Gen 12-17 | NASB2020 | STEP | Now the Lord said to Abram , “ Go from your country , And from your relatives And from your father’s house , To the land which I will show you;

Genesis 12

Abram Journeys to Egypt

1 Now ^athe Lord said to Abram,
“Go from your country,
And from your relatives
And from your father’s house,
To the land which I will show you;
2 And ^bI will make you into a great nation,
And ^cI will bless you,
And make your name great;
And you shall ^dbe a blessing;
3 And ^eI will bless those who bless you,
And the one who ^{▼▼Or reviles}curses you I will ^{▼▼Or bind under a curse}curse.
^hAnd in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

4 So Abram went away as the Lord had spoken to him; and ⁱLot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their ^jpossessions which they had accumulated, and ^kthe ^{▼▼Lit souls}people which they had acquired in Haran, and they ^{▼▼Lit went forth to go to}set out for the land of Canaan; ⁿso they came to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram passed through the land as far as the site of ^oShechem, to the ^{▼▼Or terebinth}oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanites were in the land at that time. 7 And the Lord ^qappeared to Abram and said, “ ^rTo your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants I will give this land.” So he built ^tan altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. 8 Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with ^uBethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and ^vcalled upon the name of the Lord. 9 Then Abram journeyed on, continuing toward ^wthe ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev.

10 Now there was ^ya famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a time, because the famine was ^zsevere in the land. 11 It came about, when he ^{▼▼Lit came near to enter}was approaching Egypt, that he said to his wife Sarai, “See now, I know that you are a ^{▼▼Lit woman of beautiful appearance
,} ^acbeautiful woman; 12 ^adand when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife’; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Please say that you are ^aemy sister so that it may go well for me because of you, and that ^{▼▼Lit my soul
,} ^agI may live on account of you.” 14 Now it came about, when Abram entered Egypt, that the Egyptians ^{▼▼Lit saw the woman that she was}saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh; and ^aithe woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. 16 Therefore ^ajhe treated Abram well for her sake; and ^{▼▼Lit there was to him
,} ^alhe gave him sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants and female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

17 But the Lord ^amstruck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 Then Pharaoh called Abram and said, “ ^anWhat is this that you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for myself as a wife? Now then, ^{▼▼Or behold}here is your wife, take her and go!” 20 And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they ^{▼▼Lit sent}escorted him away, with his wife and all that belonged to him.

Genesis 13

Abram and Lot

1 So Abram went up from Egypt to ^aqthe ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him.

2 Now Abram was ^asvery rich in livestock, silver, and gold. 3 And he went ^{▼▼Lit by his stages}on his journeys from the ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, ^avbetween Bethel and Ai, 4 to the place of the ^awaltar which he had made there previously; and there Abram called on the name of the Lord. 5 Now ^axLot, who went with Abram, also had flocks, herds, and tents. 6 And ^aythe land could not ^{▼▼Lit bear}support both of them ^{▼▼Lit to live}while living together, ^bbfor their possessions were so great that they were not able to remain together. 7 ^bcAnd there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. Now ^bdthe Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land at that time.

8 ^beSo Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are relatives! 9 Is the entire land not before you? Please separate from me; if you choose the left, then I will go to the right; or if you choose the right, then I will go to the left.” 10 Lot raised his eyes and saw all the ^{▼▼Lit circle}vicinity of the ^bgJordan, that it was well watered everywhere--this was before the Lord ^bhdestroyed Sodom and Gomorrah--like ^bithe garden of the Lord, ^bjlike the land of Egypt ^{▼▼Lit as you go}going toward ^blZoar. 11 So Lot chose for himself all the ^{▼▼Lit circle}vicinity of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. So they separated from each other. 12 Abram ^{▼▼Lit dwelt}settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot ^{▼▼Lit dwelt}settled in ^bpthe cities of the ^{▼▼Lit circle}vicinity of the Jordan, and moved his tents as far as Sodom. 13 Now ^brthe men of Sodom were ^{▼▼Lit wicked and sinners exceedingly}exceedingly wicked ^btsinners against the Lord.

14 The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “ ^buNow raise your eyes and look from the place where you are, ^bvnorthward and southward, and eastward and westward; 15 ^bwfor all the land which you see ^bxI will give to you and to your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants forever. 16 I will make your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants ^caas plentiful as the dust of the earth, so that if anyone can count the dust of the earth, then your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants could also be counted. 17 Arise, ^ccwalk about in the land through its length and width; for ^cdI will give it to you.” 18 Then Abram moved his tent and came and lived by the ^{▼▼Or terebinths
,} ^cfoaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron; and there he built ^cgan altar to the Lord.

