Was Abraham a Hebrew???

I was thinking about Abraham and how God called him, a Gentile, out and set him apart. God made some promises to him and he believed God. As a result, he became circumcised to show that he was set apart unto God. The Hebrew race was began by a man who was himself a Gentile!

Romans 4:9-12
⁹Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.

¹⁰How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.

¹¹And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:

¹²And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.

This was alluded to in Acts Chapter 7:1-8 when Stephen told them where the twelve tribes of Israel began.....a gentile. This caused the Sanhedrin court to become white with rage toward him and, along with the things Stephen said about the other patriarchs, caused him to ultimately be killed.

^{Acts 7:1}Then said the high priest, Are these things so?

²And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,

³And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.

⁴Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.

⁵And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

⁶And God spake on this wise, That his seed should sojourn in a strange land; and that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them evil four hundred years.

⁷And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

⁸And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.

I find it fascinating that God's plan for salvation included a Gentile from the beginning. This brings to mind the verses in John.

John 3: ¹⁶For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

¹⁷For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

¹⁸He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

How exciting it is to realize that God thought of us from the beginning! He had a plan for the salvation of the entire human race. Because a Gentile was grafted in at the beginning, salvation was ultimately brought back to the Gentiles. How awesome is that?

The question is............will you be a believer like Abraham and take God at His Word??

This is what us Southerners would say is "an oldie but a goodie".... Thank God he grafted me into his family!!