Abram and Lot separate Jordan River Valley

Abram and Lot were successful, nomadic shepherds when they decided to separate near Bethel and Ai, along the spine of the Judean Mountains. It would have been easy for them to have seen the lush Jordan Valley from their rocky point of view. Lot chose the more fertile valley and Abram blessed his nephew’s decision to separate. The only drawback? The godless cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were in the same plain (Genesis 13). Lot’s decision cost him dearly. In time, he was “pitching his tents near Sodom”  (Genesis 13:12) and even living inside the city (Genesis 14:12). Most troubling is the reference that Lot was found “sitting in the gateway of the city” (Genesis 19:1) when two angels made a visit to Sodom. It was common for the elders of a city to have a place in the large city gate, making a place of local governance. By that point, Lot and his family had become an active part of the community. Psalm 1 begins with a warning not to walk with the wicked, stand with sinners, or sit in the company of mockers. Lot did all three, becoming one of the most tragic figures in the Bible.