Genesis tutors us by way of story. Unlike short and pithy proverbs, or lyrical and repetitive psalms, or dense and systematic arguments, Genesis is a narrative that frames our beliefs through stories about persons in places through plots.

The story of Genesis is about God getting glory. Every scene reveals something about Him, whether He’s mentioned explicitly by name or not. He is the primary actor. He is also the writer and producer. He builds the theater. He selects that cast. He calls every shot and pulls all the strings. Every line on every page goes according to His script.

Much of the narrative starting in Genesis 12 focuses on local stories (compared to a global flood) of families with their hands at each other’s throats. Here in Genesis 13 we read about the separation of Abram and Lot.

1. The Context (verse 1)

So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb. (Genesis 13:1)

What was Abram doing in Egypt? In chapter 12:10, “Abram went down to Egypt,” now, Abram went up from Egypt .

The Egypt event was not a success story for Abram, though that doesn’t mean it wasn’t profitable. Abram’s financial portfolio was much fatter thanks to Pharaoh even though Abram hadn’t done anything to earn it. And it did teach Abram that God was faithful though Abram got into the mess because he had failed to remember it.

Lot went with him is a necessary comment to set the stage for the friction. Lot wasn’t mentioned as having gone with Abram and Sarai into Egypt, but since he’s in the caravan coming up from Egypt, obviously he had gone down. He wasn’t mentioned because he wasn’t a player in that story, just as Sarai isn’t mentioned further in chapter 13 because she’s not a part of this story.

2. The Conflict (verses 2-7)

We aren’t told anything about the end of the famine, which was the reason Abram went down to Egypt in the first place, but their flocks were flourishing.

Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. (Genesis 13:2)

When Moses writes that Abram was very rich , the word “very” is the same word translated “severe” in 12:10, “the famine was severe in the land.” Abram was severely wealthy, and what follows shows that too much can cause problems like too little. More is more than less, but more doesn’t always mean less problems.

Abram took with him all his possessions he had gathered when he left Haran (12:5) and his fortunes were increased substantially by Pharaoh for sake of Sarai, “for her sake [Pharaoh] dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys,…female donkeys, and camels” (verse 16). Pharaoh didn’t take back those gifts either; Abram was sent “away with his wife and all that he had” (verse 20).

And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the LORD. (Genesis 13:3–4)

Abram journeyed on , or “he went from place to place” (NIV), “he went on his journeys” (NAS), meaning that he moved in stages, likely from one watering hole to another.

Bethel and Ai are north in Canaan, north and west of the upper shores of the Dead Sea.

There is no explicit mention of Abram’s repentance. However, Abram’ worship bookends the conflict with Lot. He called upon the name of the Lord at the place where her had made an alter at first . He builds another altar to the LORD in Mamre (verse 18). His worship, and how he handles the conflict, demonstrate fruit of repentance.

Meanwhile back at the ranch,

And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land. (Genesis 13:5–7)

If we could choose, most of us would rather try to handle the challenge of surplus rather than scarcity. Things got too crowded and people started bickering: the land could not support both of them dwelling together and they could not dwell together , repetition for the readers, which was probably a repeated, if not daily, report Abram received.

Abram had 318 “trained men” (Genesis 14:14) who went to battle, though not all of them were herdsman . There were enough of his herdsman and Lot’s to fight for the space.

At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land. The most obvious reason for mentioning the inhabitants is that Abram and Lot weren’t the only ones with livestock to feed, and while Abram had a promise from God, he had no papers entitling him to the property.

3. The Concession (verses 8-13)

To concede means to yield, to relinquish possession or control.

Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” (Genesis 13:8–9)

Abram wants peace. Note:

• Abram’s initiative. He seeks to resolve the problem, but in a different way than he sought to resolve the problem of famine (by moving out of the promised land) and the subsequent problem with Pharaoh (by lying to Pharaoh). Now he moves for peace at his own expense.
• Abram’s humility. He is the father of the family, uncle over nephew. By age and position he is the better. Abram’s wealth is “severe,” Lot has many tents. By prosperity he is the better. Yet Abram treats Lot as an equal; at the end of verse 8 Abram says, “for we are brothers” (NAS). The ESV translates “for we are kinsmen,” and perhaps the more generic reference to their familial relationship is appropriate. Abram does not pull rank.
• Abram’s generosity. He is free with his offer. There are no restrictions, no provisos, no small print clauses. He doesn’t add guilt, he attaches no strings.

Lot makes his choice.

And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other. (Genesis 13:10–11)

Lot lifted up his eyes . If they were standing near Bethel, they could have been almost 3000 feet above sea level, putting them in a place for a panoramic survey of the Jordan Valley to the east.

This land was well watered like the garden of the Lord , a reference to Eden.

This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah is a parenthetical thought added by Moses foreshadowing some of the problems to come. Lot will end up with worse problems than not enough pasture for his animals.

Do you think Lot sinned in his choice? On one hand, doesn’t he just make the natural and logical decision? Perhaps, and yet he shows:

• no respect. Abram was the familial and social better.
• no deferment. Abram was the reason Lot had what he had anyway, and then Lot takes the best. The blessings that Lot enjoyed were connected to the Lord’s blessing of his uncle (see 12:3).
• no thanks. Abram offered Lot whatever he wanted, Lot took what he perceived to be the best, and didn’t express any gratitude that we read about.

Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom. (Genesis 13:12)

It is interesting that Lot settled among the cities , centers of people, where presumably there would be more struggle to maintain livestock.

Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD. (Genesis 13:13)

A second signal of coming events. Lot probably didn’t know it when he chose, but it didn’t take long for him to find out.

4. The Confirmation (verses 14-18)

The immediate word from the LORD affirms the LORD’s approval of Abram’s generosity.

The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever. I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” (Genesis 13:14–17)

The LORD hadn’t spoken to Abram since he first arrived in Shechem (12:6-7). Yahweh adds fantastic specificity to His promise. Previously He promised to make Abram into a great nation, that families of the earth would be blessed through him, and that his offspring would receive the land (12:7). But now, the promise of land is to you too and to offspring forever . Lots of offspring, as the dust of the earth . That’s almost unbelievable.

Neither the ESV or the NAS (or the NKJV or the NIV) include an important word in verse 14. When the LORD addresses Abram, He says “Please lift up your eyes.” YNG translates it, “Lift up, I pray thee, thine eyes.” The Hebrew word is na and it occurs over sixty times in Genesis alone. But only four times in the Old Testament is it used by God when He addresses a human: here, Genesis 15:5, 22:2, and Exodus 11:2. In each case “God asks somebody to do something that transcends human comprehension” (Hamilton, 394).

In Exodus 11, God tells Moses to tell the Israelites to ask their Egyptian neighbors for silver and gold jewelry on their way out of town. In Genesis 22:2, God asks Abram to take his own son and offer him as a burnt offering. In Genesis 15:5, God asks Abram to look and count the stars as an indicator of the multitude of his offspring. So here in Genesis 13:14, God asks Abram to believe that the land, as far as Abram could see in every direction, would one day be his. Walking through the land let him see it for himself.

Emphasis on size: northward and southward and eastward and westward (verse 14), all the land that you see (verse 15), through the length and breadth of the land (verse 17).

The LORD’s confirmation (rather than rebuke) immediately after Lot left Abram does more than repeat the promise, it validates Abram’s actions.

So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the LORD. (Genesis 13:18)

Conclusion

The point of Genesis 13 is not about how impressive Abram is. The primary character is the LORD and the point of the story is that the LORD protects and provides for His chosen people. What makes Abram an example is that he saw the point of the story as well. He saw the LORD as LORD, trusted Him as LORD, and worshipped Him as LORD.

Because he was immersed in worship, Abram initiated peace in humility and with generosity. He put (at least) the following three things on the line.

1. His Reputation

Or, he put his pride on the line. Abram was the familial authority; uncle trumps orphan nephew. The act of deferring itself could have lessened his reputation, let alone actually surrendering the better land. There were at least another 300-plus men, let alone women, watching the patriarch concede to his nephew, perhaps wondering (and whispering about) how Abram had become so weak. Abram put his pride and reputation on the line.

2. His Safety

Or, he put his protection on the line. Not only would Abram’s concession communicate weakness to his own family, it would also convey vulnerability to the Canaanites and Perizzites nearby as well as the wicked Sodomites across the county line. If they heard the story, and certainly they would at some point, they may have considered the old man and all his stuff an easy target. Abram exposed himself and his family to physical insecurity.

Also, at least to some extent, it seems that Abram put his flocks and herds on the line, since Lot took the better land for supporting livestock. We don’t know if the famine was still severe or what effects remained. Abram put the well-being of himself, his family, and his assets on the line.

3. His Inheritance

Or, he put his promise on the line. Abram had special revelation that the land was to be his (12:7), revelation given before the LORD’s confirmation in 13:14-17. He put his trust to the test by offering Lot the land he’d already been promised. In holding the land with open hands, it’s clear that Abram receives it by God’s giving rather than his own grabbing. It is only possible by faith.

Abram’s peacemaking effort shows his initiative, humility, and generosity. How does that result from worship? Worship impacts behavior because we are image-bearers. We become like what we behold. Abram was reflecting God.

• God initiates (for peace), so does Abram. He did not wait for us, we also can make the first move toward reconciliation.
• God gives (generously), so does Abram. When we receive from Him, we are free to give to others.
• God is glorious, Abram is not in an of himself; note Abram’s humility. When we see Him lifted up, we are lowered, and are in a better position to serve.

How do you get to be like Abram? Worship a generous God like Abram. Giving is the way of those who believe in the Giver.