Genesis 11:10–21:34

Genesis 2:4 — Genesis 4:26, Generations of heavens and earth. Genesis 5:1 — Genesis 6:8, Generations of Adam. Genesis 6:9 — Genesis 9:29, Generations of Noah. Genesis 10:1 — Genesis 11:9, Generations of sons of Noah. Genesis 11:10 — Genesis 11:26, Generations of Shem. Genesis 11:27 — Genesis 25:11, Generations of Terah.

First, God set Adam up in innocence, and he failed. "The generations of the heavens and of the earth" (Gen. 2:4) include Adam before the fall. Next God tested man with no restraint on him, up to the flood, and "the book of the generations of Adam" [now fallen] (Gen. 5:1) brings us up to the flood and Noah. After the flood God tests man again — He put government into Noah's hands — and man failed. God chooses Noah's son Shem, and "these are the generations of Shem" (Gen. 11:10) brings us up to Abram.

From verse 10 Scripture traces the line of Shem further than Chapter 10:21-31 does. That earlier list goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. This genealogy of Chapter 11 continues with Reu the son of Peleg, ignoring Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads on to Nahor, Terah and Abram. God had purposed Abram to be the father of a chosen race whom He would separate from the rest of the nations. … Matthew 1 begins the New Testament by showing that Christ, the Messiah of Israel, is the official descendant of Abraham.

Here we have a genealogy that ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace: God's call. That prepares the way outwardly. But Jehovah shines through this dealing and revelation. Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than that of Adam to Noah in Gen. 5. We may notice ten links in the chain of both chapters.

The sorrowful chime sounds all through the earlier list: "and he died." Not once does it sound in the later one, though as a fact all spoken of in chap. 11 did die… The second half of chap. 11 gives us the line of blessing. It names each succession down to Abram, the time when the promise was made, and the years each man lived. But it says nothing of death. Others may call either one an accident. To the believer, a distinct purpose in each is hard to miss.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the growing decline of human age after the flood. Yet it was given to him, before he came near the end of his six hundred years, to live into the days not of Abram only but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half the limit of Shem's term; and Nahor, the father of Terah, dwindled to a hundred and forty-five years.

One remarkable fact in Gen. 11:10-26 is the long life of Shem. He outlived many generations of his own descendants, and that in turn shows God's gracious purpose in his very long life. He had seen the flood with his own eyes, and he was an honoured saint of God (Gen. 9:26). He lived on to bear witness to very many of the things he had himself seen and heard.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise. … But the promise itself expressed a grace in God which came before any claim on Abram's part. In the chosen line itself we have only a scanty record of names and lengths of life. Even so, the decay is plain, and it never stops. … Elsewhere we read that they fell away from God, and that left every hope resting on the sovereign grace of God.

Here is a genealogy that ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace: God's call... Here we have the special line.

From verse 10 the record traces the line of Shem further than Genesis 10:21-31 does. That chapter goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. This genealogy in Genesis 11 carries on with Reu the son of Peleg instead, and leaves Joktan and his sons out. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads to Nahor, Terah and Abram... God has taken care to trace that line down through the ages. Matthew 1 opens the New Testament by showing that Christ, the Messiah of Israel, is the official descendant of Abraham.

The sad chime sounds all through the earlier list: "and he died." It never sounds in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die... The second half of chapter 11 gives us the line of blessing. It tells us of each generation down to Abram, the time when the promise was made, and the years they lived. But it says nothing about death. Let anyone call either of these an accident; the believer can hardly miss a clear purpose in each.

One remarkable fact shown in Genesis 11:10-26 is how long Shem lived. He outlived many generations of his own descendants. That in turn shows God's gracious purpose in giving him such a long life. He saw the flood himself, and he was an honoured saint of God (Genesis 9:26). So he lived on to testify to very many of the things he had seen and heard. How the heart of Shem must have grieved when not only the sons of Ham and Japheth, but his own children, turned to gross idolatry (Joshua 24:2)! He was living at the time when God called Abram.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the shrinking of human life after the flood. Yet God let him live, before his own six hundred years were nearly over, into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this list, did not reach half of Shem's total. Nahor, the father of Terah, dropped to a hundred and forty-five years. So under God's ordering, man was moving fast toward the ordinary lifespan of the days since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

Here again ten names stand out, the same number as in Genesis 5. Both lists, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each of them a new age begins: Noah and Abram... The line of Shem was breaking down, and some of the names show it. Terah (which means delay), the father of Abram, worshipped idols... When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

But the promise itself expressed a grace in God that came before any claim Abram could make. In the chosen line itself we have only a thin record of names and ages, yet the decay is plain, and it never stops... elsewhere we read that they fell away from God, so that hope could rest only on His sovereign grace.

Once again the Hebrew Scriptures and the Septuagint, the old Greek translation, do not agree... So any dating we work out for the time between Shem and Abraham could be wrong by as much as 650 years.

We are now given a family line that ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace: God's call. That prepares the way on the outside. But Jehovah shines through this working and this revelation. Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than the line from Adam to Noah in Genesis 5. We can count ten links in the chain in both chapters.

From verse 10 the line of Shem is traced further than in Genesis 10:21-31. That earlier list goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. The list in Genesis 11 carries on instead with Reu the son of Peleg, and passes over Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads to Nahor, Terah and Abram, and God had planned for Abram to be the father of a chosen people whom He would separate from the rest of the nations.

Of Arpachshad we can say even less. He leads straight down to the time of promise, and that is what the Old Testament is almost entirely taken up with.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years show how human life was shrinking after the flood. Yet God let him live, well before the end of his six hundred years, into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half of Shem's span. Nahor, the father of Terah, dropped to a hundred and forty-five years. So in God's ordering of things, man was coming by rapid steps to the normal length of life since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

One remarkable fact shown in Genesis 11:10-26 is the long life of Shem. He outlived many generations of his own descendants, and that shows God's gracious purpose in giving him such a long life. He had seen the flood himself, and he was an honoured saint of God (Genesis 9:26). He lived on to tell of many of the things he had himself seen and heard.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise... But the promise itself expressed a grace in God that came before any personal claim at all on Abram's part. In the chosen line itself we have only a thin record of names and lengths of life. Even so, it is plain that there is decay, and that it never stops. No doubt the years of man's life were growing shorter everywhere, but here too there was no exception. Elsewhere we read that these men turned away from God, and that left every hope resting on His sovereign grace.

He is usually called the "second" Cainan, because an earlier Cainan is mentioned in Luke 3:37. What is striking is that his name does not appear in Genesis 10:24, Genesis 11:12 or 1 Chronicles 1:18 in the Hebrew, the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Vulgate, the Syriac or the Arabic texts. But it is in the Septuagint, and from there it may have found its way into Luke's Gospel.

The divine wisdom of the record is certainly not in question; but it is not man's way of working. God's design is stamped on this case, as on the other lists. There is no repetition here and no oversight, still less any clash between different documents or writers. And we can see that the plan in chapter 10 was not to follow Arphaxad's line past his grandson Peleg, Eber's son. It was to state the deeply interesting fact that Peleg's name refers to the division of the earth in his days. From there the record turns aside to Peleg's brother Joktan.

Notice that the inspiring Spirit led Moses to change his manner at this point. He brings in Arphaxad and his family as a kind of fresh start... In evil, a new departure was made with Cush and his descendants; here, for good, Arphaxad comes before us. Yet for now little is said of him, unlike Nimrod, who shot into prominence at once. Nimrod was not content to be a mighty hunter before Jehovah; then and afterwards he began to be mighty on the earth. Good is rare here below, and it grows slowly.

Little can be said with certainty about Salah, or Salach, because the Bible is silent. He was the father of Eber, in the direct line of the chosen patriarch Abram, the man entrusted with the promise. The name means shoot or extension; but to treat it as a fiction on that ground ought to be too absurd even for sceptics to believe.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the growing decline in human lifespan after the flood. Yet before he came near the end of his six hundred years, he lived on into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half of Shem's total; and Nahor, the father of Terah, shrank to a hundred and forty-five years. So in God's providential arrangements man was coming by rapid steps to the lifespan that has been normal since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

The whole span of the lives of the members of Shem's family is not noted, so that the Spirit would draw our attention to it there, in chapter 11. Here the change is the important thing.

Divine purpose is the key... It explains why the general genealogy leaves out every detail outside the direct line of the chosen people, and above all outside the line of the Messiah — God's salvation, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of His people Israel. The rest of their children, however many or however notable in human eyes, are simply merged into the "sons and daughters" they had.

Here again we find ten names standing out. We have the same number in Genesis 5. Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each one a new era in God's dealings begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was degenerating; some of the names show this. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

From verse 10 Scripture traces the line of Shem further than Genesis 10:21-31 does. That earlier list goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. This genealogy of Genesis 11 continues with Reu the son of Peleg, ignoring Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads on to Nahor, Terah and Abram. God had purposed that Abram should be the father of a chosen race, whom He would separate from the rest of the nations… God has been careful to trace that line down through the ages. Matthew 1 begins the New Testament by showing that Christ the Messiah of Israel is the official descendant of Abraham.

We can say little for certain about Salah, or Shelah, because the Bible is silent. He was the father of Eber in the direct line of the chosen patriarch Abram, the one entrusted with the promise. The name signifies shoot or extension, but to regard it therefore as fictitious ought to be too absurd for the credulity of rationalism.

Eber — Beyond: the other side (as having crossed over)

That Genesis 14:13 connects Abram with the crossing of the eastern river, rather than his distant ancestor Eber, seems clear; for this was the regular Gentile name given to God's people by those outside — not Israel but Hebrews, as we find from the earliest to later times.

Set beside his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years show human life shrinking after the flood. Yet God let him live, before the end of his six hundred years, into the days not of Abram only but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half the limit of Shem's term. Nahor, the father of Terah, dwindled to a hundred and forty-five years.

God yet numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

Here again we find ten names prominent. The same number we have in Genesis 5. Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself. With each one a new era in God's dealings begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the falling years of life… The line of Shem was declining, and some of the names show it. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater… When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

But the promise itself expressed a grace in God which came before any personal claim whatever on Abram's part. In the chosen line there is plainly decay, and it does not stop… Elsewhere we read that they fell away from God, and that left every hope to the sovereign grace of God. The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

There is again a difference between the Hebrew Scriptures and the Septuagint… So any chronology we work out for the time between Shem and Abraham is uncertain by as much as 650 years.

We are now given a genealogy which ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace, God's call… Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than that of Adam to Noah in Genesis 5.

We pass from the world at large to the chosen family. God wants to give us, not the history of nations, but the history of His purposes worked out through faith. So the story narrows quickly to those descendants of Shem, the son of Noah. They lead up to the line of faith, and Abraham is its great head.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the growing drop in human lifespan after the flood. Yet God gave him, before his six hundred years were near their end, to live into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half of Shem's total; and Nahor, the father of Terah, fell to a hundred and forty-five years. So in God's ordering of things, man was moving fast toward the lifespan that has been normal since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

The introduction to this history is the record of Abraham's descent from Shem. It is a record of failure. The whole story is not told here, for we know that his line, whose God was Jehovah, were worshipping other gods when the Lord called Abraham from the other side of the Euphrates (Joshua 24:2)… God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

A sad refrain sounds all through the earlier list: "and he died." It never sounds in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die… In the second half of chapter 11 we read of the line of blessing. We are told the succession down to Abram, the time when the promise was made, and the years each man lived; but it says nothing about death. Let anyone who wishes call either of these an accident; the believer can hardly avoid seeing a distinct purpose in each.

Son of Arphaxad and father of Eber. Genesis 10:24; Genesis 11:12-15; Luke 3:35. Called SHELAH in 1 Chronicles 1:18, 24, which agrees with the Hebrew in Genesis.

"Hebrews" is the regular Gentile word. Abram is called "Abram the Hebrew"; see also Exodus 2:6-7, 11, 13, so chapter 1:16 and 19. There cannot be a doubt that it was the name used by strangers — "the children of Eber."

Here again we find ten names standing out. We have the same number in Genesis 5. Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself. With each one a new era in God's dealings begins — Noah and Abram… The line of Shem was going downhill; some of the names show this. Terah (which means delay), the father of Abram, was an idol worshipper… When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

We do not question the divine wisdom of the record at all; but it is not man's way. God's design marks this list, as it marks the others. There is no repetition and nothing overlooked, and no clash of different documents or writers... And we can see the design in chapter 10. It was not to follow Arphaxad's line past his grandson, Eber's son Peleg. It was to state the striking fact that his name points to the division of the earth in his days.

Eber – Beyond: the other side (as having crossed over).

Last of all we come to Shem's descendants in verses 21-31. He is described in a striking way: father of all the sons of Eber, brother of Japheth the elder. Eber led the way through Peleg in due time to the father of the faithful.

They were the direct descendants of Eber. God did not call them Hebrews; it was the other nations.

Son of Eber, a descendant of Shem. The name means "division," and it seems he was given this name because "in his days the earth was divided" (Genesis 10:25). The next chapter gives the account of the confusing of languages and the general scattering of the people.

The next chapter gives us God's account of the scattering, its moral reason and its discipline. That scattering came earlier in time. But chapter 10 keeps to its own aim and gives the origin of the nations, each with its own language, without regard to dates... The division of the earth that came later, in the days of Peleg, seems to have been peaceful.

The genealogy itself may tell us something, however. In Peleg we see men taking possession of the earth more than ever. At the same time, their days of holding it were growing short fast — cut by half in this very Peleg's time. Reu lives 239 years; Serug, 230; Nahor, only 148; Terah, 205. But Haran dies before his father Terah. God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

Here again we find ten names prominent. The same number we have in Genesis 5. Both lists, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself: Noah and Abram. With each of them a new era in God's dealings begins. The line of Shem was going downhill... Terah (whose name means "delay"), the father of Abram, worshipped idols. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols. When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise... But the promise itself expressed a grace in God. That grace came before any claim at all on Abram's part. In the chosen line itself we have only a scanty record of names and lengths of life. Even so, the decay is plain, and it never stops... The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

We have only two things to say about these. The first is this: as noted before with the ages of the patriarchs before the flood, the Hebrew Scriptures and the Septuagint again disagree... So any chronology drawn from them for the time between Shem and Abraham is doubtful by as much as 650 years.

Here is a genealogy that ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace — God's call. That is the outward preparation. But Jehovah shines through this dealing and revelation. Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than that of Adam to Noah in Genesis 5. We may notice ten links in the chain of both chapters.

The root of the word is 'to pass over,' as when one passes over a river, or from one region to another. Abraham was told to leave his country and his relatives and go into the land of Canaan. The word Hebrew is not used until Abraham had left his country and was in the land of Canaan (Genesis 14:13). Once there, he was a 'sojourner' — living in tents in a country not his own (Hebrews 11:9). So the name fitted him. The people of the land could come to Abraham the 'sojourner' and tell him that Lot had been taken prisoner.

Genesis 14:13 seems clearly to link Abram with the crossing of the eastern river, not with his distant ancestor Eber. Outsiders regularly used this name for God's people — not Israel but Hebrews — from the earliest times to later ones.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years show human life shrinking after the flood. Yet he was given to live on, before the end of his six hundred years, into the days not of Abram only but of Isaac. Peleg, fifth in this line, did not reach half of Shem's total. Nahor, the father of Terah, dropped to a hundred and forty-five years. So in God's ordering of things, man was moving fast toward the lifespan that has been normal since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

In Shem God's history begins. He is Jehovah, the God of Shem. We have dates and epochs, for after all God governs, and the world must follow: man belongs to God. Others besides those named here surely had their years cut short; with these names we know when. Then the earth was divided — God, after all, was the one who dealt it out — and men's years lost half of what they had been. The same had already happened at once after the flood.

The sad chime rings all through the earlier list: "and he died." Not once does it sound in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die. Chapter 5 had one striking exception, Enoch, who "walked with God, and he was not, for God took him." In the second half of chapter 11 we read of the line of blessing. It gives each generation down to Abram, the time when the promise was made, and the years lived — but it never mentions death.

The introduction to this history is the record of Abraham's descent from Shem. It is a record of failure, and the whole story is not told here. We know that his line — the line whose God was Jehovah — were worshipping other gods when the Lord called Abraham from the other side of the Euphrates (Joshua 24:2)... God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

Here we are given a genealogy that ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace — God's call. That prepares the way outwardly. But Jehovah shines through this dealing and revelation. Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than the line from Adam to Noah in Genesis 5. We can count ten links in the chain in both chapters.

From verse 10 the record traces the line of Shem further than Genesis 10:21-31 does. That passage goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. The genealogy of Genesis 11 goes on instead with Reu the son of Peleg, and passes over Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads to Nahor, Terah and Abram, and God had purposed Abram to be the father of a chosen race whom He would separate from the rest of the nations… God has been careful to trace that line down through the ages. Matthew 1 begins the New Testament by showing that Christ the Messiah of Israel is the official descendant of Abraham… Luke 3:23-38 gives the actual line, traced backward from the virgin Mary through Abraham to Adam.

Eber's second son was named Joktan, which means "small." He stands in contrast to Peleg, whose name, "division," marked an era: the more peaceful dividing of the earth, after God's judgment had forced mankind to scatter… This much is certain — human life then sank by half. You can see it in the recorded years of Peleg (Genesis 11:18-19) and of those who followed him, shrinking by degrees to its ordinary range.

Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half the length of Shem's life; and Nahor, the father of Terah, came down to a hundred and forty-five years. So in God's providential ordering, man was moving by rapid steps toward the ordinary span of years we have had since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90). Moses himself was an exception, as a few have been even in modern times.

God prolonged man's life at that time, and that took the place of a written word; we see God's wisdom in it. At the flood, life dropped by half; and by half again, when the earth was divided and shared out among the peoples. It would not do, in the way the world is now, for men to live 900 years.

A sad refrain sounds all through the earlier one: "and he died." It never sounds once in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die… In the second half of chapter 11 we read of the line of blessing. We are told of each succession down to Abram, the time when the promise was made, and the years each one lived; but the record says nothing of death. Anyone may call either of these an accident; the believer can hardly avoid seeing a clear purpose in each.

Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was degenerating; some of the names show it. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed God called Abram.

Peleg's name, "division," marked an era — the more peaceful dividing of the earth, after God's judgment made the scattering of mankind necessary… And how can an event so ordinary match the large words used — "in his days the earth was divided"? … This much is certain: human life then sank by half. You can see it in the recorded years of Peleg (Gen. 11:18-19) and of those who followed, decreasing by stages to its ordinary range.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the growing decrease of human age after the flood. Yet God granted him, before the end of his 600 years, to live into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac. Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half the limit of Shem's term. Nahor, the father of Terah, dwindled to 145 years. So in God's ordering of things, man was coming by quick steps to the lifespan that has been ordinary since the prayer of Moses (Ps. 90).

The earlier list keeps up a sad refrain: "and he died." That note never sounds in the later one, though in fact all the men named in chapter 11 did die… The second half of chapter 11 gives us the line of blessing. It names each succession down to Abram, the point when God gave the promise, and the years each man lived. But it says nothing of death. Anyone may call either of these an accident if he wishes. The believer can scarcely avoid seeing a clear purpose in each.

The genealogy itself may still tell us something. In Peleg we see men taking possession of the earth more than ever. At the same time their hold on it was shortening fast — by half, in this very Peleg's time (Gen. 10:25). Reu lives 239 years; Serug, 230; Nahor, only 148; Terah, again, 205; but Haran dies before his father Terah. God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

Here again we find ten names prominent. We have the same number in Genesis 5. Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each a new dispensation begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old; the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was degenerating; some of the names show it. Terah, the father of Abram, was an idol-worshipper — his name means "delay." Shem's descendants worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

We move from the world as a whole to the chosen family. God is not interested in giving us the history of nations. He gives us the history of His purposes, worked out through faith. So the story quickly narrows to those descendants of Shem, the son of Noah. They are the forerunners of the line of faith, and Abraham is its great head.

Still, the genealogy itself may tell us something. In Peleg's day men were taking hold of the earth more than ever, while the time they held it was shrinking fast — cut in half in Peleg's own lifetime. Reu lives 239 years. Serug lives 230. Nahor lives only 148. Terah lives 205. But Haran dies before his father Terah. God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

We also note that the dates always stay inside the chosen line. God counts the years only for these, and leaves the others unrecorded. The same holds in Matthew 1. In the fourteen generations between David and the captivity, the record leaves out kings who turned away to Baal. God's thoughts and ways in these matters are not what ours would naturally be.

Yet these lists give such exact information about the earliest ages — before the Flood and after it, without a gap — that no family line from that period outside Scripture can compare with them. And they do more than give reliable information about every link in the chain. In each case a special design of God's governs them.

Here again ten names stand out. We find the same number in Genesis 5. Both lists, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man God reveals Himself to, and with each one a new age begins — Noah and Abram… The line of Shem was degenerating, and some of the names show it. Terah (which means delay), the father of Abram, worshipped idols. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise… But the promise itself expressed a grace in God that came before any claim of Abram's own. In the chosen line we have only a thin record of names and lengths of life. Even so, it is plain that there is decay, and that it never stops… elsewhere we read that they fell away from God, which left every hope resting on His sovereign grace. The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

Son of Reu, a son of Peleg. Genesis 11:20-23; 1 Chronicles 1:26. He is called SARUCH, son of Ragau, in Luke 3:35.

From verse 10 the record traces the line of Shem further than Genesis 10:21-31 does. That earlier list goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg and stops with his thirteen sons. The genealogy of Genesis 11 goes on instead with Reu the son of Peleg, passing over Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads on to Nahor, Terah and Abram, and God had purposed that Abram would be the father of a chosen race whom He would separate from the rest of the nations.

The genealogy itself may still tell us something. In Peleg we see men taking possession of the earth more than ever, while the days they held it were shortening fast — cut by half in Peleg's own time (Genesis 10:25). Reu lives 239 years; Serug, 230; Nahor, only 148; Terah, 205 again; but Haran dies before his father Terah. God still numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years show how human life kept shrinking after the flood. Yet he was given, before he came near the end of his six hundred years, to live on into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac.

A sad refrain sounds all through the earlier list: "and he died." Not once does it sound in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die... The second half of chapter 11 gives us the line of blessing. It names each generation down to Abram, the time when God made the promise, and the years each man lived; but it says nothing of death. Let anyone who wishes call either of these an accident. The believer can hardly avoid seeing a clear purpose in each.

