Study Desk

Now ^(C1)the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you;

And ^(C1)I will make you into a great nation, And ^(C2)I will bless you, And make your name great; And you shall ^(C3)be a blessing;

And ^(C1)I will bless those who bless you, And the one who ^(F1)curses you I will ^(F2)curse. ^(C2)And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed."

So Abram went away as the LORD had spoken to him; and ^(C1)Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their ^(C1)possessions which they had accumulated, and ^(C2)the ^(F1)people which they had acquired in Haran, and they ^(F2)set out for the land of Canaan; ^(C3)so they came to the land of Canaan.

Abram passed through the land as far as the site of ^(C1)Shechem, to the ^(F1)oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanites were in the land at that time.

And the LORD ^(C1)appeared to Abram and said, "^(C2)To your ^(F1)descendants I will give this land." So he built ^(C3)an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him.

Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with ^(C1)Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the LORD and ^(C2)called upon the name of the LORD.

Then Abram journeyed on, continuing toward ^(C1)the ^(F1)Negev.

Now there was ^(C1)a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a time, because the famine was ^(C2)severe in the land.

It came about, when he ^(F1)was approaching Egypt, that he said to his wife Sarai, "See now, I know that you are a ^(F2)(C1)beautiful woman;

^(C1)and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife'; and they will kill me, but they will let you live.

"Please say that you are ^(C1)my sister so that it may go well for me because of you, and that ^(F1)(C2)I may live on account of you."

Now it came about, when Abram entered Egypt, that the Egyptians ^(F1)saw that the woman was very beautiful.

Pharaoh's officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh; and ^(C1)the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house.

Therefore ^(C1)he treated Abram well for her sake; and ^(F1)(C2)he gave him sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants and female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

But the LORD ^(C1)struck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife.

Then Pharaoh called Abram and said, "^(C1)What is this that you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife?

"Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her for myself as a wife? Now then, ^(F1)here is your wife, take her and go!"

And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they ^(F1)escorted him away, with his wife and all that belonged to him.

So Abram went up from Egypt to ^(C1)the ^(F1)Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him.

Now Abram was ^(C1)very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.

And he went ^(F1)on his journeys from the ^(F2)Negev as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, ^(C1)between Bethel and Ai,

to the place of the ^(C1)altar which he had made there previously; and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.

Now ^(C1)Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks, herds, and tents.

And ^(C1)the land could not ^(F1)support both of them ^(F2)while living together, ^(C2)for their possessions were so great that they were not able to remain together.

^(C1)And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram's livestock and the herdsmen of Lot's livestock. Now ^(C2)the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land at that time.

^(C1)So Abram said to Lot, "Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are relatives!

"Is the entire land not before you? Please separate from me; if you choose the left, then I will go to the right; or if you choose the right, then I will go to the left."

Lot raised his eyes and saw all the ^(F1)vicinity of the ^(C1)Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere—this was before the LORD ^(C2)destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah—like ^(C3)the garden of the LORD, ^(C4)like the land of Egypt ^(F2)going toward ^(C5)Zoar.

So Lot chose for himself all the ^(F1)vicinity of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. So they separated from each other.

Abram ^(F1)settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot ^(F1)settled in ^(C1)the cities of the ^(F2)vicinity of the Jordan, and moved his tents as far as Sodom.

Now ^(C1)the men of Sodom were ^(F1)exceedingly wicked ^(C2)sinners against the LORD.

The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, "^(C1)Now raise your eyes and look from the place where you are, ^(C2)northward and southward, and eastward and westward;

^(C1)for all the land which you see ^(C2)I will give to you and to your ^(F1)descendants forever.

"I will make your ^(F1)descendants ^(C1)as plentiful as the dust of the earth, so that if anyone can count the dust of the earth, then your ^(F1)descendants could also be counted.

"Arise, ^(C1)walk about in the land through its length and width; for ^(C2)I will give it to you."

Then Abram moved his tent and came and lived by the ^(F1)(C1)oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron; and there he built ^(C2)an altar to the LORD.

And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of ^(C1)Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of ^(C2)Elam, and Tidal king of ^(F1)Goiim,

that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of ^(C1)Admah, and Shemeber king of ^(C2)Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, ^(C3)Zoar).

All these kings ^(F1)came as allies to ^(C1)the Valley of Siddim (that is, ^(C2)the Salt Sea).

For twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

And in the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and ^(F1)defeated the ^(C1)Rephaim in ^(C2)Ashteroth-karnaim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in ^(F2)(C3)Shaveh-kiriathaim,

and the ^(C1)Horites on their Mount Seir, as far as ^(C2)El-paran, which is by the wilderness.

Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, ^(C1)Kadesh), and ^(F1)conquered all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, who lived in ^(C2)Hazazon-tamar.

And the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) came out; and they lined up for battle against them in ^(C1)the Valley of Siddim,

against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of ^(F1)Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five.

Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and ^(C1)the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they fell ^(F1)into them. But those who survived fled to the ^(C2)hill country.

Then they took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply, and departed.

They also took Lot, ^(C1)Abram's nephew, and his possessions and departed, ^(C2)for he was living in Sodom.

Then ^(F1)a survivor came and told Abram the ^(C1)Hebrew. Now he was residing by the ^(F2)(C2)oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner, and they were ^(F3)(C3)allies with Abram.

When Abram heard that ^(C1)his relative had been taken captive, he ^(F1)led out his trained men, ^(C2)born in his house, numbering 318, and went in pursuit as far as ^(C3)Dan.

Then ^(C1)he divided ^(F1)his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and ^(F2)defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is ^(F3)north of ^(C2)Damascus.

He ^(C1)brought back all the possessions, and also brought back ^(C2)his relative Lot with his possessions, and also the women, and the other people.

Then after his return from the ^(F1)defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, ^(C1)the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, ^(C2)the King's Valley).

And ^(C1)Melchizedek the king of Salem brought out ^(C2)bread and wine; now he was a ^(C3)priest of ^(F1)God Most High.

And he blessed him and said, "Blessed be Abram of ^(F1)God Most High, ^(F2)(C1)Possessor of heaven and earth;

And blessed be ^(F1)God Most High, Who has handed over your enemies to you." And ^(C1)he gave him a tenth of everything.

Footnotes:  

Cross References:  

Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give the ^(F1)people to me and take the possessions for yourself."

But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have ^(F1)sworn to the LORD ^(F2)(C1)God Most High, ^(F3)(C2)Possessor of heaven and earth,

that ^(C1)I will not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, so that you do not say, 'I have made Abram rich.'

"^(F1)I will take nothing except what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, ^(C1)Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their share."

After these things ^(C1)the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, "^(C2)Do not fear, Abram, I am ^(C3)a shield to you; ^(F1)Your ^(C4)reward shall be very great."

But Abram said, "Lord ^(F1)GOD, what will You give me, since I ^(F2)am childless, and the ^(F3)heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?"

Abram also said, "^(F1)Since You have given me no ^(F2)son, ^(F3)one who has been ^(C1)born in my house is my heir."

Then behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "This man will not be your heir; ^(C1)but one who will come from your own ^(F1)body shall be your heir."

And He took him outside and said, "Now look toward the heavens and ^(C1)count the stars, if you are able to count them." And He said to him, "^(C2)So shall your ^(F1)descendants be."

^(C1)Then he believed in the LORD; and He ^(F1)credited it to him as righteousness.

And He said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you out of ^(C1)Ur of the Chaldeans, to ^(C2)give you this land to ^(F1)possess it."

But he said, "Lord ^(F1)GOD, ^(C1)how may I know that I will ^(F2)possess it?"

So He said to him, "^(F1)Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."

Then he ^(F1)brought all these to Him and ^(C1)cut them ^(F2)in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he ^(C2)did not cut the birds.

And birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

Now when the sun was going down, ^(C1)a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, ^(F1)terror and great darkness fell upon him.

Then God said to Abram, "Know for certain that ^(C1)your ^(F1)descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, ^(F2)where ^(C2)they will be enslaved and oppressed for ^(C3)four hundred years.

"But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out ^(C1)with ^(F1)many possessions.

"As for you, ^(C1)you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.

"Then in ^(C1)the fourth generation they will return here, for ^(C2)the wrongdoing of the Amorite is not yet complete."

Now it came about, when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, a smoking oven and a flaming torch appeared which ^(C1)passed between these pieces.

On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "^(C1)To your ^(F1)descendants I have given this land, From ^(C2)the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:

^(C1)the land of the Kenite, the Kenizzite, the Kadmonite,

the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Rephaim,

the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Girgashite, and the Jebusite."