The first time wealth is mentioned in the Bible is when Abraham and Lot are so wealthy that they overuse their resources and their relationship is damaged. The desire for sustained wealth instead of sustained relationship leads Lot to Sodom. (Gen. 13)
The next time wealth is mentioned is when Abraham refuses booty from the Kings of the Plain. I used to think this was because he wanted to glorify God as the source of his wealth. After living in Central Asia, though, I think it was to avoid the entanglements that such a “gift” would bring. (Gen. 14)
The third time wealth is mentioned (Gen. 26), it leads to a break in the relationship between Isaac and Abimelech.
In Genesis 31, it’s wealth, not poverty, that damages Jacob and Laban’s relationship.
In Genesis 32, Jacob gives up his wealth to restore the relationship with Esau.
In general, the relationship problems associated with wealth in Genesis arise from people having too much, not too little.
I’m not sure what this means for our study, but it seems relevant to the immense wealth and resource consumption in the world today combined with such a high number of devastated relationships.
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