Divine purpose is the key... It explains why the general genealogy leaves out every detail outside the direct line of the chosen people — the line, above all, of the Messiah, God's salvation, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of His people Israel. The rest of their children, however many or however great in human eyes, are simply folded into the "sons and daughters" they fathered.

Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each of them a new era in God's dealings begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was degenerating, and some of the names show it. Terah (whose name means delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed God called Abram.

No doubt the years of man's life were shortening everywhere, but in this line there was at least no exception to the decline. Elsewhere we read that these men turned away from God too, so that every possible hope was left to the sovereign grace of God. The root of all the blessing following is here and only here.

Son of Serug, and grandfather of Abraham. Genesis 11:22-25; 1 Chronicles 1:26. Called NACHOR in Luke 3:34.

We now have a genealogy which ends with Abram. The next chapter follows it with the mighty principle of grace: God's call. That prepares the way outwardly. But Jehovah shines through this dealing and revelation. Here we have the special line. It is no more an "endless genealogy" than that of Adam to Noah in Genesis 5. We may notice ten links in the chain of both chapters.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise. Jehovah revealed Himself to Shem, and that revelation was to be fulfilled above all in the Seed of Abram, whose day Abram's own faith rejoiced to see. But the promise itself expressed a grace in God that came before any claim of Abram's own. In the chosen line itself we have only a thin record of names and lifespans. Even so, the decay is plain, and it never stops. No doubt lifespans were shortening everywhere, but this line was no exception. And elsewhere we read that these men turned away from God, which left every hope resting on His sovereign grace.

The genealogy itself may tell us something. In Peleg's day men were taking more of the earth for themselves than ever, while the days of their hold on it were shortening fast — cut by half in Peleg's own time (Genesis 10:25). Reu lives 239 years. Serug lives 230. Nahor, only 148. Terah, again, 205. But Haran dies before his father Terah. God yet numbers the fleeting years of those who have forgotten Him.

In Shem God's history begins. He is Jehovah, the God of Shem. We have dates and epochs, for after all God governs, and the world must follow: man belongs to God.

Ten generations ran their course from Shem to Abram. In Scripture this number stands for testing, as we have already seen. Ten generations, from Adam to Noah, were enough to prove that "every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Then God cleared the earth by the flood in righteous anger.

The line of Shem was degenerating, and some of the names show it. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed God called Abram.

Even the line of Shem, the father and kindred of Abraham, were idolaters. Grace gives, not finds, what is good.

Son of Reu, a son of Peleg. Gen. 11:20-23; 1 Chr. 1:26. He is called Saruch, son of Ragau, in Luke 3:35.

This genealogy of Genesis 11 continues with Reu the son of Peleg, passing over Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads on to Nahor, Terah and Abram, and God had purposed that Abram would be the father of a chosen race whom He would separate from the rest of the nations… God has been careful to trace that line down through the ages. Matthew 1 begins the New Testament by showing that Christ the Messiah of Israel is the official descendant of Abraham.

Reu lives 239 years; Serug, 230; Nahor, only 148; Terah, again, 205; but Haran dies before his father Terah. God still counts the passing years of those who have forgotten Him.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the shrinking of human life after the flood… Peleg, the fifth in this series, did not reach half the length of Shem's life; and Nahor, the father of Terah, dropped to 145 years. So in God's ordering of things, man was coming by rapid steps to the lifespan that has been normal since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

The sad refrain sounds again and again in the earlier list: "and he died." It is never heard in the later one, even though everyone named in chapter 11 did in fact die… In the second half of chapter 11 we read of the line of blessing. We are told of each generation down to Abram, the time when the promise was given, and the years each man lived; but it says nothing about death.

Here again we find ten names prominent. We have the same number in Genesis 5. Both genealogies, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each of them a new era begins — Noah and Abram.

The line of Shem was degenerating; some of the names show this. Terah (his name means delay), the father of Abram, was an idol worshipper. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

But the promise itself expressed a grace in God that came before any claim Abram could make. In the chosen line itself we have only a thin record of names and lengths of life. Even so, it is plain that there is decay, and that it never stops… elsewhere we read that they turned away from God, which left all hope resting on the sovereign grace of God. The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

Verse 10 starts the fifth paragraph or division of the book; Genesis 10 began the generations of the sons of Noah. We now come to the generations of Shem, one of the shortest of these divisions. It extends only to the end of verse 26, and gives us names and ages of the patriarchs descended from Shem up to the time of Abraham.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years mark the growing decline in the length of human life after the flood. … So in God's ordering of things man was coming by rapid steps to an ordinary span of years. That span has been the usual one ever since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90).

Here again we find ten names prominent. The same number we have in Genesis 5. Both family lists, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each one a new era begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was going downhill, and some of the names show this. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed God called Abram.

Abram's descent from Shem shows him in the line of promise. … But the promise itself expressed a grace in God. That grace came before any personal claim whatever on Abram's part. In the chosen line itself we have only a scanty record of names and lengths of life. Even so, it is plain that there is decay, and that the decay is continuous. … Elsewhere we read that they turned away from God, which left all possibility of hope to His sovereign grace. The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

One remarkable fact in Genesis 11:10-26 is the long life of Shem. He outlived many generations of his own descendants. That long life in turn shows God's gracious purpose in giving it. He had seen the flood with his own eyes, and he was an honoured saint of God (Genesis 9:26). He lived to bear witness to many of the things he had seen and heard himself. How Shem's heart must have grieved! Not only the sons of Ham and Japheth, but his own children, sank into gross idolatry (Joshua 24:2). He was living at the time when God called Abram.

Idolatry had spread among the descendants of Shem. It had infected even Terah, if not Abram himself. To preserve a testimony to Himself God called Abram right out of the evil, to become a pilgrim and stranger in the earth. Mankind was already divided into nations under God's government. Now it was to see a division of another kind — the separation of a godly seed from the mass of the ungodly. This was a division produced by divine grace.

From verse 10 the record traces Shem's line further than Genesis 10:21-31 does. That earlier list goes as far as Joktan the son of Peleg, and stops with his thirteen sons. This list in Genesis 11 goes on with Reu the son of Peleg instead, and passes over Joktan and his sons. The reason is clear. Reu's line leads to Nahor, Terah and Abram. God had purposed that Abram would be the father of a chosen race, whom He would separate from the other nations… God has been careful to trace that line down through the ages.

Compared with his father Noah and those before him, Shem's years show human life growing shorter after the flood. Yet before he came near the end of his six hundred years, he lived on into the days not only of Abram but of Isaac… So in God's providential arrangements man was moving by quick steps toward the lifespan that has been normal ever since the prayer of Moses (Psalm 90). Moses himself was an exception, and a few others have been exceptions even in modern times.

Here again ten names stand out. Genesis 5 has the same number. Both lists, in chapters 5 and 11, end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each of them a new era begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the falling years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was declining, and some of the names show it. Terah (delay), the father of Abram, was an idolater. The descendants of Shem worshipped idols (Joshua 24:2). When the line of Shem had failed, God called Abram.

The family record itself may tell us something. In Peleg's day men were taking possession of the earth more than ever. At the same time their hold on it was growing shorter — cut in half in this very Peleg's time (Gen. 10:25). Reu lives 239 years; Serug, 230; Nahor, only 148; Terah, again, 205; but Haran dies before his father Terah.

The sad chime sounds all through the earlier list: "and he died." It never sounds once in the later one, though in fact everyone named in chapter 11 did die… The second half of chapter 11 gives us the line of blessing. It names each generation down to Abram, the time when the promise came, and the years that they lived. But it says nothing about death. Anyone may call either of these an accident if they wish. The believer can hardly avoid seeing a clear purpose in each, and that purpose may well stir serious but happy thoughts.

The Spirit of God, however, in the sovereignty of grace, visits a son of Terah, who stood eight generations away from Shem. The call of the God of glory came to Abram. It separated him from those corruptions, and from his country, his relatives and his father's house, to shape him into a new piece of workmanship for the Lord. (Acts 7:2)

In Genesis 10 we have "the generations of the sons of Noah," but there side by side rather than in succession... The moral cause is explained in Genesis 11:1-9; after which we find "the generations of Shem" in verses 10-26, and those "of Terah" to complete the picture, and make way for Abram, the man of God's choice, call, and promise. Here we have, unlike any before, at least two genealogies side by side: the nations separate from one another, and the man separated to God with blessing and promise in him, and his seed natural or spiritual.

Here again we find ten names prominent. The same number we have in Genesis 5. Both genealogies in chapters 5 and 11 end with a man to whom God reveals Himself, and with each a new era begins — Noah and Abram. Notice the decreasing years of life. Shem was 600 years old, the grandfather of Abram only 148. The line of Shem was in decline; some of the names show this.

Verse 26 might lead us to assume that Abram was Terah's eldest son, born when his father was 70 years old. But the chapter states plainly that Terah died in Haran aged 205 years. Verse 4 of the next chapter is just as plain: Terah was dead (see Acts 7:4) when Abram left Haran, and Abram was 75, not 135 as we should have expected. So the conclusion appears to be this. Terah's family started when he was 70, and Abram was not born till he was 130. He is mentioned first in verse 26 because Terah's other children were of small importance compared with him. These things should teach us that God cares about moral and spiritual matters rather than chronological ones.

Haran was really the eldest; Nahor, the second son of Terah, married Haran's daughter Milcah, his own niece; and Abram was the youngest of the three. Lot was Haran's son, as Sarai (or Iscah) was his daughter... The eldest and the youngest sons of Terah were sixty years apart, and they had different mothers, as Abram shows. That difference made this possible and explains the matter.

This verse is a striking example of the way Scripture writes, which men are apt to mistake. It says Terah lived seventy years and had Abram, Nahor, and Haran. It said the same of Noah: he was five hundred years old, and Noah had Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Scripture gave the father's age before naming any of the sons. In neither case did the elder son come first; he came last. Other Scriptures prove this beyond just doubt. In both cases the first place marks the special and spiritual honour God put on each.

Abram then, though the youngest son, took precedence in God's mind and word because of the grace God showed him. "The last was made first" — a principle Scripture applies often... In him God began a new headship. Fallen Adam was head of all mankind as they are; Abram is head of the faithful. Scripture says of him: "he believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness."

This is the first notice the Bible gives of idolatry. It comes not when idolatry began, but when it had corrupted the immediate ancestor of Abraham. Before the flood the world was full of open evil, but we never hear of people serving other gods. And after the flood we find no hint of it, until Scripture speaks this way of the fathers in Terah's day.

It was in sovereign grace that God thus appeared. Even the line of Shem, the father and kindred of Abraham, were idolaters. Grace gives, not finds, what is good. And the God of glory did more than appear. He appeared to Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia — at the farthest point of his distance from "the land," and among idolaters.

To preserve a testimony to Himself, God called Abram right out of the evil, to become a pilgrim and a stranger in the earth. Under God's government mankind was already divided into nations. Now it would see a division of another kind: a godly seed separated from the mass of the ungodly. This was a division produced by divine grace.

The generations of Terah begin with verse 27, and do not end until we reach the death of Abraham in Genesis 25. As to Terah himself, we learn at the end of our chapter that Ur of the Chaldees was his home. Late in his life he left Ur to go to the land of Canaan, but stopped at Haran on his way.

The order of the three sons of Terah reverses that of nature. Abram was in no sense the head of the family after the flesh, not even when his brother Haran died. Comparing the dates and facts makes it clear that Abram was the youngest of all. Haran was born when Terah was seventy; Abram not until Terah was one hundred and thirty. His foremost place therefore was due to the choice of God.

That Terah and his family served other gods, we know on divine authority… Truth needs neither fables nor extra miracles to exalt man. It humbles even those whom it blesses to God's glory. Stephen says in Acts 7:2: "The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran." Here is the truth of God in its simple, sure and satisfying light… Of Terah we are told nothing that gives happy confidence. Of Haran, father of Lot and of Milcah, we only learn that he died in front of his father Terah in the land where he was born, in Ur of the Chaldeans. He never reached the town of Haran, the halfway stop in the journey. He died before any of them left their Chaldean home. Nahor, it is clear, did not give up Ur for the town of Haran until later; but once there, he stayed.

The first notice of Lot is in "The generations of Terah," where we learn that he was the son of Haran, Abram's brother… Lot does not appear to have had any concern of soul about this separation from Ur. The call of the Lord had come to Abram (Genesis 12:1), and at the start Terah made the first move… Terah took Lot along. Then Lot moved about under Abram's influence, content to be carried to Canaan in Abram's faith, or taken down to Egypt when Abram's faith failed.

Wholly distinct was Abram, but it was the sovereign call of God that made him so. "Look to Abraham your father," says the prophet, "and to Sarah who bore you; God called him alone, and blessed him and multiplied him." Terah was of no account in this, nor even Lot, though he is called a "righteous man" in his day. But Abram was called "alone," whoever might go with him, or share more or less in the blessing that was his rich portion.

For over four hundred years God bore with this world. Then the God of glory appears to a man on earth and begins to act on a completely new principle: the sovereign call of God. It does not set aside the government of the world. It makes no suggestion about improving or reforming the world, or correcting its evil. It leaves the world just as it is. But it asserts God's supreme claim on one person, whom He chooses in sovereign grace and calls out of the world.

In Joshua 24 we read that Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods.'" This is the Bible's first notice of idolatry. And it comes not when idolatry began, but when it had already corrupted Abraham's own father. There was plenty of open evil in the world before the flood, but of serving other gods we never hear. After the flood there is no hint of it either, until Scripture speaks this way of the fathers in Terah's day.

Of Haran, the father of Lot and of Milcah, we learn only this. He "died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his kindred, in Ur of the Chaldeans." He never reached Charran, the halfway stop in the migration. He died before any of them left their shared Chaldean home.

We need not guess about Haran's death. It is enough to learn from this note of Scripture how unusual it was for a son to die in front of his father, in the land of his birth. If the hidden details held any divine lesson, our God in His goodness would have given us that too. Imagining, or accepting the imaginations of others, is unbelief just as much as hesitating over what the inspired word says. Where Scripture stops speaking, let us learn to be silent.

The order of the three sons of Terah reverses that of nature. Abram was in no sense the head of the family after the flesh, not even when his brother Haran died. Comparing dates and facts makes it clear that Abram was the youngest of all. Haran arrived when his father was seventy; Abram not until his father was one hundred and thirty. His leading place, therefore, was due to the choice of God.

It was in sovereign grace that God appeared like this. Even the line of Shem, the father and relatives of Abraham, were idolaters. Grace gives what is good; it does not find it. And the God of glory did more than appear. He appeared to Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia — at the farthest point of his distance from "the land," and in idolatrous surroundings.

There is no sign that Lot himself was stirred in soul about leaving Ur. The call of the Lord had come to Abram (Genesis 12:1), and at the start Terah seems to have taken the lead. Terah, Abram and Lot all left the land and city where "they served other gods" (Joshua 24:2). Abram went at the call of God. Terah, it seems, was moved by Abram's call. Lot was taken by Terah, then moved about under Abram's influence — content to be carried along to Canaan in Abram's faith, or taken down to Egypt when Abram's faith failed.

God takes a kind interest not only in the people who deal with Him but in their relationships — above all in marriage, the most important of all natural ties for a human being. Those on both sides here may not have known Him yet. But He knew the end from the beginning, and in His providence He guided those who would play an important part in the future dealings of His grace. He records it in His word, which lasts for ever. In this way He shows how serious it is to all who fear Him, as they take their own steps here below. Above all, He wants them to seek His guidance.

Verse 32 tells us that Terah lived two hundred and five years. His eldest son was born when he was seventy, so that son could not have been Abram. Genesis 12:4 tells us that Abram was only seventy-five when he left Haran, after Terah's death... It would seem from the history that Haran was the eldest son, born when his father was seventy. From this we can understand how Nahor married Haran's daughter Milcah, his niece... We also see more clearly how the granddaughter of Nahor became the wife of Isaac, Abraham's son.

Daughter of Haran, the brother of Abraham. Genesis 11:29. According to Josephus, the Jews believed she was Sarai, Abraham's wife.

Still, I cannot help believing that Abram's words to Abimelech (Genesis 20:12) point more naturally to Terah as Sarah's father by a second and later wife, since she was ten years younger than her husband. Scripture does not hide facts that clashed with the law given at a later day. But it is easy to see why the Jews might try to soften or remove what was discreditable by a so-called tradition.

Milcah, who was Nahor's wife, is also mentioned, because her descendants come into the history of God's ways later on.

Of Milcah we hear very little. She was Haran's daughter and Nahor's wife, and as Genesis 22 and 24 tell us, mother of Bethuel and seven other sons. Bethuel was the father of Laban and Rebekah, about whom Scripture says so much there and later on. We know nothing more about Iscah than that she too was Haran's daughter.

Nahor, however, another of Terah's sons, did not come under this influence. He was comfortably settled at home with his wife, and at home they stayed, when Terah, Abram, Sarah and Lot set out from the land of their fathers.

Nahor is not moved in this day when God is at work. He and his wife remain in Mesopotamia, and they do well there. They have children; goods and property increase. They make an easy and respectable journey across the world; but they do not grow in the knowledge of God, and bear no testimony, or at best a small and unclear testimony, to His name.

It is said here that Sarai was barren; she had no child. And this remained a painful fact for many years. Yet she was still to bear Abram's heir, the child of promise. That came after long patience of faith, mixed here and there with some impatience of unbelief. God said his offspring would be named through Isaac. Isaac is a picture of the "Child born" and of the "Son given," at whose name every knee will bow and every tongue confess. He even pictures Him in being received back from the dead, in figure.

The barren woman is in Scripture the type of nature's ruined and helpless condition. There is no ability to do anything for God — no power to bring forth any fruit to Him; all is death and barrenness. Such is the real condition of every child of Adam. He can neither do anything for God nor for himself, as regards his eternal destiny. He is emphatically "without strength"; he is "a dry tree," "a heath in the desert." Such is the lesson taught us by the barren woman.

The call of God goes out in sovereign grace, separating to Himself a man no better than his fellows but openly caught up in the idolatries of his fathers.

In the chosen line itself we have only a thin record of names and lifespans. Even so, it is plain that there is decay, and that it never stops. Elsewhere we read that these men fell away from God, which left every possibility of hope to His sovereign grace. The root of all the blessing that follows is here and only here.

At the time when God promised him an heir Abraham was childless... Every evidence of nature said he could never have an heir. Yet he believed the promise of God that he would have one. So the faith that lays hold of God as the One who gives life to the dead was already there in him, in seed form.

If he reasoned from himself and Sarah, the promise of God was beyond hope, and even against it. But he believed in hope, because God had declared he would have as many descendants as the stars and the sand. Faith reasons from God and His word, not from self or circumstances.

"Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married." ... The law knew nothing of praise. Hagar's son was born of the flesh. Sarah's child was the child of God's grace and power... When the barren woman bears a child, nothing but praise can express it.

The call of the Lord was not to Terah but to Abraham, whom God called to go out from his kindred as well as his country. Here we learn that he failed. For "Terah took Abram his son," and so on. This was no right answer to the call of God. The result was that for the time it came to nothing. They "went forth together," kindred and all, "to go into the land of Canaan." But into the land of Canaan they did not come. They "came to Haran" and "settled there." But Haran was no more Canaan than Ur of the Chaldeans.

From Stephen's address, recorded in Acts 7, we learn that "the God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia." Here we see what sets this call apart from every other call. It comes from God — the God of glory. This world builds cities and towers reaching up to heaven. Nothing in it speaks of God; it only exalts and displays the glory of man. "The God of glory" speaks of another scene where there is nothing of man but everything that displays God. This is the God who, in wonderful grace, appears to a man living in a world estranged from God and sunk in idolatry.

Terah lives up to his name ("delay"), and ends his days at Haran, called after his dead son. Natural things hold him fast, though death is written on them, and memory only keeps his loss fresh. "Haran" means "parched," yet there he stays (and Abram with him) until he dies. Then we see that Terah had been holding back the very man he had led. Now Abram rises up in the power of a divine call — a call that had come to him, and to him alone, from the start.

Abraham came to Haran. He did not get into Canaan at once. He took with him something God had called him away from. God had commanded him to leave his kindred and his father's house. There was a reserve in his heart, and so he got only part of the blessing. He lost his home and his country for very little, while he was only halfway toward where God had sent him.

How many of us have been held back for a time by some loved relative. We fail to take the separate path that fits the call of God. The call reaches the believer. He accepts that it is true, but he delays his answer because a close relative is not ready for that separate place. The soul clings to the hope that after a little waiting the relative will see the call, and then both can act together. Faith cannot lift nature up to its own level, though nature can drag down and hinder the man of faith. People can raise many pleas to excuse this halfway halt, but in reality it puts the claims of nature above the call of God.

Here we find nature trying to follow a divine call which it had never understood, and had never heard for itself. The greatness of the One who had called Abram had not touched Lot's heart, and neither had the greatness and power of the call of the God of glory.

If we look carefully at the accounts of Abraham's call, we never find the phrase "the call," because there was clearly more than one. Stephen says the God of glory appeared to Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran. The effect was that he left his country, and perhaps many of his kindred. But his father went with him, and Sarah, and Lot, and they lived in Haran. They stayed there long enough to gain souls in Haran. Then it seems God called him to leave his country, kindred, and father's house, and come into a land He would show him. The effect of this call was that he left Haran.

Finally the eleventh chapter ends with the gloom of death. "Terah died in Haran." The world that excludes God, and glorifies man, is a world that is in the grip of death. Men may gain great renown, like Nimrod who was a mighty one in the earth. They may build great cities like Asshur, or try to build a tower whose top would reach to heaven, like the men of Babel. But in the end the mighty one has to bow before a still mightier, the city crumbles to dust, the tower becomes a heap, and death reigns over all.

Haran marked a halt from which there was no progress while Terah lived. The very names are suggestive. Terah means "delay," and Haran means "parched." So many things hinder those who long to follow the Lord fully. The most serious of them often come from our own family circle. Unconverted relatives, or Christian relatives with worldly minds, are often a sad drag on our souls. But full blessing cannot be known until obedience is complete.

The call of Jehovah was not to Terah but to Abraham, who was called to go out from his kindred as well as his country. Here we learn that he failed... his father, who was not within the terms of the call, took the lead, as was only natural if he came with Abram. So we read not even that Abram took Terah, but that "Terah took Abram," and this made the word of God of no effect. Faith is no compromise; it receives and obeys the divine word.

