Genesis 13
Abram & Lot Separate
So Abram left Egypt and went to the Negev [south Judah] with his wife, Lot, and all their belongings. Abram was very rich and had a lot of livestock, silver, and gold.
Once they got to the Negev region, they returned to the place they lived before going to Egypt (between Ai and Bethel [which means “God’s house”]). He went back to the altar that he had made there and proclaimed the Existing One’s name.
Lot also had livestock and a tent to pitch, but the land in that area couldn’t sustain both of them together, so they had to separate. There was also a lot of conflict between Abram’s herdsmen and Lot’s herdsmen. There were also Canaanites and Perizzites who lived in that region.
So Abram told Lot,
“We’re family. I don’t want there to be any arguing between my people and your people. We have the whole region at our disposal, so let’s separate. If you want to settle on the left, I’ll go to the right, and if you want to settle on the right, I’ll go to the left.”
Lot looked around and saw how well-irrigated the Jordan valley was. (This took place before the Existing One destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) At that time, the valley looked like the Existing One’s garden [the Garden of Eden?] or like Egypt’s territory which is on the way to Zoar [a city on the southeast end of the Dead Sea]. Agreeing to separate, Lot chose to settle in the Jordan valley to the east, so Abram settled in Canaan. Lot moved his tents as far as Sodom, which was a city full of people who were really corrupt and clashed with the Existing One.
God Vows to Give Canaan to Abram’s Descendants
After they separated, The Existing One told Abram,
“Look all around you—north, south, east, and west—I’m gonna give all the land you see to your descendants for the rest of time. I’ll spread out your descendants like the dirt on the ground. Only someone who could count the number of dirt particles would be able to count your descendants. Go ahead and explore this land I’m gonna give you and see how long and wide it is.”
So then Abram moved his tent and settled by the big tree in Mamre [which means “strength”] which is in Hebron [about 20 miles south of Jerusalem]. Then he built an altar to the Existing One there.