GENESIS 13: Back to Canaan

  

In the previous chapter we saw that Abram left the Promised Land to seek refuge in Egypt. This is a temptation that is not exclusive to the patriarchs and the Israelites of old, but one we also encounter today. We face this same temptation when we seek for solutions to our everyday problems in the world (Egypt).

In Abram’s story we saw him face the consequences of leaving the shadow of the plan of God. And we will also see it in this chapter…

(Genesis 13:1-4)  So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.  (2)  Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.  (3)  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, (4)  to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the LORD.

Note that when the Bible refers to going towards Egypt it describes it as “going down”, on the other hand, when it refers to going to Jerusalem it always describes it as “going up”. It is not a matter of altitude or cardinal points, but an illustration of what each city represents. Egypt is a symbol of the world, while Jerusalem is the city God chose to put his name there.

On his way back from Egypt, Abram followed the exact same route than when he left, but reversed.

Going there: Bethel, Negeb, Egypt

Coming back: Egypt, Negeb, Bethel

When we get “lost” in life, it is good to return to the point where we started; that is, trace back the steps we have walked until we reach the place where we were doing well and where we heard God’s voice for the last time.

Abram left Egypt, where he endangered his life. He came back though the desert, where he had been hungry. Finally he reached Bethel, the place where he had called upon the Name of God and where he had made an altar. (Genesis  12:8)

BETHEL

When he returned to Bethel, Abram again called upon the name of the Lord. He joined up with the purpose for which he had come to the Land of Canaan.

(Genesis 13:3-4)   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,  (4)  to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the LORD.

What does Psalms 145 say about those who call upon the Name of God?

(Psalms 145:18-19)  The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.  (19)  He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.

WEALTH    

The Bible tells us that Abram was very rich.

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

In Hebrew we read: “Kabad Meod b’Mikné”.

It literally means: “heavily loaded with possessions”.

Some believe that he became rich in Egypt, but he did not. Abram’s family was very wealthy, mainly owning livestock. Otherwise he would have not been able to survive in Canaan, since foreigners were not allowed to buy or possess land.

Even though Abram was already rich, we cannot deny the fact that he became even richer while he was in Egypt. Pharaoh himself increased his riches for Sarai’s sake (Genesis 12:14-20). However, these extra riches were too much for him later, causing conflict with Lot…

LOT

Lot was the son of Haran, Abram’s brother. But Abram raised him as his own son. It is likely that Abram adopted him when Haran died.

Lot is mentioned in Terah’s generations (Genesis 11:27-31). However, when Abram left to Canaan, Lot went with him, instead of staying with his grandfather or his other relatives in the town named after his father, Haran.

Lot went down to Egypt with Abram, and later came back with him to Canaan. Yet, when they came back to the Promised Land, there was a conflict between Lot and Abram. Something caused them to separate…

(Genesis 13:5-7)   And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents,  (6)  so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together,  (7)  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.

Material possessions caused them to separate, since they had too many.

(Genesis 13:8-9)  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.  (9)  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."

Even though Abram was the patriarch of the family, and as such he had the right to choose first, he gave that privilege to Lot, to prove that he treasured family more that material riches.

LOT’S CHOICE

Lot took advantage of choosing first, but his choice must have surely surprised Abram. His choice reveals where his heart was, not only regarding Abram, but also regarding God.

(Genesis 13:10-11)   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.)  (11)  So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.

Abram was not “throwing” Lot out of the Promised Land. He simply told him to choose between going farther north or farther south. However, Lot’s eyes turned in another direction. He finally chose to go to a land that was like Egypt.

The Promised Land is situated between mountains and valleys that are watered by the rains from heaven, not by a river. However, outside of Canaan, to the east, is the Jordan Valley, which is watered by the river with the same name, which is a continual source of water… just like Egypt is watered by the Nile River.

Deuteronomy explains the difference between Egypt and the Promise Land.

(Deuteronomy 11:10-12)  For the land that you are entering to take possession of it is not like the land of Egypt, from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and irrigated it, like a garden of vegetables.  (11)  But the land that you are going over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water by the rain from heaven,  (12)  a land that the LORD your God cares for. The eyes of the LORD your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.

Lot liked the Egyptian way of life, where at any moment they could draw on the river water, no matter what they did; contrary to having to depend from the rain from heaven which God would send when his people lived in obedience.

(Deuteronomy 11:13-17)  And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, (14)  he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil.  (15)  And he will give grass in your fields for your livestock, and you shall eat and be full.  (16)  Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them; (17) then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain, and the land will yield no fruit, and you will perish quickly off the good land that the LORD is giving you.

Lot could have stayed in the Promised Land, but he did not. He preferred to live a lifestyle similar to the one in Egypt. He preferred material wealth over spiritual wealth. He preferred the security provided by the river over depending on God. He preferred the “easy” life of Sodom…

TOWARDS THE EAST

It is interesting that the Bible mentions that Lot headed “East”.

(Genesis 13:11)   So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.

This is the same direction Cain took after he “spiritually divorced” God.

Lot chose the easy way. He did not care that there were great sinners living in that region.

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

Lot did not mind. Little by little he got closer to Sodom, until he finally established himself there.

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

Later in our study we will see that Lot’s choice came at a great price to him. He will encounter many threats and tribulations as a consequence of choosing a material inheritance over a spiritual one. First he will be kidnapped (chapter 14), then the city where he lived will be destroyed, his wife will die and his daughters will go astray (chapters 18 and 19). At the end he loses everything anyway.

(Matthew 16:25-26)   For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.  (26)  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Lot chose Mammon, but Abram chose God.

ABRAM’S CHOICE

Unlike Lot, Abram remained in the Land of Canaan. He did no longer seek refuge, as he did when he went to Egypt. He stayed in the land that God had promised to give him.

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

Abram respected his nephew’s decision, but it must have surely hurt him deeply. Since Abram did not have any children of his own, he regarded Lot as his son… and very likely as his heir. He probably wandered: “Now, who is going to receive the Land God promised to give to me?” Remember he had been told: "To your offspring I will give this land." (Genesis 12:7)

It is not surprising that God chose that precise moment to confirm to Abram the promise he had given him.

(Genesis 13:14-16)  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,  (15)  for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.  (16)  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.

Abram needed to know that the Lord would give him DESCENDANTS, since his “adoptive son” had just walked away from him. God comforted him, assuring him that the promise of “offspring and land” was still standing, and it would be fulfilled with a child of his own. Not only this, but his descendants would be as numerous as the “dust on the earth”.

At that moment the Lord invited Abram to walk through the Promised Land. He saw it with his own eyes and marked it with his feet.

(Genesis 13:17)  Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.

From that moment on, Abram no longer left the land seeking for “better pastures”.  He settled there, specifically in HEBRON (Hebrew Jevron, which means: society).

(Genesis 13:18)   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.

Hebron will be the place where Abram will acquire his first piece of property in the Promised Land.

Whatever God chooses for us is where we will be blessed. It does not depend on the “circumstances” or the “place”, but on remaining firm on His will for us.

(Psalms 107:31-38)  Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!  (32)  Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.  (33)  He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground,  (34)  a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.  (35)  He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water.  (36)  And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in;  (37)  they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield.  (38)  By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.