THE ABRAHAM NARRATIVES

8. AN UNSELFISH PIONEER

The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Terah, a descendant of Shem, was the father of Abraham, Nahor and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot.

And

Now Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity in Ur of the Chaldeans. And both Abraham and Nahor married. The name of Abraham's wife was Sarah, but she had no children. Terah took his son Abraham and his grandson Lot, and Sarah his daughter-in-law, and they set out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they reached Haran they stayed there; and Terah died in Haran.

Then Jehovah said to Abraham, 'Go forth from your country, from your relatives and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation; and I will surely bless you and make your name illustrious, so that you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you, and all the families of the earth shall ask for themselves a blessing like your own.'

So Abraham set out, as Jehovah had commanded him; and Lot went with him. Abraham was seventyfive years old when he left Haran. He took Sarah his wife and Lot his brother's son and all the property that they had acquired in Haran, and started for the land of Canaan.

Then Abraham passed through the land to a place called Shechem, to the oak of Moreh; and the Canaanites were then in that land. Jehovah revealed himself to Abraham and said, "To your descendants will I give this land.' There also he built an altar to Jehovah who had revealed himself to him. From there

he removed to the hill at the east of Bethel and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east, and there too he built an altar to Jehovah and called upon the name of Jehovah.

Now Abraham was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold; Lot also, who went with Abraham, had so many flocks and herds and tents that the land was not fertile enough to support them both. So when there was a quarrel between Lot's herdsmen and Abraham's herdsmen, Abraham said to Lot, 'I beg of you, let there be no quarrel between me and you or between my herdsmen and yours, for we are relatives. Is not the whole land before you? I beg of you, separate yourself from me. If you go to the left, then I will go to the right; or if you go to the right, then I will go to the left."

Then Lot looked about and saw that all the plain of the Jordan was well watered everywhere as far as Zoar (before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah), like a garden of Jehovah. So Lot chose for himself all the valley of the Jordan and went on to the east; thus they separated from one another. Abraham lived in the land of Canaan and Lot lived in the cities of the plain and moved his tent as far as Sodom; but the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinned against Jehovah.

Jehovah said to Abraham, after Lot had separated from him, 'Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are northward, southward, eastward and

westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your descendants forever. I will make your descendants as many as the dust of the earth, so that if a man can count the dust of the earth, then your descendants may also be counted. Rise, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.'

Then Abraham moved his tent and lived in the oak grove of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar to Jehovah.

9. HOSPITALITY TO STRANGERS

Jehovah also appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day; and, as he looked up, three men stood there before him. As soon as he saw them, he ran from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed to the ground and said, 'Sirs, if you are willing to do me a favor, do not, I beg of you, pass by your servant. Since you have come to your servant, let a little water be brought, that you may wash your feet, and lie down under the tree. And let me bring some food, that you may refresh yourselves; afterward you may go on your way.' They replied, 'Do as you have said.'

So Abraham hastened to Sarah's tent and said, 'Make ready quickly four measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.' Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a calf that was tender and good, and gave it to the servant, and he prepared it quickly. Then he took curd and milk, with the calf which he had prepared, and served them; and he waited on them under the tree, while they ate.

Then they said to him, 'Where is your wife?' He said, 'There within the tent.' One of them said, 'I

will surely return to you about nine months from now, and then your wife shall have a son.' But Sarah was listening behind the door of the tent. Now Sarah and Abraham were advanced in years; therefore Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ‘After I and my husband. are so old shall I have pleasure?' But Jehovah said to Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh, saying, "Shall I, indeed, even when I am old give birth to a child?" Is anything too wonderful for Jehovah? At the appointed time about nine months from now, I will return to you and Sarah shall have a son.'

10. THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MORALLY UNFIT

Then the men started from there and looked off in the direction of Sodom; and Abraham went with them to speed them on their way. But Jehovah said, "The complaint has come that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and very heinous. I will go down and see whether they have done exactly as the complaint comes to me; and if they have not, I will know.'

As the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, Abraham remained standing before Jehovah. Then Abraham approached him and said, 'Wilt thou sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are within the city fifty who are righteous; wilt thou sweep away and not forgive the place for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from thee to do this: to slay the righteous with the wicked! And that the righteous should be treated as the wicked, far be it from thee! Shall the Judge of all the earth not do what is just?' Then Jehovah said, 'If I find within the city of Sodom fifty who are righteous, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.' Abraham answered, 'I have ventured to speak to Jehovah, even

though I am but dust and ashes. Suppose there be five lacking of the fifty righteous; wilt thou sweep away all the city for lack of five?' And he said, 'I will not sweep it away, if I find forty-five there.'

Then Abraham spoke to him again, and said, ‘Suppose forty are found there?' He replied, 'For the sake of forty I will not do it.' Then Abraham said, 'Oh, let not Jehovah be angry, but let me speak. Suppose thirty are found there?' He answered, 'I will not do it, if I find thirty there.' Then Abraham said, "Thou seest that I have ventured to speak to Jehovah. Suppose twenty are found there?' He replied, 'For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.' Then Abraham said, 'Oh let not Jehovah be angry, but let me speak once more. Suppose ten are found there?' And he said, 'For the sake of the ten I will not destroy it.'

Two angels in human form came to Sodom in the evening, as Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them he arose to meet them, and he bowed with his face to the earth and said, 'Sirs, turn aside, I beg of you, into your servant's house and spend the night and wash your feet; then you can rise up early and go on your way.' And they said, 'No, we will spend the night in the street.' But he urged them so strongly that they went with him and entered his house; and he made a feast for them and baked bread made without yeast, and they ate.

But before they had lain down, the citizens of Sodom, both young and old, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. And they called out to Lot, 'Where are the men who came in to you to-night? Bring them out to us that we may know them.'

Then Lot went out to them at the entrance of his house, but he shut the door after him. And he said, 'I beg of you, my friends, do not do what is wrong.