1. Acts 7:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

Why does Stephen say that God appeared to Abraham before he lived in Haran when Genesis 12:1 mentions that Haran was the place where God called him?

Acts 7:2 (ESV)

2 And Stephen said: “Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,

God’s initial revelation to Abraham took place outside of Canaan.1 Mesopotamia was understood to include the territory in which Ur was situated whereas Haran was northwest of Mesopotamia, on the fertile crescent en route to Palestine.2 Though Genesis 12:1 mentions Haran as the place of the call, Genesis 15:7 and Nehemiah 9:7 imply that a call was made also at Ur.3