Genesis 14

Abram Rescues Lot

1Four kings, Amraphel of Babylonia, Arioch of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer of Elam, and Tidal of Goiim, 2went to war against five other kings: Bera of Sodom, Birsha of Gomorrah, Shinab of Admah, Shemeber of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (or Zoar). 3These five kings had formed an alliance and joined forces in the Valley of Siddim, which is now the Dead Sea. 4They had been under the control of Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled against him. 5In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and his allies came with their armies and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in the plain of Kiriathaim, 6and the Horites in the mountains of Edom, pursuing them as far as Elparan on the edge of the desert. 7Then they turned round and came back to Kadesh (then known as Enmishpat). They conquered all the land of the Amalekites and defeated the Amorites who lived in Hazazon Tamar.

8Then the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela drew up their armies for battle in the Valley of Siddim and fought 9against the kings of Elam, Goiim, Babylonia, and Ellasar, five kings against four. 10The valley was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah tried to run away from the battle, they fell into the pits; but the other three kings escaped to the mountains. 11The four kings took everything in Sodom and Gomorrah, including the food, and went away. 12Lot, Abram's nephew, was living in Sodom, so they took him and all his possessions.

13But a man escaped and reported all this to Abram, the Hebrew, who was living near the sacred trees belonging to Mamre the Amorite. Mamre and his brothers Eshcol and Aner were Abram's allies. 14When Abram heard that his nephew had been captured, he called together all the fighting men in his camp, 318 in all, and pursued the four kings all the way to Dan. 15There he divided his men into groups, attacked the enemy by night, and defeated them. He chased them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus, 16and recovered the loot that had been taken. He also brought back his nephew Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other prisoners.

Melchizedek Blesses Abram

17When Abram came back from his victory over Chedorlaomer and the other kings, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (also called the King's Valley). 18#Heb 7.1–10And Melchizedek, who was king of Salem and also a priest of the Most High God, brought bread and wine to Abram, 19blessed him, and said, “May the Most High God, who made heaven and earth, bless Abram! 20May the Most High God, who gave you victory over your enemies, be praised!” And Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the loot he had recovered.

21The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Keep the loot, but give me back all my people.”

22Abram answered, “I solemnly swear before the LORD, the Most High God, Maker of heaven and earth, 23that I will not keep anything of yours, not even a thread or a sandal strap. Then you can never say, ‘I am the one who made Abram rich.’ 24I will take nothing for myself. I will accept only what my men have used. But let my allies, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, take their share.”

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Genesis 14

Abram Saves Lot

1Amraphel was the king of Babylon. Arioch was the king of Ellasar. Kedorlaomer was the king of Elam. And Tidal was the king of Goyim. 2They went to war against five other kings. They were Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim, and the king of Bela. Bela was also called Zoar. 3These five kings all gathered their armies together in the Valley of Siddim. It was also called the valley of the Dead Sea. 4For 12 years Kedorlaomer had ruled over them. But in the 13th year they opposed him.

5So in the 14th year, Kedorlaomer and the kings who helped him went to war. They won the battle against the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim. They also won the battle against the Zuzites in Ham and the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim. 6They did the same thing to the Horites in the hill country of Seir. They marched all the way to El Paran near the desert. 7Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat. En Mishpat was also called Kadesh. They took over the whole territory of the Amalekites. They also won the battle against the Amorites who were living in Hazezon Tamar.

8Then the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboyim and Bela marched out. Bela was also called Zoar. They lined up their armies for battle in the Valley of Siddim. 9They got ready to fight against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goyim, Amraphel king of Babylonia, and Arioch king of Ellasar. There were four kings against five. 10The Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah ran away from the battle. Some of their men fell into the pits, but the rest escaped to the hills. 11The four kings took all the things that belonged to Sodom and Gomorrah. They also took all their food and then left. 12They carried away Abram’s nephew Lot and the things he owned. Lot was living in Sodom at that time.

13A man escaped and came to report everything to Abram. Abram was a Hebrew. He was living near the large trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre was a brother of Eshkol and Aner. All of them helped Abram. 14Abram heard that Lot had been captured. So he called out his 318 trained men. All of them were sons of his servants. Abram and his men chased their enemies as far as Dan. 15During the night Abram separated his men into groups. They attacked their enemies and drove them away. They chased them north of Damascus as far as Hobah. 16Abram took back everything the kings had taken. He brought back his nephew Lot and the things Lot owned. He also brought back the women and the other people.

17After Abram won the battle over Kedorlaomer and the kings who helped him, he returned home. The king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh. It was also called the King’s Valley.

18Melchizedek was the king of Jerusalem. He brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of the Most High God. 19He gave a blessing to Abram. He said,

“May the Most High God bless Abram.

May the Creator of heaven and earth bless him.

20Give praise to the Most High God.

He gave your enemies into your hand.”

Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything.

21The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people. Keep everything else for yourself.”

22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to make a promise to the Lord. He is the Most High God. He is the Creator of heaven and earth. 23I’ve said I will not accept anything that belongs to you. I will not take even a thread or the strap of a sandal. You will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24I’ll accept only what my men have eaten and what belongs to Aner, Eshkol and Mamre. These three men went with me. Let them have their share.”

Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®

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