Commentary on Genesis, Chapter 13
CHAP. XIII.
Ver. 1. INto the South.] Into the Southern part of Canaan, where he had been before, XII. 9.
Ver. 2. Very rich, &c.] His Riches were increaſed ſince he went into Egypt, by the Bounty of Pharaoh, XII. 16. And, (if we could believe Joſephus, L. I. Antiq. c. 8.) by the Rewards he had for teaching them ſeveral Pieces of Learning, which he brought out of Chaldaea. The Author of Schalſch. Hakkab. quotes Euſebius his Praepar. Evang. L. IX. c. 4. to prove this. And indeed, I find Euſebius quoting Joſephus in the XVI Chapter of that Book; who ſays he taught Arithmetick and Aſtrology, of which the Egyptians were ignorant before: And in the XVIIth Chapter Eupolemus, who ſays that Abram was familiarly converſant with the Egyptian Prieſts at Heliopolis, (when he went thither by reaſon of the Famine in Canaan) and taught them many things; particularly the Coeleſtial Sciences; which he calls Aſtrology, i. e. the knowledge of the Stars.
Ver. 3. Ʋnto Bethel, &c.] Which was the ſecond Place wherein he dwelt, after his firſt entrance into Canaan, XII. 8.
Ver. 4. Ʋnto the place of the Altar, &c.] This ſeems to intimate that the Altar it ſelf, was either faln or thrown down. Some think demoliſhed by Abram himſelf, when he left the place; others by the Canaanites when he was gone.
And there Abram called on the Name of the LORD.] Commended himſelf, and all he had to God's Protection: Who had promiſed to beſtow this Country upon him. Perhaps he built the Altar again, and offered Sacrifice thereon.
Ver. 5. And Lot alſo, &c.] God had bleſſed him likewiſe as a faithful Companion of Abraham in his Travels; and partaker alſo of his Faith.
Ver. 6. The Land was not able to bear them, &c.] There was not ſufficient Paſturage for them both, in that part of the Country.
Ver. 7. And there was a ſtrife, &c.] Wealth commonly breeds Contentions. Yet here was no difference between the Maſters; but between their Servants: Each endeavouring to get the beſt Paſtures, and the beſt watering places for their Flocks.
And the Canaanite and the Perizzite, &c.] This part of the Country, was inhabited by the People, peculiarly called Canaanites, and by the Perizzites, (a very rugged and barbarous Nation. See XV. 20.) among whom Contention would have been dangerous, at leaſt very ſcandalous.
Ver. 8. Abram ſaid to Lot.] The beſt, the wiſeſt, and Men of greateſt Experience in the World, are moſt inclined to Peace; and moſt yielding in order to it.
Let there be no ſtrife between me and thee.] There had been none yet; but their Servants Quarrel, might have proved theirs at laſt.
And between my herds-men, &c.] And here, ſignifies or: As XIX. 12. Exod. XII. 5.
For we are Brethren.] Near Kinſmen, whom the Hebrews call Brethren.
Ver. 9. Is not the Land before thee, &c. J There is room enough, though not here, yet in other parts of the Country: Now, ſince we cannot remain together, take thy choice which way thou wilt go, &c. A wonderful Condeſcention in Abram, to let the younger, and leaſt in Eſtate, pleaſe himſelf. And he did not deſire Lot to leave the Country, but only to ſettle himſelf in what part of it he liked beſt; that he might be near to help him, as he did afterwards.
Ver. 10. Beheld all the Plain of Jordan, &c.] A fruitful and pleaſant Country, well watered by the Streams of Jordan: Which in many windings and turnings run through it, and at ſome times overflowed it; which made the Ground very rich. And therefore Moſes compares this Plain to the Garden of Eden, (as moſt underſtand thoſe words, the Garden of the LORD,) which was well watered by a River running through it: And to the Land of Egypt; which is fatned by the overflowing of Nile, as this was by the overflowing of Jordan.
As thou comeſt to Zoar.] Theſe words are not to be referred to the Land of Egypt, immediately foregoing, (from which Zoar was at a great diſtance,) but to thoſe words in the beginning, a Plain well watered every where; even to the utmoſt Skirts of it, which was Zoar.
Ver. 11. And Lot choſe him all the Plain of Jordan.] He was invited by the richneſs of the Soil; without regard to the Manners of the People: Which proved afterwards a great Affliction to him.
And Lot journeyed Eaſt.] For the Plain of Jordan lay Eaſt from Bethel, where they now were.
Ver. 12. And Abram dwelt in the Land of Canaan, &c.] In that part of the Country, where the People peculiarly called Canaanites (Verſe 7. and XII. 6.) were ſeated: Otherwiſe, if the Land of Canaan be taken largely, the Plain of Jordan was alſo a part of it.
Ver. 13. The Men of Sodom were wicked, &c.] Their Sins were grown ripe for Puniſhment; having been brought (as it were) before the LORD; and ſentenced at his Tribunal, to the Judgment which ſhortly after befell them.