Nature may try to walk the path of faith. At the start it may do the right thing, with the best of intentions. But in its self-confidence nature always takes on more than it has the power to do. So it happens that while Terah leaves Ur "to go to the land of Canaan," he never reaches the land. Nature stops halfway at Haran, and there he dwells to the day of his death.

Faith was now cleared of its drawback... "They went forth to go into the land of Canaan, and into the land of Canaan they came" (Gen. 12:5). So the word of Jehovah was fully honoured, and the result was simple, pure and bright. For it was no longer man only trying to hinder: God was obeyed. It is not now "Terah took Abram," but "Abram took Sarai."

So long as Terah lived, no progress was made... At length, however, God stepped in. The natural hindrance is removed by the father's death. Government takes its course, though its steps may appear slow. Grace also appears, and triumphs. The pilgrim continues his journey, and enters the land of Canaan.

The error among ancients and moderns alike comes from one assumption: that Abraham was Terah's eldest son. There is no more ground for that in the order of the names than in the case of Noah's sons, where we know that not Shem but Japheth was the eldest. But, for an adequate divine reason, the younger and not the elder is repeatedly named first. Haran was born to Terah at 70 years, and Abraham at 130. That is why Abraham could marry Haran's daughter Sarai, ten years younger than himself.

If we examine the accounts of the call of Abraham carefully, we find no such phrase as "the call," because there was clearly more than one... Stephen says, "from there [Haran], when his father was dead, he [God] removed him into this land." This shows beyond question that Jehovah acted a second time.

There came the moment when God — "the God of glory" — made Himself known to a poor dark idolater, and won his heart forever. It was not a new religion that Abram learned, nor a new set of opinions, but he came to know a Person. The result was that, like the Thessalonians later, he turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.

The revelation and the renunciation were as cause and effect. The second was possible in the strength and joy of the first. The glory of Ur of the Chaldees faded before the God of glory. As he eagerly stretched out his hands toward the one, Abraham turned his back on the other.

If we only look at the Hebrew, there is room for discussion. Its tenses took their sense from the context, and old and new versions differ. But God has given us help here, and all who are humble enough to value it may be glad. Stephen, in Acts 7:2-3, makes it certain that the Lord appeared and gave this call in Mesopotamia, not in Haran. The call came there. Abram carried it out only in part while Terah lived, for Terah was quite content to settle in Haran. But after his death the power of the Lord's call revived in Abram's heart.

From both these passages it plainly appears that Terah and his family moved, as Genesis 11:31 records, because "the God of glory" had revealed Himself to Abram. But it does not appear that Terah had any such revelation from God. He appears as a hindrance to Abram more than anything else. Until he died, Abram did not come into the land of Canaan — the destination God had appointed for him.

Abraham is not told to stay in the city of Ur and deal with man's wickedness. He is not told to improve its social conditions, reform its home life, or make it a better and brighter world. He is called to come out of it in every form. He is to leave the political world — "your country"; the social world — "your kindred"; and the family world — "your father's house."

It is not that we are to despise government — it is still God's appointment. Nor can we neglect family ties — they are ordered of God. Nor are we to stop being courteous and kind and doing good to all people as we have opportunity. But God calls us, as believers, away from taking part in the world's political activities, its social round, and the whole sphere where unconverted members of our families find their pleasure without God.

Later, Abram may find that obeying this command means staying in a land where nothing but starvation seems to await him. But even so, God had not qualified the command in any way. The word was simple and definite: "the land that I will show you." It should have bound Abram just as much when famine surrounded him as when peace and plenty prevailed. Famine should not have persuaded him to leave the land, and abundance should not have persuaded him to stay. The words that carried weight were, "I will show you."

To preserve a testimony to Himself, God called Abram right out of the evil, to become a pilgrim and stranger in the earth. Mankind was already divided into nations under God's government. Now it would see a division of another kind — a godly line separated from the mass of the ungodly. This was a division produced by divine grace.

The nation's history began when God called Abraham out of his old place and connections. He was to go to the land of God's choice, and there God would make him a great nation. This is shown in Genesis 12:1-3, and it was an event that opened a new age. Genesis 1-11 covers a slightly longer stretch of time than all the rest of the Old Testament. Yet it packs that time into a few chapters, while the rest is spread out over many books. The call of Abraham marked a new departure in God's ways with the earth.

Notice the Lord's word to Abram in Genesis 12:2, "I will make your name great." Compare it with the ambition of the men in chapter 11:4: "Let us make a name for ourselves." Men's schemes, whether the Tower of Babel or any other, come to an end. The names of those who plan them and push them through die with the world they belong to. But the man who ties himself to God's interests gets a name that will last for ever. Far better to let God make our name great than to seek anything for ourselves in a scene like this.

The call of God carried Abraham into a path far away from the power and fame of the men who built Babel. He started his pilgrimage with God's promise to make him a great nation, to bless him, to make his name great, and to make him a blessing. God has been as good as His word. People still honour the name of Abraham today. That, however, is a small thing. Far greater is the honour that God Himself calls him "Abraham, my friend" (Isaiah 41:8). Here is true greatness — greatness that lasts, while Nimrod's tower and city are only shapeless ruins on the plains of Mesopotamia.

Fourthly, there is great present blessing for the one who answers the call. As separated from this present evil world, God says to Abraham, "I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great." The men of this world seek to make a great name for themselves; they say, "Let us make us a name." But God says to the separated man, "I will bless you and make your name great."

Sixty years before this, God had said to Abraham that one result of answering the call of God, and taking the outside place, would be that God would make his name great (Genesis 12:2). Here we see this word fulfilled, for the world itself has to own that this separate man is "a mighty prince of God."

It was much for God to say, "I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great." But there was another word, and this was especially dear to the heart of one so blessed himself. "You shall be a blessing." This was to make him not only the object of grace, but the instrument of it. It was to give him fellowship with God Himself in the activity of His own goodness.

God says, "I will make of you a great nation, and you shall be a blessing." He puts him at the centre of blessing... and then you get the point Galatians 3 presses: "in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." The seed is not mentioned here: the great nation is the line of natural descendants. Abram is the root of the tree of promise.

This is above all a prophecy concerning Christ, the Seed of Abram, through whom blessing is to come to the entire world.

God's covenant set no conditions. It made no demands. It put no yoke on the neck and no burden on the shoulder. When "the God of glory appeared to Abraham" in Ur of the Chaldeans, He did not speak to him with words like "you shall do this" and "you shall not do that."... His word to Abraham was, "I WILL GIVE."

This word was especially dear to the heart of one so blessed himself. It made him not only the object of grace, but the instrument of it. It was to give him communion with God Himself in the activity of His own goodness.

No one can limit such a word as this. It shows how the heart of God went out to all, even in earliest times. Blessing for Gentiles was always before His mind. But on what ground? Certainly not the ground of law, to which the foolish Galatians were turning in vain. The law did not yet exist when God spoke this way to the father of the faithful. The promise was unconditional and depends on God alone for fulfilment. It was not drawn out by anything in man, nor even in Abraham individually; it flowed only from the grace of His heart.

Blessing marked his calling. He is blessed and a blessing. Blessing comes to others according to their attitude towards him. And he is the one source of blessing to all the families of the earth... God is blessedness in Himself. It marks Him. He is the source of it to all who have any. This was, in a derived way, exactly Abraham's place... If there was a curse, it was only for hostility to this.

Balaam therefore closes his prophecy with the words of God to Abraham: "Blessed are those who bless you, and cursed are those who curse you." Matthew 25 shows how this is fulfilled. There the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory. He separates the nations one from another by how they treated one of the least of His brothers, the children of Israel.

Abraham acted in faith in God's word, and God said to him, "In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." We know the use that the Spirit of God makes of this promise. He says, "The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, In you shall all the nations be blessed" (Gal. 3:8). Abraham did not, and could not, foresee how far the effect of that faith would reach. He acted on it in answering the call of God. But God foresaw that faith was the one way of blessing for all the families of the earth. So now, in our small measure, only God can foresee how far the blessing to others may reach from one soul who answers the call of God in simple, whole-hearted faith.

God certainly fulfilled the first part of this promise to Abraham. But as a whole it goes far beyond him. It looks on to the Seed, "which is Christ" (Gal. 3:16). Those who bless Him will be blessed forever. Those who curse or despise Him and reject His salvation will be cursed forever. Not all Israel were blessed in faithful Abraham. But in his Seed, in the glory of His coming reign, all Israel and all the nations are to be blessed.

And all God promised to Abram He has kept. God has fulfilled every word to the letter. Nation after nation has hated Abraham's seed, his natural descendants. Each has found to its great sorrow how true Abraham's God is. These promises still hold good... The nations of the earth, all the families, are waiting, without knowing it, to be blessed by Abraham's seed.

This calling, however special and personal, however much it marked him out for favour, necessarily involved obedience. The call of blessing to Abraham was a call to leave his country for a land which God would show him. Whatever the power acting on his mind might be, obedience was the result. The very terms of the call made it clear — no obedience, no blessing.

Terah, as long as he lived, was a dead weight on Abraham's obedience. But when Terah died, "Abram went, as the LORD had told him." Then the language is pointedly different: "And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions … and they set out to go to the land of Canaan, and into the land of Canaan they came." There was no failure now, because his faith was no longer hampered by the natural ties that almost always take the upper hand. That was why the earlier move had lacked the power of God to give it effect. Once that weight was gone, the blessing followed at once.

Terah fulfills his name ("delay"), and ends his days at Haran, named after his dead son. Natural things hold him fast, though death is written on them, and memory only keeps the loss fresh. "Haran" means "parched," yet there he stays (and Abram with him) till he dies. Then we find that Terah had been holding back the very man he had led. Abram rises up in the power of a divine call — a call that had come to him, and to him alone at the first.

We are not told how long Abraham stayed at Haran. Yet God kindly waited on His servant until he was free of nature's hold and could fully obey His command. There was, however, no adjusting of that command to the circumstances of nature. That would never do. God loves His servants too well to rob them of the full blessedness of complete obedience. There was no fresh revelation to Abraham's soul during his stay in Haran. It is good to see this. We must act up to the light already given, and then God will give us more.

Lot appears as a companion who walks alongside people of faith, not as a man who has faith and acts in its energy himself. This marks his path from the beginning. So when he is put to the test, there is only weakness. In how many things do we act alongside those who have faith, before having it for ourselves! The soul will not stand when sifted by temptation, if it is walking in another's light.

In Terah we have seen the man of nature. He can make a fair profession, but he cannot take the path of faith that leads outside the world. In Abraham we have seen the man of faith. Acting on the word of the LORD, he takes the outside place, though at times he may fail in that path. In Lot we see a true believer, who takes the outside place, not in faith in God, but under the influence of man. We have already read that when Abraham departed from Haran, "Lot went with him."

The conclusion seems to be that Terah's family began when he was seventy years old. Abram was not born till Terah was a hundred and thirty. Abram is named first because Terah's other children were of small importance compared with him. These things should teach us that God cares about moral and spiritual matters, not about dates.

The word of the Lord was now fully honoured, and the result was simple, pure and bright. It was no longer man trying only to hinder: God was obeyed. It is not now "Terah took Abram," but "Abram took Sarai." It was the walk of faith, separate to the Lord, Abram blessed and a blessing.

When nature took the lead, we read, "They went forth… from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan." But under Terah's leading they never reach the land. Now, when faith takes the lead, we read again, "They went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came."

Terah, as long as he lived, was a dead weight on Abraham's obedience… God told Abraham to leave his relatives as well as his country. Until he did that, he did not reach Canaan. It would hardly have been proper for Abram as the son to take Terah his father. So "Terah took Abram…" This, however, was not at all according to God's call to Abram. That is why we read, "they came to Haran, and settled there."

Stephen speaks of the God of glory appearing to Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran… As a result he left his country, and perhaps many of his relatives. But his father went with him, along with Sarah and Lot, and they settled in Haran. They stayed there long enough for people to be gained in Haran (Gen. 11:31; 12:5). Then it seems God called him to leave his country, his relatives and his father's house, and come into a land that He would show him (Gen. 12:1). The effect of this call was that he left Haran.

We only note here that Abram brought his household with him out of Chaldea and Haran into Canaan. This happened on the same principle as with Noah: the household is linked before God with its head.

Not nature now, but the man of faith leads, and they no longer linger on the road; but Lot merely follows Abram, as before he had followed Terah. Abram walks with God; Lot only with Abram. How easy it is, even for a believer, to walk where another's bolder faith leads and clears the way! He can go on without ever searching his own conscience, and without real faith about the way itself.

When Abraham first entered on the path of faith, and Lot went with him, they took "all their possessions." But it caused no strife (Gen. 12:5). In Egypt, however, Abraham gains great wealth, so that after his restoration we read, "He was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold."

He might have set out and never finished the journey. But they "came to the land of Canaan." So let us not only have a goal; let us also seek grace to reach it.

Here we have the position of the heavenly people. God's grace and power have placed them in a heavenly position, pictured by Canaan, and there they live. They have everything in promise, but nothing yet in possession.

He came to stay for a while, not to settle. He moves from place to place, and in every place it is only a tent he pitches. The God of glory had told him that He would show him the land. His descendants would have it forever, but he himself would only see it. And so we find him looking it over, but not settling on any of it. For this was the right answer to such a promise... The Canaanite was then in the land and held the soil. Abraham did not argue with him over a single foot of it. He looked it over. He owned it only as faith and hope own a thing. He looked for no inheritance of his own there and then.

We hear of the first stop at Sichem (Shechem), at the oak of Moreh. The first of these words means "shoulder," the second "instructor." It is when we bend our shoulder to carry a load that we are taught. Whoever is willing to do God's will, will know the teaching. Whoever wants to learn from Christ must take His yoke.

Shoulder speaks of bearing responsibility. This is a first step of real value for the child of God. Too many of us would rather avoid responsibility. But if we accept the place of bearing a responsible witness for the Lord Jesus, we will be well taught, as Moreh — "teacher" — implies.

The presence of the Canaanite in God's land was bound to be a trial to Abraham. It would be a demand on his faith and hope, an exercise of heart, a test of patience... But there, too, he finds the Lord... The connection between the two statements is beautiful and touching. The Canaanites were in the land at that time. So that Abraham's eye would not rest on the Canaanite, who then held the land, the Lord appears to him as the One who was going to give that land to him and to his descendants forever. So Abraham's attention was on the Lord, not on the Canaanite.

Canaanite means "trader." That reminds us there are people who claim to be Christians but only use it to make money. This is a real trial of faith for those who want to walk with God. But despite the Canaanites, Abram would take up proper responsibility and learn from God. Let us also not use the Canaanites as an excuse for failing to obey the word of God fully.

There is no ground for saying that these words, or Genesis 13:7, mean the Canaanites and Perizzites were gone from the land by the time the writer lived. They show that the first, if not the second, were in the land when Abram entered it... We can easily understand that this was a trial to Abram. But he did not have to wait for the days of Moses, or of Joshua, to know that these invaders and all the others were doomed...

They are in the place of strangers, that is clear ("at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land"). They have nothing in possession, "not even a foot's length"; everything rests on their valuing the promises. They have just two things, the altar and the tent. Journeying about, and worshipping God, they are strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Abram was not called to drive out the Canaanite. Yet we find his altar to the Lord, and his tent too, on the very ground of those wicked nations. He was a worshipper and a stranger in the very place where the Canaanite was doing well. The smoke of an accepted sacrifice rose from his altar right in front of the enemy. It is a wonderful sight.

His first act, on arrival at the plain of Moreh, near Shechem, was to put up an altar. At this spot the LORD appeared to him and renewed His promise: "to your offspring I will give this land." This is the first recorded time God showed Himself since Abram left Ur of the Chaldeans. It illustrates our Lord's words to His disciples in John 14:21: "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." Obedience always brings the light and joy of the Lord's presence as its reward to the soul.

"The LORD appeared to Abram" — He not only spoke but "appeared." To my mind that word is not casual but deliberate... The first time, all we read is that "the LORD had said." Now we find that "the LORD appeared to Abram and said, To your offspring I will give this land." Nothing is vague any longer. It is precise. It is not "a land that I will show you," but "to your offspring I will give this land." What is the consequence? There "he built an altar to the LORD" — and not only that, but "to the LORD who had appeared to him." So it is clear to my mind that this was what had to come before worship. Worship waits until the Lord shows Himself.

The presence of the Canaanite in God's land was bound to test Abraham. It would be a demand upon his faith and hope, an exercise of heart, a trial of patience... But there, too, he finds the Lord... "The Canaanites were in the land." The Canaanite held it at that moment. So that Abraham's eye would not rest on him, the LORD appears to Abraham as the One who was going to give the land to him and to his offspring forever. So Abraham was taken up with the Lord, and not with the Canaanite... instead of dwelling on Satan's power to keep us out of the inheritance, we should grasp Christ's power to bring us in.

Abraham had answered God's call and reached the land of his pilgrimage. Then God appeared to him and told him His purpose about his inheritance. Only then did Abram build his altar. You could say he built it in the light of God's purpose. To the Canaanite in the land, the altar was a witness that this pilgrim and stranger among them had a God he worshipped. To God, the altar was the evidence that Abraham wanted to meet His mind and will by having communion with Him.

We hear of the first halt at Sichem (Shechem), at the oak of Moreh. The first of these words means "shoulder." The second means "instructor." We find instruction when we bow our shoulder to carry the load. He who is willing to do God's will shall know the teaching: he who will learn of Christ must take His yoke.

In Galatians 3:16 the apostle is speaking of Genesis 12 and 22, but there he means one special offspring. God made the promise to Abraham alone, and confirmed it to his offspring in Genesis 22... The reasoning in Galatians is that Christ alone is the offspring meant in Genesis 22, where God speaks of the nations of the world. And if we are in Christ, then we too are the offspring of Abraham.

"And Abraham built there an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him." He serves God and enjoys communion with Him. From there he goes to another place and pitches his tent. He builds a new altar to the LORD and calls on the name of the LORD. He is a pilgrim in the land of promise; and that is his entire history... Abraham's tent and altar here shape his whole history, and every experience of faith grows out of those two things.

Abraham and those with him answered God's call by faith, and so became strangers and exiles. In the New Testament the Holy Spirit says that they "acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth" (Hebrews 11:13). This stands out in his history. In Haran, Abraham stayed for a time, and we read that he "settled there." Once he reached the land, we read that he "pitched his tent," like a man with no fixed home. We also read that he "passed through the land." As a stranger he had only a tent in this world. As a pilgrim he was passing through to another world.

He built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him. Again he built an altar, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east, and there he called upon the name of the LORD. The revelation of the LORD produces worship. The basis of worship is a conscious and precious relationship with the LORD. Abram knew the LORD's grace toward him; therefore he worshipped Him and called upon His name.

The tent and the altar clearly present him to us as a stranger and a worshipper. As such, he was a man entirely separated from the course of this evil world.

He worships in the fullness of blessing, and then his "tent" also comes into view for the first time, pitched on the mountain east of Bethel. "Ai" means "a heap of ruin." It is the city that resists the power of Israel in Joshua, after Jericho falls to the ground. It is as if the ruins of Jericho had risen up against those who had lost God's victorious presence, their strength. As a picture, Ai is no doubt the ruined old creation. So Abram pitches his tent between a judged world and the "house of God," with both in view.

Calling on the name of the LORD showed Abram's knowledge of the LORD and his dependence on Him. The altar was the outward evidence of his link with God, a testimony for everyone to take account of. But his calling on the name of the LORD was not only a profession of faith in Him. It was also the evidence of a living link formed by the call of God. Abram would never have called on the name of the LORD if God had not first called Abram while he was in Ur of the Chaldeans. God's call gave him the power to answer it. That call also gave him the desire and understanding to call upon the LORD's name.

Abram was not called to drive out the Canaanite. Yet we find his altar to the LORD on the very ground of the wicked nations, and his tent as well. Here is a worshipper and a stranger in the very place where the Canaanite was flourishing. Here is an altar with the smoke of accepted sacrifice rising in the very face of the enemy. It is a wonderful sight. We may well travel back in spirit to the tent pitched between Bethel and Ai. There we can bless the LORD, who could sustain the pilgrim father and his household in true worship in the enemy's own stronghold.

Pressed by circumstances, he does not consult God. He finds himself in the presence of the world, where he had sought help and refuge, and he denies his true relationship with his wife. The world cherishes him, and God at last judges that world, sending Abram out of it again. During this whole period, and until he had returned to the place from which he started, he had no altar.

Abram had barely begun his course when he met one of those difficulties. Such trials have a special power to test whether faith is genuine, both in its quality and in its object. "And there was a famine in the land." The difficulty meets him in the very place into which the Lord had called him. It is no easy thing to keep going when we see trial and sorrow, hardship and difficulty waiting for us on the narrow way. It is harder still when we can see within reach, as Abram could, a complete escape from the very trial that is hurting us.

But he is no sooner in the land than trial comes, and his young faith is put to the proof. He had already built an altar, but worship never rules out trial. In fact, the place of worship is always where faith is tested. But faith is worth little unless it is tested. When it comes out of the furnace, it is more precious than gold (1 Peter 1:7).

Did he ask Jehovah before going there? Did he spread the circumstances of the land before Him? Not a word is said to suggest it... he goes unbidden into the place of the world's plenty. "There was famine in the land." Why did he not lay it all before Jehovah? Canaan was certainly not yet what it should be according to God; but had God not called him there? And could He not keep him there? Abram goes down to Egypt to stay there without a word of guidance from Jehovah. It was the direction of common sense. God records this fact openly. He never hides the truth, even when it shames those He loves.

Egypt was a snare to Abraham, and his stay in Egypt brought him only sorrow and shame. With Joseph, however, it brought blessing and glory. Why the difference? Is it not that in Abraham's case he "went down into Egypt to sojourn there" (Gen. 12:10), while Joseph was "brought" into Egypt? One went there in unbelief and self-will. The other was brought there according to the settled purpose and foreknowledge of God.

Canaan was a land entirely dependent on showers from heaven. Nearby was Egypt, with its great river and its channels cut from that river to water the farmland. It was a land watered by the foot, a place where man could manage things himself.

Egypt represents the world with its resources. Scripture does not say that God commanded Abram to go down there. Indeed, He could have sustained His servant in a famine just as well as in plenty.

Down in Egypt we have no altar, and no calling on the name of the Lord. God takes care of him and watches over him, but Abram is no worshipper there, not until he gets back. He goes down to Egypt, forced, as people say, by circumstances, not in the place of dependence or communion.

