Old/New Testament
Abram and Lot Part Ways
13 Abram traveled from Egypt, along with his wife and everyone who belonged to his household[a]—including Lot—to the Negev.[b]
2 Now Abram had become quite wealthy in livestock, silver, and gold. 3 He journeyed by stages from the Negev[c] to Bethel, the place where his tent had formerly been, between Bethel and Ai, 4 where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the Lord.
5 Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks of sheep, herds, and tents. 6 But the land could not support them living together, because they had so many livestock that they could not stay together. 7 There was strife between the herdsmen in charge of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen in charge of Lot’s livestock. Also, at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.
8 So Abram told Lot, “Please, let’s not have strife between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives.[d] 9 Isn’t the whole land available to you? Let’s separate: If you go[e] to the left, then I will go to the right; if you go[f] to the right, then I will go to the left.”
10 Lot looked around and noticed that the whole Jordan plain as far as Zoar was well-watered like the garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan plain. Then Lot traveled eastward, and they separated from each other.
12 So Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the plain, setting up his tent in the vicinity of Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were particularly evil and sinful in their defiance of[g] the Lord.
14 After Lot had separated from Abram, the Lord told Abram, “Look off to the north, south[h], east, and west[i] from where you’re living, 15 because I’m going to give you and your descendants all of the land that you see—forever! 16 I’ll make your descendants as plentiful as[j] the specks of[k] dust of the earth, so that if one could count the specks of[l] dust of the earth, then your descendants could also be counted. 17 Get up! Walk throughout the length and breadth of the land, because I’m going to give it to you.”
18 So Abram moved his tent and settled beside the oaks of Mamre that are by Hebron, where he built an altar to the Lord.
Abram Battles Kings for Lot
14 At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar, Arioch was king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer was king of Elam, and Tidal was king of the Goiim, 2 they engaged in war against King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, along with the king of Bela (which was also known as Zoar). 3 All of this latter group of kings[m] allied together in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea[n]). 4 They were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but they rebelled in the thirteenth year.
5 In the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer and the kings with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, near El-paran by the desert. 7 Next they turned back and came to En-mishpat (which was also known as Kadesh) and conquered all the territory of the Amalekites, along with the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
8 Then the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela (which was also known as Zoar) prepared for battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 against King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Shinar, and King Arioch of Ellasar—four kings against five.
10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, so when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of their people[o] fell into them, while the rest fled to the hill country. 11 The conquerors[p] captured all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, including their entire food supply, and then left. 12 They also took Abram’s nephew Lot captive, and confiscated[q] his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.
13 Someone escaped, arrived, and reported what had happened[r] to Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks belonging to Mamre the Amorite, whose brothers Eshcol and Aner were allied with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his nephew[s] had been taken prisoner, he gathered together 318 of his trained men, who had been born in his household, and they went out in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night, Abram[t] and his servants divided his forces,[u] conquered his enemies,[v] and pursued them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his nephew Lot, together with his possessions, the women, and the other[w] people.
The Blessing of Melchizedek
17 After Abram’s return[x] from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with them, the king of Sodom went out to meet with him in the Shaveh Valley (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine, since he was serving as[y] the priest of God Most High. 19 Melchizedek[z] blessed Abram[aa] and said,
“Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth,
20 and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies
into your control.”
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Conversation with the King of Sodom
21 The king of Sodom told Abram, “Return the people to me, and you take the possessions for yourself.”
22 But Abram answered the king of Sodom, “I have made an oath to the Lord God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23 that I will not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you won’t be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing except what my warriors have eaten. But as for what belongs to the men who were allied[ab] with me, including Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their share.”
The Abrahamic Covenant
15 Some time later, a message came from the Lord to Abram in a vision. “Stop being afraid, Abram.” he said. “I myself—your shield—am your very great reward.”
2 But Abram replied, “Lord God, what can you give me since I continue to be childless, and the heir of my household is Eliezer from Damascus? 3 Look!” Abram said, “You haven’t given me any offspring, so a servant born in[ac] my house is going to be my heir.”
4 A message came from the Lord to him again: “This one will not be your heir. Instead, the child who will be born to you[ad] will be your heir.” 5 Then the Lord[ae] took him outside. “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if you can!” he said. “Your descendants will be that numerous.”[af] 6 Abram believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
7 The Lord[ag] spoke to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land as an inheritance.”
8 But he replied, “Lord God, how will I know that I will inherit it?”
9 The Lord responded, “Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 So Abram brought him all these animals and cut each of them in half, down the middle, placing the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut the birds in half. 11 When birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 As the sun began to set, Abram was overcome with deep sleep, and suddenly a frightening and terrifying darkness descended on him.
13 Then the Lord told Abram, “You can be certain about this: Your descendants will be foreigners in a land that isn’t theirs. They will be slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years. 14 However, I will judge the nation that they serve, and later they will leave there with many possessions. 15 Now as for you, you’ll die peacefully, join your ancestors, and be buried at a good old age. 16 Your descendants[ah] will return here in the fourth generation, since the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet run its course.”
17 When the sun had fully set and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a fiery torch passed between the animal pieces.[ai] 18 That very day the Lord made this covenant with Abram: “I’m giving[aj] this land to your descendants, from the river of Egypt to the great Euphrates River— 19 including the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
Jesus Teaches about the Kingdom
5 When Jesus[a] saw the crowds, he went up on the hill. After taking his seat, his disciples came to him, 2 and he began[b] to teach them:
The Blessed Attitudes(A)
3 “How blessed are those who are destitute in spirit,
because the kingdom from[c] heaven belongs to them!
4 “How blessed are those who mourn,
because it is they who will be comforted!
5 “How blessed are those who are humble,[d]
because it is they who will inherit the earth!
6 “How blessed are those who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness,[e]
because it is they who will be satisfied!
7 “How blessed are those who are merciful,
because it is they who will receive mercy!
8 “How blessed are those who are pure in heart,
because it is they who will see God!
9 “How blessed are those who make peace,
because it is they who will be called God’s children!
10 “How blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
because the kingdom from[f] heaven belongs to them!
11 “How blessed are you whenever people[g] insult you, persecute you, and say all sorts of evil things against you falsely[h] because of me! 12 Rejoice and be extremely glad, because your reward in heaven is great! That’s how they persecuted the prophets who came before you.”
Salt and Light in the World(B)
13 “You are the salt of the world. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty again? It’s good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled on by people.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. 15 People[i] don’t light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before people in such a way that they will see your good actions and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Jesus Fulfills the Law and the Prophets
17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I didn’t come to destroy them, but to fulfill them, 18 because I tell all of you[j] with certainty that until heaven and earth disappear, not one letter[k] or one stroke of a letter will disappear from the Law until everything has been accomplished. 19 So whoever sets aside[l] one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom from[m] heaven. But whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom from[n] heaven 20 because I tell you, unless your righteousness greatly exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom from[o] heaven!”
Teaching about Anger
21 “You have heard that it was told those who lived long ago, ‘You are not to commit murder,’[p] and, ‘Whoever murders will be subject to punishment.’[q] 22 But I say to you, anyone who is angry with his brother without a cause[r] will be subject to punishment. And whoever says to his brother ‘Raka!’[s] will be subject to the Council.[t] And whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hell[u] fire.
23 “So if you are presenting your gift at the altar and remember there that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and first go and be reconciled to your brother. Then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your opponent while you are on the way to court,[v] or your opponent may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 I tell you[w] with certainty, you will not get out of there until you pay back the last dollar!”[x]
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