Genesis 13; Genesis 14; Genesis 15; Matthew 5:1-26

1 So Abram, his wife, and Lot left Egypt, taking everything they owned, and traveled to southern Canaan.

2 Abram was very rich in cattle, silver, and gold.

3 He left southern Canaan and went back to Bethel where he had camped before, between Bethel and Ai,

4 and where he had built an altar. So he worshiped the Lord there.

5 During this time Lot was traveling with Abram, and Lot also had flocks, herds, and tents.

6 Abram and Lot had so many animals that the land could not support both of them together,

7 so Abram's herdsmen and Lot's herdsmen began to argue. The Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land at this time.

8 Abram said to Lot, "There should be no arguing between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, because we are brothers.

9 We should separate. The whole land is there in front of you. If you go to the left, I will go to the right. If you go to the right, I will go to the left."

10 Lot looked all around and saw the whole Jordan Valley and that there was much water there. It was like the Lord's garden, like the land of Egypt in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)

11 So Lot chose to move east and live in the Jordan Valley. In this way Abram and Lot separated.

12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot lived among the cities in the Jordan Valley, very near to Sodom.

13 Now the people of Sodom were very evil and were always sinning against the Lord.

14 After Lot left, the Lord said to Abram, "Look all around you -- to the north and south and east and west.

15 All this land that you see I will give to you and your descendants forever.

16 I will make your descendants as many as the dust of the earth. If anyone could count the dust on the earth, he could count your people.

17 Get up! Walk through all this land because I am now giving it to you."

18 So Abram moved his tents and went to live near the great trees of Mamre at the city of Hebron. There he built an altar to the Lord.

1 Now Amraphel was king of Babylonia, Arioch was king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer was king of Elam, and Tidal was king of Goiim.

2 All these kings went to war against several other kings: Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela. (Bela is also called Zoar.)

3 These kings who were attacked united their armies in the Valley of Siddim (now the Dead Sea).

4 They had served Kedorlaomer for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year, they all turned against him.

5 Then in the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings with him came and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, and the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim.

6 They also defeated the Horites in the mountains of Edom to El Paran (near the desert).

7 Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh). They defeated all the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon Tamar.

8 At that time the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela went out to fight in the Valley of Siddim. (Bela is called Zoar.)

9 They fought against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Babylonia, and Arioch king of Ellasar -- four kings fighting against five.

10 There were many tar pits in the Valley of Siddim. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies ran away, some of the soldiers fell into the tar pits, but the others ran away to the mountains.

11 Now Kedorlaomer and his armies took everything the people of Sodom and Gomorrah owned, including their food.

12 They took Lot, Abram's nephew who was living in Sodom, and everything he owned. Then they left.

13 One of the men who was not captured went to Abram, the Hebrew, and told him what had happened. At that time Abram was camped near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre was a brother of Eshcol and Aner, and they had all made an agreement to help Abram.

14 When Abram learned that Lot had been captured, he called out his 318 trained men who had been born in his camp. He led the men and chased the enemy all the way to the town of Dan.

15 That night he divided his men into groups, and they made a surprise attack against the enemy. They chased them all the way to Hobah, north of Damascus.

16 Then Abram brought back everything the enemy had stolen, the women and the other people, and Lot, and everything Lot owned.

17 After defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, Abram went home. As he was returning, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (now called King's Valley).

18 Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was a priest for God Most High

19 and blessed Abram, saying, "Abram, may you be blessed by God Most High, the God who made heaven and earth.

20 And we praise God Most High, who has helped you to defeat your enemies." Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything he had brought back from the battle.

21 The king of Sodom said to Abram, "You may keep all these things for yourself. Just give me my people who were captured."

22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I make a promise to the Lord, the God Most High, who made heaven and earth.

23 I promise that I will not keep anything that is yours. I will not keep even a thread or a sandal strap so that you cannot say, 'I made Abram rich.'

24 I will keep nothing but the food my young men have eaten. But give Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre their share of what we won, because they went with me into battle."

