Biography of Abraham

Abraham (Abram original) (2040 BC X – 1865 to R. X) – Old Testament patriarch and founder of Heb. People born in the city of Ur in northern Mesopotamia for 2,040 liters. dor. X. Father, his name was Terah, the Jews Terah, while the Arabs Azar. Mother's Name in A. St. Scripture does not mention, according to legend is the Arabic (see Herbelot I, 64) her name was Adna, and in rabbinic (Baba Batra 91 a) – Amatleya probably Amatsula – drevnehaldeyskoe female name encountered in the cuneiform inscriptions, but no later than the Greek Amalthea, as suggested by Kaguta (Plenus Aruch sv) and others. Living among the pagan world, Alexander first learned falsity of serving idols and grasped the existence of one God, the apostle which he did. Persecuted for their pagan countrymen, A., 75 th year of life, leaves his homeland and is transported through the Euphrates River into the land of Canaan, God promised him and his offspring, and why he was nicknamed A. ha-Ivri, who had come to mean that the other side the river from whence the word Jew. With A. moved his wife Sarah and nephew Lot.

For a long time they wandered in the south of Canaan, visited Egypt, and later by the Philistines, where the AA in both countries threatened by the same danger of losing his wife, who was taken into the royal harem. After returning from Egypt, was separated from A. Lot, because of a quarrel that arose between their shepherds, A. settled in Hebron and Lot in priiordanskoy area in the city of Sodom.

Familial relationship however AA with his nephew has not broken and when the enemies attacked Sodom, looted and taken prisoner by the inhabitants, including the Lot, the VA learned of this, immediately armed his slaves, 818. chased the robbers, defeated them and liberated, not only relative of his, but other sodomlyan with their kindness, and showed great unselfishness, refusing to accept that either the king of Sodom, and offers him all the spoils. – Marriage with A. Saroyu long remained fruitless, although from Hagar in A. son Ishmael.

Only in old age, when Sara was 90, AA 100 hp., They had a son Isaac, who was supposed to be a direct heir of Alexander and continue to race Heb. tribe. The Union of this God made with AA before birth of Isaac, by setting an external sign of this union rite of circumcision, and his name is Abram was lengthened to Abraham. To experience the power of faith A., him followed the commandment of God to sacrifice Isaac on Mt Moria. Alexander did not hesitate to obey, but at the decisive moment when Isaac lay bound on the altar, and A. already poised knife to stab her son, an angel stopped him and saved the child. A. This feat is from the Jews an endless theme of memory in their prayers, and in previous centuries, the image sacrifice of Isaac was in the Christian Church of the favorite subjects for painting and stucco work of artists. – Shortly after the event with Sarah and Isaac, died, 127 years. A. remarried at Ketura, which bore 6 more sons. All of them, like his elder son Ishmael, became the ancestors of various Arab tribes, which explains own mind the Bible (Genesis XVII, 5) value of the name of Abraham as "father of numerous tribes." – A. died 175 liters. old (in 1865 BC X.), and was buried, his sons Isaac and Ishmael in Hebron, the Cave of Machpelah, purchased it at the death of Sarah, as the family tomb. Mohammedane built over this crypt mosque and protect her as one of the holiest shrines.

Much of the transmitted about AI in the biblical story may be legendary and unhistorical, but the great image of the patriarch had always, as in the Old and the New Testament, a high value as a prototype of the highest piety and righteousness. Like the Jews and the Mohammedan, and Christian fathers. churches built on AA different traditions. These legends AG engaged in natural sciences and knew astronomy, chemistry and other knowledge that he has inherited in its homeland of the Chaldeans, and subsequently distributed among the Egyptians, Phoenicians, and even (Phil. opp. II, 13; Ioseph Flav. Antt. L, 8, 2).

A. Some people think the inventor of the letter font and calendar calculations (Isidor Orig. I, 3), while others ascribe to him, even writing some books (Epiph. haer. 39, 5; Origen Horn. In Luc. 35); Heb. sources (p Kozari. Judah Halevi, 4, 25) ascribe to him a book Ietsiru (cosmogony). The Arabs claim that A. was in Mecca and founded a VM. with Ismail shrine Kaaba (Qur'an II, 119, etc.).

On a visit Abram his son Ishmael in Arabia and said Heb. legend. See details about all the legends about Alexander in the book. Beer "Leben Abrahams".Recent criticism has touched his analysis and those of the Patriarchs. Some critics identifies with A. Brahma, others with the Zoroaster, still others, like the ancient Philo of Alexandria, allegorizirovali history of the Patriarchs, seeing them as merely the personification of well-known abstract concepts.

See Bernstein's "Ursprung der Sagen von A., Isaak uno Iacob" (Berlin, 1871). A critical and historical coverage of legends about A. in A. Geiger "Urschrift etc" (Bresl., 1857) and Gitsiga "Geschichte des Volks Israel" (Leipzig, 1869).