We Who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death and child death.

Peterson summarizes the various characterizations of God in the stories presented thus far:

1. The creator of good order from chaos
2. The “spirit of unselfconscious existence in the heavenly garden” (241)
3. The proper object of sacrifice
4. The voice that calls on the wise to prepare in the face of the storm
5. The enemy of prideful tyrants

Now, in the story of Abraham, a new face of God is presented: “the voice of inspired adventure” (241). God calls Abram out of Haran, his homeland, to travel to a new land, Canaan, where he will be blessed and be a blessing to others, with numerous descendants. Abram sets out on the journey with his wife, Sarai, and nephew Lot; they experience many adventures in Egypt and are called to make many sacrifices on the road to finding a new land to establish their progeny, with God miraculously granting Sarai and Abram a child in their old age. In the process, the couple’s names are altered to Sarah and Abraham.

In his promise to Abram/Abraham, God implies that taking the risk of adventure and the path to maturity will fulfill the deepest human longings and become “the most effective strategy for success” (242), benefiting both oneself and others.