Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the vicinity of the Jordan, and moved his tents as far as Sodom.
Parallel translations
- WEB Abram lived in the land of Canaan, and Lot lived in the cities of the plain, and moved his tent as far as Sodom.
- KJV Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.
- BSB Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot settled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent toward Sodom.
- NKJV Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent even as far as Sodom.
- NLT So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Abram stayed in Canaan while Lot settled toward Sodom. Lot's move edges him ever nearer to wickedness.
Overview
The verse contrasts Abram, who remains in the land of promise, with Lot, who pitches his tent toward Sodom. The detail foreshadows Lot's later residence in that doomed city and the trouble it brings him. Proximity to sin, chosen for worldly gain, proves spiritually costly.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Gen 19:29When God destroyed the cities of the plain, God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the middle of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot lived.
- Gen 19:1The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
- Gen 14:12They took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who lived in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.
- 2 Pet 2:7–8and delivered righteous Lot, who was very distressed by the lustful life of the wicked
- Ps 26:5I hate the assembly of evildoers, and will not sit with the wicked.
- Gen 19:25He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground.
- 1 Cor 15:33Don’t be deceived! “Evil companionships corrupt good morals.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 13:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.