This behaviour was the result of his being in a wrong position. Had he stayed in the place to which God had called him, there would have been no need to deny his wife. But as usually happens, one wrong step led to another. He went into Egypt through fear of the famine, and there he denied his wife through fear of death.

This beautiful chapter shows us the man of faith recovering himself. He recovers through the faithfulness and loving-kindness of God, who never lets such a man wander far or stay away long. Egypt's gold and silver, its flocks and herds, could not satisfy Abram for long while he had no tent and no altar. So once more, with the renewed energy of faith, he rises from the dust of Egypt and retraces his steps to the land of promise.

In Abraham's history the test came in the form of a famine. It was a severe test, for "the famine was severe in the land." If the LORD allows the famine, the LORD can surely meet the needs of His own in the famine. However, under the pressure of his need, Abraham allows the circumstances to come between his soul and the LORD. Instead of calling upon the LORD, he followed plain reason, or common sense. For a time he stepped out of the path of faith and "went down into Egypt."

Abram felt the famine to be severe. But we find no reference to God, no turning back to Him, no directions from Him, no exercise of faith. There was no previous direction for this. The fact is all we have — Abram went down into Egypt. Sadly, all too true. But was the God of Abram near? He had not asked this, but was acting on his own prudence and reasoning. Fear of the Egyptians came upon him as he drew near their land.

How solemn it is when a saint takes the downward path and keeps to it! He has left the land that Jehovah had shown him and given to his descendants. The famine distresses him just like any Gentile. He heads for a country where there was plenty — Egypt, a picture of the world, as Canaan is of heaven — and he goes without a word from God. Now, further, having put himself into these circumstances of nature, he falls even from its ordinary decencies.

The simple trick that Abram suggested to Sarai was not an outright lie. Sarai was his half-sister, as we find in Genesis 20:12. Yet it ended in disaster. It was just that kind of half-truth, or half-lie, which has so often been a snare to true saints of God. Men of the world may do such things and seem to come out ahead. But if saints of God stoop to that level, they are always losers in the end.

Had Abram intended this? No! It was an unexpected result. It was unbelief, which continually produces in judgment the evil which it seeks to avoid. The sons of men would build a tower so they would not be scattered abroad, and the Lord scattered them because they built it. Abram feared that Pharaoh would take his wife, so he says she is his sister — as if God would not preserve him. And so Pharaoh takes her into his house. But it was the first step that was wrong — Abram went down into Egypt.

Abram learnt that there could be no tent or altar in Egypt. Only faith can enable a man to raise an altar or pitch a tent. But in Egypt all is sight and not faith. So the moment Abram set foot there he stopped showing the genuine fruits of faith — yes, he let go of the very principle that led him to leave the land of promise. At the same time it led him to give up his character as a stranger and a worshipper.

Here is a remarkable fact, seen in the history of the greatest saints of God. Their most striking failure appears in the very thing for which they were best known. Moses, the meekest man in all the earth, spoke rashly. Job, the model of patience, cursed his day. Abraham, the father of the faithful, carried in his heart for many a long day and through many a changing scene a root of unbelief.

God had called Abram, and he was greatly blessed when he answered that call. Above all he was the man of faith, yet Scripture does not hide his times of weakness and failure from us. God had called him to Canaan, not to Egypt. Yet when the famine came, he does not seem to have asked God what to do. Down to Egypt he went. So he escaped the famine, no doubt, but he ran into troubles his faith was not able to meet.

It is true that he acted this way because he was in the wrong position. Had he stayed in the place God called him to, he would have had no need to deny his wife. But as usually happens, one wrong step led to another. He went into Egypt because he feared the famine. Once there, he denies his wife because he fears death.

The simple trick Abram suggested to Sarai was not an outright lie, since Sarai was his half-sister, as we find in Genesis 20:12. Yet it ended in disaster. It was just the sort of half-truth, or half-lie, that has so often trapped true people of God. Men of the world may do such a thing and seem to gain by it. But when God's people stoop to that level, they lose in the end.

He goes down to Egypt without the Lord directing his way, since he seems not to have called on His name. And in Egypt, sad to say, the father of the faithful uses words meant to mislead. His one aim is to protect himself at his wife's expense. That is no noble place for a husband, and no worthy use to make of his wife. But this is what happens when a man who should be walking in faith slips back onto the slippery paths of his own fears and the world's favours.

He has taken a position where he can no longer count on God to keep him safe. Now he has only his own resources to meet this new difficulty. Left to himself, he sinks below the level of the world and acts out a lie.

How sadly we too can fall into deception because we are in the wrong place! Sarai pictures the covenant of grace (Gal. 4:22-28), and she belonged to Abram, the man of faith. Grace cannot belong to the godless world, though the world may admire grace as a true and beautiful principle. But when believers get into wrong company, they will always in some way deny their true relationship with God — a relationship that rests entirely on His grace in Christ Jesus. How much safer and happier is the path of simple, steady faith!

Had Abram meant this to happen? No! He never expected it. It was unbelief, and unbelief keeps bringing down on itself, as judgment, the very evil it is trying to avoid. Men once built a tower so that they would not be scattered over the earth, and the Lord scattered them because they built it. Abram is afraid Pharaoh will take his wife, so he says she is his sister — as if God would not keep him safe. And so Pharaoh takes her into his house. But the first step was the wrong one: Abram went down into Egypt.

What wonderful grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears as well as to answer their faith, and He covered His erring servant with the shield of His powerful protection. Behind that shield, which nothing could pierce, both Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue were kept safe... Abraham had clearly left himself open in all this. So, although God protects him, He still allows Pharaoh to rebuke him.

But it was the first step that was wrong — Abram went down into Egypt. He went down without God, out of the land of faith and promise. He could not expect to meet God there, for God could not bless unbelief — though He might still judge the sin that acted wrongly within it. His heart did not know Him in power there. And since he had to act on something, he acts carefully on his own resources. But just as he had departed from faith in God, so he departed from guarding his wife's place with her true husband. And the world rewarded him for his unfaithfulness.

The simple trick that Abram suggested to Sarai was not a downright lie. Sarai really was his half-sister, as we find in Genesis 20:12. Yet it ended in disaster. It was just the sort of half-truth, or half-lie, that has so often trapped God's true people. Men of the world may do such a thing and seem to gain by it. But when God's people stoop to that level, they always lose in the end.

He goes down without the LORD directing his way, since he seems not to have called on His name. And in Egypt, sad to say, the father of the faithful is guilty of misleading words. His only purpose is to protect himself at his wife's expense. That is not a noble place for a husband, nor a worthy use to make of his wife. But so it is when a man who ought to have been walking in faith falls back on the slippery paths of his own fears and the world's favours.

Unbelief carries its own judgment. Again and again it leads into the very evil a person is trying to avoid. As it has been said, "The sons of men would build a tower so that they would not be scattered abroad, and the LORD scattered them because they built it. Abram, feared Pharaoh would take his wife, so he says she is his sister — as if God would not protect him — and so Pharaoh takes her into his house."

What marvellous grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears, as well as to answer their faith. He covered His erring servant with the shield of His powerful protection. Behind that shield, Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue were both kept safe, while God's righteous rod fell heavily on the house of Egypt's king.

Abraham was moving in the wrong direction when he went down into Egypt for help. So he did not show the fineness of conscience that would have told him this holding back of the truth was morally unsound… The LORD struck Pharaoh's house because Pharaoh had taken Sarah into it, and Pharaoh rebuked Abraham for what he had done. Yet Abraham said nothing at all about the deliberate agreement he had made with his wife to keep back part of the truth. He took the rebuke without a word and went on his way. But the root of the evil remained in his heart.

Pressed by circumstances, he does not consult God. He finds himself in the presence of the world, where he had sought help and refuge, and he denies his true relationship with his wife… All that time, and until he had returned to the place he started from, he had no altar. When he left Egypt and returned to his life as a stranger in Canaan, he had what he had before. But he must return first to the same place and find his altar again.

But it was the first step that was wrong — Abram went down into Egypt. He went down without God, out of the land of faith and promise. He could not expect to meet God there. God could not bless unbelief, though He might still judge the sin that acted wrongly in it. His heart did not know Him in power there. He had to act on something, so he acted carefully on his own resources. But he had departed from faith in God, and faithfulness to his wife's true position with her real husband departed too. He was blessed in the world — yes, and by the prince of this world — for his unfaithfulness.

Unbelief carries its own judgment. It constantly leads into the very evil one seeks to avoid. As it has been said, "The sons of men would build a tower so that they would not be scattered abroad, and the Lord scattered them because they built it. Abram fears that Pharaoh will take his wife, so he says she is his sister — as if God would not preserve him. And so Pharaoh takes her into his house."

The consequence came at once. He denied the holy separation from the world, and the union with Christ, that belonged to the church. She was his sister, not his wife. That may be true in one sense, but it was deadly in what it really meant for the faith of God's chosen. She was very beautiful to look at, for God had put His beauty upon her. She was His daughter, the object of His love, and also the bride of Christ the Son. She was admired in the world.

The simple trick Abram suggested to Sarai was not an outright lie. Sarai really was his half-sister, as we find in Genesis 20:12. Yet it worked out terribly. It was just that kind of half-truth, or half-lie, which has so often been a snare to true saints of God. Men of the world may do such things and appear to gain by it. But if saints of God come down to that level, they are always losers in the end.

We see in all this that Abraham is thinking only of himself. He is not trying to protect Sarai. He is ready to sacrifice her to save himself. … You will find that if you come down to the level of the world, and get on easy terms with the men of the world, your lips will pick up the language of the world. Then you will be ashamed to confess your true relationship to Christ. One sad result of this denial of relationship was that Sarai ended up in the house of Pharaoh. What a difference from being in the house of God! The way to get the world's admiration is to deny your relationship to Christ.

He had gone down into Egypt at the outset, when there was a famine in the land. While Sarah was in "the house of Pharaoh" he acquired cattle and Egyptian riches in abundance. A man may get what satisfies his nature, and seem to be doing very comfortably, while he is far from God. But he had no altar in Egypt. Every camel and ox that came in should have broken his heart, and made him feel where he and his wife were.

For a long time there was no clue to show which line the promised seed would come through. Then Abram was called, and Satan fixed his eye on him at once. He tried on three different occasions to swamp the separated line with the nations outside. Twice Sarah was exposed: first in the house of Pharaoh, then in the house of Abimelech. His third attempt, with the same aim, was with Rebecca… All this was to prevent the coming of the true Seed.

In Abraham's history the test came in the form of a famine. It was a severe test, for "the famine was severe in the land." If the LORD allows the famine, the LORD can surely meet the needs of His own in the famine. But under the pressure of his need, Abraham lets the circumstances come between his soul and the LORD. Instead of calling on the LORD, he followed mere reason, or common sense. For a time he stepped out of the path of faith and "went down to Egypt." Instead of counting on God to sustain him, he goes down to the world for help.

It was unbelief, which constantly produces in judgment the very evil it seeks to avoid. The sons of men wanted to build a tower so that they would not be scattered abroad, and the Lord scattered them because they built it. Abram feared that Pharaoh would take his wife, so he says she is his sister — as if God would not preserve him. And therefore Pharaoh takes her into his house. But it was the first step that was wrong: Abram went down to Egypt.

A man may get what satisfies nature, and seem to be going on very comfortably, when far off from God. But he had no altar in Egypt. Every camel and ox that came in ought to have broken his heart, and made him feel where he himself and his wife were.

Everything now flourishes outwardly. Abram had never been so rich… But how was it all gained? Oh, if only Abram had come before the Lord now! If he had placed himself before Him who appeared to him, every single thing he gained would have been a wound in his heart. And the wound would have been sharper still, because it came through denying his wife.

Pressed by circumstances, he does not consult God. He finds himself in the presence of the world, where he has sought help and refuge. And he denies his true relationship with his wife… The world cherishes him, and God at last judges that world, sending Abram out from it again. During this whole period, until he returned to the place from which he started, he had no altar. What a warning for Christians about the relationship of the church with Christ! And however much the world may be a help to the church, we cannot keep that relationship when we seek the world's help.

The Lord dealt in His own wonderful way. He did not strike Abram, or even thin down Abram's servants. Instead, "He afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues." … The righteous government of God was at work. Pharaoh knew well enough that he had no right to take the woman, even if she were Abram's sister. He was using his position to claim what did not belong to him. … If Pharaoh was plagued, Abram was put to shame. The world itself reproaches Abram. And what can he say? He came without God, and he went without honour.

Abram also finds that his fears were groundless. Pharaoh had a proper respect for the marriage bond, as many unsaved people do today. This is a case of an unbeliever acting more honourably than a believer. … While Pharaoh gives Sarai back to Abram, he does not expect Abram to stay there. He tells him to "take her, and go" (v. 19), and "they sent him on his way with his wife and all that he had" (v. 20). By this time Abram would surely realise that Egypt was not the place for him. God had brought him to this point of realisation, for it is only His working that brings about restoration.

Pharaoh enriched Abram for Sarai's sake, giving him sheep, oxen, donkeys, camels and servants (v. 16). A believer who mingles with the world and compromises his testimony for Christ in this way may often prosper materially. But should this not have greatly troubled Abram's conscience? Was he not also deeply disturbed to have his wife welcomed into the house of another man? Here were complications he had clearly not expected, and he found himself helpless to get out of them.

He had denied the bond, and given up what was essential in their relationship. By that he gained plenty and ease from the hand of the prince of this world: "he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels." But was this any comfort to him? … Every camel, every servant, every ox passed before his eyes with the stamp of Pharaoh's kindness on it. How each one must have struck Abram's heart with the thought, "But where is my wife? I have sold my wife for this!"

But Abram leaves this land. He gives way, for the moment, to the heavy trial, and turns his steps down to Egypt, leaving behind him his tent and altar. There he obtained ease and luxury. He escaped, no doubt, the severe trial he had suffered under in the land of promise. But he lost, for the time, his worship and his place as a stranger — things that should always be dearest to the heart of a pilgrim. Egypt would give nothing to Abram unless he sacrificed his character both as a stranger and as a worshiper of God.

It was in the land of Egypt that Pharaoh treated him well for Sarah his wife's sake — a shameful affair. For her sake "he had sheep, oxen … and camels" (Genesis 12:16). Hagar the Egyptian (Genesis 16:3) later caused such sorrow and trouble in his household, and became the mother of Ishmael. Was she one of those "maidservants" given to Abraham for Sarah's sake in Egypt? It seems very likely that she was.

In the case of Abraham and Lot, their material riches became the occasion of division. We may well ask, "Where were these riches acquired?" When Abraham first entered the path of faith, and Lot went with him, they took "all their substance." But it caused no strife (Gen. 12:5). In Egypt, however, Abraham acquires great wealth, so that after his restoration we read that he was "very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold."

Pressed by circumstances, he does not consult God. He finds himself in the presence of the world, where he has sought help and refuge. He denies his true relationship with his wife — just as has happened in the case of the church. The world cherishes him, and God at last judges that world and sends Abram out from it again. During this whole period, and until he had returned to the place he started from, he had no altar. … And however much the world may be a help to the church, we cannot keep up this relationship when we seek that help.

Here then is the question for the Christian. Which shall I have — the gold and silver, the flocks and herds, the present ease and wealth of Egypt, or the tent and altar of "the land of promise"? Which shall I have: the earthly ease and delight of the world, or a peaceful, holy walk with God here and eternal blessedness and glory afterwards? We cannot have both, for "If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him."

Yet, despite all failure, God is faithful to His own. God's gifts and calling are never taken back. God does not give up His people when they break down. He acts on our behalf, though in the way He governs us we have to suffer for our folly. So God acted on behalf of His failing servant.

Still, the Lord dealt in His own wonderful way. He did not strike Abram, or even cut down the number of Abram's servants. Instead, "he plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues." How striking the ways of the Lord are, and how full of instruction they are for us! The righteous government of God was at work. Pharaoh knew well enough that he had no right to take the woman, even if she were Abram's sister. He was taking advantage of his position to claim what did not belong to him.

Marriage was God's provision for His creatures. He set it up before the Fall, and He continued it afterwards. Before the law, He upheld it as something no one may break (Gen. 12:17; 20:3). Under the law, He guarded it with direct commands (Ex. 20:14, 17). The Lord reaffirmed how holy it is (Matt. 19:3-9), and the New Testament declares it honourable for everyone (Heb. 13:4).

"And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife." What marvellous grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears as well as to answer their faith. He covered His straying servant with the shield of His powerful protection. That shield kept both Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue safe, while the Lord's righteous rod fell heavily on the house of Egypt's king… Abraham had plainly exposed himself in all this. So although God protects him, He still allows Pharaoh to rebuke him.

The Lord stepped in so powerfully with the plagues on Pharaoh's house that even that pagan king woke up to the facts and acted rightly. And not only so, but he also rebuked Abram. Now it is a sorry situation when a man of the world can rightly rebuke a man of faith. But so it was here, and so, sadly, it has too often been since. Let us all be concerned that we do not find ourselves in such a situation.

But the Lord stepped in with grace and sent great plagues on Pharaoh and his household (v. 17). We are not told whether Pharaoh asked why the plagues came, but he did find out that Sarai was Abram's wife. Whether or not we are willing to confess the truth, God will certainly bring it out. This is a great mercy for the child of God.

Pharaoh gives Sarai back, but he does not expect Abram to stay. He tells him to "take her, and go" (v. 19), and sends him away with his wife and all that he had (v. 20). By this time Abram would surely realise that Egypt was not the place for him. God had brought him to see it, for only His working brings restoration.

Did Abram intend this? No! It was an unexpected turn of events. It was unbelief, which always produces in judgment the very evil it tries to avoid. Abram, afraid that Pharaoh would take his wife, says she is his sister — as if God would not protect him — and so Pharaoh takes her into his house. But it was the first step that was wrong: Abram went down into Egypt.

Let us not forget that if nature rules us, it will also expose us. We see in all this that Abraham is thinking only of himself. He is not trying to protect Sarai. He is ready to sacrifice her to save himself. Where was the jealous care that Sarai should stay true to her relationship, and to the faithful confession of it? … The way to get the world's admiration is to deny your relationship to Christ.

What marvellous grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears as well as to answer their faith. He covered His failing servant with the shield of His powerful protection. Behind that unbreakable shield, Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue were both safe. And God's righteous rod struck the house of Egypt's king hard… Abraham had clearly exposed himself in all this matter. So although God protects him, He still allows Pharaoh to rebuke him. When the man of God steps off the path of faith and honest living, he at once exposes himself to the men of this world… If Abraham had stayed in Canaan, Pharaoh would never have reproved him in Egypt.

The righteous government of God was at work. Pharaoh knew well enough that he had no right to take the woman, even if she were Abram's sister. He was taking advantage of his position to claim what did not belong to him. The result is that, struck by the clear hand of God, Pharaoh calls Abram and finds out the truth. Now it was Abram's turn to feel it. If Pharaoh was plagued, Abram was put to shame — what a humiliation for him! The world itself reproaches Abram. And what can he say? He came without God and he went without honour.

This is another result of his failure to walk in faith: he deals unfairly with an unbeliever. So God uses the unbeliever to reprove him. How wonderfully wise our God and Father is. He did not reprove Abram Himself. He left this in the hands of the unbeliever whom Abram had wronged… Abram also finds that his fears were groundless. Pharaoh had a proper respect for the marriage bond, as many unsaved people do today. This is a case of an unbeliever acting more honourably than a believer.

Through this whole period, until he returned to the place he had started from, he had no altar. When he left Egypt and returned to his life as a stranger in Canaan, he had what he had before. But he must first go back to the same place and find his altar again.

This beautiful chapter shows us the man of faith recovering himself. He recovers through the faithfulness and loving-kindness of God, who never lets such a man wander far or stay away long. The gold and silver, the flocks and herds of Egypt could not long satisfy Abram while he was without his tent and his altar. So once more, in the renewed energy of faith, he rises out of the dust of Egypt. He retraces his steps to the land of promise. Happy recovery!

The Lord dealt in His own wonderful way. He did not strike Abram, or even reduce the number of Abram's servants. Instead, "He plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues." How striking the ways of the Lord are, and how full of instruction for us! The righteous government of God was at work. Pharaoh knew well that he had no right to take the woman, even if she had been Abram's sister. He was using his position to claim what did not belong to him. The result is that Pharaoh, struck by the clear hand of God, calls Abram and finds out the truth. Now it was Abram's turn to feel. … He came without God, and he went without honour.

Unbelief carries its own judgment. It constantly leads into the very evil a person is trying to avoid. As it has been said, "The sons of men would build a tower so that they would not be scattered abroad, and the Lord scattered them because they built it. Abram, fearing that Pharaoh would take his wife, says she is his sister — as if God would not preserve him. So Pharaoh takes her into his house."

He also finds that his fears were groundless: Pharaoh had a proper respect for the marriage bond, as many unsaved people do today. This is a case of an unbeliever acting more honourably than a believer.

The Lord intervened so drastically in the plaguing of Pharaoh's house that even that heathen monarch woke up to the facts of the situation and acted rightly. And not only that, he also rebuked Abram. Now it is a sorry situation when a man of the world can rightly rebuke a man of faith. But so it was here, and so, sadly, it has too often been since. Let us all be concerned that we do not find ourselves in such a situation.

When the man of God steps off the path of faith and Christian integrity, he at once exposes himself to the men of this world. He need not be surprised if they punish him with an unsparing hand. Had Abraham remained in Canaan, he would not have been reproved by Pharaoh in Egypt. It is far better to starve, if it must be so, in the path of obedience than to gain plenty by sacrificing faith and moral uprightness.

What marvellous grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears as well as to answer their faith. He covered His failing servant with the shield of His powerful protection. Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue were both kept safe behind that impenetrable shield. … Abraham had clearly exposed himself in all this matter. So although God protects him, He still allows Pharaoh to rebuke him.

When the deceit comes out, the world dismisses Abraham. Pharaoh says, "Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go." And Pharaoh makes sure that he does go. How sad, when the world dismisses the people of God — not because of their faithful witness to God, but because of their own shameful conduct!

The king sends him away from the place he should never have gone to… The world sends him back to his true place. So God often uses the world today to rebuke the unfaithfulness of His own people. … As a result, Abram gets back "to the place of the altar which he had made there at the first; and there Abram called on the name of Jehovah." He is restored to worship. In Egypt he did not call on the name of Jehovah, for he had no altar there.

When the deceit is discovered, the world dismisses Abraham. Pharaoh says, "here is your wife; take her, and go." And Pharaoh takes care that he does go, for he "gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had." How sad, when the world dismisses the people of God, not because of their faithful witness to God, but because of their own shameful conduct!

