Week of October 18, 2026
This Week in Sacred Scripture
GENESIS CHAPTERS 12, 13 AND 14
The Call of Abram, the Life of Faith, and the Priesthood of Melchisedech
(We are using the Douay-Rheims translation of the Bible in this study)
The Bishop’s Teaching
Last week, we considered God’s covenant with Noe, the growth of the nations, and the pride of Babel. We saw that mankind’s strength could not establish a lasting unity apart from obedience to God. Yet the confusion of the nations did not bring God’s saving purpose to an end. The genealogy brought us to Abram.
Genesis 12, 13 and 14 now direct our attention to this patriarch. God calls him to leave his country and promises that through him all the kindred of the earth shall be blessed. Abram obeys, builds altars, endures trials, and learns to live in dependence upon the Lord.
We also encounter the separation of Abram and Lot, the dangers surrounding Sodom, and Abram’s rescue of his kinsman. Finally, Melchisedech, king of Salem and priest of the most high God, brings forth bread and wine and blesses Abram.
These chapters prepare us to understand the promises fulfilled in Jesus Christ and the sacrifice offered upon our altars. Let us read them with faith, asking God to teach us obedience, detachment, charity, and reverence.
- READ
This week I ask you to read Genesis 12, 13 and 14 slowly. Follow Abram’s journeys, but also notice his acts of worship, his treatment of others, and his response to God’s promises.
Genesis 12 begins with a command: “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” (Genesis 12:1).
God calls Abram to entrust his future to Him. Remember that Sarai has no children. The promise of a great nation must be received in faith before its fulfillment can be seen.
Notice also the breadth of the promise: “In thee shall all the kindred of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). God’s choice of Abram prepares a blessing extending to the nations.
Abram goes forth as commanded. At Sichem, the Lord promises the land to his descendants, and Abram builds an altar. Near Bethel, he again builds an altar and calls upon the Lord. His journey is marked by worship.
Then a grievous famine comes. Obedience has brought Abram into the land, but it has not removed hardship. God’s promises must sustain him through trial.
Read the account in Egypt carefully. Abram fears that the Egyptians will kill him because of Sarai’s beauty, and he asks her to speak of their kinship.
The traditional Douay-Rheims annotation explains that calling her his sister was consistent with the Hebrew use of kinship terms. St. Augustine likewise defends Abram against the accusation of lying and understands Sarai’s preservation as an act of divine protection (see The City of God, Book XVI, chapter 19). We should receive this traditional explanation with respect and avoid attributing motives or sins that the account does not establish.
Genesis 13 brings Abram back to the place of his earlier altar. There he again calls upon the name of the Lord.
Abram and Lot possess so many flocks and herds that the land cannot support them together. Strife arises between their herdsmen. Abram takes the initiative in seeking peace: “Let there be no quarrel, I beseech thee, between me and thee” (Genesis 13:8).
He allows Lot to choose where he will go. Lot sees the well-watered country about the Jordan and chooses it for himself, pitching his tents toward Sodom. Scripture immediately warns us that the men of Sodom are exceedingly wicked before the Lord.
Consider what this teaches us about making decisions. Fertile land and material opportunity do not tell us everything we need to know about a place.
After their separation, God renews his promise to Abram concerning the land and his descendants. Abram settles near Hebron and builds another altar. His life continues under God’s promise and in the worship of His name.
Genesis 14 recounts a war among kings. Sodom is plundered, and Lot is taken captive with his possessions.
Abram gathers three hundred and eighteen armed servants born in his household and goes to his rescue. He brings back Lot, the goods, the women, and the people. Their earlier separation has not extinguished his charity.
Then Melchisedech appears: “But Melchisedech the king of Salem, bringing forth bread and wine, for he was the priest of the most high God, blessed him” (Genesis 14:18-19).
Notice the union of kingship and priesthood, the bread and wine, the blessing, and Abram’s payment of tithes. These details will be taken up in the Church’s teaching concerning Jesus Christ.
Finally, Abram refuses the goods offered by the king of Sodom. He will not allow that king to claim responsibility for his riches. Yet he respects the portion belonging to his companions. His personal renunciation does not become an excuse to deprive others of their due.
Read the chapter through to its conclusion. Victory leads Abram to acknowledge God’s protection and to exercise restraint concerning earthly gain.
2. WHAT THE CHURCH TEACHES
Abram’s response teaches us the obedience of faith. God speaks, and man is called to answer.
This faith must govern our lives. Abram does not merely acknowledge that God has spoken; he goes forth as commanded. We should ask whether the truths we profess are shaping our decisions, our conduct, and our willingness to sacrifice.
The Council of Trent teaches that faith is the beginning of human salvation and the foundation and root of justification. It also teaches that nothing preceding justification merits the grace by which we are justified. Our salvation begins in God’s mercy, and His grace enables our response. Faith must be accompanied by hope and charity, and the justified must keep God’s commandments (see Session VI, chapters 8, 10 and 11).
