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 Rephaim 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 slime pits; 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.
Summary; outlines some very informative history and an appearance by a great King.
This chapter begins with four kings war against five kings who were ruling the plains of Jordan. They all went into battle and the four kings conquered Sodom and Gomorrah, taking all the goods and people.
The bad news for the four kings is that Abram’s nephew, Lot, was among them. When the news reached Abram, he armed his men to go get his nephew.
Abram is identified as a Hebrew in this chapter and he goes to battle with just 300 servants of his against 4 kings and recovers Lot and the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah.
This is where the story gets interesting. In his triumphant return, he is met by one Melchizedek, who is the King of Salem. King Melchizedek, also a High Priest, brought bread and wine, which is a key symbol in the Christian world, and King Melchizedek blessed Abram by the Most High God.
Closing prayer; Heavenly Father, thank You for the many blessings You bestow on all Your children who by faith have trusted Your Word and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of their soul. Thank You for the lessons we can learn from Abram’s meeting with Melchizedek – king of Righteousness, king of Peace, and priest of God Most High. May we not be tempted by the glittering prizes of this fallen world but offer You my life as a sacrifice of praise, knowing that You alone deserve all honour and praise. Thank You that we need not be afraid of the terrors of the night nor the arrows that fly by day but have my sufficiency in YOU – the Lord God Almighty – Possessor of heaven and earth. This I pray in Jesus’ name, AMEN.
For those who wish to become a child of our heavenly Lord, or strengthen thier faith, please pray the following prayer below.
Dear Heavenly Father, I want to be a part of your family. You said in Your Word that if I acknowledge that You raised Jesus from the dead, and that I accept Him as my Lord and Savior, I would be saved. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for forgiving me, saving me, and giving me eternal life with You. Amen!”
By saying this prayer, we believe you are born again.
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