Page:A Jewish Interpretation of the Book of Genesis (Morgenstern, 1919, jewishinterpreta00morg).pdf/123

 Jewish people, and to bless the name of Father Abraham, through whom God's call first came to Israel.

Because Abraham was such a great and good man, very many well-known stories were told about him by the rabbis, in addition to those recorded in the Bible.

There is a charming story, which tells how Abraham came to worship one God. In those days people thought that there were many gods. They even made images, or idols, of wood, stone or metal, and foolishly believed that these were gods, who had made the universe, and had even made them. One evening Abraham was walking about just as the stars came out, one by one. He was struck by their beauty, and thought, "Surely these are the gods". But soon the moon rose, full and bright, and her radiance obscured the stars. Then Abraham thought, "No, this must be god". But at last the dawn came and the moon paled, and Abraham said, "Surely the moon can not be god, for its light has become dim and weak". Then the sun rose, majestic and glorious, and Abraham thought, "At last this is the real god". But at evening the sun sank, and once more the stars appeared. Then Abraham thought long and hard; and finally the truth dawned upon him, that none of these, beautiful though they were, could be god; that there must be some power of good and love behind all these, whose servants they were and whose law they obeyed, and this must be God. So he bowed down and worshipped the one God of all the universe. Then it was that God first called to him to be a blessing unto all mankind.

Thereupon Abraham began to teach the knowledge of the one, true God. At first he sought to teach his own fellow-townsmen. But this was a difficult task. His own father, Terah, was a maker and trafficker of idols. One day he left Abraham in charge of the shop, while he went out. A man came in to buy an idol. Abraham asked him, "How old art thou?" "Sixty years old", was the answer. "Alas",