And Abram believed in the name of the Memra of the Lord and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. And he said to him: “I am the Lord who brought you out of the furnace of fire of the Chaldaeans to give you this land to inherit it.” And he said: ‘“I beseech by the mercies that are before you, how, I pray, will I know, that I shall inherit it?” And he said to him: “Sacrifice before me a heifer, three years old, a goat, three years old, and a ram, three years old, a turtle dove and the young of a pigeon.

[Genesis 11:28 says,] “And Haran died in the presence of his father Terach.” Rabbi Hiyya said: Terach was a manufacturer of idols. He once went away somewhere and left Abraham to sell them in his place. A man came in and wished to buy one. ‘How old are you?’ Abraham asked the man. ‘Fifty years old,’ he said. ‘Woe to such a man, who is fifty years old and would worship a day-old object!’ Avraham said. On another occasion, a woman came in with a plateful of flour and requested him, ‘Take this and offer it to them.’ So he took a stick and broke them, and put the stick in the hand of the largest. When his father returned, he demanded, ‘What have you done to them?’ ‘I cannot conceal it from you. A woman came with a plateful of fine meal and requested me to offer it to them. One claimed, “I must eat first,” while another claimed, “I must eat first.” Thereupon, the largest arose, took the stick, and broke them.’ ‘Why do you make sport of me? Have they any knowledge?’ Terach said. ‘Should not your ears hear what your mouth has said?’ Avraham said. Thereupon Terach seized him and delivered him to Nimrod. ‘Let us worship fire,’ Nimrod said. ‘Let us rather worship water which quenches fire,’ Avraham said. ‘Let us worship water,’ Nimrod said. ‘Let us rather worship the clouds which bear the water,’ Avraham said. ‘Let us then worship the clouds,’ Nimrod said. ‘Let us worship the wind which disperses the clouds,’ Avraham said. ‘Let us worship the wind,’ Nimrod said. ‘Let us worship human beings which can stand up to the wind,’ Avraham said. ‘You are just bandying words, and we will worship nothing but the fire. Behold, I will cast you into it, and let your God whom you adore come and save you from it!’ Nimrod said. Now Haran was standing there undecided. ‘If Avraham is victorious, I will say that I am of Avraham’s belief, while if Nimrod is victorious, I will say that I am on Nimrod’s side,’ he thought. When Avraham descended into the fiery furnace and was saved, Nimrod asked him, ‘Of whose belief are you?’ ‘Of Avraham’s,’ he replied. Thereupon he seized him and cast him into the fire; his innards were scorched and he died in the presence of his father. Hence it is written, ‘And Haran died in the presence of his father Terach.’