Genesis 14
14
Abram Rescues Lot
1In those days King Amraphel of Shinar,#Gn 10:10; 11:2 King Arioch of Ellasar, King Chedorlaomer of Elam,#Gn 10:22; Is 11:11; Dn 8:2 and King Tidal of Goiim#14:1 Or nations 2waged war against King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, and King Shemeber of Zeboiim,#Hs 11:8 as well as the king of Bela (that is, Zoar#Gn 19:22–23). 3All of these came as allies to the Siddim Valley (that is, the Dead Sea#Nm 34:12; Dt 3:17; Jos 3:16). 4They were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. 5In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim#Gn 15:20; Dt 2:11,20–21; 3:11,13; Jos 12:4 in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham,#Dt 1:4; Jos 9:10 the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6and the Horites#Gn 36:20; Dt 2:12,22 in the mountains of Seir, as far as El-paran#Gn 21:21; Nm 10:12 by the wilderness. 7Then they came back to invade En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh#Nm 13:26), and they defeated the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.#2Ch 20:2
8Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and lined up for battle in the Siddim Valley 9against King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Shinar, and King Arioch of Ellasar — four kings against five. 10Now the Siddim Valley contained many asphalt pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them,#14:10 Sam, LXX; MT reads fell there but the rest fled to the mountains.#Gn 19:17 11The four kings took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food and went on. 12They also took Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, for he was living in Sodom,#Gn 13:12 and they went on.
13One of the survivors came and told Abram the Hebrew,#Gn 39:14; 40:15 who lived near the oaks belonging to Mamre the Amorite, the brother of Eshcol and the brother of Aner. They were bound by a treaty with Abram. 14When Abram heard that his relative had been taken prisoner, he assembled#14:14 Sam; MT reads poured out his 318 trained men, born in his household,#Gn 12:5; 15:3; 17:27; Ec 2:7 and they went in pursuit as far as Dan.#Dt 34:1; Jdg 18:29; 1Kg 15:20 15And he and his servants deployed against them by night, defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah to the north of Damascus. 16He brought back all the goods and also his relative Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the other people.
Melchizedek’s Blessing
17After Abram returned from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Shaveh Valley (that is, the King’s Valley#2Sm 18:18). 18Melchizedek, king of Salem,#14:18 = Jerusalem#Ps 110:4; Heb 5:6; 7:1 brought out bread and wine; he was a priest to God Most High.#Ps 57:2 19He blessed him and said:
Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator#14:19 Or Possessor of heaven and earth,
20and blessed be God Most High
who has handed over your enemies to you.
And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.#Heb 7:4
21Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people, but take the possessions for yourself.”
22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand in an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23that I will not take a thread or sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you can never say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24I will take nothing except what the servants have eaten. But as for the share of the men who came with me — Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre — they can take their share.”
© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Genesis 14
14
Abram Rescues Lot
1About this time, King Amraphel of Babylonia,#14.1 Babylonia: See the note at 10.6-20. King Arioch of Ellasar, King Chedorlaomer of Elam, and King Tidal of Goiim 2attacked King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, a city also known as Zoar. 3-4King Chedorlaomer and his allies had ruled these last five kings for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year the kings rebelled and joined forces in Siddim Valley, which is now covered by the southern part of the Dead Sea.
5A year later King Chedorlaomer and his allies attacked and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth-Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, and the Emites in Shaveh-Kiriathaim. 6They also defeated the Horites in the hill country of Edom,#14.6 Edom: The Hebrew text has “Seir,” another name for Edom. as far as El-Paran, near the desert.
7They went back to the city of Enmishpat, better known as Kadesh. Then they captured all the land that belonged to the Amalekites, and they defeated the Amorites who were living in Hazazon-Tamar.
8-9At Siddim Valley, the armies of the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela fought the armies of King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Babylonia, and King Arioch of Ellasar. The valley 10was full of tar pits, and when the troops from Sodom and Gomorrah started running away, some of them fell into the pits. Others escaped to the hill country. 11Their enemies took everything of value from Sodom and Gomorrah, including their food supplies. 12They also captured Abram's nephew Lot, who lived in Sodom. They took him and his possessions and then left.
13At this time Abram the Hebrew was living near the oaks that belonged to Mamre the Amorite. Mamre and his brothers Eshcol and Aner were Abram's friends. Someone who had escaped from the battle told Abram 14that his nephew Lot had been taken away. Three hundred and eighteen of Abram's servants were fighting men, so he took them and followed the enemy as far north as the city of Dan.
15That night, Abram divided up his troops, attacked from all sides, and won a great victory. But some of the enemy escaped to the town of Hobah north of Damascus, 16and Abram went after them. He brought back his nephew Lot, together with Lot's possessions and the women and everyone else who had been captured.
Abram Is Blessed by Melchizedek
17Abram returned after he had defeated King Chedorlaomer and the other kings. Then the king of Sodom went to meet Abram in Shaveh Valley, which is also known as King's Valley.
18 #
He 7.1-10. King Melchizedek of Salem was a priest of God Most High. He brought out some bread and wine 19and said to Abram:
“I bless you in the name
of God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth.
20All praise belongs
to God Most High
for helping you defeat
your enemies.”
Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything.
21The king of Sodom said to Abram, “All I want are my people. You can keep everything else.”
22Abram answered:
The Lord God Most High made the heavens and the earth. And I have promised him 23that I won't keep anything of yours, not even a sandal strap or a piece of thread. Then you can never say that you are the one who made me rich. 24Let my share be the food that my men have eaten. But Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre went with me, so give them their share of what we brought back.
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.