Sir Thomas More
Hans Holbein the Younger
The Frick Collection, New York
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)
From: Genesis 13: 2, 5-18
Abram in Bethel
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[2] Now Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. [5] And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, [6] so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, [7] and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram's cattle and the herdsmen of Lot's cattle. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites dwelt in the land.
Abram and Lot Separate
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[8] Then Abram said to Lot, "Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen; for we are kinsmen. [9] Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left." [10] And Lot lifted up his eyes, and saw that the Jordan valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar; this was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. [11] So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan valley, and Lot journeyed east; thus they separated from each other. [12] Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, while Lot dwelt among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom. [13] Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.
A New Promise to Abram
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[14] The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, "Lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward .and southward and eastward and westward; [15] for all the land which you see I will give to you and to your descendants for ever. [16] I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your descendants also can be counted. [17] Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you." [18] So Abram moved his tent, and came and dwelt by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron and there he built an altar to the Lord.
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Commentary:
13:1-18. Abraham prospers in the land God has promised will be his; this is an early confirmation of God's blessing. But he still has to undergo another test--family rows over pastures. The patriarch comes across as a peaceable person; he lets Lot have first choice. Abraham's behavior is a kind of new act of faith in the divine promise, accepting as he does that God gives the land to whomever he chooses. Once Lot has gone off, God emphatically reaffirms his promise of descendants and land, and Abraham will progress across the country, taking possession of it, as it were. He eventually settles at Hebron. in the south of Palestine. on the edge of the Negeb desert.
Lot has chosen the rich lands, the Jordan plains; but the sacred writer points out how near he is to Sodom, the city of sin. Lot will later regret his decision to settle there (cf. chap. 19). The account seems to imply a geography with no Dead Sea, at least not as we know it today.
Apropos of this passage, St John Chrysostom points out how family peace was being undermined by prosperity: "Their flocks grew bigger, great wealth accrued to them, and immediately harmony between them was disrupted--where there had been peace and the bonds of affection, now there was trouble and hostility. You see, whenever it is a question of mine and yours, there are grounds for the utmost trouble and a basis for hostility: by contrast, where this isn't the case, habits of peace and harmony exist together without any confusion" (Homiliae In Genesim, 33, 3).