1. God speaks to Abraham. What is the holy work in Abraham's response?
2. Abraham is instructed to "Go, Go to you." Is there a personal benefit intended by this direction?
3. Abraham is sent from his both his native land and his father's house. Why say both?
4. The land that God will show is not named, and no coordinates offered. Was this intended as a particular place?
5. How do we move to a place of not knowing? Do we refrain from fear or do we live each day as if moving to a place of not knowing?
6. In verse 4 Lot goes with Abraham, but in verse 5 Abraham takes Lot. What does each represent?
7. Abraham is 75 at the time of this journey? Why do you think the text tells us this?
8. They travel with all of the wealth and servants they had acquired. Are they any less the migrant rather than the tourist?
Radak
ויאמר ה' אל אברם לך לך מארצך וממולדתך ומבית אביך אל הארץ אשר אראך, in this instance the word ויאמר refers to something G’d had already said to Avram before he had even moved away from Ur Casdim, a move he made at the command of G’d. We know this from Genesis 15,7 where G’d reminds him that “I am the Lord Who has taken you out of Ur Casdim.” It is possible that G’d repeated this directive once more while Avram was in Charan. As to the meaning of the word lecha, i.e. “for your own good,” this does not have any special significance, being a commonly used figure of speech. One example would be Exodus 18,27וילך לו where Yitro’s return to Midian is described in a similar way, and no one suggests that he did so “for his own good.” Another such example is found in Jeremiah 5,5 אלכה לי, “I am going,” where no one suggests that Jeremiah had ulterior motives in going to the wealthy people to speak to them in the belief that they knew the ways of the Lord. Still other examples of a similar construction are found in Numbers 22,34אשובה לי or in Genesis 45,19 קחו לכם.
מארצך, כי קשה לאדם לצאת מארצו אשר גר שם ימים רבים כל שכן אם נולד שם, זהו שאמר וממולדתך, כל שכן שיניח בית אביו ומשפחתו וילך לו אל ארץ לא ידע תמול שלשום זהו שאמר מבית אביך.
מארצך, G’d had to add this as it is difficult for a person to leave a homeland in which he had dwelled for many years, all the more so if that land was at the same time the place where he had been born. This is why G’d added: וממולדתך, since it is doubly difficult to separate from one’s family also and to go to a country where one knows no one. This is the meaning of away from your father’s houses מבית אביך
אל הארץ אשר אראך, ואלו אמר לו אל ארץ כארצך טובה או טובה ממנה לא היה כל כך קשה, אבל אמר אל הארץ אשר אראך ולא ידע הטובה היא אם רעה, וכל זה אמר לו האל להודיע חבתו של אברהם אבינו שכל אלה הדברים קשים לאדם והכל קבל מאהבה לעשות רצון האל:
אל הארץ אשר אראך, if G’d had told Avram that He would show him a land which was rich, fertile, good, etc., it would not have been as difficult to comply with such a directive. But the fact that G’d did not add these inducements made it more difficult for Avram to decide. The reason why G’d did not offer these inducements was to show us, the readers, how great was Avram’s love of G’d that he unquestioningly abided by what G’d had asked him to do. He was determined to carry out the wishes of his G’d