Genesis 13:14 - Meaning and Application

Here we have the story of a gracious visit God made to Abram to confirm his promise to him and his descendants. Notice when God renewed and sealed the promise: it was after Lot separated from him. That was after the quarrel ended, and those are best prepared for God’s gracious visits whose spirits are calm, not stirred up by anger. It was also after Abram gave in humbly and unselfishly to Lot for the sake of peace. Then God came to him with this sign of favor. God will more than make up, in spiritual peace, what we give up to keep peace with others.

Abram had willingly offered Lot half his rights, and God then confirmed the whole promise to him. He had also lost the comforting company of his relative, and that left his hands weaker and his heart sad. In that lonely place, God came to him with good and comforting words. Fellowship with God can make up for the loss of friendship with people. Even when our family and friends are far from us, God is still near.

Lot had chosen the rich valley for himself and gone to settle there. God came to Abram so he would not envy Lot or regret his generosity. Instead, God assured him that what he had would belong to him and his heirs forever. Lot may have had the better land in appearance, but Abram had the better title. Lot had a kind of paradise, but Abram had the promise, and time soon showed that Abram truly had the better share. God approved Abram after his dispute with Lot, as the churches later approved Paul after his disagreement with Barnabas (Acts 15:39, Acts 15:40).

God’s promise to Abram included two things: a good land and many descendants to enjoy it. The land was famous above all lands, because it was to be the holy land, the land of Immanuel, meaning “God with us.” God showed Abram the land, as he had promised earlier (Genesis 12:1), and later he showed it to Moses from Mount Pisgah. Lot had lifted up his eyes and looked at the Jordan valley (Genesis 13:10), then went to enjoy what he saw. God told Abram, “Lift up your eyes now, and look, and see your own.” What God shows us is far better and more desirable than anything the world can offer us. Faith gives a richer and lovelier view than sight does. Those who are meant for the heavenly land can sometimes see it ahead of time by faith in this life, because we look at unseen things as real, though still far off.

God also made this land secure to Abram and his seed forever (Genesis 13:15, 17). He said, “To you I will give it,” and repeated the promise again, which strengthened and confirmed it. It was to Abram and his seed, not to Lot and his seed. Lot’s descendants were not meant to inherit this land, so God arranged matters so that Lot would separate from Abram first, and then the promise would be confirmed to Abram and his line. In this way, God often brings good out of evil and uses people’s sins and foolish choices to carry out his own wise and holy plans.

The promise was to Abram and his seed, meaning Abram himself would live there as a stranger, while his descendants would dwell there as owners and rulers. The gift of the land to him and his people forever also points ahead to the heavenly land, which is given to Abram’s spiritual children forever (Hebrews 11:14). God also gave him a kind of public possession of it, though the full enjoyment would come later: “Arise, walk through the land” (Genesis 13:17). In other words, enter it, take it in, and look over its parts, and it will seem better than it did from far away. God is glad to show the heirs of promise how sure his covenant is and how valuable its blessings are. “Walk about Zion” (Psalm 48:12).

God also promised Abram many descendants to fill this good land, so it would never be empty for lack of heirs (Genesis 13:16). “I will make your descendants like the dust of the earth” means they would increase amazingly, until they became a great crowd no one could count. They were that many in Solomon’s time, when Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea in abundance (1 Kings 4:20). This was the promise God gave Abram. The same God who provides the inheritance also provides the heirs. He who prepares the holy land also prepares the holy people for it. He who gives glory also gives grace to make people ready for glory.

When God had confirmed the promise to Abram, Abram responded in two ways (Genesis 13:18). First, he moved his tent. God had told him to walk through the land, which meant, “Do not settle down too soon. Expect to remain a pilgrim and keep moving toward a better land.” In obedience to God, Abram moved his tent and kept himself in the place of a traveler. Second, he built an altar there, as a sign of thanks to God for the gracious visit. When God meets us with promises full of grace, he expects our humble praise in return.