Abram’s dealings with Lot give us an example of detachment. Possessions may be lawfully held, but we must not allow attachment to them to rule our hearts. The willingness to yield an advantage for the sake of charity can reveal a freedom that wealth itself cannot give.
Lot’s movement toward Sodom also calls us to prudence. Before choosing a home, occupation, friendship, or recreation, we must consider its effect upon our souls and those entrusted to our care. We should avoid occasions of sin and seek circumstances that help us fulfill our duties to God.
Melchisedech’s priesthood brings us to the mystery of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
The Council of Trent teaches that Our Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Priest according to the order of Melchisedech, offered His Body and Blood under the appearances of bread and wine at the Last Supper. He commanded the Apostles and their successors in the priesthood to offer this sacrifice (see Session XXII, chapter 1).
The Mass is a true and proper sacrifice in which Christ’s one sacrifice on Calvary is made sacramentally present. The Victim is the same Jesus Christ who offered Himself once for all upon the Cross. He now offers Himself through the ministry of priests in an unbloody manner, without suffering or dying again. This sacrifice is propitiatory and is offered for the living and for the faithful departed who are not yet fully purified (see Council of Trent, Session XXII, chapter 2, and canons 1 and 3; Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 1366-1367, 1371).
The Church also teaches that, through the consecration, the whole substance of bread is changed into the substance of Christ’s Body, and the whole substance of wine into the substance of His Blood. The appearances of bread and wine remain. This change is fittingly called transubstantiation.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is truly, really, and substantially present in the Blessed Sacrament – Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity – and we owe Him the adoration due to God (see Council of Trent, Session XIII, chapters 1, 3, 4, and 5).
Such truths call for recollection, gratitude, and purity of heart. When we assist at Holy Mass, let us bring our duties, sufferings, and sacrifices before God and unite them to the offering of Our Savior.
3. SCRIPTURE ILLUMINATES SCRIPTURE
Read Hebrews 11:8-16 alongside Abram’s departure from Haran.
The Epistle explains that Abraham obeyed God’s call and went forth without knowing where he was going. He dwelt in the land of promise as a stranger, looking toward the city whose builder and maker is God.
This helps us understand the tents and altars of Genesis. Abraham receives God’s earthly gifts while awaiting the fulfillment of His promises. We, too, must perform our duties here while seeking our everlasting home with God.
Then read Galatians 3:6-9 and 16-29.
St. Paul explains that the promise of blessing for the nations points to Jesus Christ. He identifies Christ as the promised seed and teaches that those who belong to Christ are Abraham’s children and heirs according to the promise.
Notice also the place of Baptism: “For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ, have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).
The blessing promised to Abram reaches us through Our Savior. We must receive His grace with gratitude and remain faithful to Him.
Next, read Psalm 109, especially verse 4: “Thou art a priest for ever according to the order of Melchisedech.”
This is Psalm 110 in the Hebrew numbering used in many editions. The traditional Douay-Rheims follows the numbering in which it is Psalm 109.
The psalm directs our attention toward a priesthood that endures forever.
Finally, read Hebrews 7:1-28.
The Epistle explains Melchisedech’s name as king of justice and his title, king of Salem, as king of peace. It considers his blessing of Abraham and the tithes Abraham gives him.
When it describes Melchisedech without a recorded father, mother, genealogy, beginning, or end, it draws upon the way he appears in the sacred account to point to the Son of God. We should not conclude that Melchisedech was himself divine.
Jesus Christ possesses the everlasting priesthood to which this figure points. He is able to save those who come to God through Him, “always living to make intercession for us” (Hebrews 7:25).
Read these words prayerfully. Our confidence rests upon the living Savior who intercedes for His people.
4. THE FATHERS
The Fathers teach us to read the history of Abram in the light of God’s promises and their fulfillment in Christ.
St. Augustine distinguishes the promise concerning Abram’s descendants and the land of Chanaan from the greater promise of blessing for all nations. He understands this universal blessing in relation to those who follow Abraham’s faith (see The City of God, Book XVI, chapter 16).
Augustine also describes the separation of Abram and Lot as taking place without a breach of charity. Their households are divided to prevent discord (see Book XVI, chapter 20).
This gives us a useful examination of conscience. Sometimes peace requires a practical arrangement, a freely surrendered preference, or a change in how responsibilities are shared. We should seek such remedies before resentment takes root.
St. Cyprian explicitly sees in Melchisedech’s offering a figure of the sacrifice of Our Lord. He connects the bread and wine of Genesis with Christ’s Body and Blood and reads the blessing of Abraham in relation to the faithful who share Abraham’s faith (see the letter To Caecilius, on the Sacrament of the Cup of the Lord, section 4; numbered Epistle 62 in the cited collection).
St. Augustine likewise connects Melchisedech with the sacrifice offered by Christians throughout the world and with the prophecy of Christ’s everlasting priesthood (see The City of God, Book XVI, chapter 22).
These Fathers lead us toward the altar with greater understanding. What God prepared through the patriarchs finds its fulfillment in the Savior whom the Church worships and offers in the Holy Sacrifice.
5. FULFILLED IN CHRIST
What do Genesis 12, 13 and 14 have to do with Jesus Christ?