Genesis 14

War of the Kings

1 And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of ^chShinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of ^ciElam, and Tidal king of ^{▼▼Or nations}Goiim, 2 that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of ^ckAdmah, and Shemeber king of ^clZeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, ^cmZoar). 3 All these kings ^{▼▼Lit joined together}came as allies to ^cothe Valley of Siddim (that is, ^cpthe Salt Sea). 4 For twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. 5 And in the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and ^{▼▼Lit struck}defeated the ^crRephaim in ^csAshteroth-karnaim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in ^{▼▼Or the plain of Kiriathaim
,} ^cuShaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the ^cvHorites on their Mount Seir, as far as ^cwEl-paran, which is by the wilderness. 7 Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, ^cxKadesh), and ^{▼▼Lit struck}conquered all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, who lived in ^czHazazon-tamar. 8 And the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) came out; and they lined up for battle against them in ^dathe Valley of Siddim, 9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of ^{▼▼Or nations}Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar --four kings against five. 10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and ^dcthe kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they fell ^{▼▼Lit there}into them. But those who survived fled to the ^dehill country. 11 Then they took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply, and departed. 12 They also took Lot, ^dfAbram’s nephew, and his possessions and departed, ^dgfor he was living in Sodom.

13 Then ^{▼▼Lit the}a survivor came and told Abram the ^diHebrew. Now he was residing by the ^{▼▼Or terebinths
,} ^dkoaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner, and they were ^{▼▼Lit possessors of the covenant
,} ^dmallies with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that ^dnhis relative had been taken captive, he ^{▼▼Or mustered}led out his trained men, ^dpborn in his house, numbering 318, and went in pursuit as far as ^dqDan. 15 Then ^drhe divided ^{▼▼Lit himself}his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and ^{▼▼Lit struck}defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is ^{▼▼Lit on the left}north of ^dvDamascus. 16 He ^dwbrought back all the possessions, and also brought back ^dxhis relative Lot with his possessions, and also the women, and the other people.

God’s Promise to Abram

17 Then after his return from the ^{▼▼Lit striking}defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, ^dzthe king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, ^eathe King’s Valley). 18 And ^ebMelchizedek the king of Salem brought out ^ecbread and wine; now he was a ^edpriest of ^{▼▼Heb El Elyon}God Most High. 19 And he blessed him and said,
“Blessed be Abram of ^{▼▼Heb El Elyon}God Most High,
^{▼▼Or Creator
,} ^ehPossessor of heaven and earth;
20 And blessed be ^{▼▼Heb El Elyon}God Most High,
Who has handed over your enemies to you.”

And ^ejhe gave him a tenth of everything. 21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give the ^{▼▼Lit soul}people to me and take the possessions for yourself.” 22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have ^{▼▼Lit lifted up my hand}sworn to the Lord ^{▼▼Heb El Elyon
,} ^enGod Most High, ^{▼▼Or Creator
,} ^epPossessor of heaven and earth, 23 that ^eqI will not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, so that you do not say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ 24 ^{▼▼Lit Not to me except}I will take nothing except what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, ^esAner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their share.”

Genesis 15

Abram Promised a Son

1 After these things ^etthe word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying,
“ ^euDo not fear, Abram,
I am ^eva shield to you;
^{▼▼Or Your very great reward}Your ^exreward shall be very great.”

2 But Abram said, “Lord ^{▼▼Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord}God, what will You give me, since I ^{▼▼Lit go}am childless, and the ^{▼▼Lit son of acquisition}heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Abram also said, “ ^{▼▼Lit Behold}Since You have given me no ^{▼▼Lit seed}son, ^{▼▼Lit then behold, a son of my}one who has been ^feborn in my house is my heir.” 4 Then behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; ^ffbut one who will come from your own ^{▼▼Lit inward parts}body shall be your heir.” 5 And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens and ^fhcount the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “ ^fiSo shall your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants be.” 6 ^fkThen he believed in the Lord; and He ^{▼▼Or imputed}credited it to him as righteousness. 7 And He said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of ^fmUr of the Chaldeans, to ^fngive you this land to ^{▼▼Or inherit}possess it.” 8 But he said, “Lord ^{▼▼Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord}God, ^fqhow may I know that I will ^{▼▼Or inherit}possess it?” 9 So He said to him, “ ^{▼▼Lit Take}Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 Then he ^{▼▼Lit took}brought all these to Him and ^fucut them ^{▼▼Lit in the midst}in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he ^fwdid not cut the birds. 11 And birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

12 Now when the sun was going down, ^fxa deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, ^{▼▼Or a terror of great darkness}terror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then God said to Abram, “Know for certain that ^fzyour ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, ^{▼▼Lit and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them}where ^gcthey will be enslaved and oppressed for ^gdfour hundred years. 14 But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out ^gewith ^{▼▼Lit great}many possessions. 15 As for you, ^ggyou shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. 16 Then in ^ghthe fourth generation they will return here, for ^githe wrongdoing of the Amorite is not yet complete.”

17 Now it came about, when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, a smoking oven and a flaming torch appeared which ^gjpassed between these pieces. 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying,
“ ^gkTo your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants I have given this land,
From ^gmthe river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:

19 ^gnthe land of the Kenite, the Kenizzite, the Kadmonite, 20 the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Girgashite, and the Jebusite.”

