1 And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations;
2 That these made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, which is Zoar.
3 All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.
4 Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
5 And in the fourteenth year came Chedorlaomer, and the kings that were with him, and smote the Rephaims in Ashteroth Karnaim, and the Zuzims in Ham, and the Emins in Shaveh Kiriathaim,
6 And the Horites in their mount Seir, unto Elparan, which is by the wilderness.
7 And they returned, and came to Enmishpat, which is Kadesh, and smote all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt in Hazezontamar.
8 And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is Zoar;) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim;
9 With Chedorlaomer the king of Elam, and with Tidal king of nations, and Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings with five.
10 And the vale of Siddim was full of slimepits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain.
11 And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.
12 And they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.
13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.
14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
15 And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king's dale.
18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
24 Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.
1. Four kings make war with the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding areas.
2. Lot and his family are captured.
3. Abram pursues and overcomes the enemy.
4. Melchizedek blesses Abram.
Verses 1–13. It wasn’t long after Lot chose the best land for himself down in the Jordan valley that he found himself in serious trouble. Since the hearts of sinful men are so filled with pride and envy, they always seek to build their empires by war. This was the legacy of the first murderer, Cain. It is carried along in the sinful hearts of men, and the wayward generations of Shem, Ham, and Japheth after the flood. War between nations is inevitable as long as pride and hatred dominate in the hearts of men. Until children cease fighting over who gets the biggest piece of cake, and unless neighbors can work out their differences with humility and long-suffering, the wars of nations will never cease. As it turned out, the city states of Sodom and Gomorrah were also drawn into these wars. They lost a key battle, and the enemy dragged away Lot and his family.
Verses 14–17. This key passage provides the first example of a godly system of government and defense. It is of vital importance to any Christian who might want to address the area of civil government according to God’s righteous principles. First of all, Abram covenanted (or confederated) with other leaders in the area. He wasn’t controlled by the same imperialist zeal that later consumed men in America and that would fuel the colonialist mercantilism of Spain, France, England, and other European empires. Nor was he so hungry for power that he formed an unwarranted alliance with foreign dignitaries. This lure of foreign power is practically irresistible to sinful men, but Abram was not interested in centralizing power. No God-fearing Christian ever has been interested in this. Christians would rather covenant together by means of a contract or constitution, and carefully limit the bounds of that covenant by written stipulation. This was the original intent of the founders of our American federal republic, until the nation was radically transformed into a single centralized state in the late 19th century. Some of our early founding fathers, like Patrick Henry, argued that the United States Constitution should have begun with the phrase, “We the States,” instead of, “We the People.” Rather than drawing all of the people under one powerful government, Henry wanted to covenant the states together mainly to provide for a common defense from the powerful European empires. Covenantal thinking always marks the minds of men who think like Christians.
Secondly, Abram engaged in a legitimate defensive form of warfare. Several wicked nations had unlawfully pillaged the cities on the plains and had kidnapped Lot and his family in the process. Though there have been a few exceptions in Christian history, every justly-fought war has been a defensive war as Abraham’s war was a defensive war.
If there is something to glean from this passage in respect to Abram’s actions against these kings, it is a godly view of violence and war. Clearly, there is allowance for some level of self-defense and family-defense within a biblical system of ethics. When faced with offensive military action, good men will rise to defend family and homeland. Generally, it is the responsibility of the civil magistrate to protect us from invading kings and armies, but when there is no government to defend and protect, it is the responsibility of the head(s) of households to protect their families and relatives from those who would kill, plunder, and steal. The basis for the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution lies here. This passage also gives us biblical approval for keeping and using weapons, such as guns and swords. We also find this topic in the New Testament, when Jesus advised his disciples to have swords for defense (Lk. 22:36).
Verses 18–24. On Abram’s victorious return from the battle, two men approached him—a man named Melchizedek, and the king of Sodom. Melchizedek was a mysterious character, though it is clear from this passage and others that he was a true priest of the true God. By His providential, all-wise purposes, the Lord worked in surprising ways with individuals such as Melchizedek and Ruth who came from other tribes besides the line of Abraham. The Lord used Melchizedek as a prefiguring of Jesus Christ. Like Christ, this man served as both a priest and a king in the city of Jerusalem. However, the Old Testament priests were drawn from the line of Levi, and Christ would not have been qualified to serve as a priest, since He was of the tribe of Judah. Yet, Psalm 110:4 and Hebrews 7:17 place Christ’s priesthood in the legitimate order of Melchizedek. It is God’s prerogative to establish two legitimate orders of priests. According to the book of Hebrews, Christ’s supremacy in His person and position was established when the great grandfather of Levi, Abraham, submitted himself to Melchizedek by giving him a tithe of his goods.
Melchizedek also provided hospitality to the men returning from the battle. This is the first reference to hospitality or “love of strangers” in the Bible. We know from this and other Scriptures that hospitality is a way of life for true believers. Regrettably, this practice has been sadly neglected of late, in favor of an institutionalized, commercialized form of hospitality. People seldom open their homes to wayfaring strangers today. Some are even uncomfortable with opening their homes to their own relatives! But hospitality was common for thousands of years among godly families and even among pagans. Hospitality should especially mark the lifestyle of those who lead in New Testament churches (1 Tim. 3:7-8).
Melchizedek blessed Abram in a similar fashion as the Levitical priests blessed the people (Num. 6:23). If these priests are acting as intercessors between God and man, then we must believe that such blessings are effectual and important in the lives of the ones who they bless. The second individual that met Abram upon his return was the pagan king of Sodom, who was obviously advantaged by the recent military victory.
Abram’s rejection of the offer of material reward from this king is an interesting addition to the story. From Abram’s testimony it is clear that his motivation was the glory of God. By lifting his hands to God, he testified that all blessings come from Yahweh in heaven. This marked Abram’s perspective throughout his lifetime. In Egypt, he fully expected maximum resistance from Pharaoh, but God forced Pharaoh to bless Abram. Then, Abram offered the first choice of land to Lot, such that nobody could say that Abram had squeezed Lot out of the best land. Nor did Abram want anybody to think that a pagan king had made him rich. By faith, Abram would wait for God to write his paychecks and increase his goods.
1. “Every good gift comes from above.” God gives us our paychecks. If some king or employer sees himself as the ultimate source of our blessings and happiness, we ought to outright reject that notion. Moreover, we should never look at our success as the product of our own hands. Just as Abram did in this passage, let us always give God the glory for any success, power, or riches that we achieve.
2. It is appropriate to raise our sons to defend their families as Abram did in Genesis 14. This is a responsibility God gives every man. Following Abram’s lead, Nehemiah also instructed the men of Israel to fight for their wives, sons, and daughters (Neh. 4:14). Also, Psalm 82:3 encourages us to “defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.” This is the duty of all faithful men.
3. Following our father Abram who paid tithes to this priest and king in Jerusalem, we bring our tithes and offerings to Jesus our Priest, after the order of Melchizedek. We accept His sacrifice and His blessing, and we submit ourselves to His kingly rule in all parts of our lives.
1. What are the themes of Chapters 1 through 14?
2. What does this passage teach us concerning self defense or family defense? Would the Bible prioritize self-defense or defending the person or property of others?
3. From what city did this mysterious priest and king, Melchizedek, come?
4. Who is the priest that comes from the priestly order of Melchizedek?
5. Why did Abram refuse to take a reward from the King of Sodom?
1. What sort of effort have we made, or should we make, to show hospitality to strangers?
2. How are we preparing our sons in our family and church to be faithful in their Nehemiah 4:14 duties?