Abram and Lot Separate

¹Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev #– #he, his wife, and all he had, and Lot with him.[#13:1 Gn 12:9]

²Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.

³He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been,

⁴to the site where he had built the altar. And Abram called on the name of the Lord there.[#13:4 Gn 12:7,8]

⁵Now Lot, who was travelling with Abram, also had flocks, herds, and tents.

⁶But the land was unable to support them as long as they stayed together, for they had so many possessions that they could not stay together,[#13:6 Gn 36:7]

⁷and there was quarrelling between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. (At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.)[#13:7 Gn 26:20; #13:7 Gn 12:6; 15:20–21]

⁸So Abram said to Lot, ‘Please, let’s not have quarrelling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives.

⁹Isn’t the whole land before you? Separate from me: if you go to the left, I will go to the right; if you go to the right, I will go to the left.’

¹⁰Lot looked out and saw that the entire plain of the Jordan as far as Zoar was well watered everywhere like the Lord ’s garden and the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)[#13:10 Lit circle ; i.e., probably the large round plain where the Jordan River empties into the Dead Sea, also in v. 11; #13:10 Gn 19:17–29; #13:10 Gn 14:2,8; Dt 34:3; #13:10 Gn 2:8–10; #13:10 Gn 19:24–25]

¹¹So Lot chose the entire plain of the Jordan for himself. Then Lot journeyed eastwards, and they separated from each other.

¹²Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot lived in the cities on the plain and set up his tent near Sodom.

¹³(Now the men of Sodom were evil, sinning immensely against the Lord .)[#13:13 Lit evil and sinful; #13:13 Gn 18:20; Ezk 16:49; 2Pt 2:7–8]

¹⁴After Lot had separated from him, the Lord said to Abram, ‘Look from the place where you are. Look north and south, east and west,[#13:14 Gn 28:14]

¹⁵for I will give you and your offspring for ever all the land that you see.[#13:15 Lit seed; #13:15 Gn 12:7; 15:18; 17:8; 24:7; 26:4; 28:13; 35:12; Dt 34:4; 2Ch 20:7; Ac 7:5]

¹⁶I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.[#13:16 Gn 16:10; 28:14; Nm 23:10]

¹⁷Get up and walk around the land, through its length and width, for I will give it to you.’

¹⁸So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the oaks of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the Lord .[#13:18 Gn 14:13; 18:1; 23:17–19]