Because of Various Interpretations of the Bible, Abraham Can Be Said to Be the Founder of What Three World Religions?

Judaism's claim on Abraham is perhaps the most direct and historically foundational of the three traditions. The Hebrew Bible records God renaming Abram to Abraham and declaring him "the father of a multitude of nations" Genesis 17:5. This covenant — sealed with circumcision and the promise of land — is the bedrock of Jewish identity. The prophet Nehemiah later recalled how God "chose Abram, who brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and changed his name to Abraham" Nehemiah 9:7, framing Abraham's election as the defining act of Israel's sacred history.

Rabbinic tradition, developed extensively in the Talmud (compiled ca. 200–500 CE), treats Abraham as the first monotheist who recognized God through reason before receiving formal revelation. Scholar Jon Levenson's 2012 work Inheriting Abraham argues that Judaism's claim is covenantal and ethnic in a way the other traditions' claims are not — Abraham's descendants through Isaac and Jacob literally are the Jewish people. The blessing pronounced over him in Genesis 14 — "Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth" Genesis 14:19 — is read as the inauguration of a particular, chosen lineage.

It's worth noting that not all Jewish thinkers are comfortable with the "Abrahamic religions" framing; some, like David Novak, argue it flattens real theological differences under a misleading umbrella.

Christianity inherits Abraham through the Hebrew scriptures and then reinterprets his significance through the lens of Jesus Christ. The New Testament — especially Paul's letters to the Galatians and Romans — argues that Abraham's faith, not his ethnic lineage, is what matters. In this reading, anyone who believes as Abraham believed becomes his spiritual heir. This universalizing move is what allowed Christianity to claim Abraham while simultaneously opening the covenant to Gentiles.

Genesis 18:18, which promises that "all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him" Genesis 18:18, is a verse Christian theologians from Justin Martyr (2nd century CE) onward cited as a prophetic pointer toward Christ's universal mission. The phrase "all nations" was read as anticipating the global spread of the gospel. Abraham is also listed in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:1, anchoring Christ's identity in Abrahamic promise.

There's genuine disagreement within Christianity about how to understand this inheritance. Catholic and Orthodox traditions emphasize continuity with Israel's covenant; many Protestant Reformers, following Luther and Calvin, stressed the faith-alone principle they saw modeled in Abraham. Either way, Abraham's foundational role is undisputed across Christian denominations.

Islam's claim on Abraham (Ibrahim in Arabic) is theologically bold and distinctive: the Qur'an doesn't merely include Abraham in Islam's lineage — it asserts he was a Muslim. Surah 3:67 states plainly that "Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists." Quran 3:67 This reframes the question entirely: from an Islamic perspective, Judaism and Christianity are later developments that partially preserved, but also distorted, the original Abrahamic submission to God.

The Qur'an instructs the Prophet Muhammad to follow "the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth" Quran 3:95, and repeats this command in Surah 16:123 Quran 16:123, presenting Islam not as a new religion but as a restoration of the primordial faith Abraham practiced. The Ka'ba in Mecca is traditionally identified as the house Abraham and his son Ishmael built for God's worship, making the annual Hajj pilgrimage a direct re-enactment of Abrahamic devotion.

Scholar Reuven Firestone, in his 1990 study Journeys in Holy Lands, traces how Islamic tradition developed rich narratives around Ibrahim that parallel yet diverge from Jewish and Christian accounts — particularly regarding which son (Ishmael vs. Isaac) was offered in sacrifice. This is one of the tradition's most contested points with the other two faiths.

Judaism identifies Abraham as the patriarch chosen by God, renamed from Abram to Abraham, grounding Israel’s origins in his covenantal calling and name change Nehemiah 9:7.

God’s promise that Abraham would be “the father of a multitude of nations” frames him as a foundational figure whose lineage defines Israel’s story Genesis 17:5.

Biblical genealogies preserve his identity, underscoring his central place at the head of Israel’s line 1 Chronicles 1:27.

Christianity receives the Abraham narratives in its scriptures and regards him as a forebear through whom God promised blessing to “all the nations,” marking him as a foundational figure for the faith’s universal horizon Genesis 18:18.

The biblical record situates Abraham at the head of the ancestral line, reinforcing his role as a key starting point in salvation history as Christians read the Old Testament 1 Chronicles 1:27.

The Qur’an explicitly presents Abraham (Ibrāhīm) as the model to follow and describes him as neither Jew nor Christian but a pure monotheist in submission to God, which Islam terms Muslim Quran 3:67.

Muslims are commanded to follow “the religion of Abraham,” affirming his paradigmatic status for Islamic faith and practice Quran 3:95.

The revelation to Muhammad reiterates this call to follow Abraham’s upright path, cementing his foundational role in Islam Quran 16:123.