Genesis 16

Sarai and Hagar

1 Now ^goSarai, Abram’s wife, had not borne him a child, but she had ^gpan Egyptian slave woman whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. ^gqPlease have relations with my slave woman; perhaps I will ^{▼▼Lit be built from her}obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 And so after Abram had lived ^gsten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her slave woman, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 4 Then he had relations with Hagar, and she conceived; and when Hagar became aware that she had conceived, her mistress was insignificant in her sight. 5 So Sarai said to Abram, “ ^gtMay the wrong done to me be upon you! I put my slave woman into your ^{▼▼Lit breast}arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was insignificant in her ^{▼▼Lit eyes}sight. ^gwMay the Lord judge between ^{▼▼Lit me and you}you and me.” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Look, your slave woman is in your ^{▼▼Lit hand}power; do to her what is good in your ^{▼▼Lit eyes}sight.” So Sarai treated her harshly, and ^hashe fled from her presence.

7 Now ^hbthe angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to ^hcShur. 8 He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s slave woman, ^hdfrom where have you come, and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” 9 So the angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit ^{▼▼Lit under her hands}to her authority.” 10 The ^hfangel of the Lord also said to her, “ ^hgI will greatly multiply your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants so that ^{▼▼Lit they shall not be counted for multitude}they will be too many to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord said to her further,
“Behold, you are pregnant,
And you will give birth to a son;
And you shall name him ^{▼▼I.e., God hears}Ishmael,
Because ^hkthe Lord has heard your affliction.
12 “But he will be a ^hlwild donkey of a man;
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will live ^{▼▼Lit before the face of; or opposite
,} ^hnin defiance of all his brothers.”

13 Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “ ^{▼▼Or You, God, see me}You are ^{▼▼Heb Elroi}a God who sees me”; for she said, “ ^hqHave I even seen Him here and lived after ^{▼▼Lit His seeing me}He saw me?” 14 Therefore the well was called ^{▼▼I.e., the well of the living one who sees me}Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between ^htKadesh and Bered.

15 So Hagar bore a son to Abram; and Abram named his son, to whom Hagar gave birth, Ishmael. 16 Abram was ^hueighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to ^{▼▼Lit Abram}him.

Genesis 17

Abraham and the Covenant of Circumcision

1 Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, ^hwthe Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,
“I am ^{▼▼Heb El Shaddai}God ^hyAlmighty;
Walk before Me, and be ^{▼▼Lit complete, perfect; or having integrity
,} ^iablameless.
2 “I will ^{▼▼Lit give}make My ^iccovenant between Me and you,
And I will ^idmultiply you exceedingly.”

3 Abram ^iefell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you,
And you will be the father of a ^ifmultitude of nations.
5 “No longer shall you be named ^{▼▼I.e., exalted father}Abram,
But ^ihyour name shall be ^{▼▼I.e., father of a multitude}Abraham;
For ^ijI have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and ^ikkings will come from you. 7 I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after you throughout their generations as an ^imeverlasting covenant, ⁱⁿto be God to you and ^ioto your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after you. 8 And ^iqI will give to you and to your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after you the land where you live as a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and ^isI will be their God.”

9 God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, ^ityou shall keep My covenant, you and your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 ^ivThis is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 And ^ixyou shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 And every male among you who is ^iyeight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, including a slave who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants. 13 A slave who is born in your house or ^jawho is bought with your money shall certainly be circumcised; so My covenant shall be in your flesh as an everlasting covenant. 14 But as for an uncircumcised male, one who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be ^jbcut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”

15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for your wife Sarai, you shall not call her by the name ^{▼▼I.e., princess}Sarai, but ^{▼▼I.e., princess (in another dialect)}Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and indeed I will give you ^jea son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; ^jfkings of peoples will ^{▼▼Lit be}come from her.” 17 Then Abraham ^jhfell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to a man a hundred years old? And ^jiwill Sarah, who is ninety years old, give birth to a child?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!” 19 But God said, “No, but your wife Sarah will bear you ^jja son, and you shall name him ^{▼▼I.e., he laughs}Isaac; and ^jlI will establish My covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants after him. 20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless him, and ^jnmake him fruitful and multiply him exceedingly. ^joHe shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a ^jpgreat nation. 21 But I will establish My covenant with ^jqIsaac, whom ^jrSarah will bear to you at this season next year.” 22 When He finished talking with him, ^jsGod went up from Abraham.

23 Then Abraham took his son Ishmael, and all the slaves who were ^jtborn in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s household, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin on this very same day, ^juas God had said to him. 24 Now Abraham was ninety-nine years old when ^jvhe was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25 And his son ^jwIshmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26 On this very same day Abraham was circumcised, as well as his son Ishmael. 27 And all the men of his household, those who were ^jxborn in the house or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.