Genesis 14

Soldiers grabbed Lot and his family and took them away

1-9This story is about the people in the flat country, and it started before Lot went to live near the town called Sodom. There were 5 tribes in that flat country at that time, and each tribe had a leader. These were the 5 tribes and their leaders,

– A tribe called Sodom, and their leader was called Bera.

– A tribe called Gomorrah, and their leader was called Birsha.

– A tribe called Admah, and their leader was Shinab.

– A tribe called the Zebo mob, and their leader was Shemeber.

– A tribe called Zoar. They are also called Bela.

There were another 4 tribes in the country to the east. These were those 4 tribes and their leaders,

– A tribe called Elam, and their leader was Kedorlayomer.

– A tribe called Babylonia, and their leader was called Amrafel.

– A tribe called Ellasar, and their leader was called Ariok.

– A tribe called the Goy mob, and their leader was Tidal.

And Kedorlayomer was the boss over those 4 tribes in the east. Those 4 tribes sent their soldiers to fight the other 5 tribes, and the 4 tribes from the east won. So Kedorlayomer became the boss over the other 5 tribes too.

Those 5 tribes let him be their boss for 12 years. Then the next year, their leaders told Kedorlayomer that they didn’t want him to be their boss any more. Kedorlayomer got really angry, and the next year, he got soldiers from the 4 tribes in the east, and they went to fight those 5 tribes.

On the way to that fight, Kedorlayomer’s soldiers had other fights with some other tribes, and they won all those fights. They beat the Refa tribe at a place called Ashteroth-Karnayim, and they beat the Zuz tribe at a place called Ham, and they beat the Em tribe at a place called Shaveh-Kiriathayim, and they beat the Hor tribe in the hill country called Edom. They chased the Hor soldiers all the way to a place called El-Paran, near the desert. Then Kedorlayomer and the soldiers from the east, they all went back to a place called En-Mishpat. Another name for that place is Kadesh. Then Kedorlayomer and his mob fought the Amalek tribe and beat them, and took control of their country. Then they fought the Amor tribe in Hazazon-Tamar country, and beat them too.

While Kedorlayomer and his mob were fighting those other people, the 5 tribes that didn’t want Kedorlayomer to be their boss, they went to the valley called Sidim. (Today there is salt water in that valley, and we call it the Dead Sea.) The soldiers of those 5 tribes got ready there to fight against Kedorlayomer and his 4 tribes from the east.

So when Kedorlayomer and his mob got to that Sidim valley there was a big fight. 10Kedorlayomer and his mob won that fight. They beat those 5 tribes, and their soldiers all ran away. In that flat country there were lots of holes in the ground that were full of sticky black stuff, called tar. So when the soldiers from the 5 tribes ran away, some of them fell into those holes. But the rest of them ran up into the hills.

11So Kedorlayomer and his soldiers went to Sodom and Gomorrah, and they grabbed all the people that lived there. And they took everything the people owned, even their food, and then they started to go back to their own country. 12At that time, Abram’s nephew, Lot, lived in Sodom, so the soldiers grabbed Lot too, and his family, and all their things. Those soldiers took all of Lot’s mob away with them.

Abram saved Lot and his family

13-14A man got away from Kedorlayomer and his mob, and he went and told Abram that they got Lot. At that time, Abram was living near the big trees that belonged to a man called Mamreh. Abram was a good friend of Mamreh, and also of Mamreh’s 2 brothers. Their names were Eskol and Aner. Mamreh and his brothers belonged to the Amor tribe, and Abram belonged to the Hebrew tribe, but they all looked after each other.

Abram had 318 men that knew how to fight. They worked for Abram all their lives, and Abram really trusted them. So Abram got those men, and Mamreh, Eskol and Aner got their fighting men, and they all went to fight Kedorlayomer and his soldiers. They followed them, and they found them at a place to the north, called Dan. 15Then, in the night time, Abram split up all the fighting men into groups, and they attacked Kedorlayomer and his soldiers. Abram and his men won that fight, and they chased those other soldiers all the way to a place called Hobah, north of Damascus town. 16That’s how Abram’s mob saved Lot, and all the women, and the other people from the towns called Sodom and Gomorrah, and they got all their things too. Then they all started to go back south.

