Scripture: In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, these kings made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, and the Horites in their hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the border of the wilderness. Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and defeated all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazon-tamar.
Then 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 they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim with Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five. Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country. So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. They also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.
Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram. When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus. Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.
Genesis 14:1-16 ESV [Click here to read the entire chapter.]
Observation: Recapping Yesterday’s Daily Focus, a conflict arises between Abram’s and Lot’s herders because the hill country between Bethel and Ai cannot support the abundance of their livestock. Seeking to avoid strife with Lot, Abram offers Lot his choice of the land to the west or east. Seeing the Jordan Valley’s fertile landscape, Lot chooses it and journeys east and encamps near Sodom, whose inhabitants were wicked and sinned against the Lord. So, Abram heads west and settles in Canaan. Upon arrival, the Lord speaks to Abram and tells him to look in each direction as far as he can see. As Abram gazes upon the horizon, the Lord promises to give Abram and his offspring (who would be as numerous as the dust of the earth) this land as a never-ending inheritance. Yahweh then invites Abram to walk and assess the extent of Canaan. Grateful, Abram resettles by the oaks of Mamre in Hebron and builds another altar to the Lord.
Today’s reading chronicles Abram’s mission to rescue Lot. First, Moses provides background information regarding a two-year-long turf war between nine kings who fought over the various cities/regions around and including Sodom (where Lot dwelled). As the two coalitions fought back and forth in one last battle in the Valley of Siddim (pocketed with tar pits), the invading forces defeated the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela. Capturing the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah (including Lot, who dwelled in Sodom at the time), they looted the cities and returned to their homeland. Thankfully, an escapee found Abram encamped by the oaks of Mamre and told him all that had transpired. So, Abram sprung into action, commandeered 318 trained men born under his care, and pursued Lot’s enemies as far as Dan. At nightfall, Abram divided his forces and launched an attack, routing the enemy, who fled to Hobah (north of Damascus). Abram returned with Lot, his family, the women of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all the stolen possessions.
Geographic note: In 1976, Italian scholar Giovanni Pettinato found clay tablets listing Sodom and Gomorrah in the previously unknown Kingdom of Ebla in what is now Syria. Archeologists speculate their location to be under or adjacent to the shallow waters south of Al-Lisān, a former peninsula in the central part of the Dead Sea. The other lands cited likely extend from modern-day Turkey to Iran. Regarding the tar pits (bitumen), they are common in this area of the Dead Sea and still float to the surface today.
Takeaway: Moses’ notation of “Abram the Hebrew” occurs when he seeks to distinguish Abram (or later the Israelites) from foreigners. Moses may also intend to designate Abram and his clan’s social class as a dispossessed people, given its closeness in spelling to “Habiru,” which carries this meaning. Indeed, both meanings fit in the evolving story of God’s chosen people who are dispossessed but are seeking a Promised Land.
At first glance, the specific number of Abram’s men (318) is undersized against a coalition of four armies. However, we later learn that Abram had three allies (Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; 14:24) who fought with him and likely provided battalions. Regardless, as later examples like that of Gideon prove (Judges 6), God will supernaturally intervene to give victory to his underdog people for his glory. Also of interest, the word Moses uses to describe these men (ḥanikim) is found nowhere else in the Old Testament. Still, it is found in an Akkadian letter of the fifteenth century BCE (Ta’anek, CAD, Ḫ, 76), lending credence to this historical event.
Our takeaway? This story presents three teaching points. First, regarding Lot, be careful where you make your home. Certainly, God may call some of us to relocate to a neighborhood marked by a licentious lifestyle to be his Son’s light, but we best confirm this is genuinely our calling because, as Lot will keep learning, it may cost us dearly. On a positive note, Abram models a commitment to family, particularly those in distress. And, as mentioned above, we see the importance of allies who can lean in and shore up where we lack. Lastly, as followers of Jesus, we are like Abram the “Habiru,” a dispossessed people-group foreign to our secular culture but possessed by a king who has prepared a Promised Land for us (John 14:2).
Prayer: Father God, thank you for your Son, who found himself dispossessed from his people but pressed onward to expand the boundaries of his kingdom and prepare an eternal place for us, his dispossessed sojourners. And we thank you for the Holy Spirit and fellow believers, our allies who guide and help us in times of need. So, please help us to seek godly counsel and a team of allies before pressing into the darkened neighborhoods of our fallen world to expand your Son’s kingdom as your possessed people. Amen.
Rev. Gordon Green, M.Div., M.A. Counseling
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