Bible Strands
Genesis 14:22
But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Abram speaks to the king of Sodom immediately after the monarch offers him the captured goods while demanding only the people back. The exchange occurs at the precise moment of negotiating the spoils of the battle against the allied kings.
The words — The phrase הֲרִימֹתִי יָדִי (ha.ri.Mo.ti ya.D/i) translates literally as “I have raised my hand.” This idiom functions as a binding oath formula, establishing a solemn commitment before God.
The thread — The gesture of raising a hand toward heaven appears in Daniel 12:7 and Deuteronomy 32:40 as a declaration of divine authority or oath. Exodus 6:8 connects the act to God’s sworn promise to give the land to the patriarchs.
Why it lands — The text demands a clear boundary between divine provision and human profit, preventing the king of Sodom from claiming credit for Abram’s wealth. A reader must recognize that accepting payment would compromise the acknowledgment of God as the sole source of blessing.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
Cross-references
- Daniel 12:7 And the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by Him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, and times, and half a time. When the power of the holy people has finally been shattered, all these things will be completed.”
- Exodus 6:8 And I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD!’”
- Deuteronomy 32:40 For I lift up My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever,
- Judges 11:35 As soon as Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have brought me to my knees! You have brought great misery upon me, for I have given my word to the LORD and cannot take it back.”
- Psalms 24:1 A Psalm of David. The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein.
- Psalms 83:18 May they know that You alone, whose name is the LORD, are Most High over all the earth.
- Daniel 4:34 But at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up to heaven, and my sanity was restored to me. Then I praised the Most High, and I honored and glorified Him who lives forever: “For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
- Revelation 10:5 Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to heaven.
- Genesis 14:19 and he blessed Abram and said: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
- Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty. Walk before Me and be blameless.