1 After these things happened, the Lord spoke his word to Abram in a vision: "Abram, don't be afraid. I will defend you, and I will give you a great reward."

2 But Abram said, "Lord God, what can you give me? I have no son, so my slave Eliezer from Damascus will get everything I own after I die."

3 Abram said, "Look, you have given me no son, so a slave born in my house will inherit everything I have."

4 Then the Lord spoke his word to Abram: "He will not be the one to inherit what you have. You will have a son of your own who will inherit what you have."

5 Then God led Abram outside and said, "Look at the sky. There are so many stars you cannot count them. Your descendants also will be too many to count."

6 Abram believed the Lord. And the Lord accepted Abram's faith, and that faith made him right with God.

7 God said to Abram, "I am the Lord who led you out of Ur of Babylonia so that I could give you this land to own."

8 But Abram said, "Lord God, how can I be sure that I will own this land?"

9 The Lord said to Abram, "Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old male sheep, a dove, and a young pigeon."

10 Abram brought them all to God. Then Abram killed the animals and cut each of them into two pieces, laying each half opposite the other half. But he did not cut the birds in half.

11 Later, large birds flew down to eat the animals, but Abram chased them away.

12 As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep. While he was asleep, a very terrible darkness came.

13 Then the Lord said to Abram, "You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers and travel in a land they don't own. The people there will make them slaves and be cruel to them for four hundred years.

14 But I will punish the nation where they are slaves. Then your descendants will leave that land, taking great wealth with them.

15 And you, Abram, will die in peace and will be buried at an old age.

16 After your great-great-grandchildren are born, your people will come to this land again. It will take that long, because I am not yet going to punish the Amorites for their evil behavior."

17 After the sun went down, it was very dark. Suddenly a smoking firepot and a blazing torch passed between the halves of the dead animals.

18 So on that day the Lord made an agreement with Abram and said, "I will give to your descendants the land between the river of Egypt and the great river Euphrates.

19 This is the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,

20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,

21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites."

1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a hill and sat down. His followers came to him,

2 and he began to teach them, saying:

3 "Those people who know they have great spiritual needs are happy, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

4 Those who are sad now are happy, because God will comfort them.

5 Those who are humble are happy, because the earth will belong to them.

6 Those who want to do right more than anything else are happy, because God will fully satisfy them.

7 Those who show mercy to others are happy, because God will show mercy to them.

8 Those who are pure in their thinking are happy, because they will be with God.

9 Those who work to bring peace are happy, because God will call them his children.

10 Those who are treated badly for doing good are happy, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

11 "People will insult you and hurt you. They will lie and say all kinds of evil things about you because you follow me. But when they do, you will be happy.

12 Rejoice and be glad, because you have a great reward waiting for you in heaven. People did the same evil things to the prophets who lived before you.

13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its salty taste, it cannot be made salty again. It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out and walked on.

14 "You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden.

15 And people don't hide a light under a bowl. They put it on a lampstand so the light shines for all the people in the house.

16 In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and will praise your Father in heaven.

17 "Don't think that I have come to destroy the law of Moses or the teaching of the prophets. I have not come to destroy them but to bring about what they said.

18 I tell you the truth, nothing will disappear from the law until heaven and earth are gone. Not even the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will be lost until everything has happened.

19 Whoever refuses to obey any command and teaches other people not to obey that command will be the least important in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys the commands and teaches other people to obey them will be great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 I tell you that if you are no more obedient than the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

21 "You have heard that it was said to our people long ago, 'You must not murder anyone. Anyone who murders another will be judged.'

22 But I tell you, if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be judged. If you say bad things to a brother or sister, you will be judged by the council. And if you call someone a fool, you will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23 "So when you offer your gift to God at the altar, and you remember that your brother or sister has something against you,

24 leave your gift there at the altar. Go and make peace with that person, and then come and offer your gift.

25 "If your enemy is taking you to court, become friends quickly, before you go to court. Otherwise, your enemy might turn you over to the judge, and the judge might give you to a guard to put you in jail.

26 I tell you the truth, you will not leave there until you have paid everything you owe.