Topical Bible: Haran: Father of Lot and Brother of Abraham

◄ Haran: Father of Lot and Brother of Abraham ►

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Haran is a significant yet somewhat enigmatic figure in the biblical narrative, primarily known as the father of Lot and the brother of Abraham (originally Abram). His account is briefly mentioned in the genealogical records of the Book of Genesis, which provide insight into the early patriarchal family from which the nation of Israel would eventually emerge.

Genealogy and Family Background

Haran was one of the sons of Terah, a descendant of Shem, who was one of Noah's three sons. The genealogical account in Genesis 11:26-27 states: "When Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. This is the account of Terah’s family line. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran became the father of Lot" . Haran's siblings included Abram, who would later be called Abraham, and Nahor. The family resided in Ur of the Chaldeans, a significant city in ancient Mesopotamia.

Haran's Offspring

Haran is most notably recognized as the father of Lot. Lot would later play a crucial role in the biblical narrative, particularly in the accounts of Sodom and Gomorrah. Haran also had two daughters, Milcah and Iscah, as mentioned in Genesis 11:29: "Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah" . Milcah would become the wife of Nahor, Haran's brother, further intertwining the family lineage.

Death and Legacy

Haran's life was cut short, as he died in Ur of the Chaldeans before his father, Terah. Genesis 11:28 records this event: "During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans" . This premature death left Lot, Haran's son, under the care of his grandfather Terah and later his uncle Abram. Haran's death marked a pivotal moment for the family, as it set the stage for Abram's eventual departure from Ur, a journey that would lead to the establishment of the Israelite nation.

Cultural and Theological Significance

Haran's role, though brief in the biblical text, is significant in the broader narrative of God's redemptive plan. His familial connections to Abram and Lot place him within the foundational lineage of the Israelite people. The movement of Terah's family from Ur to Haran, and subsequently Abram's call to Canaan, is a critical transition in the biblical account, highlighting themes of faith, obedience, and divine promise.

Haran's legacy is thus preserved through his descendants, particularly Lot, who would become a central figure in the narrative of Sodom and Gomorrah, and through his daughter Milcah, who continued the family line through her marriage to Nahor. Haran's life and family connections underscore the intricate tapestry of relationships that God used to fulfill His covenant promises to Abraham and his descendants.

Nave's Topical Index

Genesis 11:26-31
And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Nave's Topical Index

Library

Of the Time of the Migration of Abraham, When, According to the ...
... when Nahor followed his father, Abraham then fulfilled the precept of the Lord,
that he should depart out of Haran with Sarah his wife and Lot his brother's son ...
//christianbookshelf.org/augustine/city of god/chapter 15 of the time of.htm

The Story of the Tower of Babel
... from your country, your relatives, and your father's house to ... was seventy-five years
old when he left Haran. He took Sarah his wife and Lot his brother's son ...
//christianbookshelf.org/sherman/the childrens bible/the story of the tower.htm

Of the Repeated Address of God to Abraham, in which He Promised ...
... Abraham, then, having departed out of Haran in the seventy-fifth year of ... and in the
hundred and forty-fifth of his father's, went with Lot, his brother's ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 18 of the repeated address.htm

Here Followeth the Life of Abraham
... Of Haran came Lot and two daughters, Melcha and Sara ... He wedded Sara, daughter of
his brother Haran. ... true, he was sixty-five years old when his father died, for ...
/.../wells/bible stories and religious classics/here followeth the life of.htm

Abraham's Four Surrenders
... Now, notice that after Abram had let Lot have his choice, and Lot had gone off to
the plains, for the first time God ... His father had died at Haran, and he ...
//christianbookshelf.org/moody/men of the bible/i abrahams four surrenders.htm

From Abraham to Egypt.
... The kings who captured Lot are now known ... call of Abraham as recorded In this section
is probably from Ur of the Chaldees to Haran where his father died (11 ...
/.../tidwell/the bible period by period/chapter iv from abraham to.htm

Entire Sanctification in Patriarchal Times.
... land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran and dwelt ... Stephen says, "And from thence
when his father was dead ... Abram took Sarai, his wife, and Lot, his brother's son ...
/.../clark/the theology of holiness/chapter iii entire sanctification in.htm

Why, in the Account of Terah's Emigration, on his Forsaking the ...
... out of the Chaldean nation and dwelt in Haran, since it ... also Sarah his daughter-in-
law, and Lot his grandson ... had lapsed from the piety of his father and brother ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/augustine/city of god/chapter 13 why in the account.htm

The Perpetual virginity of Blessed Mary.
... five years old when he departed out of Haran. ... goods, and also brought again his brother
Lot." Let this ... told Rachel that he was her father's brother, and that ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/the perpetual virginity of blessed.htm

Scenes in the Lives of the Patriarchs.
... With his father-in-law, and with Lot, his flocks and ... When he arrived at Haran, in
Mesopotamia, pleased with the ... had lost a brother, and now the father to whom ...
/.../headley/half hours in bible lands volume 2/scenes in the lives of.htm