Abram was now a very wealthy man, as was his nephew, Lot. They had so many possessions, especially in the form of livestock, that the land where they had settled could not sustain both of them. The situation became difficult enough for quarrelling to erupt between their herdsman.
Abram realized that the situation was pretty untenable at this point. His ungrasping character and his total dependence on God’s provision shine through in this little vignette, in sharp contrast to Lot’s selfishness and longing for the trappings of civilization. Abram suggested that Lot select a portion of land for himself, and Abram would take what was left. Here is the man who had been promised an inheritance of land from God offering to take second-best in order to keep peace in the family! He obviously felt no need to look out for his own interests; his desire to live in harmony with his nephew was paramount.
As Lot looked over the fertile plain of Jordan, he knew what he wanted, and he chose this prime real estate for himself. Abram stayed in the land of the Canaanites, while Lot moved toward the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Moses tells us in this account that Sodom and Gomorrah weren’t exactly places where a man of God would want to settle, as their inhabitants were wicked and “were sinning greatly against the Lord.”
It would be interesting to know how Abram felt at this point. Might he have felt a tinge of resentment toward his self-centered nephew? Certainly he must have felt a sense of loss and lonesomeness at losing Lot’s company to the allure of the nearby cities. The one family companion who had accompanied him and his wife on their journey was now gone.
God’s intimate knowledge of Abram’s heart and character is revealed at the close of the chapter. He knew the loneliness and the generosity of Abram’s spirit. In His mercy, God again stepped in to reassure Abram and reconfirm His promise. In an interesting parallel to Abram’s showing Lot the land, now God told Abram to look at the land that lay before him. “All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land for I am giving it to you.”
What an instructive passage for me as am exposed to both the character of Abram and the character of God! Abram was confident enough in God’s care and promises that he was able to be generous to a nephew who surely did not deserve such largesse. And God, Abram’s merciful Father and Friend, responded to Abram’s generosity and implicit faith by reconfirming all He had promised. So Abram moved, not to the cities, but to the shelter of the great trees at Mamre and he again responded to God’s kindness in worship.
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