah died in Haran. Then Genesis 12:4-5 says Abram departed as the Lord had spoken, taking Sarai and Lot, and at 75 years old he left Haran and came into the land of Canaan. Verse 6 says he passed through the land to the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. Later, after Lot was separated from Abram, the Lord said in Genesis 13:14-15, “Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.” In Genesis 15:7, God reminded Abram, “I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.”
Les Feldick explains that God's guidance of Abraham began in a world saturated with idolatry. Since the Tower of Babel, pagan and mythological religions had spread, so God reached down and put His finger on one man—Abram—who still had a spark of faith or the ability to believe. God appeared to him and gave the command recorded in Genesis 12:1: leave Ur, leave your family, and go to a land I will show you. He did not give a map or identify the place in advance. Les emphasizes that Abram was already a believer when he left Ur, but his obedience was not total. When Abram told his father he was leaving, Terah said, “We'll just go with you,” and Abram could not prevent it. Since it was not God's will for Terah to go, God “put the brakes on” at Haran and waited until Terah died before bringing Abram on into the Promised Land. According to Les, God then brought Abram, at 75 years old, from Haran down into Canaan. Later, after Lot was separated from Abram, God had him stand on the high ground and look north, south, east, and west, promising all that he saw to him and his seed forever. Les sums up that by faith Abraham went, and that was the beginning of God's dealing with the man out of whom the nation of Israel would come.
God's guidance did not take Abram straight from Ur to Canaan in one uninterrupted journey. Scripture records that Terah, Abram's father, took Abram, Lot, and Sarai from Ur of the Chaldees, and they came to Haran and dwelt there, where Terah died (Genesis 11:31-32). Les Feldick teaches that Abram was not totally obedient because his father insisted on going with him. Since it was not God's will for Terah to go, God put the brakes on at Haran and waited until Terah died before Abram continued into the Promised Land.
God commanded Abram to get out of his country and from his father's house (Genesis 12:1). But Les explains that when Abram told his father he was leaving, Terah said, “We'll just go with you,” and Abram did not have the wherewithal to refuse. So Terah went along, and Lot also went with Abram (Genesis 12:4). God dealt with this partial obedience by waiting at Haran until Terah died.
Once Abram was in Canaan and Lot had separated from him, God told him to lift up his eyes and look northward, southward, eastward, and westward. God said, “For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever” (Genesis 13:14-15). Les points out that this promise of territory came to a man who had already been a believer for years, and God identified Himself as the Lord who brought him out of Ur to give him this land (Genesis 15:7).
God did not give Abraham a map or a pre-announced destination. The instruction was simply “unto a land that I will shew thee” (Genesis 12:1). Les teaches that God's call came to one man in an idolatrous world, and Abraham's part was to believe and go. By faith Abraham went, and that was the beginning of God's dealings with the man out of whom the nation of Israel would come.
God's Call to Abram
Les teaches that God identified one man, Abram, in an idolatrous world and commanded him to leave his country and his father's house, but gave only a general destination—'a land that I will show thee.' He points out that God did not tell him where he was going.
Abram's Partial Obedience
Les teaches that Abram was not totally obedient because his father insisted on going with him, and God stopped the trip halfway between Ur and Canaan until Terah died.
Departure from Haran
Les recounts that Abram departed from Haran at age 75, took Sarai and Lot with him, and came down into the land of Canaan, passing through to the place of Sichem.
The Stop at Haran
Les explains that God allowed the caravan to go as far as Haran, then put the brakes on until Terah died, because it was not God's will for Terah to go along.
The Land Shown from Above
Les describes how God brought Abraham to the high ground after Lot left, and had him look in every direction, promising him all the land he could see.
By Faith Abraham Went
Les teaches that God first spoke to Abram in Ur of the Chaldees and told him to leave Ur and his family, and that by faith Abraham went—starting God's dealings that would lead to Israel.
Believer Before He Left
Les notes that Abraham was already a believer when he left Ur, and later God promised him the land as an inheritance, identifying Himself as the Lord who brought him out of Ur.
Idolatrous World Context
Les teaches that the whole world, including Abraham's family and city, was steeped in idolatry, which is why God commanded him to leave his family and city and go to a land He would show him.
Genesis 12:1: Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
God's initial call to Abram and the promised guidance to a land He would show him.
Genesis 11:31: And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.
Shows Terah's involvement and the family's stop at Haran before reaching Canaan.
Genesis 11:32: And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.
Confirms Terah died in Haran, which is why the journey paused there.
Genesis 12:4: So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
Abram's departure from Haran at age 75.
Genesis 12:5: And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, 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.
Abram entering the land of Canaan with Sarai, Lot, and all their goods.
Genesis 12:6: And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
Abram's first recorded movement through the land to Sichem.
Genesis 13:14: And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:
God directs Abram to survey the land from high ground after Lot's separation.
Genesis 13:15: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
The promise that the land Abraham saw would be given to him and his seed forever.
Genesis 15:7: And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.
God's later reminder that He brought Abram out of Ur to give him the land.
No. God said, “Get thee out of thy country… unto a land that I will shew thee” (Genesis 12:1). Les emphasizes that God did not tell Abraham where he was going; Abraham was to follow by faith.
Abraham's father Terah went with him, and God put the brakes on the journey at Haran until Terah died. Les explains that it was not God's will for Terah to go, so the family stayed in Haran until his death.
Genesis 12:4 says Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. Les points out that Abram then came down into Canaan with Sarai, Lot, and all their possessions.
After Lot was separated from him, God told Abraham to lift up his eyes and look northward, southward, eastward, and westward. God promised that all the land he saw would be given to him and his seed forever (Genesis 13:14-15).
Watch the Teaching: Why the New Testament Starts With Abraham — Matthew 1:1 Explained