Genesis 14:13-23

13 And, lo! one that escaped, told to Abram the Hebrew, that dwelled in the valley of Mamre of (the) Amorites, [the] brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner; for these [had] made (a) covenant of peace with Abram. (And, lo! one who escaped, went and told all of this to Abram the Hebrew, who lived by the terebinths of Mamre the Amorite, the brother of Eshcol, and the brother of Aner; for they had made a covenant of peace with Abram.)
14 And when Abram had heard this thing, that is, (that) Lot, (the son of) his brother, (was) taken, he numbered his born servants made ready, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them till to Dan. (And when Abram had heard this, that is, that Lot, his kinsman, was taken captive, he called together the three hundred and eighteen men who were born in his household, and pursued after the four kings as far as Dan.)
15 And when his fellows were separated (into groups), he felled on them in the night, and smote them, and pursued them till to Hobah, and Phenice, which is at the left side of Damascus (which is north of Damascus).
16 And he brought again all the chattel, and Lot, (the son of) his brother, with his chattel, also (the) women, and the people./And he brought again all the cattle, and Lot, (the son of) his brother, with his cattle, also (the) women, and the people. (And he brought back all of the possessions that had been taken, and Lot, his kinsman, and all of his possessions, and all of the women, and the other prisoners./And he brought back all of the livestock that had been taken, and Lot, his kinsman, and all of his livestock, and all of the women, and the other prisoners.)
17 Soothly the king of Sodom went out into the meeting of him, after that he turned again from [the] slaying of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, in the valley of Shaveh, which is the valley of the king. (And Sodom's king went out to meet him, after that he had returned from killing Chedorlaomer, and the other kings who were with him, in the Shaveh Valley, which is now called the King's Valley.)
18 And soothly Melchizedek, (the) king of Salem, brought forth bread and wine, for he was the priest of the highest God (for he was the priest of the Most High God);
19 and he blessed Abram, and said, Blessed be Abram of [the] (most) high God, that made heaven and earth of nought, (and he blessed Abram, and said, Blessed be Abram of the Most High God, who made heaven and earth out of nothing,)
20 and blessed be [the] (most) high God, by whom defending (thee), (thine) enemies be betaken into thine hands. And Abram gave tithes of all things to him. (and blessed be the Most High God, who hath delivered thy enemies into thy hands. And Abram gave him a tithe of all the things that he had recovered.)
21 Forsooth the king of Sodom said to Abram, Give thou the men to me; take thou (the) other things to thee. (And the king of Sodom said to Abram, Give thou to me the people; and thou take the other things for thyself.)
22 And Abram answered to him, I raise [up] mine hand to the high Lord God, Lord of heaven and of earth, (But Abram answered to him, I raise up my hand, and swear to the Lord, the Most High God, the Maker of heaven and earth,)
23 that from the thread of [the] woof till to the lanyard of the hose, I shall not take (anything) of all things that be thine, lest thou say, I [have] made Abram rich;

Genesis 14:13-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 14

This chapter gives an account of a war that was waged, and a battle fought between four kings on one side, and five on the other, and of the occasion and issue of it, who were the first kings, and this the first battle the Scriptures speak of, Ge 14:1-11; Lot and his goods being taken and carried off, with those of Sodom, by the conquerors, Abram hearing of it armed his men, and pursued after them, and overtook and overcame them, and rescued Lot and his goods, with others, and returned, Ge 14:12-16; when he was met by the kings of Sodom and Salem, who congratulated him on his victory, Ge 14:17-19; and what passed between him, and those great personages, is related, Ge 14:20-24.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.