< Genesis 12 >

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, Go out from your country and from your family and from your father's house, into the land to which I will be your guide:
And the Lord said to Abram: Go forth out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and out of thy father’s house, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
2 And I will make of you a great nation, blessing you and making your name great; and you will be a blessing:
And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and magnify thy name, and thou shalt be blessed.
3 To them who are good to you will I give blessing, and on him who does you wrong will I put my curse: and you will become a name of blessing to all the families of the earth.
I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee, and IN THEE shall all the kindred of the earth be blessed:
4 So Abram went as the Lord had said to him, and Lot went with him: Abram was seventy-five years old when he went away from Haran.
So Abram went out as the Lord had commanded him, and Lot went with him: Abram was seventy-five years old when he went forth from Haran.
5 And Abram took Sarai, his wife, and Lot, his brother's son, and all their goods and the servants which they had got in Haran, and they went out to go to the land of Canaan.
And he took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all the substance which they had gathered, and the souls which they had gotten in Haran: and they went out to go into the land of Chanaan. And when they were come into it,
6 And Abram went through the land till he came to Shechem, to the holy tree of Moreh. At that time, the Canaanites were still living in the land.
Abram passed through the country into the place of Sichem, as far as the noble vale: now the Chanaanite was at that time in the land.
7 And the Lord came to Abram, and said, I will give all this land to your seed; then Abram made an altar there to the Lord who had let himself be seen by him.
And the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him: To thy seed will I give this land. And he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
8 And moving on from there to the mountain on the east of Beth-el, he put up his tent, having Beth-el on the west and Ai on the east: and there he made an altar and gave worship to the name of the Lord.
And passing on from thence to a mountain, that was on the east side of Bethel, he there pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east; he built there also an altar to the Lord, and called upon his name.
9 And he went on, journeying still to the South.
And Abram went forward, going, and proceeding on to the south.
10 And because there was little food to be had in that land, he went down into Egypt.
And there came a famine in the country; and Abram went down into Egypt, to sojourn there: for the famine was very grievous in the land.
11 Now when he came near to Egypt, he said to Sarai, his wife, Truly, you are a fair woman and beautiful to the eye;
And when he was near to enter into Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife: I know that thou art a beautiful woman:
12 And I am certain that when the men of Egypt see you, they will say, This is his wife: and they will put me to death and keep you.
And that when the Egyptians shall see thee, they will say: She is his wife: and they will kill me, and keep thee.
13 Say, then, that you are my sister, and so it will be well with me because of you, and my life will be kept safe on your account.
Say, therefore, I pray thee, that thou art my sister: that I may be well used for thee, and that my soul may live for thy sake.
14 And so it was that when Abram came into Egypt, the men of Egypt, looking on the woman, saw that she was fair.
And when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians saw the woman that she was very beautiful.
15 And Pharaoh's great men, having seen her, said words in praise of her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into Pharaoh's house.
And the princes told Pharao, and praised her before him: and the woman was taken into the house of Pharao.
16 And because of her, he was good to Abram, and he had sheep and oxen and asses, and men-servants and women-servants, and camels.
And they used Abram well for her sake. And he had sheep and oxen, and he asses, and men servants and maid servants, and she asses, and camels.
17 And the Lord sent great troubles on Pharaoh's house because of Sarai, Abram's wife.
But the Lord scourged Pharao and his house with most grievous stripes for Sarai, Abram’s wife.
18 Then Pharaoh sent for Abram, and said, What have you done to me? why did you not say that she was your wife?
And Pharao called Abram, and said to him: What is this that thou hast done to me? Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?
19 Why did you say that she was your sister? so that I took her for my wife: now, take your wife and go on your way.
For what cause didst thou say, she was thy sister, that I might take her to my wife? Now, therefore, there is thy wife, take her, and go thy way.
20 And Pharaoh gave orders to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and all he had.
And Pharao gave his men orders concerning Abram: and they led him away, and his wife, and all that he had.

< Genesis 12 >