Now it was Abram's turn to feel. If Pharaoh was plagued, Abram was put to the blush: what a humiliation for him! The very world reproaches Abram. And what can he say? He came without God and he went without honour.

While Pharaoh gives Sarai back to Abram, he does not expect Abram to remain there. He tells him to "take her and go" (v. 19), and "they sent him away with his wife and all that he had" (v. 20). By this time Abram would surely realise that Egypt was not the place for him. God had brought him to this point of realisation, for it is only His working that brings about restoration.

What marvellous grace to Abraham! God always delights to rebuke His people's fears, just as He delights to answer their faith. He covered His erring servant with the shield of His powerful protection. Nothing could pierce that shield, and behind it Abraham's life and Sarah's virtue were both kept safe... Abraham had clearly exposed himself in all this matter. So, although God protects him, He yet allows Pharaoh to rebuke him.

God's servant seems to have acquired riches in Egypt (Gen. 13:1). But he also had shame there in denying his wife. And he got Hagar there, who brought trouble into his home. No doubt the riches of Egypt accounted for the strife that separated Lot and Abram. God allowed the failure of His servant Abram as a lesson for us, that we might rely constantly on Him and not on the resources of this present world.

A man may get what satisfies nature, and seem to be going on very comfortably, when far off from God. But he had no altar in Egypt. Every camel and ox that came in ought to have broken his heart, and made him feel where himself and his wife were.

The king sends him away from the place to which he ought never to have gone... The world sends him back to his true place. So God often now uses the world to rebuke the unfaithfulness of His own people... In the end, Abram gets back "to the place of the altar which he had made there at the first; and there Abram called upon the name of the LORD." So he is restored to worship. In Egypt he did not call on the name of the LORD, for he had no altar there. The lesson taught him here is that it is not enough to leave his own country and come into a land marked out by God. He must stay there, even though circumstances and worldly caution might persuade him to leave.

Now I turn to this: recovery from Egypt is possible. "So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had." This was a second great day in the history of Abram. The first was when he went out from Ur of the Chaldeans. This second act did not make him a man of faith. He was a man of faith before. But through it Satan was refused and overcome, and Abram became God's witness on the earth once more. He was again a witness that a man of faith could give up "his country, his kindred, and his father's house" — and now more, even all the supplies of Egypt — to walk by faith with God.

Abraham was a true man of faith. Yet like us, he sometimes breaks down on the path of faith. He had tasted the blessing of the place outside Egypt. Now nothing will satisfy his soul but getting back to the place of blessing his feet had strayed from.

Down in Egypt there is no altar, and no calling on the name of the Lord. God takes care of him and watches over him. But Abram is no worshipper there, and not until he gets back. He goes down to Egypt forced, as people say, by circumstances. He is not in the place of dependence or communion. That is the character of the position he takes.

All the time spent in Egypt went for nothing. Abraham had to get back to the very same point from which he had turned aside, and begin again.

Like every restored soul, he retraces his path step by step. At last he is found again as a stranger and pilgrim with his tent, as a worshipper with his altar, and as a dependent man calling on the Name of the Lord.

If we are to be restored after failure, we must return to the place we left. Here the text stresses that this was the place where he had first pitched his tent, between Bethel and Ai. It was the place where he decided to leave his old life behind for the interests of God.

The flocks he got in Egypt come home with him. The gold and the silver glitter and set off his return. But they were gifts from a land that lay outside the place where the God of glory had called him. What do we say to all this? Does the bleating and lowing of such flocks and herds sound in our ears like the soft music of a clear conscience? Does this glittering wealth shine like the presence of God, which Abraham had now lost?

For Abram and Lot, their riches became the occasion of division. We may well ask, where were these riches gained? When Abram first entered the path of faith, and Lot went with him, they took "all their possessions." But that was no cause of strife. In Egypt, however, Abram gains great wealth, so that after his restoration we read, "Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold."

Here we get the secret of Lot's later instability. He seems to have gone up with Abram rather than with God. So when he parted from Abram, he had nothing to lean on. Until then he had moved under Abram's protection and guidance instead of standing before the Lord for himself. When he lost Abram, he went astray.

Everything now flourishes outwardly. Abram had never been so rich. Had he ever prospered like this before? Was this not the clear blessing of the Lord? "He had sheep and oxen, and male donkeys, and male servants and female servants, and female donkeys and camels." We do not read of this in past times. But how was it all gained? Oh, if only Abram had now come before the Lord! If he had placed himself before Him who appeared to him, every single thing he had gained would have been a wound in his heart. The wound would cut deeper still, because it came through denying his wife.

A man may get everything that satisfies his nature, and may seem to be doing very well, while he is far from God. But he had no altar in Egypt. Every camel and ox that came in ought to have broken his heart, and made him feel where he and his wife were.

But Egypt had made Abram very rich (v. 2), and Lot had prospered too. There are two distinct lessons here. As a picture, God will use even the story of our failure to bring spiritual blessing. Such is His sovereign grace. But taken literally, earthly blessings do not mean spiritual prosperity.

For Abraham and Lot, their earthly riches became the cause of division. So we may well ask, "Where did these riches come from?" When Abraham first set out on the path of faith, Lot went with him, and they took "all their substance." That caused no strife (Gen. 12:5). In Egypt, though, Abraham gains great wealth. So after his restoration we read that he "was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold." The wealth he gains by turning aside from the path of faith becomes a cause of strife and division between brothers. As they fight each other, these brothers stop being a witness to God in front of the Canaanites and Perizzites who lived in the land.

When Abram had returned to the altar he had left to go southward, he again gets into worship. Here the wealth from Egypt may perhaps have led to the strife and sorrow. Even so, Abram's conduct is beautiful. It is just what you expect from a man whose portion is heavenly. If Egypt had betrayed him, it had at least taught him a lesson. Returned with this experience into communion with God, he has enough in this to give up all the rest in grace.

The words "beginning" and "at the first" prove that Abram had made no progress while in Egypt. All his time there was, as it were, lost. No doubt he learnt a healthy lesson. It is good when our failures teach us to distrust our own hearts, and to dread the harmful influence of the world. Abram learnt that there could be no tent or altar in Egypt. Only faith can enable a man to raise an altar or pitch a tent. In Egypt all is sight and not faith.

Down in Egypt we have no altar, and no calling on the name of the Lord. God takes care of him and watches over him. But Abram is no worshipper there — not until he gets back. He goes down to Egypt forced by circumstances, as people say. He is not in the place of dependence or communion. That is the character of the position.

As with every truly restored soul, he retraces his path step by step. At last he stands again as a stranger and pilgrim with his tent, as a worshipper with his altar, and as a dependent man calling upon the Name of the Lord.

If you want thorough restoration, you must go right to the bottom of your sin and decline in the presence of God. A mere expression of sorrow and a prayer for forgiveness will not be enough. There must be real self-judgment, and a retracing of one's steps to the point of departure.

Abraham desired no place in this world. With his tent and his altar he waited for the city which has foundations, the city God designs and builds. His tent marked him out as a pilgrim and stranger before men. His altar spoke of him as a worshipper before God. Our tent and altar must go together… Ai means "a heap of ruins," and no doubt pictures the ruin of the old creation. So Abraham pitches his tent between a judged world and Bethel, "The house of God," in view of both.

But the grace of God leads Abram back to Bethel, "the house of God." If we are to be properly restored after failure, we must return to the place we left. Here the verse stresses that it was the place where he had first pitched his tent, between Bethel and Ai. It was the place of decision, where he left his former life behind for the interests of God. The verse stresses it further as "the place of the altar," where he had given God the positive honour that belongs to Him… Does this not tell us that we are not in true communion with God if we are away from His place for us?

Abram failed in his new place. He swerved from the revelation that had so happily shaped his walk and worship. Under the strain of a famine in the land he went down into Egypt for help. The earlier humbling was a blessing to a man whose first wrong step had led to worse. But his heart turned to Him who had rescued them, and he regains his privilege again without a fresh appearing to him.

The words "beginning" and "at the first" prove that Abram had made no progress while in Egypt. All his time there was, in effect, lost. No doubt he learned a wholesome lesson. It is good when our failures teach us to distrust our own hearts and to dread the harmful influence of the world. Abram learned that there could be no tent or altar in Egypt.

Even Abraham had to get back to the place of the altar he had at first, and he had no altar in between. God took care of him, but that is not communion... Abraham goes to Egypt and gets into trouble. God was with him, but he never was with God; and we cannot be with God without the life of faith. We must go back the way we came, back to the place where we departed from God. A man may admit his actual sin. But to have his soul restored and get the blessing, he must go back to where his soul left God. He can have no altar anywhere else.

When a child of God has in any way declined in his spiritual condition and lost his communion, he is in great danger. Once conscience begins to work, he may fail to grasp divine grace and stop short of the proper mark of divine restoration... In the self-righteousness of our hearts, we might imagine that such a person should take a lower place than the one he held before. And so he should, if it were a question of his merit or his character. But it is altogether a question of grace. So God alone has the right to fix the standard of restoration. He states it in these words: "If you will return, O Israel, return to Me."

Like every truly restored soul, he retraces his path step by step. Once again he stands as a stranger and pilgrim with his tent, as a worshipper with his altar, and as a dependent man calling on the Name of the Lord.

The grace of God leads Abram back to Bethel, "the house of God." The point is that this was the place where he had first pitched his tent between Bethel and Ai — the place of decision to leave his former life behind in favour of the interests of God. There is further emphasis on it as "the place of the altar," where he had given God the positive honour that belongs to Him. Here, for the first time since he left that place, we read that he "called upon the name of the LORD."

The restored soul will have a very deep and keen sense of the evil it was delivered from. This will show itself in a watchful, prayerful, holy and careful spirit. We are not restored so that we may go and sin again more easily. We are restored so that we may "go and sin no more." The deeper my sense of the grace of divine restoration, the deeper my sense of its holiness.

Lot's story is one of the saddest in Genesis. It is worth noticing today. God has revealed to us the truth of our heavenly calling, and it is plain that there are many Lots. Outwardly he was with Abraham, but at heart he was not what Abraham was. Later he was outwardly with the men of Sodom, yet he was not a Sodomite either. He is a saint untrue to his sainthood! His was a downward course. Lot merely followed Abram. Abram walked with God; Lot only walked with Abram. How easy it is to walk where another's faith leads without any exercise of conscience!

Here we get the secret of Lot's later instability. He seems to have gone up with Abram rather than with God. So when he parted from Abram, he had nothing to lean on. Until then he had been moving under Abram's protection and guidance instead of standing directly before the Lord. When he lost Abram, he went astray.

In the case of Abraham and Lot their temporal riches became the occasion of division. We may well ask: where did these riches come from? When Abraham first set out on the path of faith, Lot went with him, and they took "all their possessions." But that caused no strife (Gen. 12:5). In Egypt, however, Abraham gains great wealth. After his restoration we read that he was "very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold."

God blesses them. The land is not able to support them both, so they cannot live together (chapter 13). They have flocks, and herds, and much cattle, and there is not room for them both — they must separate. Circumstances, whatever they are (here it is God's blessings), reveal this.

Lot made no advance in faith. As Abram's companion he claimed the same position — that of a pilgrim. But he did not have a pilgrim's ways. His herdsmen strove with Abram's herdsmen for the better pasture. Here was a sight for the Canaanite and the Perizzite, who still lived in the land! Two believers seemed to be in the same condition. Both made the same profession of obedience, leaving everything to follow God's call — and yet they cannot agree! The cause is soon seen. Where nothing disturbs it, very feeble faith can look as bright and strong as great faith. But nothing exposes the lack of faith like greed for earthly possessions, whether for ourselves or for our children.

To Abram the altar and the tent were inseparable. The tent spoke of his pilgrim character, while the altar showed that his links were with God and with heaven. The God of glory had called him out of his country and away from his relatives. In obeying that call, he judged the world to be an unsuitable home. At any moment he might have to welcome heavenly visitors. Lot had never shared in this heavenly calling. And indeed the path of faith is more often walked alone than in company.

"Some fell among thorns." There you have the world. The Lord names "the cares of the world" first, then "the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things." Lot and Abram both got rich by going down to Egypt, by unfaithfulness. They both came up with plenty. But it would have been better for Lot to lose everything than to lose Abram. He never had an altar afterwards.

How often the test today takes the form it did in the story of Abraham and Lot. As we read, "there was strife." We learn further that the immediate cause of the strife was their possessions. We do well to notice the twice-repeated statement that they were not able to dwell together. Notice too the deeply significant cause of the division: "for their possessions were so great." How often, since then, jealousy over one another's spiritual gifts or earthly riches has divided believers... Poverty might have led them to cling to one another; their riches became a cause of division.

God blesses them. The land is not able to support them so that they may dwell together. They have flocks, and herds, and much cattle, and there is not room for them both — they must separate. Circumstances, no matter what (here it is God's blessings), reveal this.

In the case of Abraham and Lot their earthly riches became the occasion of division. We may well ask: where did these riches come from? When Abraham first set out on the path of faith, Lot went with him, and they took "all their possessions that they had gathered." That was no cause of strife (Gen. 12:5). In Egypt, however, Abraham gains great wealth. So after his restoration we read that "he was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold."

The apparent cause of his fall was the strife between his herdsmen and those of Abraham. But the truth is this: when someone is not truly walking with a single eye and purified affections, he will find a stone to stumble over. If he does not find it at one time, he will find it at another... The strife between the herdsmen could easily have been settled without spiritual damage to either Abraham or Lot. For Abraham it only gave an opportunity to display the beautiful power of faith... But for Lot it was an opportunity to display the thorough worldliness of his heart.

Their possessions were too great to allow them to live comfortably together. Quarrelling began between their herdsmen (v. 7). At the same time the text notes that "the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land." Why are we told this? Surely because they would be watching, and likely to mock at the friction between brothers — especially brothers who believed in the living God. When believers quarrel today, the world is quick to ridicule the testimony of the Lord instead of admiring it.

There was something very far wrong when only their separation from each other could ensure their living without strife. We can be sure that the man of faith was not absorbed in his possessions. He would never have let his flocks and herds separate him from someone he could enjoy happy fellowship with in the things of God. The sad history of Lot that follows makes it plain. The strife between the herdsmen was bound up with the difference in outlook between Abram and Lot. One had his mind on the things of God, the other on present things.

We read that "there was strife," and the immediate cause was their possessions. Notice the twice-repeated statement that they were not able to live together, and the deeply significant cause of the division: their possessions were great. How often, since then, believers have been divided by jealousy over one another's spiritual gifts or earthly riches. The misuse of spiritual gifts divided the assembly at Corinth. The apostle could tell that assembly they were enriched by Him in all speech and all knowledge. Yet these very riches became a cause of strife and division. The apostle says there is envy, strife and division among them, and that they were puffed up, one against another (1 Cor. 1:5; 3:3; 4:6). Poverty might have led them to cling to one another; their riches became a cause of division.

The wealth of both Abram and Lot now raises a serious problem. Their possessions were too great for them to live together in comfort. Quarrelling began between their herdsmen (v.7). At the same time Scripture notes that at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land. Are we told this because they would be watching, and likely to mock at friction between fellow believers, especially men who trusted the living God? If believers today quarrel, the world is quick to ridicule the testimony of the Lord rather than be impressed by it.

Lot was a follower of Abram more than of God. The land mattered to him more than obeying God's call, and his herdsmen fought with Abram's herdsmen for the better pasture. Would they have dared to fight with Abram's herdsmen if they had not known that their own master wanted the best of the land? Here was a sight for the Canaanite and the Perizzite who still lived in the land — two believers, apparently in the same position, making the same profession of obedience in leaving all to follow God's leading, and yet they cannot agree! The cause is soon seen. When nothing disturbs us, very weak faith looks as bright and strong as great faith. But nothing exposes the lack of faith like greed for earthly possessions, whether for ourselves or for our children.

We do not hear of Perizzites in this genealogy, though the name occurs in Gen. 13:7, Gen. 15:20, Gen. 34:30 and Ex. 3:8, 17. This seems to imply that they were not a separate race. They were rather people who kept out of the town life the Canaanites generally preferred, and stayed villagers — much as, later in Israel's history, religious separatists were called Pharisees.

There is no ground for inferring from these words, or from Gen. 13:7, that the Canaanites and Perizzites had already been driven out of the land when the writer lived. The words show that the first, if not the second, were in the land when Abram entered it, and that both were settled there when he came back from Egypt. We can easily understand that this was a trial to Abram. But he did not have to wait for Moses' day, still less Joshua's, to know that they and all the other intruders were doomed. No doubt their removal was still future. But the writer, like Abram, believed in Jehovah, who knows and reveals the end from the beginning.

Abram's whole concern in this matter was for the Lord's honour, kept up by brothers walking together in peace in front of the "Canaanite and the Perizzite." "Let there be no strife," he says, "between me and you … for we are brothers." Abram did not want to end the strife by demanding concessions from Lot. No; he was willing to give up everything himself — to surrender every claim, to sacrifice every advantage — as long as the strife stopped.

Lot made no advance in faith. As Abram's companion, he claimed to take the same position — that of a pilgrim. But he did not have a pilgrim's ways… Lot was a follower of Abram rather than of God. The land mattered to him more than obeying the call of God. His herdsmen fought with Abram's herdsmen over the better pasture… Where nothing disturbs, very feeble faith looks as bright and strong as great faith. But nothing exposes the lack of faith like greed for earthly possessions, whether for ourselves or for our children.

It is sobering that Scripture records "the Canaanite and the Perizzite were then dwelling in the land." It is as though the record points out how serious strife is in front of such unfriendly eyes and ears. Enemies are looking on. They note with barely hidden satisfaction the strife and contention that is all too common among the people of God. Contention is usually connected with something that belongs to us in this world. It is something the heart is set on. But having it will not help us grow; it does the opposite.

Abram's whole concern in that matter was for the Lord's honour. He wanted it kept up in the harmonious walk of "brethren" before the "Canaanite and the Perizzite." "Let there be no strife," he says, "between me and you… for we are brethren." Nor did Abram want to end the strife by demanding concessions from Lot. No; he was willing to concede everything himself. He would surrender every claim and sacrifice every advantage, as long as the strife stopped. And how does the Lord meet this self-sacrifice? He comes in, in the fullness of His goodness, and makes it up to him a hundredfold.

Lot was the nephew, he the uncle. It was to Abram, not to Lot, that everything had been promised; yet when the dispute arises, he stands up for no rights of his own. He knew his own wrongs too well. He had been down before the Lord, and is as far as possible from taking a high place, even with one who ought to have been subject to him.

Abraham is a restored man in a true position with a right motive. Lot, though in a right position, is only a follower of others. So the strife becomes the sad occasion of revealing Lot's worldly-mindedness. It also brings to light Abraham's heavenly-mindedness, which can give up the things that are seen… A man in a position he has no faith for will in the end become a source of strife among brothers. He had better separate from the man whose faith he cannot follow.

Abram says, "Is not the whole land before you?" Take what you want, let us not quarrel… The promise is my portion. I am a complete stranger here. The city of God is open in glory before me. His heart is on the promises of God, and everything else is nothing by comparison. It might look foolish to let Lot choose. The right to choose is Abram's own. But his heart is elsewhere, and his faith goes entirely free of earthly advantage.

Scripture solemnly records that the Canaanites and the Perizzites were then living in the land. It is as if we are meant to see how serious strife is in front of such unfriendly eyes and ears. There are enemies looking on. They notice with barely hidden satisfaction the strife and contention that is all too common among the people of God. Contention is usually connected with something that belongs to us in this world, something the heart is set on. But having it will not help us grow spiritually — it does the opposite... How beautifully we see this in Abram; he was completely free from the spirit of strife. He meets the spirit of strife with the spirit of surrender: he did not insist on any rights of his own.

Something was very wrong when only separating from each other could keep them from strife. We can be sure the man of faith was not absorbed in his possessions. He would never have let his flocks and herds separate him from someone he could have happy fellowship with in the things of God.

In every respect Abram had the right to the first choice, as we would say. He was the elder both in years and in relationship. He was the leading figure in the whole action that had brought them to this distant land. Lot was, as it were, only attached to him. He was noble and generous in surrendering his right to the younger man.

Abram says, "Is not the whole land before you?" Take what you want, let us not quarrel. The promise is my portion. I am a complete stranger here, and the city of God is open in glory before me. His heart is on the promises of God, and everything else is nothing in comparison. It might seem a foolish thing to let Lot choose. The right to choose is certainly Abram's own. But his heart is elsewhere, and his faith is entirely free of earthly advantage.

It is not merely that he chose the best part that makes our hearts condemn him, but that he made a choice at all... Lot was blind to all this, and he takes on himself to make the choice. Then, as we would expect from such a beginning, he chooses on an entirely worldly principle. He takes the well-watered plain for his flocks and herds, though that brought him close to the corrupt city.

Abram could say, in the generosity that comes from faith, "Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me"... but Lot was of another mind... Sadly, they were separated by more than distance, and we know the later history of Lot's fatal choice.

Notice how blessed it is to bow before the Lord and refuse to fight for our rights, however natural that is to the heart. The moment Abram gives up to Lot, the Lord appears again. Never was a gift given to man in such clear and generous terms as the one He now gives Abram... "Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever."

How sweet for Abram to have trusted in the Lord, leaving the whole question — apparently with Lot, but really with the Lord! When will we learn to be this simple and trusting? We will also learn at the same time that there is never a giving up of self that the Lord does not answer. He answers it in His grace, and in the sweet assurance of it to our souls, with a better gift still through Jesus Christ our Lord!

What then did Lot do? "He lifted up his eyes." This is always how we act when we are not under the direct power of faith. Whenever we lift up our eyes without God's direction, we are sure to go wrong. I say, without God's direction, because the Lord later tells Abram to lift up his eyes. But that was completely different from Lot's act. Lot's look was only the suggestion of human wisdom and foresight.

He should have depended on the Lord and so given the first choice to his uncle. Instead, "he lifted up his eyes" (v. 10) — but not high enough! He had no idea of asking the Lord's guidance.

Choosing by sight confuses the garden of the Lord with the land of Egypt. Just think of these two put together: "Egypt," and "the garden of the Lord!" What a contrast! The one is above and unseen; the other is below and visible. Jordan separates them.