Abram met Melkizedek

17After Abram’s mob beat Kedorlayomer and his mob, and while they were going back south on their way home, the leader of Sodom went out to meet Abram in the valley called Shaveh. Another name for that place is the valley that belongs to the leader.

18There was a town in that country called Salem, and the boss over that town was called Melkizedek. He was also a leader of God’s ceremonies. He worked for God, the one that is more powerful than any other god. Well, Melkizedek also went out to meet Abram and his men, and he gave them some bread and some wine. 19Then Melkizedek prayed for Abram. He said,

“God, you are more powerful than any other god.

You are the one that made heaven and earth.

I’m asking you to be really good to Abram.

20I want everyone to say that you are great, and more powerful than any other god.

You are the one that helped Abram fight with his enemies and win.”

Then Abram got all the things he got after the fight, the things that used to belong to the Sodom and Gomorrah mob, and he split those things up into 10 groups. And he gave one of those groups of things to Melkizedek.#Hebrews 7:1-10

21Then the leader of Sodom said to Abram, “I only want my people back. You can keep those other things.”

22But Abram said, “I made a strong promise to my God, the one that is more powerful than any other god, and the one that made heaven and earth. 23I promised that I will not take anything that belongs to you. I will not even take a bit of string, or anything that belongs to you. You see, I don’t want you to tell everyone that you gave me a lot of things and made me rich. 24No. The only thing that I will keep is the food that I ate and the food that my fighting men ate. And these men, Mamreh, and Aner, and Eskol, and their fighting men, they helped me save your people and your things too, so you can give them some of those things.”

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Genesis 14

Lot Is Captured

1Now Amraphel was king of Babylonia, Arioch was king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer was king of Elam, and Tidal was king of Goiim. 2All these kings went to war against several other kings: Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela. (Bela is also called Zoar.)

3These kings who were attacked united their armies in the Valley of Siddim (now the Dead Sea). 4They had served Kedorlaomer for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year, they all turned against him. 5Then in the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings with him came and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, and the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim. 6They also defeated the Horites in the mountains of Edom to El Paran (near the desert). 7Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh). They defeated all the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon Tamar.

8At that time the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela went out to fight in the Valley of Siddim. (Bela is called Zoar.) 9They fought against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Babylonia, and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings fighting against five. 10There were many tar pits in the Valley of Siddim. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies ran away, some of the soldiers fell into the tar pits, but the others ran away to the mountains.

11Now Kedorlaomer and his armies took everything the people of Sodom and Gomorrah owned, including their food. 12They took Lot, Abram’s nephew who was living in Sodom, and everything he owned. Then they left. 13One of the men who was not captured went to Abram, the Hebrew, and told him what had happened. At that time Abram was camped near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre was a brother of Eshcol and Aner, and they had all made an agreement to help Abram.

Abram Rescues Lot

14When Abram learned that Lot had been captured, he called out his 318 trained men who had been born in his camp. He led the men and chased the enemy all the way to the town of Dan. 15That night he divided his men into groups, and they made a surprise attack against the enemy. They chased them all the way to Hobah, north of Damascus. 16Then Abram brought back everything the enemy had stolen, the women and the other people, and Lot, and everything Lot owned.

17After defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, Abram went home. As he was returning, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (now called King’s Valley).

18Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was a priest for God Most High 19and blessed Abram, saying,

“Abram, may you be blessed by God Most High,

the God who made heaven and earth.

20And we praise God Most High,

who has helped you to defeat your enemies.”

Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything he had brought back from the battle.

21The king of Sodom said to Abram, “You may keep all these things for yourself. Just give me my people who were captured.”

22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I make a promise to the Lord, the God Most High, who made heaven and earth. 23I promise that I will not keep anything that is yours. I will not keep even a thread or a sandal strap so that you cannot say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24I will keep nothing but the food my young men have eaten. But give Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre their share of what we won, because they went with me into battle.”

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