When Abraham and Lot separated Lot chose to live in Sodom due to it being a place of wealth. He thought that the evil people there would not affect him. He was wrong. This is a lesson to all of us that who are neighbors are will affect our moral behavior.

Dvar Torah – Parshat Lech Lecha

Abraham and Lot: The Importance of Choosing Good Neighbors

Good morning. And now for a quick Dvar Torah.

In this week’s parsha, Lech Lecha, we read about the separation of Abraham and his nephew Lot.

Now, why did they separate?

Both Abraham and Lot were wealthy men. They owned large flocks of sheep and cattle, which were major sources of wealth in those days. But there was a problem. Their shepherds were constantly quarreling.

According to Rashi, the dispute concerned where their animals were allowed to graze.

Lot’s shepherds reasoned that God had promised the land to Abraham. Abraham had no children, so naturally Lot would eventually inherit everything. Therefore, why shouldn’t their sheep graze wherever they wanted? After all, the land would eventually belong to Lot anyway.

Abraham’s shepherds had a very different attitude. The land did not yet belong to Abraham. It belonged to other people, and allowing their sheep to graze on somebody else’s property was stealing.

Abraham understood that this situation could not continue. Rather than allow the disagreement to develop into a major conflict, he suggested that they separate.

He told Lot, in effect, “Look, we’re family. There’s no reason for us to fight. You go in one direction, and I’ll go in the other. There’s enough land for both of us.”

And Abraham generously allowed Lot to choose first.

Now, Lot looked around and saw the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley, near Sodom. The land was well-watered and extremely productive. For a man whose wealth depended on livestock, it was an ideal location.

But there was one major problem.

The people of Sodom were wicked.

The Torah tells us this explicitly. They were evil people who sinned greatly against God.

Lot knew what kind of people lived there, but he made his decision based on economics. He was interested in wealth, in prosperity, in increasing his possessions.

And here we see a fundamental difference between Abraham and Lot.

Lot was willing to sacrifice good neighbors for wealth. Abraham was willing to sacrifice wealth for the sake of doing what was right.

Now, what’s particularly interesting is what happens to Lot afterward.

At first, the Torah tells us that Lot pitched his tents near Sodom. He wasn’t actually living in the city. He was outside it.

Later, we find Lot living in Sodom itself.

And eventually, when the angels arrive to destroy the city, where do they find Lot?

Sitting at the gate of Sodom.

In the ancient world, the city gate was where the leaders and judges conducted public business. Lot had become an important member of the community.

Notice the progression.

First, he lives near Sodom. Then he moves into Sodom. Finally, he becomes part of its leadership.

He had gone there for economic opportunity, but gradually he became involved in the society around him.

And that’s an important lesson.

We are influenced by the people with whom we associate.

We like to think that we’re completely independent, that we make our own decisions, and that the behavior of the people around us doesn’t affect us.

But that’s simply not true.

Our neighbors influence us. Our friends influence us. The society in which we live influences the way we think and behave.

Of course, we can also influence our neighbors. But we have to recognize that influence works in both directions.

This is why, when people look for a place to live, they should consider more than the size of the house, the value of the property, or the economic opportunities.

They should ask: What kind of people live here? What values do they have? Is this a community of honest, decent, hardworking people?

Because the values of the community will eventually affect the values of the individual.

And we see another interesting contrast between Abraham and Lot later in the parsha.

When Lot is captured during the war of the four kings against the five kings, Abraham goes to rescue him.

Abraham could have said, “Lot made his choice. He wanted to live in Sodom. Let him deal with the consequences.”

But Abraham doesn’t do that.

Lot is his nephew. He’s family. And Abraham has a moral responsibility to help him.

So Abraham goes to war, defeats the forces that captured Lot, and rescues him.

And afterward, when the king of Sodom offers Abraham the spoils of war, Abraham refuses.

He says that he will not take even a thread or a shoelace, lest the king of Sodom say, “I made Abraham rich.”

Think about that.

Abraham had risked his life and the lives of his men. In the ancient world, taking the spoils of war was perfectly normal.

But Abraham wasn’t interested in enriching himself.

He had fought because it was the right thing to do. He had fought to save his nephew.

And that was something the society of Sodom, with its emphasis on wealth and possessions, could hardly appreciate.

There’s an interesting observation we can make about our own society.

Consider the difference between the 1930s and the 1960s and 1970s.

During the Great Depression, millions of Americans were desperately poor. Unemployment was widespread. People struggled simply to put food on the table.

Yet in later decades, when American society was considerably wealthier, violent crime rose dramatically.

Now, obviously, crime has many causes, and we shouldn’t romanticize the 1930s, which certainly had serious crime problems of their own.

But the comparison raises an important question.

Does greater wealth necessarily produce a better society?

The answer is no.

A society can become richer without becoming more moral. Economic prosperity does not automatically create honesty, decency, or respect for others.

And that brings us back to Abraham and Lot.

Lot chose his neighborhood because of its wealth. Abraham made his decisions according to moral principles.

Lot became increasingly entangled in the society of Sodom. Abraham maintained his independence and his values.

The lesson for us is very simple.

When we choose where to live, whom to associate with, and what kind of community we want to belong to, we should never look only at material advantages.

We must also look at the character of the people around us.

Because ultimately, the wealth of a community is not measured only by how much money its people possess, but by the values according to which they live.

And that is one of the great lessons of Abraham and Lot.