"These verses are of fundamental importance for the theology of Genesis, for they serve to bind together the primeval history and the later patriarchal history and look beyond it to the subsequent history of the nation."414
"Whereas chapters 1-11 generally portray man's rebellion, chapters 12-50 detail God's bringing man into a place of blessing."415
". . . this is the central passage of the Book of Genesis."416
God's revelation to Abram in these verses explains why his family left Ur (11:31).
". . . by placing the call of Abraham after the dispersion of the nations at Babylon (11:1-9), the author intends to picture Abraham's call as God's gift of salvation in the midst of judgment."417
"The primeval history thus explains the significance of the patriarchal story: though apparently of little consequence in the world of their day, the patriarchs are in fact men through whom the world will be redeemed. The God who revealed himself to them was no mere tribal deity but the creator of the whole universe."418
