A Play Based on Genesis 12-16

Chapter 12

Characters: Lord, Abram, Sarai, Lot, Pharaoh

Lighting: Medium

Lord:
"Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will
show you.
2
"I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."

Abram: Wow. Could it really be true, that I, a man 75 years old should be so blessed by
God. Sarai, my beloved wife, we must leave this place. Lot, my brother’s son, you must
come with us. We will take all our possessions and our people and go to Shechem where
the Canaanites dwell. To Shechem!

< Abram, Sarai and Lot leave >

< They come back. Abram somewhat separated. >

Lord: To your offspring I will give this land.

Lighting: High
<Abram looks up in amazement. >

Sarai: Abram, you should build an altar.

< Abram puts some stones on the ground>

Lot: To the Bethel/Ai area!

<All walk>
< Abram puts some stones on the ground>

Sarai: To Negev!

<All walk>
<All look hungry and thirsty>

Lot: Maybe we should go to Egypt. They will have food there.

Sarai: Good plan.

< All travel but Lot leaves them >

Abram: Wow Egypt! What a country! The have the Nile, pyramids, everything we could
want. Now Sarai, I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see
you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13 Say
you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared
because of you."

Sarai: OK.

<Pharaoh approaches>

Pharaoh: My you are such a beautiful woman. I am Pharaoh, King of Egypt. Please
come stay with me. And your … your brother I shall treat well and give him many
things.

<Pharaoh leaves with Sarai. He spends time with her, but soon he starts to cough>

Pharaoh: <To Abram> Come here to me!! "What have you done to me?" “Why didn't
you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her to
be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!"

Abram: Yes my lord.

<Abram and Sarai leave>

Genesis 13

Lord – Myrna
Abram – Steven
Sarai – Emi
Lot - Yonni

Abram: Back to Negev!

<All walk>

Sarai: To the Bethel/Ai area!

<All walk to stones>

Sarai: Hey look it’s our altar.

<Lot sits at one end of the stage and Sarai and Abram at the other>
<Abram approaches Lot>

Abram: Lot, truly the Lord has blessed us in the land of the Canaanites and Perizzites.
But our possessions have become too much for us to share this space, for our herdsmen
are quarrelling, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your
herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Let's part
company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left."

<Lot gets up and looks around>

Lot: The Jordon looks so well watered. I will go live among the cities and pitch my tent
near Sodom. Perhaps it is not wise since the men there are wicked and sin so much
against the Lord, but they have such nice tents.

<Lot leaves>

Lighting: Medium

Lord (to Abram): "Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east
and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring [a] forever. 16 I
will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust,
then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the
land, for I am giving it to you."

<Abram and Sarai leave>

Genesis 14

Narrator - Myrna
Melchizedek – Emi (dressed very differently)
Abram – Steven

Lighting: low

Narrator: 8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king
of Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) marched out and drew up their battle lines
in the Valley of Siddim 9 against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim,
Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. The four
kings won and seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they
went away. 12 They also carried off Abram's nephew Lot and his possessions, since he
was living in Sodom.
Abram learned of this and took his forces to fight! He was victorious and he recovered all
the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women
and the other people.

<Melchizedek comes out to meet Abram who is looking victorious>

Lighting: Medium

Melchizedek: I am Melchizedek king of Salem, priest of the God Most High. I have
come to bless you.

<Abram kneels before him>

Melchizedek:

"Blessed be Abram by God Most High,

Creator of heaven and earth.
20
And blessed be God Most High,
who delivered your enemies into your hand."

Abram: Thank you for your blessing. Here, I give you one tenth of all I have.

<presents hands and Melchizedek takes the invisible gift>

Melchizedek: I also have a message from the king of Sodom. He says: "Give me the
people and keep the goods for yourself."

Abram: Tell this to the king of Sodom: "I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most
High, Creator of heaven and earth, and have taken an oath 23 that I will accept nothing
belonging to you, not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be
able to say, 'I made Abram rich.' 24 I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and
the share that belongs to the men who went with me—to Aner, Eshcol and Mamre. Let
them have their share."

Genesis 15

Abram – Steven
Lord – Myrna
Fiery pot holder – Emi

Lighting: Low

<Abram sleeps>
Lord:
 "Do not be afraid, Abram.
I am your shield, [a]
your very great reward. [b] "

<Abram sits up>

Abram: "O Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one
who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus? 3 You have given me no children; so a
servant in my household will be my heir."

Lord: "This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be
your heir." 5 Go out outside

<Abram get up>

Lord: "Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.

<Abram looks up>

Lord: "So shall your offspring be."

Abram: I believe it.

God: And by this you are credited righteousness. "I am the LORD, who brought you out
of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it."

Abram: "O Sovereign LORD, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?"

Lord: "Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a
young pigeon."

<Abram goes and brings back items. He cuts the invisible items in half. He drives away
vultures.>

<Abram falls asleep>

Lighting: Off

Lord: "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their
own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the
nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 15
You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. 16 In the
fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has
not yet reached its full measure."

<Lights go out and fiery pot (???) is passed between objects>

Lord: This is my covenant. "To your descendants I give this land, from the river [d] of
Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates- 19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites,
Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and
Jebusites."

Genesis 16

Hagar – Yonni
Sarai - Emi
Abram – Steven
Angel – Myrna

Lighting: Full

< Sarai speaks to Abram >

Sarai: I am so angry. Why has "The LORD kept me from having children? I can see only
one solution. The woman Hagar, my maidservant from Egypt. Sleep with her; perhaps I
can build a family through her womb."

Abram: If you insist.

< Abram and Hagar leave together >

< Hagar comes back with pillow at stomach >
< Sarai and Hagar exchange hateful looks, shake fists toward each other >

Sarai (to Abram): "You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my servant in
your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the LORD
judge between you and me."
6
Abram (to Sarai): "Your servant is in your hands, do with her whatever you think
best."

< Sarai goes and hits Hagar >

< Hagar runs off >
< Abram and Sarai leave >
< Hagar comes back on stage. Cries while lying down>
Lighting: Medium

Angel: "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?"

Hagar: "I'm running away from my mistress Sarai,"

Angel:
"Go back to your mistress and submit to her." 10 The angel added, "I will so increase your
descendants that they will be too numerous to count."
11
"You are now with child
and you will have a son.
You shall name him Ishmael,
for the LORD has heard of your misery.
12
He will be a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone's hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers."

Hagar: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees
me."

< Abram and Sarai come back on the stage >

Sarai (to audience): So when Abram was 86, Hagar bore him a son, and Abram gave him
the name Ishmael.