Bible Strands
Genesis 14:23
that I will not accept even a thread, or a strap of a sandal, or anything that belongs to you, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Abram addresses the king of Sodom after his military victory, directly following his oath to the LORD God Most High in verse 22. He explicitly refuses any material compensation to prevent the king from claiming credit for his wealth.
The words — The Hebrew terms חוּט (chut, "thread") and שְׂרֽוֹךְ נַעַל (s'rokh na'al, "strap of a sandal") denote the absolute minimum of value Abram will reject. These terms frame his refusal to take even the smallest portion of the king’s goods.
The thread — This refusal to accept payment mirrors Elisha’s rejection of Naaman’s gifts in 2 Kings 5:16 and Paul’s insistence that he was not a burden to the Corinthian believers in 2 Corinthians 11:9. The text stands in contrast to Esther 9:15, where the Jews fight again rather than settle for a partial outcome.
Why it lands — The verse requires that service to God remain uncompromised by the pursuit of human reward. It demands that readers reject any arrangement that shifts credit for provision away from God.
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
That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 5:16 But Elisha replied, “As surely as the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And although Naaman urged him to accept it, he refused.
- 2 Corinthians 11:9 And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so.
- Esther 9:15 On the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, the Jews in Susa came together again and put to death three hundred men there, but they did not lay a hand on the plunder.
- Hebrews 13:5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”
- 1 Kings 13:8 But the man of God replied, “If you were to give me half your possessions, I still would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water in this place.
- 2 Kings 5:20 Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared this Aramean, Naaman, by not accepting what he brought. As surely as the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him.”
- 2 Corinthians 12:14 See, I am ready to come to you a third time, and I will not be a burden, because I am not seeking your possessions, but you. For children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.