Genesis 13
13
1So Abram left Egypt and went back into the Negev along with Sarai, Lot, and everyone with them, as well as all their possessions. 2Abram was very rich, having many herds of livestock and a great deal of silver and gold. 3He left the Negev and traveled in stages to Bethel, back to the place where he'd camped before, between Bethel and Ai. 4This was where he'd first built an altar. He worshiped the Lord there as he had done previously.
5Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had many flocks, herds, and tents, 6so much so that the available land couldn't support both of them—they had so much livestock they couldn't stay together anymore. 7Abram's and Lot's herdsmen were arguing, and in addition the Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time.
8So Abram said to Lot, “Please don't let's have arguments between us, or between our herdsmen, because we're family. 9You see all this land that's available right in front of you? We have to split up. If you choose to go to the left, I'll go to the right. If you choose to go to the right, I'll go to the left.”
10Lot looked over the whole Jordan valley towards Zoar, and saw that it was well-watered, looking like the Garden of Eden, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11So Lot chose the whole Jordan valley and went east, and the two separated from each other. 12Abram went to live in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled down among the towns in the valley, setting up his tents near Sodom. 13(The people of Sodom were very wicked, committing terrible sins that offended the Lord.)
14After separating from Lot, the Lord told Abram, “Look around you from where you're standing, to the north, south, east, and west. 15I'm giving all this land you see to you and your descendants forever. 16You will have so many descendants that they'll be like the dust of the earth. If anyone could count dust then they could count the number of your descendants! 17Go and walk through the whole land in all directions because I'm giving it to you.”
18So Abram went to live at Hebron, setting up his tents among the oaks at Mamre, where he built an altar to the Lord.
Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Genesis 13
13
Abram and Lot Part. 1From Egypt Abram went up to the Negeb with his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot went with him.#Gn 12:9. 2#In this story of Abraham and Lot going their separate ways, Abraham resolves a family dispute by an act that shows both trust in God and generosity toward his nephew. The story suggests Lot rather than Abraham is the natural choice to be the ancestor of a great family; he is young and he takes the most fertile land (outside the land of Canaan). In contrast to Lot, who lifts his eyes to choose for himself (vv. 10–11), Abraham waits for God to tell him to lift his eyes and see the land he will receive (v. 14). Chaps. 18–19 continue the story of Abraham and Lot. Abraham’s visionary possession of the land foreshadows that of Moses (Dt 3:27; 34:4). Now Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.#Ps 112:1–3; Prv 10:22. 3From the Negeb he traveled by stages toward Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly stood, 4the site where he had first built the altar; and there Abram invoked the Lord by name.#Gn 12:8.
5Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, 6so that the land could not support them if they stayed together; their possessions were so great that they could not live together. 7There were quarrels between the herders of Abram’s livestock and the herders of Lot’s livestock. At this time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.
8So Abram said to Lot: “Let there be no strife between you and me, or between your herders and my herders, for we are kindred. 9Is not the whole land available? Please separate from me. If you prefer the left, I will go to the right; if you prefer the right, I will go to the left.” 10Lot looked about and saw how abundantly watered the whole Jordan Plain was as far as Zoar, like the Lord’s own garden, or like Egypt. This was before the Lord had destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. 11Lot, therefore, chose for himself the whole Jordan Plain and set out eastward. Thus they separated from each other. 12Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the Plain, pitching his tents near Sodom. 13Now the inhabitants of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.#Gn 18:20; Ez 16:49; 2 Pt 2:6–8; Jude 7.
14After Lot had parted from him, the Lord said to Abram: Look about you, and from where you are, gaze to the north and south, east and west;#Gn 28:14. 15all the land that you see I will give to you and your descendants forever.#Gn 12:7; Mt 5:5; Lk 1:55, 73; Acts 7:5; Rom 4:13; Gal 3:16. 16I will make your descendants like the dust of the earth; if anyone could count the dust of the earth, your descendants too might be counted.#Gn 22:17; Nm 23:10. 17Get up and walk through the land, across its length and breadth, for I give it to you. 18Abram moved his tents and went on to settle near the oak of Mamre, which is at Hebron. There he built an altar to the Lord.#Gn 14:13.
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