grace, election, covenant, sovereignty and salvation history all have their beginnings here. I shall take this up in more detail when I consider the notion of salvation history. Suffice it to say at this point that Genesis 1–11 provides the rationale and backdrop to the calling of Abraham and the covenant of grace that God establishes with the patriarch of Israel. The terms of God’s covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12:1–3 do not make a lot of sense apart from the account in the previous chapters.