Everywhere there was water for his flocks, without the work of digging wells. Most significant of all, it was "like the land of Egypt." Lot had followed Abraham into Egypt. There he picked up a taste for Egypt's pleasures, and so strengthened his desire for worldly ease and plenty... There was nothing gross or wrong in choosing a well-watered plain. But it proves that the heart is not set on the unseen land of God's promise. And the real danger of the well-watered plains is that Satan had raised up Sodom in the middle of them.

The plain of Jordan is "like the garden of the Lord" — like paradise: why should he not enjoy God's gifts in it? He forgets the fall, and that paradise is barred from man. He argues religiously enough. But under it all the real secret is this: it is "like the land of Egypt." How much of man's reasoning comes from his heart and not his head — a heart too far from God! It is significant that the verse adds, "in the direction of Zoar" — and that is exactly where Lot came.

On the surface all was pleasant and attractive. The view was matchless, the prospects reassuring. But there was one thing no human eye could see — the thoughts of God, and His counsels about the people of the plain.

He chose Sodom — the very place that was about to be judged. But how was this? Why select such a spot? Because he looked at the outward appearance, and not at the true character and future destiny. The character of the place was "wicked." Its future destiny was judgment — to be destroyed by fire and sulfur from heaven. Someone may say, "Lot knew nothing of all this." Perhaps not, and neither did Abraham; but God did. If Lot had let God choose his inheritance for him, God would never have chosen a spot He Himself was about to destroy.

"Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan" (Gen. 13); then he pitched his tent toward Sodom. Next he lived in Sodom (Gen. 14). On the eve of its downfall, "Lot sat in the gate of Sodom," in the place of honour there (Gen. 19:1) — a sad example of the earthly minded believer on a path of decline.

What then did Lot do? "He lifted up his eyes." This is always our way of acting when we are not under the direct power of faith. Whenever we lift up our eyes without divine direction, we are sure to go wrong. I say, without divine direction. Later we find the Lord directing Abram to lift up his eyes. But that was nothing like Lot's act, which was only the suggestion of human wisdom and foresight.

Without seeking direction from God, he chooses his path according to sight. "Lot lifted up his eyes and saw the Jordan Valley." It was a tempting sight, promising ease and plenty right away. Everywhere there was water for his flocks, without the labour of digging wells. The valley was so fruitful that it was "like the garden of the LORD." Most significant of all, it was "like the land of Egypt." Sadly, Lot had followed Abraham into Egypt. There he had acquired a taste for Egypt's pleasures, and so had strengthened his desire for worldly ease and plenty. So Lot chooses the whole Jordan Valley. He gives up the separate path — he never had faith of his own for it — and leaves the land of Canaan for good… The real danger of the well-watered plains is that Satan had built Sodom in the middle of them.

There is nothing openly wrong in his choosing a well-watered plain. But it clearly proves that his whole heart is not set on the promises of God. So he faces the test. And so, as God works out His purposes, character comes to light. Abraham's conduct springs from a simple faith that takes hold of God's promises and wants nothing else. Faith can give up. The spirit of a worldly mind takes all it can get.

Lot made no advance in faith. As Abram's companion, he claimed to take the same position — that of a pilgrim. But he did not have a pilgrim's ways. So Abram, after his return from Egypt and restored to his altar, begins to feel that Lot's presence is a hindrance. There was no true communion between them. Lot was a follower of Abram rather than of God. The land mattered more to him than obeying God's call… nothing exposes a lack of faith like greed for earthly possessions, whether for ourselves or for our children.

It was his own unfaithfulness that had placed Lot there. It was his unchecked desire for the good things of the world… "So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley." Then he pitched his tent toward Sodom. Next he lived in Sodom (Gen. 14). On the eve of its downfall, "Lot sat in the gate of Sodom," in the place of honour there (Gen. 19:1) — a sad example of the earthly minded believer on the path of decline!

Lot journeyed east, choosing for himself the well-watered plain of Jordan. Lot chose: Abraham left his interests in God's hands. Who was better off? History will tell us. Lot lifted up his eyes and coveted the best pastoral district for himself. Later Abraham lifted up his eyes too, but at God's command, to see the land that was his… His whole security for owning that land lay in God's promise. God gave him no other sign.

To be an overcomer, we must pay careful attention to where we live, to our surroundings. Isn't it significant that the Spirit of God mentions in Genesis 13:12 that Abraham lived in the land of Canaan, and that Lot lived in the cities of the plain? … No one can live in Sodom and stay untouched. Its corrupt air and polluting influences work on a man, for its people were wicked and great sinners before God. Poor Lot, by his associations, was helpless in the presence of the world.

In this episode we see Abram back at the moral height that had marked his start. Then he gave up Ur with all its comforts. Now he gives up the choicest part of the land of promise, content to remain a pilgrim, as long as he is in communion with God. His altar showed that he was in touch with God; his tent, that he still remained a pilgrim, though in the land of promise.

There is no mention of Lot ever building an altar or calling on the name of the Lord. Yet he was probably with Abraham where Abraham pitched his tent and called on Jehovah's name. When he chose the part of the land where he would live, there was no thought of putting the choice to God. Appearances swayed him… What looked like the land of Egypt appealed to Lot. He could not look by faith beyond the present, to see the plain as it would be after God had judged it. If he had had an altar, and had been in the habit of calling on the name of the Lord, he would no doubt have been spared the many snares he fell into.

Note in verse 12, Lot pitched toward — up to, even to — Sodom, but in verse 12 of the next chapter he was settled there.

The tent of a pilgrim pitched towards Sodom is a sadly out-of-place sight. Yet how many Christians are in that very position!

Notice Lot, who chose all the plain of Jordan and "pitched his tent toward Sodom" (Gen. 13:12). He has now taken a further step on his downward course, for here we read that he "dwells in Sodom." We may be sure Lot never intended to dwell in Sodom when he pitched his tent toward Sodom. But one false step leads to another. Drawing near to the world, he is soon in the world. Living in the world, he is caught up in its conflicts and falls captive to its power.

The walls of wicked Sodom, rising in the middle of those well-watered plains, were no barrier to Lot. He pitched his tent towards Sodom. He knew what company he would be keeping there, and it did not make him draw back from his choice… His eyes were fixed on the attractive scene. So he overlooked the tower of Sodom, which should have been like a warning finger raised among those inviting fields and gardens. The calm waters that made those plains so fertile were soon to reflect the fire and brimstone that would rain from heaven… His tent disappeared soon after it was pitched "towards Sodom." From the edge of Sodom to its gates is only one step. We find him sitting in the gate of Sodom, the place of honour and business in the ancient world.

In contrast to this, Lot saw that the plain, stretching towards Sodom and Gomorrah, was "like the garden of the LORD," and he embraced it, pitching his tent toward Sodom. The men of Sodom, however, excelled in wickedness, as verse 13 tells us. So it is clear that, though those cities were like the garden of the LORD, they were really a playground of the devil. Towards that evil spot Lot gravitated.

Whether Lot knew it or not, "the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD." The moral conditions were such that God could not tolerate them much longer. If Lot had been living in close fellowship with God, he might have felt something of what God felt about what was happening in Sodom... God's thoughts were on the lives of the men who lived in the cities of the plain. Lot's thoughts were taken up with the natural beauty of the land and its rich pastures. Little did Lot realise that before long the fair valley he was feasting his eyes on would be the scene of devastating divine judgment.

Already we have learned that "the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD" (Gen. 13:13). Now we learn that their sin cried out to the Lord for judgment, because it was "very grievous." God waits and is patient with the wickedness of men, but He is not indifferent to sin. It cries out to Him until at last it is ripe for judgment. But, even so, the Lord is slow to judge.

While Lot's worldly eyes were on the green pastures of Sodom, Abraham's heart was "desiring a better country." Lot pitched his tent towards wicked Sodom. Abraham's eyes were looking towards a heavenly city, and he pitched his tent that way — a city "whose builder and maker is God."

He may not have known what the people of Sodom were really like when he first left Abram. But he could hardly live in the cities of the plain without learning something of their wickedness. The decline had been gradual, yet the steps are clear. First came the choice of the pleasant, fertile plain. Next came the separation from the company of the man of faith. Then came living in the cities of the plain. Then he pitched his tent towards Sodom. Finally he lived in the wicked city. So long as Lot had his tents there was the appearance of his being a pilgrim, but even the outward show had gone when he lived in Sodom.

He wanted the easiest circumstances, and of course in Sodom he found the people who love the easiest circumstances, those who were "wicked, great sinners against the LORD." If we seek only to please ourselves, we will soon find company with the same unhealthy desires... Peter tells us about Lot, "that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds" (2 Peter 2:8).

After Lot had taken the best for himself, Another settles the matter. It was disgraceful that the nephew dared to act that way in a land God had promised to Abram only. "The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him." So the Spirit notes here that everything followed the simple will of God. He was no careless onlooker, and He does not fail to clear away what hinders. Now that it was so, the LORD said, "Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward." He had never said this before.

"Lot lifted up his eyes," and what they rested on was, as you would expect, what suited his natural desires — "well-watered plains." However lovely they looked to man, in the sight of the Lord they were filled with terrible wickedness (compare verses 10 and 14). Abram, on the other hand, had let his eye wander over the length and breadth of the promised inheritance. Nothing else swayed him. He looked at the portion which God was keeping for him and his offspring, and took his position in line with it.

This is exactly what Lot had done (v. 10), but he had limited his sight to what appealed to him. God tells Abram to look to the north, south, east and west. He would give Abram and his descendants all the land that he saw. How much broader is God's view than that of our natural selfishness!

Abram says to Lot: take what you want, do not let us quarrel. The promise is my portion. I am a complete stranger here; the city of God is open in glory before me. His heart is set on the promises of God, and everything else is nothing in comparison. It might seem foolish to let Lot choose. The right to choose was certainly Abram's own. But his heart is elsewhere, and his faith goes entirely free from earthly advantage.

How sweet that Abram trusted in the Lord! The whole question seemed to rest with Lot, but it really rested with the LORD. When will we learn to be that simple and trusting? We will surely learn something else at the same time. The Lord always answers a giving up of self. He answers it in His grace, in the sweet assurance of that grace to our souls, and by a better gift still through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Wherever he looked around, his eye fell on part of the land of his inheritance, which God had promised to give him. But all his security for possessing that land lay in God's promise. God gave him no other guarantee about it.

Now Abraham uses his eyes, but at the direction of the LORD. When Lot had separated from him, the LORD said, "Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are." He is to look in every direction at the land which the LORD has given him. And it is well for us too, when we are freed from the weight of those who have no faith for the outside path. It is well if we set our minds on things above and "look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen." It is well if we seek to enjoy all that God has revealed about the world to come, the heavenly country with its city that has foundations.

But notice how good it is to bow before the Lord and to refuse to fight for our rights, however natural that is to the heart. The moment Abram gives up to Lot, Jehovah appears again. God never gave anyone a gift in terms as clear and as large as the one He now gives Abram. Lot lifted up his eyes, looked over the plain of Jordan, and chose the best of it. Now Jehovah speaks to Abram after Lot had separated from him — that is, after Lot had taken his ill-gotten gains. He says, "Lift up your eyes." How blessed are the words of the Lord!

Just then, while the patriarch was living between Bethel and Ai, the Lord confirmed the promise He had made to him at Shechem — and apparently without His servant asking… The promise of the land to Abraham's seed at Shechem had been unconditional. Now he heard that his offspring would enjoy it for unlimited time. God is the God of the whole earth. He alone had the right and the power to give away any part of the globe as He pleased. He bound Himself in this way to Abraham and to his seed. What a thing it was to deal with the one true God, who could act with such grace! Abraham had once worshipped idols, and he must have felt it.

They are clearly in the place of strangers ("the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land"). They have nothing in possession, "not even a foot's length"; everything depends on their valuing the promises (Heb. 11:9). They have just two things, the altar and the tent. Travelling about, and worshipping God, they are strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

God never gave the land of Israel into the actual possession of Abraham or Isaac or Jacob while they were alive in their natural bodies; yet He did promise them the land — not merely to their children, but to themselves. So they must rise to have the land promised to them. God gave them the land in promise, but they never owned it. Since they cannot own it while they are dead, they must live again to receive the promised land.

Not the smallest detail of what God has promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will fail. He will do it all. Despite everything said and done against it, God remembers His promises, and He will fulfil them… Dynasties have risen and played their part on the stage of this world. Thrones have been built on the apparent ruins of Jerusalem's ancient glory. Empires have flourished for a time and then fallen into decay. Ambitious rulers have fought to possess "the land of promise". All these things have happened. But the LORD has said about that land, "The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine" (Lev. 25:23).

It was a turning point for Abraham as it was for Lot. God told him He would give him all the land, and said, "Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land." When he had made the good choice and accepted the portion from God, then God showed him far more fully all that He had given him… All the land is ours, but we have to realise it. It produces happy worship in the heart when we live as strangers and pilgrims, seeking nothing in the world… Gifts are precious as they put us in touch with the Giver. The love that gives is more precious than the gift.

But notice how blessed it is to bow before the Lord and to refuse to fight for our rights, however natural that is to the heart. The moment Abram gives up to Lot, Jehovah appears again. No gift was ever given to man in such clear and large terms as the one He now gives to Abram. Lot had lifted up his eyes, seen the whole Jordan valley, and chosen the best of it. Now Jehovah speaks to Abram after Lot had separated from him — that is, after Lot had taken his ill-gotten gains. And He says, "Lift up your eyes."

How sweet it was that Abram trusted in the Lord! The choice seemed to lie with Lot, but Abram left the whole matter with Jehovah. When will we learn to be this simple and trusting? We will certainly learn at the same time that the Lord always answers a giving up of self. He answers it in His grace, and in the sweet assurance of that grace to our souls, by a still better gift through Jesus Christ our Lord!

More than this, God would increase Abram's descendants "as the dust of the earth" (v. 16). The man of faith will always prove fruitful in the end. It may seem otherwise to us because of the long delay, as it did to Abram, but God's promise was absolute: it could not possibly fail. At this time God only speaks of "the dust of the earth," for He implies only an earthly people, primarily Israel. Later, in Genesis 15:5, He tells Abram his seed would be as the stars of heaven. That takes in the great number called "sons of Abraham," whose inheritance is in heaven — for Galatians 3:7 says that those who are of faith are the sons of Abraham.

Looking back to Genesis with this in view, we read that the first time God made a promise to Abraham about his seed He told him it would be as "the dust of the earth" (Gen. 13:16). The next time God spoke of that seed in Genesis 15:5, He said it would be as "the stars." Then in Gen. 22:17 He added a third thing about the seed, saying it would be "as the sand." So Abraham received the promises in this order — dust, stars and sand. … We have long understood the stars to picture the heavenly company, the dust Israel and the sand the Gentiles. While the dust came first at the outset, the stars take first place in God's dealings: the heavenly company now come first, Israel second and the Gentiles third.

At the time of this prophecy they were still a small nation (Deut. 4:38). But it gives a glimpse of the future, when the first word (Gen. 13:16) will be literally fulfilled through the line of Israel whose seed shall be like the dust of the earth, and as the sand on the sea shore for multitude (Gen. 28:14, Gen. 32:12). Balaam, "the man whose eyes are open," sees their vast numbers. He cries out: who can count the dust of Jacob, or the number of the fourth part of Israel?

The possession of Canaan for some 1500 years, down to AD 70, would be a poor answer to the rich words of the God who gave promises to Abraham. The true fulfilment is still future, and will only be under Messiah and the new covenant.

Such a promise, so persistently repeated, Abram could only treasure up in his heart, without asking for an explanation. There was in him something of the spirit of our Lord's mother, Mary, who treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. Such an attitude greatly honours God.

The blessing that rested upon Abraham was very great. It more than repaid him for all he gave up. If he gave up earthly prospects in Ur, he became an inheritor of blessing that would finally spread out to "all families of the earth." If he yielded the fairest parts of the land to Lot, directly afterwards came the word, "Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you."

The Spirit notes that everything now was according to the simple will of God. He was no careless onlooker, and He does not fail to clear away what hinders.

He was not to settle down and take possession of any part of the land, but pass through all of it, as Stephen says in Acts 7:5: "He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child."

"Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward" — He had never said so before — "for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever… Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land" — Abram was to take possession by faith — "for I will give it to you." 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. Well he might!

The possession of Canaan for 1500 years would be a poor answer to the rich words of the God who gave promises to Abraham. The true accomplishment is still future, and will only come under the Messiah and the new covenant.

When he had made the good choice, and accepted the portion from God, then God shows him far more fully all that He had given him. Abraham gets a definite knowledge of his possessions. When our affections are set upon God, He can reveal Himself to us more fully. All the land is ours, but we have to realise it… Gifts are precious as they put us in communion with the Giver. The love that gives is more precious than the gift.

Like Abraham, we have the promise of an inheritance. Like him, wherever we look around, our eye falls on part of it… Abraham could walk through the length and breadth of the land of his inheritance. We cannot yet see how far ours reaches. We have heard of its limits, but have never seen them. Like Abraham, we must leave earth before we can enjoy the inheritance promised to us. But unlike him, we have more than the word of our God about it. God has also given us the Holy Spirit as the guarantee of it.

Here we see Abram back at the moral elevation that had marked his outset. Then he gave up Ur with its comforts; now he yields up the choicest part of the land of promise, content to be still a pilgrim, if in communion with God. His altar showed that he was in touch with God; his tent that he still remained a pilgrim, though in the land of promise.

His tent marked him as a stranger to the battles and prizes of this world. And his altar marked him as one whose pursuits were of a completely different kind, a heavenly one. His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth — his altar showed him to be at home in heaven.

Our tent and altar must go together. If we do not keep the pilgrim way and character down here, we cannot expect to be fit to serve as priests before God in the heavenly sanctuary.

Mamre means "fatness" and Hebron "communion." This follows on from the second altar, the altar of decision, which stood between Bethel and Ai (Gen. 12:8). True decision to put God's interests first leads to fatness, that is, spiritual prosperity. That prosperity is found in communion with the Lord. So this is the altar of communion. Communion with God rests on the truth of the person of the Lord Jesus (the altar), and it involves His sacrifice too, for that was the purpose of the altar. There is no approaching God without this.

Abram enjoyed good company at Hebron — he had as "allies" Aner and Eshcol... Abram also had "trained servants" in his house — 318 of them. His was a disciplined household, producing qualities useful in the interests of God's people. Above all else, Abram's heart responded to God Himself: "there he built an altar to the LORD."

So the picture Hebron gives us is complete. It is the home of the man of faith. It is not only his home, but also his place of worship... The God of glory had called him out of his country and from his relatives. When he obeyed that call, he judged the world to be a poor home for a man who might at any moment be asked to host heavenly visitors. Lot had never shared in this heavenly calling. And the path of faith is more often walked alone than in company.

When Lot chose the cities of the plain, Abraham, the father of the people, made his home there. There he built an altar to the LORD and received the promise of God. But more than anything, Hebron is the place of death, and Abraham knew that first. Sarah died there, and there she was buried. Abraham was buried there too, and Isaac, and then Jacob and the patriarchs... What is there in it to attract? Nothing for the natural man, everything for faith.

The confusion of tongues at Babel divided mankind into nations, and we can have little doubt that this soon led to fighting and regular warfare. But Scripture gives no record of a battle until we reach Genesis 14. There four kings from the Mesopotamian district marched towards the Dead Sea, destroying cities on the way, and in the end defeated the five kings of the cities of the plain. The "kings" named were mostly, if not all, the leaders of single cities — what we would now call petty chiefs. Chedorlaomer seems to have been the overlord of the kings with him, and he had spread his rule over the region of Sodom. They threw off his rule, and that was the reason for the expedition.

The chapter opens with a solemn picture of this present evil world. It is a scene where the nations form themselves into groups, and make alliances to push their plans for power and to defend themselves from attack.

The campaign of Chedorlaomer and his allies against the king of Sodom and his partners was not a great thing in itself. Yet Holy Scripture gives a whole chapter to it, for two important reasons. First, because a saint of God, Lot, was caught up in it. Second, because the world's first recorded battle is in many ways a foreshadowing of the last great disaster of Armageddon.

Here we have a very detailed account of a battle fought by "four kings with five," and we may ask: what did this quarrel between "the potsherds of the earth" have to do with the history of the people of God? With Abram, in one sense, nothing, for he was outside it all. His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things. It marked him as one to whom the battle of "four kings with five" would matter very little. His altar marked him as one whose pursuits were of another kind — heavenly. His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth; his altar showed him to be at home in Heaven.

Lot's sufferings at the hands of the Gentile kings were entirely due to his unfaithfulness to God. Had he stood apart from the world and its ways, as Abram did, his path might have been as peaceful and happy as Abram's. He sought worldly advantages for himself and his family, so he sank to the world's level, and he suffered with the world in the day of trouble.

The names are hard to read, and at least two of the allied countries are just as doubtful. But in the first list Amraphel, king of Shinar, stands first. He is beyond question the representative of the kingdom of Nimrod, although Chedorlaomer appears the most active and interested. They all seem to be only divisions of this Babylonish empire, though no doubt changed into an alliance of more or less equal powers… These four kings… are at war with the five petty kings of the plain of Jordan. As a picture, these last stand for the world in its open and sensual wickedness. The Babylonish kings stand for the religious world-power, which always seeks to hold that more open form of evil captive — and generally succeeds.

He had found the record of a king matching the Chedorlaomer of Genesis 14, about 1900 B.C., who was given the title "the ravager of Syria."

Faith accepts the record in Genesis 14, not because the clay tablets confirm it (however interesting that fact may be), but because the Spirit of God has written it. Anyone who accepts the statements of Scripture only when outside evidence confirms them is at heart an unbeliever.

Genesis 14 gives the first campaign on record. We cannot say what its political results may have been. But a spiritual outcome came out of it, and its value will last "for ever."

We can have little doubt that the confusion of tongues at Babel, and the division of mankind into nations that followed, must soon have given rise to fighting and regular warfare. But we have no record of a battle in the Scriptures until we reach Genesis 14. Four kings from the Mesopotamian district then marched towards the Dead Sea. They ravaged cities on the way, and in the end defeated the five kings of the cities of the plain. Most of these "kings", if not all, were leaders of single cities — what we would now call petty chiefs. Chedorlaomer seems to have been the overlord of the kings joined with him, and he had extended his rule over the region of Sodom. The rejection of his rule was the reason for the expedition.

The five kings are typical of the outright wickedness of the ungodly, corrupt world. The king of Sodom, Bera, means "in the evil," and Birsha (king of Gomorrah) means "in wickedness."

