"Abram leaves Mesopotamia"  

Genesis 11: 31. Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. 

When did this happen? What were they leaving? What was ahead of them? Is it a great step of faith if leaving a place is for your own safety and well-being? And, who was Hammurabi?

I suppose there is one other question needing to be addressed, 'What difference does any of the above questions make?"

The difficulty in attempting to ascertain the answer to any of the questions is primarily that no one really knows for certain. It has been generally believed that Abraham left Ur at some point circa 2000 - 1700 B.C.

Changes in the political landscape of the Fertile Crescent were dramatic during that 300-400 year period. We aren't even absolutely certain of the tribal background of Abraham's people.

There were many occasions during that period where it would have been very dangerous for 'northern' people groups to be in the southern area of the Mesopotamian region of Ur. It seems probable that Abraham's people were originally from the northern area  (when a wife 'from their own kind' was sought for Isaac, and then Jacob, the search was in the north). 

So, at almost any given point during this 300-400 year period it might have been difficult for a northerner to stay in Ur. The great king of Ur, Hammurabi, certainly did a number on the cities in the north as he attempted to control the entire Mesopotamian area.

Indeed, excavated records show a pattern of migrations, some of which undoubtedly were for survival reasons as different tribal groups arose to power or conquered the region. 

What we do know is that the culture and lifestyle of Ur during this broad time frame was very high. Ur's houses were mostly two-storied buildings with indoor restrooms, lots of glazed ceramic tiles, ornate jewelry, fine dishware and utensils, elaborate wall-hangings, lavish imported fabrics and clothing styles.

The countryside was surveyed out with an extensive system of irrigation canals and ditches, crop storage systems, actual production systems for many things - including garment making with the tally system of piece-work labor found in archaeological excavations of the area in the 20th Century.

It was an urban, sophisticated, prosperous area with a system of laws and society quite similar in many respects to ours today. Actually, the laws Moses laid out for the Children of Israel hundreds of years after Abraham's time were almost identical to laws Hammurabi had etched in his 'stele' a half millennium before Moses was born, (and they weren't original with Hammurabi).

Abraham took Sarah out of all that into an existence of nomads, living in tents - following flocks. When arriving where he wanted to go, Canaan, he found hostility and then drought and famine. They went on to Egypt for awhile.

How could God have been in this? Was God in this? If God was in this, why weren't things better...easier? And, about God, it seems fairly evident that Abram wasn't even certain who 'it' was he was worshipping until he met Melchizedek.

So, here is the story in a nutshell; a man takes his family from civilization to the desert, from a prosperous area to a life of nomads because he has heard from God. He's not certain exactly who God is nor where he is going, and when he gets there he discovers that there are already people there who don't seem likely to just give him the country and leave. And - there's a famine going on.

He's going there because God said He would give him the country for all his children and children's children...but Abraham doesn't have any children and he's getting old.

Was this faith or foolishness? Was this faith - seeking out a promised land or an escape to someplace safer with the hopes of permanence? Was Abraham the eternal optimist or was he just one willing to make the best of any bad situation? Is any of this faith in action? Would God still 'direct' someone to leave a situation or place for their safety or well-being today? Would God, today, make promises of blessing to someone if they would follow his direction, even if it is only to avoid problems where they are?

Someone once said, "If you are being chased out of town, grab a baton and act as though you are leading a parade." It might be all in how you look at a situation. 

Is there a possibility that this is the substance of faith?