Ver. 14. And the LORD ſaid unto Abram, &c.] It is likely the LORD appeared again to him, (as he had done formerly, XII. 7.) after Lot was ſeparated from him: Both to comfort him in his abſence, by renewing his Promiſe in larger words; and to aſſure him that his Poſterity, not Lot's, ſhould inherit this Country.
Lift up thine Eyes, &c.] He dwelt now, it is likely, upon the Mountain, which was on the Eaſt of Bethel, (where he pitched his Tent before he went into Egypt, XII. 8. and returned to it when he came from thence, Verſe 3, 4. of this Chapter,) which gave him the advantage of a fair and long proſpect of the Country every way.
Ver. 15. For all the Land thou ſeeſt, &c.] That whole Country, ſome Parts of which he ſaw a great way, in every Quarter of it, and all the reſt contiguous to them, were hereby aſſured to him.
For ever.] It doth not ſignifie ſtrictly Time without end: But a very long Period. The Jews indeed ſay that this word Olam, when it is written full, as they ſpeak; that is, with Vau, denotes Eternity; though without Vau they confeſs it ſignifies only a long time. But this ſmall Obſervation is quite overthrown by many Examples to the contrary. For, Exod. XV. 18. where the Lord is ſaid to reign for ever, this word Olam is without a Vau, and yet denotes Eternity. And Deut. XV. 17. where it is ſaid, he ſhall be thy Servant for ever, it is written with a Vau, and yet denotes only a term of fifty Years at the moſt.
Ver. 16. I will make thy Seed, as the Duſt of the Earth, &c.] More than could be contained in that Land.
Ver. 17. Ariſe, walk through the Land, &c.] He would have him, for his ſatisfaction, go and view it all more nearly, in every part of it. Or, he gives him leave (if he deſired to underſtand more fully, both the Quality and Quantity of the Inheritance he beſtowed on him) to go and ſurvey it: Promiſing he would protect and preſerve him in his perambulation. Nay, ſome look upon this, as giving him a Warrant to take poſſeſſion of the Country, though he ſhould not yet enjoy it.
Ver. 18. Then Abram removed his Tent.] To a place about twenty four Miles from Bethel, where he was before.
And dwelt in the Plain.] Here the word we had before XII. 6 is in the Plural Number; and is taken by many for Oaks, i. e. for an Oaken Grove: So the Arabick Interpreter. The LXX tranſlate it, foreign, by the Oak, in the Singular Number; for there ſeems to have been one Oak more eminent than the reſt. Under which Abram pitched his Tent, and built an Altar unto the LORD.
This is confirmed by XVIII. 1. compared with Verſe 8. And indeed the Ancients very much reverenced an Oak, and therefore planted this Tree very frequently. Jacob buried the Idolatrous Trumpery of his Family under an Oak, (XXXV. 4.) which was by Schechem, where the place of Publick Worſhip ſeems to have been fix'd in Joſhua's time, Joſh. XXIV. 1, 26. The Angel of the LORD alſo appeared to Gideon under an Oak, Judg. VI. 11, 19, 25. IX. 6. And of all other Trees, an Oak was held moſt Sacred by the Heathen; particularly by the Druids. See Pliny, L. XVI. c. 44. Max. Tyrius, Diſſert. 34. And Pauſanias in his Account of Arcadia ſays, the Ancients made the Images of their Gods of Oak, being the moſt durable Wood.
This Oak ſome fanſie was in being in the time of Conſtantine, and there was great reſort to it. See Sozomen, L. II. cap. 4. Here Abram dwelt a long time, and many great things paſſed here, before he removed to any other place.
Mamre.] Was the Name of a Man among the Amorites, as appears from the next Chapter, verſe 13.
Which is in Hebron.] Or, rather, by or near Hebron, (for ſo the Particle Beth is often uſed,) which was a very ancient City, built ſeven Years before Zoar, i. e. the famous City of Tanis in Egypt, Numb. XIII. 22. It was called Arba, or Kirjath-Arba at the firſt, XXIII. 2. but in Moſes his time, Hebron. There are thoſe indeed who ſay it was not called Hebron till the time of Joſhua, who gave it to Caleb for his Portion, Joſh. XV. 13, 15. And thence conclude this Paſſage was not wrote by Moſes, but put in by ſome other Hand, after his time. But I ſee not the leaſt proof of this Aſſertion, that Caleb was the firſt who gave it this Name. His Grand-Son, mentioned 1 Chron. II. 42, 43. may rather be thought to have taken his Name from this Place, than to have given a Name to it. Beſides, there have been two Occaſions of giving one and the ſame Name; as appears by what is ſaid of Beerſheba, XXI. 31. XXVI. 33. And therefore this City might have the Name of Hebron in Moſes his time; and it might be confirmed in Joſhua's.