Genesis 11:32

Terah died in Haran. How long Terah lived in Haran is not indicated. In view of Abram’s proverbial readiness to obey God, it seems most unlikely that he would have remained in Haran for many years, knowing that the Lord wanted him to go to Canaan, except on account of his father’s age or illness. It is more likely that Terah halted for a season at the Balikh River to restore his wasted powers, than that the attractiveness of the region led him to forget his objective. Filial piety, under such circumstances, would keep Abram watching solicitously over his father. All would thus have remained in Haran in anticipation of resuming their journey upon Terah’s recuperation. When he died Abram and Lot went forward with their original plan, but other members of the family were bewitched by the fertility of the region and were unwilling to leave.

Terah, like Moses some centuries later, failed to enter the Land of Promise. We are forcibly reminded of our pilgrim state by the fact that many of God’s faithful ones die on their way to the heavenly Canaan. The seriousness of Terah’s death, however, was as nothing in comparison to Nahor’s decision to remain in Haran. He and his family voluntarily separated themselves from God’s promises by refusing to accompany Abram to the Promised Land. As a result, they and their descendants finally vanish from the stage of history, while Abram and his posterity remain for centuries the recipients of God’s special favor and the channel of His blessing for the world.