Genesis 13:1-10

1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, towards the south.
2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
3 And he went on his journeys from the south as far as Bethel; as far as the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai;
4 to the place of the altar that he had made there at the first. And there Abram called on the name of Jehovah.
5 And Lot also who went with Abram had flocks, and herds, and tents.
6 And the land could not support them, that they might dwell together, for their property was great; and they could not dwell together.
7 And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram's cattle and the herdsmen of Lot's cattle. And the Canaanite and the Perizzite were dwelling then in the land.
8 And Abram said to Lot, I pray thee let there be no contention between me and thee, and between my herdsmen and thy herdsmen, for we are brethren.
9 Is not the whole land before thee? Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if to the left, then I will take the right; and if to the right, then I will take the left.
10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of the Jordan that it was thoroughly watered, before Jehovah had destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah; as the garden of Jehovah, like the land of Egypt, as one goes to Zoar.

Genesis 13:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 13

This chapter gives an account of the return of Abram from Egypt to the land of Canaan, and to the same place in it he had been before, Ge 13:1-4 and of a strife between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot, and the occasion of it, Ge 13:5-7 which was composed by the prudent proposal of Abram, Ge 13:8,9 upon which they parted; Abram continued in Canaan, and Lot chose the plain of Jordan, and dwelt near Sodom, a place infamous for wickedness, Ge 13:10-13 after which the Lord renewed to Abram the grant of the land of Canaan to him, and to his seed, Ge 13:14-17 and then he removed to the plain of Mamre in Hebron, and there set up the worship of God, Ge 13:18.

Footnotes 6

  • [a]. Negeb, 'south country:' name for the region of Canaan (Judah) bordering on the desert.
  • [b]. Lit. 'men, brethren.'
  • [c]. 'Circle:' used for the plain at the mouth of the Jordan, most of which was afterwards covered by the Salt sea. Ch. 14.3.
  • [d]. Burning.
  • [e]. Submersion.
  • [f]. Zor, or Zar, in Egypt: not Bela, ch. 14.2,8.
The Darby Translation is in the public domain.