Genesis 14
14
Lot Is Captured
1Amraphel was the king of Babylonia, Arioch was the king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer was the king of Elam, and Tidal was the king of Goiim. 2All these kings fought a war against King Bera of Sodom: King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela. (Bela is also called Zoar.)
3All these kings joined their armies in the Valley of Siddim. (The Valley of Siddim is now the Salt Sea.) 4These kings had served Kedorlaomer for twelve years. But in the 13th year, they all rebelled against him. 5So in the 14th year, King Kedorlaomer and the kings with him came to fight against them. Kedorlaomer and the kings with him defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim. They also defeated the Zuzites in Ham. They defeated the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim. 6And they defeated the Horites who lived in the area from the hill country of Seir#14:6 Seir Or “Edom.” to El Paran.#14:6 El Paran Probably the town Elath, at the southern tip of Israel near the Red Sea. (El Paran is near the desert.) 7Then King Kedorlaomer turned back, went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and defeated the Amalekites. He also defeated the Amorites living in Hazezon Tamar.
8At that time the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela (Zoar) joined together to fight against their enemies in the Valley of Siddim.#14:8 Valley of Siddim The valley or plain along the eastern or southeastern side of the Dead Sea. 9They fought against King Kedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Babylonia, and King Arioch of Ellasar. So there were four kings fighting against five.
10There were many holes filled with tar in the Valley of Siddim. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies ran away, some of the soldiers fell into these holes, but the others ran away to the mountains.
11So Kedorlaomer and his armies took everything that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah owned. They took all their food and clothing and left. 12Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, was living in Sodom, and they captured him. They also took everything he owned and left. 13One of the men who had escaped went to Abram the Hebrew and told him what happened. Abram was camped near the trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner#14:13 Mamre … Aner Literally, “Mamre … was a brother of Eshcol and a brother of Aner.” had made an agreement to help each other, and they had also signed an agreement to help Abram.
Abram Rescues Lot
14When Abram learned that Lot was captured, he called all of his family together. There were 318 trained soldiers. He led the men and chased the enemy all the way to the town of Dan. 15That night he and his men made a surprise attack against the enemy. They defeated them and chased them to Hobah, north of Damascus. 16Then Abram brought back everything the enemy had stolen, as well as the women and servants, his nephew Lot, and everything Lot owned.
17Then Abram went home after he defeated Kedorlaomer and the kings with him. On his way home, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh. (This is now called King’s Valley.)
Melchizedek
18Melchizedek, the king of Salem and a priest of God Most High, also went to meet Abram. He brought bread and wine. 19He blessed Abram and said,
“Abram, may you be blessed by God Most High,
the one who made heaven and earth.
20And we praise God Most High,
who helped you defeat your enemies.”
Abram gave Melchizedek one-tenth of everything he had taken during the battle. 21Then the king of Sodom told Abram, “Give me my people who were captured. But you can keep everything else.”
22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I promise to the Lord, the God Most High, the one who made heaven and earth. 23I promise that I will not keep anything that is yours—not even a thread or a sandal strap! I don’t want you to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24The only thing I will accept is the food that my young men have eaten, but you should give the other men their share. Take what we won in battle and give some to Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. These men helped me in the battle.”
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Genesis 14
14
1At that time Amraphel was king of Shinar,#14:1. “Shinar”: an old name for Babylonia. and he allied himself with Arioch, king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, and Tidal, king of Goiim. 2They attacked Bera, king of Sodom, Birsha, king of Gomorrah, Shinab, king of Admah, Shemeber, king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (otherwise known as Zoar).
3All these in the second group#14:3. “In the second group” supplied for clarity. joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (the Dead Sea valley). 4They had been under the rule of Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled against him. 5In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer invaded, along with the kings in his alliance. They defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6and the Horites in their hill country of Seir, all the way to El-paran, near the desert. 7Then they swung back through and attacked En-mishpat (otherwise known as Kadesh) and conquered the whole country belonging to the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
8Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (otherwise known as Zoar) marched out and prepared for battle in the Valley of Siddim. 9They fought Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, Tidal, king of Goiim, Amraphel, king of Shinar, and Arioch, king of Ellasar—four kings on one side against five on the other.
10There were many tar pits in the Valley of Siddim, and as the defeated kings of Sodom and Gomorrah ran away, some of their men#14:10. “Some of their men”: while the text seems to suggest that the kings fell into the tar pits, verse 17 makes it clear that at least the king of Sodom had not died. fell into them while the rest ran to the hills. 11The invaders took from Sodom and Gomorrah all their possessions and food and left. 12They also captured Lot, Abram's nephew, and his possessions, because he was living in Sodom. 13But one of those captured escaped and went and told Abram the Hebrew#14:13. “Abram the Hebrew”: this is the first time Abram is called a Hebrew, and may be the way he was identified by the people of the time. what had happened. Abram was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, whose brothers were Eshcol and Aner. All of them were Abram's allies.
14When Abram found out that his nephew had been captured, he called together 318 fighting men who had been born in his household and chased after them all the way to Dan. 15There he divided his men into groups and attacked at night, defeating the enemy and chasing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16Abram recovered all that had been taken, including Lot and his possessions, and also brought back the women and others who had been captured.
17When Abram returned after defeating Chedorlaomer and his allies, the king of Sodom came out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (or Valley of the King). 18Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was a priest of the Most High God. 19He blessed Abram, telling him, “May Abram be blessed by the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth. 20May the Most High God be praised, who handed your enemies over to you.” Then Abram gave Melchizedek one tenth of everything.
21The king of Sodom told Abram, “Let me have the people back, and you can keep everything else for yourself.”
22But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I raise my hand, making a solemn promise to the Lord, the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth, 23that I refuse to take anything belonging to you, not a single thread or a sandal strap. Otherwise you might claim, ‘It was me who made Abram rich!’ 24I won't take anything except what my men have eaten, and the share for those who accompanied me—Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. Let them have their share.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com