The promise to Abram prepares for the coming of the Redeemer. Through Abraham’s descendants, God brings forth the people among whom His Son will take flesh. The blessing promised for all nations reaches its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
Abram’s obedient departure also teaches us how to respond to the Savior’s call. We must be willing to leave behind whatever prevents us from serving Him. Often this means surrendering a sinful habit, an attachment to praise, a cherished resentment, or the insistence upon having our own way.
His altars remind us to give God the first place in our lives. Prayer must accompany our work and decisions. We should bring both prosperity and hardship before the Lord, acknowledging our dependence upon Him.
Abram’s generosity toward Lot calls us to value charity above the satisfaction of securing every advantage. His rescue of Lot reminds us that love must persevere when another person’s needs become costly.
Consider someone whose troubles have wearied you. Is there a duty of prayer, counsel, or practical assistance that you have neglected? Ask God for the charity and prudence to fulfill it.
Melchisedech directs our gaze toward Christ, the eternal Priest. His bread and wine prepare us to contemplate the Eucharistic sacrifice. The promises, journeys, blessings, and offerings of these chapters draw our attention toward the Savior and His altar.
When you next assist at Holy Mass, remember what you have read. Come with the obedience of faith. Ask pardon for your sins. Offer God your gratitude, your burdens, and your willingness to do His will.
Prepare carefully for Holy Communion. Examine your conscience, seek sacramental Confession when needed, and receive Our Lord with reverence and love.
The God who called Abram is faithful. Trust His promises, keep His commandments, and ask for the grace to persevere until faith gives way to the vision of God.
Read
Read Genesis chapters 12, 13 and 14.
Read alongside them:
- Hebrews 11:8-16
- Galatians 3:6-9, 16-29
- Psalm 109, especially verse 4
- Hebrews 7:1-28
CARRY THESE WORDS WITH YOU
“So Abram went out as the Lord had commanded him.” (Genesis 12:4)
REMEMBER
God calls us to the obedience of faith. Trust His promises, prefer charity to earthly gain, and approach with reverence the Holy Sacrifice in which Jesus Christ, our eternal High Priest, offers Himself through the ministry of His priests.
Reflect
Abram goes forth when God commands him. Where have I delayed an act of obedience because I wanted greater comfort, certainty, or control? Is there a duty I already understand but continue to postpone?
Abram builds altars along his journey. Does prayer hold a firm place in my day? When I receive a blessing, do I give thanks? When I encounter hardship, do I remain faithful?
Abram seeks peace with Lot. Am I willing to surrender a preference or advantage for the sake of charity? Have I allowed money, possessions, or the desire to be right to disturb peace within my family?
Lot chooses the well-watered country near Sodom. When I make decisions, do I consider the salvation of my soul and the spiritual welfare of those entrusted to me? Have I accepted an occasion of sin because it offers convenience, pleasure, or profit?
Finally, consider Melchisedech and the mystery of Christ’s priesthood. Do I prepare for Holy Mass with recollection? Do I approach the Blessed Sacrament with faith in Our Lord’s Real Presence?
This week, fulfill one neglected duty promptly, make one quiet sacrifice for peace, and spend time before the Blessed Sacrament thanking Jesus Christ for His priesthood and His sacrifice.
Pray
Almighty and eternal Father,
You called Abram to go forth in faith and promised that through him all the kindred of the earth would be blessed. We thank You for Your providence and for the fulfillment of Your promises in Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Give us the obedience of faith. Teach us to believe all that You have revealed and to order our lives according to Your holy will. When obedience requires sacrifice, strengthen us to respond without delay.
Sustain us in trial. When we cannot see how Your promises will be fulfilled, preserve us from discouragement and help us to persevere in prayer.
As Abram built altars and called upon Your name, teach us to make worship the foundation of our lives. Bless our homes with faithful prayer, gratitude, and reverence for holy things.
Free our hearts from covetousness. Help us to use earthly goods wisely and to surrender our preferences when charity requires it. Preserve our families from quarrels over possessions, wounded pride, and resentment.
Give us prudence in our choices. Keep us from occasions of sin and from placing earthly advantage above the salvation of our souls. Guide all who must make decisions for those entrusted to their care.
Grant us persevering charity toward our neighbors. Make us willing to assist those in distress, to pray for those who have wandered, and to bear patiently the burdens of others.
We thank You for sending Your only-begotten Son, our eternal High Priest. Deepen our faith in His Real Presence in the Blessed Sacrament and our reverence for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Sanctify Your priests. Give them purity of heart, fidelity to Catholic doctrine, and ardent love for the sacrifice they offer. Raise up holy vocations and sustain those who serve Your people in hardship.
Lead us to sincere repentance, worthy reception of Holy Communion, and perseverance in sanctifying grace. Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, keep us faithful to her Son.
Bring us at last to our heavenly home, where we may behold You and praise You with Your saints forever.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Next Week
Genesis Chapters 15, 16, and 17
God’s Covenant with Abraham: Promise, Faith, and the Promised Son
