1-2 Abram, Sarai, and Lot left Egypt and went back to the dry country called The Negev with everything they owned. Abram was very rich now, he had a lot of silver and gold and a big mob of animals.

3-4 When they had been in The Negev for a while, they left that dry country and went north. They moved from place to place until they got back to where they had camped between the towns of Bethel and Ai. That was where Abram had built the stone altar to show respect to God. That was where he prayed using the Lord's name.

5 Abram and his nephew Lot were still travelling together. And just like Abram, Lot had a big mob of sheep, goats, cattle and workers with him.

6-7 But there was a problem. Abram and Lot had too many animals for that country to feed. And so the workers that looked after Abram's animals started to fight the workers that looked after Lot's animals. They were fighting about whose animals should get all the grass and water.

The traditional owners of that country were called the Canaanite and Perrizite people and they were still living there.

8 Abram said to Lot, “I don't like this trouble. You and I are close relations, and I do not want any trouble between us. And I don't want our workers arguing and fighting one another. 9 I think we should split up. Take a look at all this country and you will see that there is plenty of room for both of us. I want you to pick which part of the country you want to live in and I will go somewhere else. If you pick the country to the east side, then I will take the country to the west but if you pick the west country, then I will take the country to the east.”

10-12 Lot looked towards a town called Zoar in the plain country that was around the Jordan River.[a] He saw that there was plenty of grass and water. He thought it looked just like God's Garden, and the country in Egypt too. So Lot picked all the plain country to the east, and Abram stayed up in the hill country called Canaan. Lot moved away from Abram and there was no more trouble.

In the plain country around the Jordan River there were a lot of towns, and Abram's nephew made his camp near one of those towns called Sodom. When Lot picked that country next to the Jordan River it was really beautiful. But some time later the Lord blew up the 2 towns called Sodom and Gomorrah. And he burnt all the plain country around them too. 13 You see, the people that lived in Sodom were very bad. They were always going against God and doing bad things all the time.[b]

14 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Look at all the country around you. Look to the north, to the south, to the east and to the west. 15 I am going to give you all the country that you can see. All that country will be for you, your children, your grandchildren and all the families that will come after you. It will be their country forever.[c] 16 Look at the ground you are standing on Abram, there is too much dirt. Your family will be like that dirt, there will be so many people that no one can count them.[d] 17 Abram, get up, walk everywhere and look at all the country that I am giving to you.”

18 So Abram went to live near the Great Trees of Mamre near a town called Hebron. Abram made his camp there, and he built another altar of stones so that he could burn animals to show respect to God.

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