January 7, 2018: Day 13 – Genesis 13

Abram continues on and we have the scene set for the infamous Sodom and Gomorrah.  Abraham has become extremely wealthy and has shared his wealth with his nephew, Lot.   But a problem arises where they are not able to keep both flocks going in the land and there is quarreling and disputes among the people of Abram and the people of Lot.  So, this should tell you that if they each had people who were working for them, and it seems like there were quite a few, that they were extraordinarily wealthy.  It reminds me a bit of Peter, Jesus’ disciple, whom we read had slaves and his own fleet of fishing vessels.  We normally think of these folks as poor bumpkins, but that really isn’t the case, and certainly is not the case with Abraham.  He had means, quite a few means.

So as a result of the conflict, Abram give Lot the first choice of the land and he takes the land in which Sodom and Gomorrah are found. We find a bit of a precursor in that Scripture as it tells us that the people of Sodom were evil, very evil.  Some not so nice things are going to be happening soon.  But keep in mind the magnanimity of Abraham.  He shared with Lot his flocks and so Lot became wealthy.  He allowed Lot to choose first which land he would take and it would be his indefinitely at no charge.  Lot chose, but unfortunately for him we see that he chose poorly.