Genesis 14:1

CHAPTER XIV

The war of four confederate kings against the five kings of

Canaan, 1-3.

The confederate kings overrun and pillage the whole country, 4-7.

Battle between them and the kings of Canaan, 5, 9.

The latter are defeated, and the principal part of the armies

of the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah slain, 10;

on which these two cities are plundered, 11.

Lot, his goods, and his family, are also taken and carried

away, 12.

Abram, being informed of the disaster of his nephew, 13,

arms three hundred and eighteen of his servants, and pursues

them, 14;

overtakes and routs them, and recovers Lot and his family,

and their goods, 15, 16;

is met on his return by the king of Sodom, and by Melchizedek,

king of Salem, with refreshments for himself and men, 17, 18.

Melchizedek blesses Abram, and receives from him, as priest

of the most high God, the tenth of all the spoils, 19, 20.

The king of Sodom offers to Abram all the goods he has taken

from the enemy, 21;

which Abram positively refuses, having vowed to God to receive

no recompense for a victory of which he knew God to be the

sole author, 22, 23;

but desires that a proportion of the spoils be given to Aner,

Eshcol and Mamre, who had accompanied him on this expedition, 24.

NOTES ON CHAP. XIV

Verse Genesis 14:1. In the days of Amraphel] Who this king was is not known; and yet, from the manner in which he is spoken of in the text, it would seem that he was a person well known, even when Moses wrote this account. But the Vulgate gives a different turn to the place, by rendering the passage thus: Factum est in illo tempore, ut Amraphel, c. "It came to pass in that time that Amraphel, c." The Chaldee Targum of Onkelos makes Amraphel king of Babylon, others make him king of Assyria some make him the same as Nimrod, and others, one of his descendants.

Arioch king of Ellasar] Some think Syria is meant but conjecture is endless where facts cannot be ascertained.

Chedorlaomer king of Elam] Dr. Shuckford thinks that this was the same as Ninyas, the son of Ninus and Semiramis; and some think him to be the same with Keeumras, son of Doolaved, son of Arphaxad, son of Shem, son of Noah; and that Elam means Persia; see Genesis 10:22. The Persian historians unanimously allow that Keeumras, whose name bears some affinity to Chedorlaomer, was the first king of the Peeshdadian dynasty.

Tidal king of nations] גוים goyim, different peoples or clans. Probably some adventurous person, whose subjects were composed of refugees from different countries.