Abraham was somewhat unique in the ancient world. Not only do we identify him as the first man of faith, he may have very well been the only monotheist as far as he knew. At some point he met Melchizadec, priest of God Most High, so he was not alone in the world. But we know that the inhabitants of Ur were polytheistic. The Mesopotamians lived in fear of the forces of nature, and prayed continuously to gods they thought would wipe them off the face of the earth on a whim. Abraham moved his family to Canaan, and if you have ever read Joshua you know what those people were like. Surely Abraham felt alone. Yet he was a man of faith, rewarded by God for his trust, and blest – eventually – with offspring.
Throughout the Old Testament story, the Hebrew people are going to refer to the “God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” That reminds them who they are as a people, and of the covenant relationship God had with those men and their progeny. That title, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, also identifies their God among the many gods of the ancient world. In Mesopotamia and later Egypt (and later Canaan again) the Hebrews are surrounded by polytheists. If you just said “God” to the people you were talking to, the question would be “Which god?” After the destruction of Pharaoh’s army, the reputation of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob became quite well known. As Moses led the Hebrews in the wilderness, that reputation often preceded them. Sometimes it was a good thing; often not. Some kings told them to pass through their territory quickly and not stop for any reason. Some nations told them to take the long way around and not set foot in their boarders period. The simple fact is that everyone, friend and foe, knew their God and didn’t want anything to do with him.
The Hebrews were called out by God to be a peculiar people. That’s the word the Bible uses. You may have memorized the 10 commandments a lifetime ago, but take a careful look at the first four. Those deal with the relationship of the Hebrews to God. We have already noted that these were the only people in the world with just one God. That was odd to begin with. They are also commanded not to make an image of their God. Very weird. The Mesopotamians not only had idols of clay representing their gods, they made little statues of themselves to leave in their temples. Even when they couldn’t be there praying, their likeness was praying in their place. No kidding. Every other culture had gods made of wood, clay, bronze, etc. that they worshipped. Not just in temples; some cultures had idols in each home. Each family as it were had their own private collection of gods. The Hebrews had only one God, and couldn’t even show you what He looked like. Nor did they know his name, but that’s another subject.
The Hebrews were despised pretty much everywhere they went. Some kings, nations and empires tried to wipe them out, others did everything they could to avoid them completely. But whether feared or loathed, everyone knew who they were; and knew the stories of what their God had done.