One of the five cities of the plain in the land of Canaan, and the only one that survived when they fell under the judgement of God. It was formerly called BELA. Lot fled to it when Sodom fell, but he was afraid to stay there.

The Bible stoops to small matters as well as unfolding the highest themes. To the believing heart that is one of the many proofs that it has really come from God. Every detail about His own people in the world is of the deepest interest to God. That is a most precious fact. He numbers our hairs; He takes account of our tears; He remembered Paul's need of a cloak; and He considered the weak condition of Timothy's stomach. If His people are caught up in a small raid, it matters more to God than the mightiest military campaigns that leave them untouched.

Although Abraham was not affected by the battle of "four kings with five," Lot was. His position was such as to involve him in the whole affair. As long as grace enables us to walk the path of simple faith, we shall stand completely outside the range of this world's circumstances. But we may give up our high and holy position as those whose "citizenship is in heaven," and seek a name, a place, and a portion on the earth. Then we must expect to share in earth's upheavals and changes.

The expedition of Chedorlaomer and his allies against the King of Sodom and the kings with him was not a very big thing in itself. Yet Scripture gives a whole chapter to it, for two important reasons. First, one of God's people (Lot) was caught up in the affair. Second, the world's first recorded battle pictures in many ways the last great disaster, Armageddon.

One passage reads "the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea)"; another says the valley was full of "slime-pits," older wording for bitumen springs. Genesis 14:3, 8, 10. It was no doubt near the Salt Sea, but no one has identified its site.

No one knows what connection, if any, there is between the present state of the Salt Sea and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The four kings had come from a distance. The five kings, two of whom were the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah, were near home. No one can trace the connection further than that. This sea is now called Bahr Lut, the "Sea of Lot."

These kings then came into conflict. The fighting did not happen in the far distant east, where some of those in the fight had come from. God's deliberate hand brought it close to the spot where His witness walked. We see them in the valley of Sodom.

The chapter opens with a solemn picture of this present evil world. In it the nations form themselves into groups. They enter into alliances to carry out their schemes of self-advancement, and to defend themselves from attack.

What has always made the history of nations, and the movements of mighty kings and conquerors, matter to the Holy Spirit is their connection with the history of the people of God. Beyond that, they held nothing of importance to Him. But when such things touch even slightly on the history of a "righteous soul," the Holy Spirit can be very detailed in describing a battle.

His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things — it marked him as one to whom the battle of "four kings with five" would be a matter of very trivial importance. And his altar marked him as one whose pursuits were quite of another kind, even heavenly. His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth — his altar showed him to be at home in heaven. It did not matter to Abram whether the victory went to the king of Sodom or to Chedorlaomer, king of Elam. His portion was not in danger through their strife. He had it in that place "where thieves do not break in and steal."

Abram's happy lot was to have his life and his portion in a place where wars could have no effect on him. That was not the case with his more worldly-minded relative. His position placed him in the middle of the strife. So the outcome of this battle was of the deepest importance to him. If the child of God will stoop so low as to mix himself up with the world, he must expect to share in its upheavals.

It is soon discovered what a disappointing world Lot was choosing. The well-watered plain soon becomes a field of battle. If it had not been for Abram, or Abram's God, Lot would have lost his freedom there and all his possessions.

Lot had no idea what was coming. Before long the fair valley on which he was feasting his eyes would be the scene of devastating divine judgment. Much of the fertile pasture that promised him so much would lie beneath the waters of a salt sea.

Scripture gives us no record of a battle until we reach Genesis 14. There four kings from the Mesopotamian district marched towards the Dead Sea. They destroyed cities as they went, and in the end defeated the five kings of the cities of the plain. Most of these "kings," if not all, were the leaders of single cities — what we would now call minor chiefs. Chedorlaomer seems to have been the overlord of the kings allied with him. He had extended his rule over the region of Sodom. The rejection of his overlordship was the reason for the expedition.

The events which fill the history of the world with their commotion scarcely count for anything in the inspired book. God does not mention them except when they intervene in one way or another in the history of His people... In fact, the Word records the great clashes of nations for one purpose only: to let us witness the deliverance of a single person among those He loves. (Gen. 14)

It is a lawless world where men are forced to serve governments against their will, or rebel against governments to get their freedom (v. 4).

Abraham personally had nothing whatever to do with the revolt or its consequences. His "tent and altar" were not likely to give anyone a reason to declare war. They were not likely to be much affected by the war breaking out, or by how it ended. The portion that belongs to a heavenly man could never tempt the greed of this world's kings and conquerors, or stir their ambition.

As long as grace enables us to walk the path of simple faith, we are kept right outside the range of this world's circumstances. But suppose we give up our high and holy position as those whose "citizenship is in heaven." Suppose we seek a name, a place, and a portion on the earth. Then we must expect to share in earth's upheavals and changes. Lot had made his home in the plains of Sodom, and so the wars of Sodom affected him deeply and keenly.

The five kings were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years. This pictures the world held under false religion. In the end they rebelled against this bondage (v. 4)... But the sinful, ungodly world has little power against religion inspired by Satan. To be truly delivered from such a yoke, you need a true knowledge of the Lord Jesus.

We have no record of a battle in the Scriptures until we reach Genesis 14. There four kings from the Mesopotamian district made an expedition towards the Dead Sea. They ravaged cities as they marched, and finally defeated the five kings of the cities of the plain… Chedorlaomer was apparently the overlord of the kings with him, and he had extended his rule over the region of Sodom. The rejection of his rule was the reason for the expedition.

rapha means "a fearful one." In the plural, with "the" in front, it works as a proper name: the REPHAIM, or sons of Raphah. They were a race of giants who lived beyond the Jordan, and Og the giant king of Bashan came from them… At times the term Rephaim applies to any people in Canaan who were of great stature… The word Rephaim is untranslated in Gen. 14:5.

A people, described as "great, and many, and tall, as the Anakim," who lived on the east of the Dead Sea. Chedorlaomer and his allied kings struck them down. Their land later passed to the Moabites, who called the people EMIM, that is, "terrible."

Ashteroth-Karnaim — Double-horned Astarte (Phoenician); Venus.

King of Elam in the time of Abram… The inscriptions carry the name of KHUDUR-LAGAMAR king of Elam, thought to be the same as Chedorlaomer. He had subdued the five kings near the Dead Sea. That was some 700 miles away across the desert, or 1,000 by the Euphrates and through the land of Canaan.

At this point in the Scripture narrative we come to names of people that the archaeologists believe they can identify from their research into the past. Some of these greater kings, such as Amraphel and Chedorlaomer, left their mark on very ancient records. Abram the pilgrim left no mark of that kind. Years before, he had cut himself off from their cities and their whole way of life.

The five kings were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years — a picture of the world held under false religion — but at last they rebelled against this bondage (v. 4)… Chedorlaomer and his allies began by defeating six nations (vv. 5-7) before they came to Sodom and Gomorrah… But the ungodly world of the flesh has little power against religion inspired by Satan. To be truly delivered from such a yoke, you need a true knowledge of the Lord Jesus.

His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things. To him the battle of "four kings with five" would be a matter of very small importance. And his altar marked him as one whose pursuits were of quite another character, a heavenly one… It did not matter to Abram whether the crown of victory was about to rest on the head of the king of Sodom or of Chedorlaomer, king of Elam. His portion was not in danger through their strife.

Descendants of Seir, and the original inhabitants of Mount Seir. The children of Esau destroyed them. It is thought that they were cave-dwellers, as the name implies. The sandstone rocks of Mount Seir are full of dwellings cut into the rock. There are traces of the same throughout the region of Edom.

Seir was a Horite who lived in the land, and as a chief he may have given his name to Mount Seir. The Horim were dispossessed by the children of Esau.

Some translations put 'the plain of Paran' in the margin. It may have been a boundary mark in the wilderness of Paran, in the south of Palestine.

In the days of Abraham we hear of Chedorlaomer, king of Elam. He and his three allies came 2,000 miles to punish the kings under his rule in the valley of Siddim. That is plain proof of early power. Yet the father of the faithful punished him hard.

It is an interesting fact that at this point in the Bible's story we come to names of people that archaeologists believe they can identify. Their digging into the past has turned these names up. Some of these greater kings, such as Amraphel and Chedorlaomer, left their mark on very ancient records. Abram the pilgrim would leave no mark of that kind. Years before, he had cut himself off from their cities and their whole way of life.

The possessions referred to here had long ago been in the hands of giants. But it was God's purpose to give their territories to the children of Esau and Lot, and so He destroyed these giants. Who or what can stand in the way of what God has planned?

The five kings became subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years. This pictures the world under the control of false religion. In the end they rebelled against this bondage (v. 4). But false religion can be determined and strong, as the history of the professing church through the middle ages teaches us. Chedorlaomer and his allies began by defeating six nations (vv. 5-7) before they approached Sodom and Gomorrah.

Turning away from the world is the path to victory over it. Choosing it means being held captive by its power. The powerful ones of the earth carry Lot away captive, along with the people his worldly leanings had led him to live among. Abram is free and walks in the faith of God. From God he has more force than all the kings, conquerors or conquered. He delivers Lot and the kings who could not help themselves.

Chedorlaomer and his allies began by defeating six nations (vv. 5-7) before approaching Sodom and Gomorrah. Then the king of Sodom and Gomorrah, with three other kings, went out to engage the four kings in battle (vv. 8-9).

So the whole world becomes a scene of warring interests and selfish conflicts — high places and lower ones alike, the mountain or the wilderness (v. 6).

This place is first mentioned in connection with the battle of the kings, when Lot was taken captive (Gen. 14:7). It was one of the stopping places of the Israelites, and they stayed there a long time. From there they sent the twelve spies into the land. At the end of the thirty-eight years' wandering they came back to Kadesh, and Miriam died and was buried there. It was here also that Moses struck the rock when the people complained about water.

En-mishpat — Fountain of judgment.

Same as En-gedi. Gen. 14:7. It is Hazazontamar in 2 Chr. 20:2.

He was at the time living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, who with his two brothers were allies of Abram. In later years a link of this kind would have been wrong, but at this time "the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet complete" (Gen. 15:16), and the Lord makes no issue of it.

This early mention seems to show that the Amalekites were not the descendants of Amalek, the son of Eliphaz, the son of Esau (Gen. 36:12). Unless, that is, Scripture is naming the land that the descendants of Eliphaz would later occupy.

From Numbers 24:20 we learn that "Amalek was the first of the nations." He had won that place of supremacy by natural power and skill, long before Israel had become a nation. Here was Amalek, the man after the flesh, who had made himself great, resenting the intrusion of a people that God had chosen for Himself (Ex. 17).

His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things. It marked him as a man to whom the battle of "four kings with five" hardly mattered. And then his altar marked him as one whose pursuits were quite of another character, even a heavenly one. His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth; his altar showed him to be at home in Heaven.

He was not taking sides with the four kings of the Babylonian empire, or with the five kings of the cities of the plain. He had no need to enter the conflict to defend himself. It was for the express purpose of delivering a brother who had come under the power of the world.

Here we have a very detailed account of a battle fought by "four kings with five." We may ask: what did this fight between "the potsherds of the earth" have to do with the history of the people of God? With Abram none, in one sense, for he was outside it all. His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things. It marked him as one to whom the battle of "four kings with five" mattered very little... His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth — his altar showed him to be at home in heaven. It did not matter to Abram who won the victory wreath — the king of Sodom or Chedorlaomer, king of Elam. His portion was not in danger through their strife, because he kept it in the place "where thieves do not break in and steal."

Notice how abruptly this comes in. God leaves us to form a spiritual judgment about how it connects with what came before... War was no such uncommon matter; but there was something very unusual in the results of this battle. God ordered things so as to draw everyone's attention unmistakably to Himself. There was a lesson shown to the world, and a lesson now taught to Lot, that ought not to be forgotten.

One passage reads "the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea)"; another says the valley was "full of bitumen pits," that is, springs of tar. It was no doubt near the Salt Sea, though its exact site is unknown.

The five kings served Chedorlaomer for twelve years. This pictures the world under the rule of false religion. At last they rebelled against this bondage (v. 4)... Then the king of Sodom and Gomorrah, with three other kings, went out to engage the four kings in battle (vv. 8-9). But the sinful, godless world has little power against religion inspired by Satan. Only a true knowledge of the Lord Jesus can free you from such a yoke.

Abram's happy lot was to have his life and his portion in a place where wars could have no influence. It was not so with his more worldly-minded relative. His position placed him right in the middle of the strife. So the outcome of this battle was of the deepest importance to him. If the child of God will stoop so low as to mix himself up with the world, he must expect to share in its upheavals.

It is still true that the believer who settles down in the world has no power against the world. Where there is not the faith that keeps the coming glory in view, there is not the faith to overcome the present evil world. This is the case of Lot... In the end, living in Sodom, he finds that on the day of conflict he is a lonely man. He has no strength, no friends to help, and cannot count on God's support. Powerless in the day of battle, he falls captive to his enemies.

Genesis 14 presents the conflicts of the world — nations warring against nations. In them the believer who has refused the world gains the victory. The believer who walks by sight falls under its power. We also learn where the world's conflicts finally lead. Through the judgments of God they end in the deliverance of God's people and the setting up of the reign of Christ as Priest and King.

We can have little doubt that the confusion of tongues at Babel, and the division of mankind into nations that followed, must soon have given rise to fighting and regular warfare. But we have no record of a battle in the Scriptures until we reach Genesis 14. Then four kings from the Mesopotamian district marched towards the Dead Sea, destroying cities as they went, and in the end defeated the five kings of the cities of the plain. Most of the "kings" mentioned, if not all, were leaders of single cities — what we would now call petty chiefs. Chedorlaomer seems to have been the overlord of the kings with him. He had extended his rule over the region of Sodom. The rejection of his rule was the reason for the expedition.

Every detail about His own people in this world is of the deepest interest to God. That is a most precious fact. He numbers our hairs. He takes account of our tears. He remembered Paul's need of a cloak. He noticed how weak Timothy's stomach was. In God's sight a small raid matters more, when His people are caught up in it, than the mightiest military campaigns that do not touch them. This is why Scripture gives a whole chapter to Chedorlaomer's attack on Southern Palestine (Gen. 14). Many of the great wars of the ancient world, which historians write about at length, get no notice in Scripture at all.

The chapter opens with a solemn picture of this present evil world. In this scene the nations form themselves into groups. They make alliances to push their own advancement, and to defend themselves from attack.

Here we have a very detailed account of a battle fought by "four kings with five." We may ask: what did this quarrel between "the potsherds of the earth" have to do with the history of the people of God? With Abram indeed none, in one sense, for he was outside it all. His tent marked him as a stranger to all these things. It marked him as one to whom the battle of "four kings with five" would be a matter of very small importance. His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth. His altar showed him to be at home in Heaven.

At this point in the Scripture story we come to names of people that archaeologists believe they can identify from digging up the past. Some of these greater kings, such as Amraphel and Chedorlaomer, left their mark on very ancient records. But no mark of that kind would be left by Abram the pilgrim, who years before had cut himself off from their cities and their whole way of life.

Then the king of Sodom and Gomorrah, with three other kings, went out to engage the four kings in battle (vv. 8-9), but the fleshly, ungodly world has little power against satanically inspired religion. To be properly delivered from such a yoke it is necessary to have a true knowledge of the Lord Jesus.

These four kings — and the verse calls our attention specially to the number here (v. 9) — are at war with the five petty kings of the plain of Jordan. As a type, the five stand for the world in its open and sensual wickedness. The Babylonian kings stand for the religious world-power, always seeking to hold that more open evil captive, and usually succeeding.

In that conflict of the kings, four against five, Abraham's nephew, who lived in Sodom, was taken captive with all his goods. Abraham heard of this. He armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants, chased the enemy, struck them, and rescued his nephew and all his goods, his women and his people. This no doubt pictures our Lord delivering His people by the victory of Armageddon and the deliverance of Jerusalem.

One passage reads "the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea," and another says the vale was "full of slime-pits," that is, bitumen springs (Gen. 14:3, 8, 10). It was no doubt near the Salt Sea, but its exact site is unknown.

The valley of Siddim was full of slime pits in which the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah became trapped. This is the very picture of the ungodly, snared in their own sinful lusts, the slime of this world. Others who escaped this fled to the hill country. Yet they could hardly carry much in the way of their possessions with them.

The first battle recorded in Scripture is only a picture of the last great battle, still to come. Some remarkable features come to light here in Genesis 14. We read of four kings, and four suggests what is universal. These make war with the five kings, and five is the number of human weakness. The kings stand for the natural strength of man, which everyone boasts about. They also stand for the real condition underneath it, which is weakness.

These kings then came to a conflict, which did not rage at all in the far-off east where some of those in the strife had come from. God's deliberate hand brought it close to the spot where His witness walked. We see them in the vale of Sodom. There things came to an end that seemed final. … Now comes the connection with our story in verse 12.

As long as grace enables us to walk the path of simple faith, we stand completely outside the range of this world's circumstances. But our high and holy position is that of people whose "citizenship is in heaven." If we give it up and seek a name, a place, and a portion in the earth, we must expect to share in earth's upheavals and changes. Lot had made his home in the plains of Sodom, so the wars of Sodom hit him deeply and keenly.

It is still true that the believer who settles down in the world has no power against the world. Where there is not the faith that keeps the coming glory in view, there is not the faith to overcome the present evil world. This is the case of Lot. He never overcame, but was constantly overcome by one evil influence after another. … In the end, living in Sodom, he finds that on the day of conflict he is a lonely man. He has no strength, no friends to help, and cannot count on the support of God.

And note this. In Psalm 110, the oath of God made Christ "a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek." So is it wrong to say that out of this passing conflict in the slime pits of Sodom comes a spiritual result that lasts "forever"?

The valley of Siddim was full of slime pits in which the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah became trapped. This is the very picture of the ungodly being snared in their own sinful lusts, the slime of this world. Others who escaped this fled to the hill country. Yet they could hardly carry much of their property with them. The four kings took the goods and food supply of their defeated foes. They also took Lot captive, along with his goods.

The history of nations and the movements of mighty kings and conquerors have always interested the Holy Spirit for one reason: their connection with the history of the people of God. He could find no pleasure in dwelling on the mere history of man. The busy strife and noise of nations could not attract the notice of the Spirit of peace. Neither could the fierce contests of ungodly tyrants grasping after power, or the movements of armies. Yet when such things became even slightly connected with the history of a "righteous soul," the Holy Spirit can be very detailed in describing the circumstances of a battle.

The chapter opens with a solemn picture of this present evil world. It is a scene in which the nations form themselves into groups and enter into alliances to carry out their schemes of self-advancement and to defend themselves from attack.

His tent showed him to be a stranger on earth; his altar showed him to be at home in Heaven. It did not matter to Abram which king won the day, because his portion was not in danger through their strife. Though it was Abram's happy lot to have his life and his portion in a place where wars could not touch him. It was not so with his more worldly-minded relative. Lot's position put him right in the middle of the strife. So the outcome of this battle was bound to matter to him. If the child of God will stoop so low as to mix himself up with the world, he must expect to share in its upheavals.

The kings made him a prisoner and took all his goods. He had laid up treasure for himself on earth, and the thieves had broken in. Abram was above it all, in the separating power of communion with God. Lot found himself a prisoner and a beggar.

When saints take a wrong course, they are never left without warning. Lot has settled down in the plains of Sodom, and God sends four kings to drive him out. All his coveted wealth is taken, and he himself a captive. If Lot had had faith, he would have seen in this that Sodom was no place for him. But he did not see it. The fruitful plain, the rich pasture, the world's wealth, filled his eye and his heart. Lot ignored God's warning call. Abram rescued him and recovered his wealth, and Lot settled down again in his old place. Then a heavier judgment came.

In the end Abram recovered everything, including Lot, his household and his possessions. How striking the picture, and how important its lesson for us! The man — even though he was "just" — grasped at the world with its outward prosperity and pleasures. He lost everything and found himself a captive. The man who gave up the world and walked with God was the only one in the whole region who could act in faith.

Abram reached his goal of freeing Lot. He also freed others and recovered the property the kings had taken. Do we have such energy of faith to seek to recover saints of God who have been trapped by falsehood? It was not anger against the enemy that moved Abram, but love for his brother.

It is worth noticing what happened to Lot. In an earlier chapter he chose all the plain of Jordan and "pitched his tent toward Sodom" (Gen. 13:12). He has now taken a further step on his downward course, for here we read that he "dwells in Sodom." We may be sure that it was never Lot's intention to dwell in Sodom when he pitched his tent toward it. But one false step leads to another. Drawing near to the world, he is soon in the world. And living in the world, he gets caught up in its conflicts and falls captive to its power.

Verse 12 lets us see another step in the downward course of Lot. He was not content with pitching his tent toward Sodom. He had now given up tent life altogether and taken a permanent home in the wicked city. That spot was worse than Ur, the place he first left under Abram's guidance. He now shared the fate of the people of Sodom, and the enemy carried him away captive with all his house.

Is it not striking that the Spirit of God mentions in Genesis 13:12 that Abraham dwelt in the land of Canaan, and that Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain? Then in Genesis 14:12 He adds, "For he dwelt in Sodom." He says it as though to give point to what He had just recorded about Lot being carried away into captivity. No one can dwell in Sodom without breathing its poisoned air and feeling its polluting influences. Its people were wicked and great sinners before God. Poor Lot, by his associations, was helpless in the presence of the world.

At last, dwelling in Sodom, the day of conflict comes. He finds he is a lonely man, without strength and without friends to help. He cannot count on the support of God. Powerless in the day of battle, he falls a captive to his enemies.

What then were the results of this contest to Lot? Ruin to him and his family. The enemy made him a prisoner and took all his goods (v. 12). He had laid up treasure for himself on earth, and the thieves had broken through. Abram was above it all, in the power — the separating power — of communion with God. Lot found himself a prisoner and a beggar.

What was no small rebuke to Lot became the occasion for Abram. He came out as one who walked with God and trusted Him. He shows us, too, that power of grace which rises above whatever has personally been wrong. There was no doubt about Lot's failure in testimony. But Abram thought nothing about his faults now. What he saw was a righteous man swept away while the powers of the earth crashed together like clay pots. For no doubt Lot, despite everything, was righteous. This drew out his loving desire for Lot's rescue.

In Lot's case it is made clear once more that circumstances have not made him what he is. A change of circumstances does not change him. God's hand freed him by using another man, yet he is not really free. Soon we shall find him needing rescue again — this time from a place that escaped man's judgment but falls under God's.

