Genesis 12:6
in Genesis 12Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the Oak of Moreh at Shechem. And at that time the Canaanites were in the land.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Shechem, unto the oak of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
KJV
And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
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This verse in Genesis 12
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd Abram passed through the land,.... Entering the northern part of it, as appears by his going southward, Gen 12:9 he went on unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh; the place afterwards called Shechem, from a prince of that name in the times of Jacob; and so it was called when Moses wrote, and therefore, by way of anticipation, calls it so here; it was about the middle of the land of Canaan, and the same with Sychar, a city of Samaria, in the times of Christ, Joh 4:
This site's exposition
the Canaanites were in the land
on Genesis 12:6-7
Abram walks through a land the Canaanites already hold, as far as the Oak of Moreh at Shechem. The LORD appears there and gives the land to his offspring, and Abram, who owns none of it, builds an altar on it. Altars mark every place he stops from here.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And when they had come to it, Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
The plain of Moreh - אלון elon should be translated oak, not plain; the Septuagint translate την δρυν την ὑψηλην, the lofty oak; and it is likely the place was remarkable for a grove of those trees, or for one of a stupendous height and bulk. The Canaanite was then in the land - This is thought to be an interpolation, because it is supposed that these words must have been written after the Canaanites were expelled from the land by the Israelites under Joshua; but this by no means follows.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
the place of Sichem--or Shechem, a pastoral valley then unoccupied (compare Ge 33:18). plain of Moreh--rather, the "terebinth tree" of Moreh, very common in Palestine, remarkable for its wide-spreading branches and its dark green foliage. It is probable that in Moreh there was a grove of these trees, whose inviting shade led Abram to choose it for an encampment.
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The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּעֲבֹ֤ר | vaiyaavor | and he passed | H5674 → | 556 times |
| אַבְרָם֙ | ʾavram | Abram | H87 → | 61 times |
| בָּאָ֔רֶץ | baaretz | in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| עַ֚ד | ʾad | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| מְק֣וֹם | mekom | [the] place of | H4725 → | 401 times |
| שְׁכֶ֔ם | shekhem | Shechem | H7927 → | 63 times |
| עַ֖ד | ʾad | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| אֵל֣וֹן | ʾelon | [the] great tree of | H436 → | 9 times |
| מוֹרֶ֑ה | moreh | Moreh | H4176 → | |
| וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִ֖י | vehakenaani | and the Canaanite[s] | H3669 → | 73 times |
| אָ֥ז | ʾaz | then | H227 → | 141 times |
| בָּאָֽרֶץ׃ | baaretz | [was] in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
וַיַּעֲבֹ֤רand he passed
vaiyaavorH5674 →556 times
אַבְרָם֙Abram
ʾavramH87 →61 times
בָּאָ֔רֶץin the land
baaretzH776 →2504 times
עַ֚דto
ʾadH5704 →1261 times
מְק֣וֹם[the] place of
mekomH4725 →401 times
שְׁכֶ֔םShechem
shekhemH7927 →63 times
עַ֖דto
ʾadH5704 →1261 times
אֵל֣וֹן[the] great tree of
ʾelonH436 →9 times
מוֹרֶ֑הMoreh
morehH4176 →
וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִ֖יand the Canaanite[s]
vehakenaaniH3669 →73 times
אָ֥זthen
ʾazH227 →141 times
בָּאָֽרֶץ׃[was] in the land
baaretzH776 →2504 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 11:9By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
it leads to
- Genesis 12:8
From there Abram moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built an altar to the LORD,…
- Genesis 13:18
So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the Oaks of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the LORD.
- Genesis 13:3
From the Negev he journeyed from place to place toward Bethel, until he came to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been pitched,
- Hebrews 6:17
So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath.
- Acts 7:5–6
He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised to give possession of the land to Abraham and his descendants, even though he did not yet have a…
- Genesis 12:8
Through
Genesis 13:7And there was discord between the herdsmen of Abram and the herdsmen of Lot. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were also living in the land.
it leads to
- Genesis 26:20
But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they contended with him.
- Genesis 26:20
Through
Judges 7:1Early in the morning Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the men with him camped beside the spring of Harod. And the camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the…
it leads to
- Judges 6:32
So on that day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend with him,” because he had torn down Baal’s altar.
- Judges 6:32
Through
Genesis 35:4So they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and all their earrings, and Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem.
it leads to
- Judges 9:6
Then all the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo gathered beside the oak at the pillar in Shechem and proceeded to make Abimelech their king.
- Judges 9:6
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament.