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5 Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks of sheep, herds, and tents. 6 But the land could not support them living together, because they had so many livestock that they could not stay together. 7 There was strife between the herdsmen in charge of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen in charge of Lot’s livestock. Also, at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.
8 So Abram told Lot, “Please, let’s not have strife between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives.[a] 9 Isn’t the whole land available to you? Let’s separate: If you go[b] to the left, then I will go to the right; if you go[c] to the right, then I will go to the left.”
10 Lot looked around and noticed that the whole Jordan plain as far as Zoar was well-watered like the garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan plain. Then Lot traveled eastward, and they separated from each other.
12 So Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the plain, setting up his tent in the vicinity of Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were particularly evil and sinful in their defiance of[d] the Lord.
14 After Lot had separated from Abram, the Lord told Abram, “Look off to the north, south[e], east, and west[f] from where you’re living, 15 because I’m going to give you and your descendants all of the land that you see—forever! 16 I’ll make your descendants as plentiful as[g] the specks of[h] dust of the earth, so that if one could count the specks of[i] dust of the earth, then your descendants could also be counted. 17 Get up! Walk throughout the length and breadth of the land, because I’m going to give it to you.”
18 So Abram moved his tent and settled beside the oaks of Mamre that are by Hebron, where he built an altar to the Lord.
Abram Battles Kings for Lot
14 At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar, Arioch was king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer was king of Elam, and Tidal was king of the Goiim, 2 they engaged in war against King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, along with the king of Bela (which was also known as Zoar). 3 All of this latter group of kings[j] allied together in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea[k]). 4 They were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but they rebelled in the thirteenth year.
5 In the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer and the kings with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, near El-paran by the desert. 7 Next they turned back and came to En-mishpat (which was also known as Kadesh) and conquered all the territory of the Amalekites, along with the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
8 Then the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela (which was also known as Zoar) prepared for battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 against King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Shinar, and King Arioch of Ellasar—four kings against five.
10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, so when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of their people[l] fell into them, while the rest fled to the hill country. 11 The conquerors[m] captured all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, including their entire food supply, and then left. 12 They also took Abram’s nephew Lot captive, and confiscated[n] his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.
13 Someone escaped, arrived, and reported what had happened[o] to Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks belonging to Mamre the Amorite, whose brothers Eshcol and Aner were allied with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his nephew[p] had been taken prisoner, he gathered together 318 of his trained men, who had been born in his household, and they went out in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night, Abram[q] and his servants divided his forces,[r] conquered his enemies,[s] and pursued them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his nephew Lot, together with his possessions, the women, and the other[t] people.
The Blessing of Melchizedek
17 After Abram’s return[u] from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with them, the king of Sodom went out to meet with him in the Shaveh Valley (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine, since he was serving as[v] the priest of God Most High. 19 Melchizedek[w] blessed Abram[x] and said,
“Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth,
20 and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies
into your control.”
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Conversation with the King of Sodom
21 The king of Sodom told Abram, “Return the people to me, and you take the possessions for yourself.”
22 But Abram answered the king of Sodom, “I have made an oath to the Lord God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23 that I will not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you won’t be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing except what my warriors have eaten. But as for what belongs to the men who were allied[y] with me, including Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their share.”
The Abrahamic Covenant
15 Some time later, a message came from the Lord to Abram in a vision. “Stop being afraid, Abram.” he said. “I myself—your shield—am your very great reward.”
2 But Abram replied, “Lord God, what can you give me since I continue to be childless, and the heir of my household is Eliezer from Damascus? 3 Look!” Abram said, “You haven’t given me any offspring, so a servant born in[z] my house is going to be my heir.”
4 A message came from the Lord to him again: “This one will not be your heir. Instead, the child who will be born to you[aa] will be your heir.” 5 Then the Lord[ab] took him outside. “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if you can!” he said. “Your descendants will be that numerous.”[ac] 6 Abram believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
7 The Lord[ad] spoke to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land as an inheritance.”
8 But he replied, “Lord God, how will I know that I will inherit it?”
9 The Lord responded, “Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 So Abram brought him all these animals and cut each of them in half, down the middle, placing the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut the birds in half. 11 When birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 As the sun began to set, Abram was overcome with deep sleep, and suddenly a frightening and terrifying darkness descended on him.
13 Then the Lord told Abram, “You can be certain about this: Your descendants will be foreigners in a land that isn’t theirs. They will be slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years. 14 However, I will judge the nation that they serve, and later they will leave there with many possessions. 15 Now as for you, you’ll die peacefully, join your ancestors, and be buried at a good old age. 16 Your descendants[ae] will return here in the fourth generation, since the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet run its course.”
17 When the sun had fully set and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a fiery torch passed between the animal pieces.[af] 18 That very day the Lord made this covenant with Abram: “I’m giving[ag] this land to your descendants, from the river of Egypt to the great Euphrates River— 19 including the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
Teaching about Adultery
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You are not to commit adultery.’[a] 28 But I say to you, anyone who stares at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 So if your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your body parts than to have your whole body thrown into hell.[b] 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you. It is better for you to lose one of your body parts than to have your whole body go into hell.”[c]
Teaching about Divorce(A)
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce.’[d] 32 But I say to you, any man who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”
Teaching about Oaths
33 “Again, you have heard that it was told those who lived long ago, ‘You must not swear an oath falsely,’ but, ‘You must fulfill your oaths to the Lord.’[e] 34 But I tell you not to swear at all, neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne, 35 nor by the earth, because it is his footstool, nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the Great King. 36 Nor should you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Instead, let your message be ‘Yes’ for ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ for ‘No.’ Anything more than that comes from the evil one.”
Teaching about Retaliation(B)
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’[f] 39 But I tell you not to resist an evildoer. On the contrary, whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other to him as well. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile,[g] go two with him. 42 Give to the person who asks you for something, and do not turn away from the person who wants to borrow something from you.”
Teaching about Love for Enemies(C)
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You must love your neighbor’[h] and hate your enemy. 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you will become children of your Father in heaven, because he makes his sun rise on both evil and good people, and he lets rain fall on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Even the tax collectors do the same, don’t they? 47 And if you greet only your relatives, that’s no great thing you’re doing, is it? Even the unbelievers[i] do the same, don’t they? 48 So be perfect,[j] as your heavenly Father is perfect.”[k]
To the Director: With stringed instruments. On an eight-stringed harp.[a] A Davidic Psalm
A Prayer in Times of Trouble
6 Lord, in your anger, do not rebuke me;
in your wrath, do not discipline me.
2 Be gracious to me, Lord,
because I am fading away.
Heal me,
because my body[b] is distressed.
3 And my soul[c] is deeply distressed.
But you, Lord, how long do I wait?[d]
4 Return, Lord,
save my life!
Deliver me, because of your gracious love.
5 In death, there is no memory of you.
Who will give you thanks where the dead are?[e]
6 I am weary from my groaning.
Every night my couch is drenched with tears,
my bed is soaked through.
7 My eyesight has faded because of grief,
it has dimmed because of all my enemies.
8 Get away from me, all of you who practice evil,
for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord receives my prayer.
10 As for all my enemies, they will be put to shame;
they will be greatly frightened
and suddenly turn away ashamed.
29 “Because they hated knowledge
and did not choose the fear of the Lord;
30 they did not want my advice,
and they rejected all my correction.
31 They will eat the fruit[a] of their way,
and they will be filled with their own devices.
32 Indeed, the waywardness[b] of the naïve will kill them,
and the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 “But the person who listens to me will live safely
and will be secure from the fear of evil.”
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