The root of the word is "to pass over," as when one passes over a river, or from one region to another. Abraham was told to leave his country and his relatives and to go into the land of Canaan. The word Hebrew is not used until Abraham had left his country and was in the land of Canaan (Genesis 14:13). When he was there he was a "sojourner" in a strange country, living in tents (Hebrews 11:9). The name was therefore descriptive, and the people of the land could go to Abraham the "sojourner" and tell him that Lot had been taken prisoner.

That Genesis 14:13 connects Abram with the crossing of the eastern river, rather than his distant ancestor Eber, seems clear. This was the regular Gentile name given to God's people by those outside — not Israel but Hebrews, as we find from the earliest to later times.

One loaded word reveals the secret of Abram's power. Used of him here, it throws light on the whole scene: "Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew." That word, family name though it may be, is still significant: it means "the passenger." So Peter urges us, as "sojourners and exiles," to "abstain from the passions of the flesh."

The only safeguard against the world taking you captive, dear friends, is to keep up pilgrim separation from it. Abraham had not settled down in the world, and God used him to free Lot. In the same way, the spiritual among God's people can sometimes set free those the world has trapped and led captive.

A fugitive from the battle brought news to Abram, who is here called "the Hebrew" for the first time (v. 13). He was at the time living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, who with his two brothers were allies of Abram. In later years a link of this kind would have been wrong, but at this time "the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet complete" (Gen. 15:16), and the Lord makes no issue of it.

When Abraham was at Hebron some formed an alliance with him (Genesis 14:13). A remnant out of the Gentile nations was in this way joined to the heir of promise, though Lot (a type of Israel after the flesh) had separated from him.

Abram troubled himself very little with the quarrels of the broken pieces of earth. It mattered little to the pilgrim of Mamre what happened to the nations fighting around him. His expectations were set on a "city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God." But when he learned that his "brother" was among these captives, his whole soul was stirred to rescue this "righteous" but easily tempted man from hostile hands.

But this was the very moment for Abram to show himself in the powerful activities of love. Until now he had watched these movements of "kings and their armies" with calm indifference. Yet the same faith that made him indifferent to the quarrels of men made him quick to notice a brother in distress. Faith not only purifies the heart from worldly and fleshly desires; it also "works by love." Abram's case shows this with power.

Now notice this. In the hour of distress and difficulty, the relationship of brother takes the prominent place. In days of untroubled peace Abram might know Lot as "his brother's son." But now Lot was in sorrow, so the claims of brotherhood act — and act with power and effect. True, he had argued over a piece of land — he had turned away from his old companion and settled at Sodom, but what of that? He was now in trouble, and so everything is forgotten except that they were brothers.

There was no doubt about Lot's failure in testimony. But Abram thought nothing about his faults now. What he looked at was a righteous man swept away by the clashing powers of earth. Lot, despite everything, was truly righteous. This drew out his feelings of loving desire for Lot's rescue.

Do we have such energy of faith to seek to recover saints of God who have been ensnared by falsehood? It was not anger against the enemy that moved Abram, but love for his brother.

Suppose Abram had gone into battle against the enemy without servants trained to bear arms. He and they would most likely have been overcome. But they were both trained and also armed. Training assumes a long and varied discipline in the house. Arms mean the right weapons of attack and defence for the moment. Lot had neither. Comfortable and settled, he imagined no enemy, so the attack caught him off guard and left him defenceless.

There is a lovely picture here of those born again in the house of God, the church of the living God. They have not needed the training of worldly wise men or of theological schools. God has trained them in His own house, the assembly of the living God. The best training happens there, in the fellowship of the saints of God. There He is free to teach in His own way, through every gift He has given to His saints.

Scripture gives us no idea of the number of his opponents, but it does tell us the small number of Abram's forces — 318 besides himself. We believe it tells us this to show that Abram's action came from very extraordinary faith. The army he attacked must have been far stronger than his own, and it was flushed with victory at every point up to then. Yet he did not hesitate, and God was with him.

One man grasped at the world with its outward prosperity and pleasures. Even though he was "righteous," he lost everything and found himself a captive. The other gave up the world and walked with God. He alone in the whole region could act in faith, and the power of God answered that faith and gave him the victory.

The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, and we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. Even so, the Christian conflict is very real. We contend for the truth. We seek to deliver those in danger of falling into the religious world, and those it has already taken captive in its snares.

One verse (v. 15) is enough to describe the battle of Abram with the four kings, and his decisive victory. No doubt his adversaries far outnumbered his force of 318 men, but the Lord does not depend on numbers. God rewarded Abram's faith by making his enemies flee as he pursued them for a long distance, to north of Damascus.

Abram acted with great decision as soon as the news of this disaster reached him. He armed his servants, went after the victorious kings, caught up with them by night, and utterly defeated them. We are told nothing about the number of the enemy, but we are told the small number of Abram's forces — 318 besides himself. We are told this, we believe, to show that very extraordinary faith prompted Abram's action. The army he attacked must have been far stronger than his. It was also flushed with victory all along the line up to that point. Yet he did not hesitate, and God was with him.

Here were victorious kings marching home with their armies. And here was a private individual, a pilgrim and a stranger. God so led and strengthened him that the victors are defeated in their turn, and the failing believer rescued.

But renouncing the world is the path to victory over it; the choosing of it is captive subjection to its power. Lot is carried away captive by the powerful ones of the earth, along with those among whom his worldly leanings had led him. Abram is free and walks in the faith of God. He has more force from Him than all the kings, conquerors or conquered. He delivers Lot, and he delivers the kings who could not help themselves.

What was no small rebuke to Lot became the occasion for Abram to come out as one who walked with God and trusted Him. He also shows us that power of grace which rises above whatever had been wrong in a person. There was no doubt about Lot's failure in testimony. But Abram thought nothing about his faults now.

Do we have such energy of faith to seek to recover saints of God who have been ensnared by falsehood? It was not anger against the enemy that moved Abram, but love for his brother.

Suppose Abram had gone into conflict with the enemy without ready servants trained to bear arms. He and they too would probably have been overcome. But they were both trained and armed. Training means a long and varied discipline in the house. Arming means the right weapons of attack and defence for the occasion. All of these Lot lacked. At ease and settled here, he dreamed of no enemy, and so was taken unawares, and found defenceless.

Here we get Melchizedek, and a millennial picture. You have the heir of faith beating his enemies entirely, and then, looking at it as the accomplishment of victory, Melchizedek comes out to meet him... Seen as a picture, it is the final triumph. Christ is the Melchizedek who comes out to bless upward and bless downward. That is just what Christ will be in that day.

Nothing is said of any slaughter. Abram reached his aim of freeing Lot, and he freed others too and recovered the property that had been taken.

In the end Abram recovered everything, including Lot, his household and his possessions. What a striking picture, and what an important lesson for us! One man grasped at the world with its outward prosperity and pleasures — and though he was a righteous man, he lost everything and ended up a captive. The other man gave up the world and walked with God. He was the only one in the whole region who could act in faith, and God's power answered that faith and gave him the victory.

I may shut myself away from the world and make myself the centre of my own life, like a monk or a cynic. But separation to God is a completely different thing. The first chills and shrinks the heart; the second warms it and opens it out... So in Abraham's case, his separation was the very thing that let him give real help to a man who had landed himself in trouble by his worldly ways.

True, he had argued about a piece of land. He had turned away from his older friend and settled in Sodom. But what of that? He was now in trouble, so everything is forgotten except one thing — they were brothers.

Lot had come to nothing. That was where following his own ideas led him, with his desires never judged. On the other side stood the power and honour of God with Abram. This was clearly not a natural affair. Here were winning kings marching home with their armies. And one private man, a pilgrim and a stranger, was so led and strengthened by God that the winners were beaten in their turn, and the believer who had failed was rescued.

Later Lot accepts the world and is captured by it. Abram is the recovered man, in the place where God can use him to free his brother from the enemy's trap... What we should long for is this: to let faith control us so completely that God can use us to free others from such ties, because we have overcome the enemy in these very things ourselves. While Abram was still in Egypt he had given up his pilgrim life, and he could not have rescued Lot from this trouble.

Lot's case shows again, and it is a serious thing to see: circumstances have not made him what he is, and changing his circumstances does not change him. God's hand set him free through another man, yet he is not really free. Soon we will find him needing rescue once more — this time from what escaped man's judgment and falls under God's.

If Melchizedek had turned up to encourage Abraham before the campaign, that would have seemed natural. If he had prayed for his success, we would have thought it fitting for a priest of the Most High God. But his first and only meeting with Abraham came when Abraham needed no one to pray for him. He came to bless him after the victory, as he returned loaded with all the goods, with Lot and his goods, and the women and the people (Gen. 14:16).

The man of faith is not free from the enemy's attacks. Often, right after a victory, he has to face a fresh temptation. So it was with Abraham. "After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him." There was clearly a deep and cunning design of the enemy in this move. "The king of Sodom" presents a very different thought. It shows a very different side of the enemy's power from "Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him." In the first we have the hiss of the serpent. In the second, the roar of the lion.

Abraham returns from defeating the kings in victory. And the king of Sodom comes out to meet him. The Lord knew that would be a critical moment for Abraham, and He knows all about our future path. It is hidden from us, but He has given us His word as a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. So we may see the end, and have light for every step. But God sees the end from the beginning. He knows what will happen to us, and He knows how to prepare us for it. This was a moment of temptation to Abraham, and God gives Melchizedek to meet him first. God knows how to fill in all the blanks.

Why did "the priest of the Most High God" not come to meet Abram earlier? Because this was the very moment when Abram most needed the strength he had to bring. The enemy was about to dangle his glittering bait before the eyes of the man of God. So Melchizedek is on hand to show him the divine realities of the kingdom.

Melchizedek's ministry, king of Salem, in the valley of Shaveh — the King's valley — had strengthened Abraham, so that he was able to meet and overcome the alluring favours of the king of Sodom. And it is only as we remain in the King's valley, the low place, that we experience the priestly support of our true Melchizedek, the One who says, "I am gentle and lowly in heart."

The king of Sodom had gone out to meet the victorious Abram, as mentioned in verse 17, but he does not really come into the picture until verse 21. Wanting to repay Abram, he offered him all the goods of Sodom that he had recovered. The way Abram declined the offer is very striking. Through Melchizedek's ministry he now knew God in a new way. Now he was in touch with the Possessor of heaven and earth. So the goods of Sodom had no value for him, however attractive they might have seemed to others. What is more, they were all stained with the terrible sins of that city, and they brought defilement with them.

Melchizedek fully foreshadows the millennial glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. See Zechariah 6:9-13. He will receive His own throne and be a priest upon that throne. Significantly he appeared suddenly when Abraham was returning from defeating the allied kings. And then he blessed Abraham and made God known to him as the Most High (the millennial name of God), the possessor of heaven and earth. In the same way the true Melchizedek will one day appear, and after the defeat of the kings will begin His glorious rule.

He was a real man, not an imaginary figure — a man like any of us, but a king and a priest together. Melchizedek was priest of the Most High God, and both Testaments describe him that way (Gen. 14:18; Heb. 7:1). God owned him as a priest. He was also King of Salem — the city we believe was later known as Jerusalem. So he held both offices in himself, which is true of no one else but the Lord Jesus Christ. The parallel goes further, since the writer of Hebrews notes that we are told nothing about this mysterious man's parents, family line, birth, or death: he has "neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever" (Heb. 7:3).

First his name is Melchizedek, that is, "King of righteousness." Then he is "King of Salem," that is, "King of Peace." That order is always a principle in God's ways. In the millennium righteousness must first have its way before peace can come in... This is of course as true for the present as for the future, and fulfilled in the gospel in a far more wondrous way. As the effect of righteousness by the Cross peace has come to us, and our Melchizedek has indeed made good His name.

But above all he was priest of the Most High God. This is the name of God as supreme Governor of all things, and Genesis adds: Possessor of heaven and earth... In Abraham's walk of faith, the name of God for him was "The Almighty." But here Abraham has won a victory over the kings of the earth. So Melchizedek, the king of righteousness, blesses him in connection with God as Possessor of heaven and earth, the Most High. This looks onward to the royalty of Christ, a Priest upon His throne, when by the will and the power of God He shall have triumphed over all His enemies.

The priesthood here is clearly unlike any other. Melchizedek offers no sacrifice, and there is no intercession either. He brings out bread and wine for man, without a word of sprinkling blood before God.

Melchizedek, King of Salem (King of righteousness, King of peace) appears with bread, which speaks of the food that keeps life going. He also brings wine, which speaks of joy (Psalm 104:15). He came on the scene as "priest of God Most High," "Possessor of heaven and earth."

This stranger, commissioned by God, was on his way to fortify Abram's heart at the very moment when the enemy was on his way to attack... The enemy was about to hold out his shiny bait in front of the man of God. So Melchizedek is on hand to set the realities of God's kingdom before his eyes. He was about to feed and strengthen Abram's soul with the "bread" of the kingdom, and cheer him with its "wine," so that in the strength of that food he might rise above every attraction the world could offer.

The "bread and wine" refreshed Abraham's spirit after his fight with Chedorlaomer, the king he had just beaten. The blessing prepared his heart for his next fight, with the king of Sodom. Abraham had just conquered, and yet he was about to fight again. The royal priest refreshed the conqueror's spirit and strengthened the fighter's heart.

"Most High" is always the name of God that marks Him out as supreme over the earth. See, for instance, what Melchizedek said to Abraham when he came out to meet him, after the defeat of the kings who had carried off Lot: "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth" (Gen. 14:19). The same name meets us in Daniel 4:24-25. There it presents God to Nebuchadnezzar as the One who, in His rule over the earth, was about to step in and judge him.

When man went astray and made many gods and many lords, He was then the Most High God.

Abram takes this food from the heavenly priest. He receives the blessing Melchizedek gives him, the blessing of the Most High. That title speaks of His supremacy over all — over kings and all the power of the enemy, King of kings and Lord of lords. He is "Possessor of heaven and earth." That title will be openly displayed in the coming thousand-year kingdom of our Lord, yet it is already true for faith at all times.

The battle Abraham fought, the first one recorded in Scripture, is a picture of the last battle of this age. That conflict brings in the reign of peace founded on righteousness, when God will show Himself as the Most High God, possessor of heaven and earth. Sin cut the earth off from what is above it. Since then heaven and earth have not been joined, and the power of God has not taken hold of them for the blessing of man… But the day is coming when Israel will rebel no more and the nations will no longer be deceived. Satan will be thrown down from the evil height he holds, every idol will vanish, and God will be left the undisputed and plainly Most High, the possessor of heaven and earth.

He does not offer sacrifices at all. He blesses up, and he blesses down. After the victory of Abram is complete, he blesses him from the Most High God, and then he blesses the Most High God.

Abram owned goods on earth, but as yet he owned nothing of what God had promised him. To be blessed by the One who is Possessor of heaven and earth must have meant a great deal to him. Abram received the blessing, and he gave a tenth of everything… And since the greater blesses the lesser, we see, as Hebrews 7 points out, that as priest Melchizedek ranked above Abram and above the priesthood of Aaron.

It is especially sweet to notice the way Melchizedek introduces God to Abraham's thoughts. He calls Him "God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth." More than that, he declares Abraham "blessed" by that same God. This was what really prepared him for the king of Sodom. A man who was "blessed" by God did not need to take anything from the enemy. If "the Possessor of heaven and earth" filled his sight, "the goods" of Sodom could hold little attraction.

Melchizedek also pronounces a blessing on Abram (v. 19), just as the Lord Jesus pours His blessing on the church of God from heaven today. His hands were raised in blessing as He went up to glory after His resurrection, and this stays true through the whole present age of God's grace.

Blessing is often given a special meaning when addressed to God, and this meaning is closely related to worship and priestly service. The first priest in the Bible is Melchizedek, in Genesis 14. He came out to meet the victorious Abram, and he not only blessed Abram but also blessed God. This double blessing comes out from God to men, and then rises from men to God in response. Ephesians 1:3 shows it beautifully: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us." To bless means to "speak good." God's speaking good about His people has enriched them beyond all human dreams. Our speaking good to God cannot and does not enrich Him. But such a response from His children answers His love and gives Him His true place. It always rises to Him as a sweet aroma.

Then, on Abram's behalf, Melchizedek blessed God for the victory that had been granted. "Blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!" Let us stop and ask ourselves a question here. Is the Lord on high able to give thanks for victories we have gained? Does victory or defeat mark our lives? Are we like Abram, overcomers of the world, or like Lot, overcome by the world?

Abram paid tithes to Melchizedek. More than that, Melchizedek blessed him. As we are told, "It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior." The person who gives a blessing is greater than the person who receives it. So Abram did not try to bless Melchizedek. Abram's act implied that he was under Melchizedek. Melchizedek's act implied that he was over Abram. Here is a double illustration and witness of surpassing dignity.

The inferior is blessed by the superior. So, as Hebrews 7 points out, Melchizedek as priest took precedence over Abram and over the Levitical priesthood of Aaron. Once we know the One this picture points to, how clear it becomes!

Everything you own belongs to God, and you are only a steward. But while many readily admit this in a general way, that is not all we have to consider. God has a particular claim beyond it. He claims a place in your everyday calculations — not just any place, and not second place, but first place… You may give Him a large portion of your time, intellect or money in a legal spirit. You may think you can then use the rest for yourself. And you can still be far, far away from the blessing… We read that Abraham gave him tithes — not of some, but of ALL. These are the terms. Place is greater than portion.

But the priestly act of Melchizedek was blessing, not intercession — blessing from the Most High God. This is priesthood exercised in its Melchizedek character. The King of righteousness and peace blesses the people God has accepted. What a blessed, refreshing thought — evil is gone, and blessing flows out unhindered through the great High Priest, the Priest of the Most High God, who possesses heaven and earth.

Abram won the second victory, brighter still than the first, through fellowship with the very springs of divine strength. The patriarch's spirit was in victory here, as his arm had been before. He had so taken in what the King of Salem said, and so fed on the bread and wine of that royal, priestly stranger, that the king of Sodom spread out his feast in vain. Abraham's soul had been in heaven, and he could not go back to the world.

Abraham is not only victorious over the hostility of the world. He also stands firm against both its horrors and its gifts. We may rise above the world's hatred, and yet fall beneath its kindness. And we are never more in danger of a fall than in the moment of a victory. This the enemy knows full well and so comes with his temptations at a moment when we may be off guard.

This stranger, commissioned by God, was on his way to fortify Abram's heart at the very moment when the enemy was on his way to attack (compare verses 17, 18, and 21). So why did "the priest of the Most High God" not come to meet Abram earlier? Because this was the very moment when Abram most needed the strength he had to bring. The enemy was about to hold out his attractive bait in front of the man of God. So Melchizedek is there first, to set the divine realities of the kingdom before his eyes.

The king of Sodom tells Abram he will take the souls, but leave the goods to Abram. But it was for the sake of the soul of Lot that Abram had fought: he had no interest in the goods... The Possessor of heaven and earth had rescued Sodom. That should have driven Sodom to see they needed the same faith as Abram — a faith that gives God the first place. But the ungodly world only walks by sight, not by faith.

A man who was "blessed" by God did not need to take anything from the enemy. If "the possessor of heaven and earth" filled his vision, "the goods" of Sodom could hold little attraction... Abraham refuses to let the king of Sodom make him rich. How could he think of delivering Lot from the power of the world, if the world governed him? The only true way to deliver another is to be fully delivered myself.

Now that he was in touch with the Possessor of heaven and earth, the goods of Sodom had no value for him, however attractive they seemed to others. On top of that, they were all stained with the huge sins of that city, and they carried that defilement with them.

Abram at once shows us that faith is more generous still. He knows what it is to be rich toward God. He refuses to tarnish His testimony by anything that would let the king of Sodom say, "I have made Abram rich." At the same time he pleads for the others. However self-denying Abram's grace may be, his large heart does not forget what is due to those who did not have his faith. He asks for Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, who had helped him.

The pilgrim man of faith sees Christ claiming, on God's part, all that is His own. That sight is the true antidote to the world's offers. Christ could not accept the kingdoms of the world from Satan's hand, but only from His Father. His followers can no more accept riches from a world that has rejected Christ for Satan. And that bread and wine which we receive from our true Melchizedek is the memorial of those sufferings that alone make us rich. For anyone who has tasted it, it means refusing a portion here.

Melchizedek leads Abram's soul into present communion with "THE MOST HIGH GOD, THE POSSESSOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH." This completes the wonderful contrast between "the King of Sodom" and "the Most High God, possessor of heaven and earth" — "the goods of Sodom" and the vast possessions of heaven and earth. What a contrast, which faith always draws! Abram at once rejects the offer of the King of Sodom. The bread and wine, and the blessing of "the priest of the Most High God," had lifted Abram to such a height that he could take in the vast possessions of heaven and earth in one sweeping glance. From there he could look down on the contemptible proposal of the King of Sodom and reject it.

I have been looking into the force of the Hebrew words for Most High. It clearly refers, in the end, to God in the millennium — the coming age of His reign — as the supreme God then revealed, with everything false shut out. This is the force of the word. It names the One who, above and beyond all others, holds the place of the one true God, exalted as supreme in government. Jehovah is, as we know, the God who is in relationship with Israel, but He is the supreme God, the Most High. The full statement of the title, and the time of taking it, is in Genesis 14:19-20, 22. Israel's enemies are completely defeated and given into his hand. The heir of promise receives blessing from Him who possesses heaven and earth. He is supreme, and has taken all things into His possession.

Abram rejected the evil temptation of Sodom's king because Melchizedek had made known the name of God in a new way, "The most high God." Abram uses this new title and adds "Jehovah" to "the most high God."

He tells him he had sworn to the Lord God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth. He would take nothing at all that belonged to Sodom, not even the most trivial thing. Otherwise the king of Sodom could take the credit for making Abram rich (vv. 22-23). The Possessor of heaven and earth had brought about a deliverance for Sodom. That should have driven Sodom to realise they needed the same faith as Abram — a faith that gives God the first place. But the ungodly world only walks by sight, not by faith.

So, in verse 23, we find language of great decision. The young men had eaten certain things, and Abram's allies and helpers might take their portion. But as for himself, he would take nothing, not even the smallest item. He had been so fully enriched, both spiritually and materially, by God Himself, that he needed nothing more. Giving the king of Sodom the chance to say he had made Abram rich would have spoiled his testimony to that. It is the same in principle for us today. If we are enjoying the spiritual blessings that are ours, we have no need and no desire for the gifts or backing of the world.