14:1 At that time 1 Amraphel king of Shinar, 2 Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations 3 14:2 went to war 4 against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). 5 14:3 These last five kings 6 joined forces 7 in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). 8 14:4 For twelve years 9 they had served Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year 10 they rebelled. 11 14:5 In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings who were his allies came and defeated 12 the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim, 14:6 and the Horites in their hill country of Seir, as far as El Paran, which is near the desert. 13 14:7 Then they attacked En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh) again, 14 and they conquered all the territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who were living in Hazazon Tamar.
14:8 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 prepared for battle. In the Valley of Siddim they met 15 14:9 Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of nations, 16 Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar. Four kings fought against 17 five. 14:10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. 18 When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, they fell into them, 19 but some survivors 20 fled to the hills. 21 14:11 The four victorious kings 22 took all the possessions and food of Sodom and Gomorrah and left. 14:12 They also took Abram’s nephew 23 Lot and his possessions when 24 they left, for Lot 25 was living in Sodom. 26
14:13 A fugitive 27 came and told Abram the Hebrew. 28 Now Abram was living by the oaks 29 of Mamre the Amorite, the brother 30 of Eshcol and Aner. (All these were allied by treaty 31 with Abram.) 32 14:14 When Abram heard that his nephew 33 had been taken captive, he mobilized 34 his 318 trained men who had been born in his household, and he pursued the invaders 35 as far as Dan. 36 14:15 Then, during the night, 37 Abram 38 divided his forces 39 against them and defeated them. He chased them as far as Hobah, which is north 40 of Damascus. 14:16 He retrieved all the stolen property. 41 He also brought back his nephew Lot and his possessions, as well as the women and the rest of 42 the people.
14:17 After Abram 43 returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram 44 in the Valley of Shaveh (known as the King’s Valley). 45 14:18 Melchizedek king of Salem 46 brought out bread and wine. (Now he was the priest of the Most High God.) 47 14:19 He blessed Abram, saying,
“Blessed be Abram by 48 the Most High God,
Creator 49 of heaven and earth. 50
14:20 Worthy of praise is 51 the Most High God,
who delivered 52 your enemies into your hand.”
Abram gave Melchizedek 53 a tenth of everything.
14:21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people and take the possessions for yourself.” 14:22 But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I raise my hand 54 to the Lord, the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth, and vow 55 14:23 that I will take nothing 56 belonging to you, not even a thread or the strap of a sandal. That way you can never say, ‘It is I 57 who made Abram rich.’ 14:24 I will take nothing 58 except compensation for what the young men have eaten. 59 As for the share of the men who went with me – Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre – let them take their share.”
23:14 Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him,
23:1 Sarah lived 127 years. 60
13:3 And he journeyed from place to place 61 from the Negev as far as Bethel. 62 He returned 63 to the place where he had pitched his tent 64 at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai.
14:1 At that time 65 Amraphel king of Shinar, 66 Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations 67
18:34 He trains my hands for battle; 77
my arms can bend even the strongest bow. 78
18:35 You give me your protective shield; 79
your right hand supports me; 80
your willingness to help 81 enables me to prevail. 82
18:36 You widen my path; 83
my feet 84 do not slip.
18:37 I chase my enemies and catch 85 them;
I do not turn back until I wipe them out.
18:38 I beat them 86 to death; 87
they fall at my feet. 88
18:39 You give me strength 89 for battle;
you make my foes kneel before me. 90
18:40 You make my enemies retreat; 91
I destroy those who hate me. 92
18:41 They cry out, but there is no one to help them; 93
they cry out to the Lord, 94 but he does not answer them.
18:42 I grind them as fine windblown dust; 95
I beat them underfoot 96 like clay 97 in the streets.
18:43 You rescue me from a hostile army; 98
you make me 99 a leader of nations;
people over whom I had no authority are now my subjects. 100
18:44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. 101
Foreigners are powerless 102 before me;
18:45 foreigners lose their courage; 103
they shake with fear 104 as they leave 105 their strongholds. 106
18:46 The Lord is alive! 107
My protector 108 is praiseworthy! 109
The God who delivers me 110 is exalted as king! 111
1 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator וַיְהִי (vayÿhi) followed by “in the days of.”
2 sn Shinar (also in v. 9) is the region of Babylonia.
3 tn Or “king of Goyim.” The Hebrew term גּוֹיִם (goyim) means “nations,” but a number of modern translations merely transliterate the Hebrew (cf. NEB “Goyim”; NIV, NRSV “Goiim”).
4 tn Heb “made war.”
5 sn On the geographical background of vv. 1-2 see J. P. Harland, “Sodom and Gomorrah,” The Biblical Archaeologist Reader, 1:41-75; and D. N. Freedman, “The Real Story of the Ebla Tablets, Ebla and the Cities of the Plain,” BA 41 (1978): 143-64.
6 tn Heb “all these,” referring only to the last five kings named. The referent has been specified as “these last five kings” in the translation for clarity.
7 tn The Hebrew verb used here means “to join together; to unite; to be allied.” It stresses close associations, especially of friendships, marriages, or treaties.
8 sn The Salt Sea is the older name for the Dead Sea.
9 tn The sentence simply begins with “twelve years”; it serves as an adverbial accusative giving the duration of their bondage.
10 tn This is another adverbial accusative of time.
11 sn The story serves as a foreshadowing of the plight of the kingdom of Israel later. Eastern powers came and forced the western kingdoms into submission. Each year, then, they would send tribute east – to keep them away. Here, in the thirteenth year, they refused to send the tribute (just as later Hezekiah rebelled against Assyria). And so in the fourteenth year the eastern powers came to put them down again. This account from Abram’s life taught future generations that God can give victory over such threats – that people did not have to live in servitude to tyrants from the east.
12 tn The Hebrew verb נָכָה (nakhah) means “to attack, to strike, to smite.” In this context it appears that the strike was successful, and so a translation of “defeated” is preferable.
13 sn The line of attack ran down the eastern side of the Jordan Valley into the desert, and then turned and came up the valley to the cities of the plain.
14 tn Heb “they returned and came to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh).” The two verbs together form a verbal hendiadys, the first serving as the adverb: “they returned and came” means “they came again.” Most English translations do not treat this as a hendiadys, but translate “they turned back” or something similar. Since in the context, however, “came again to” does not simply refer to travel but an assault against the place, the present translation expresses this as “attacked…again.”
15 tn Heb “against.”
16 tn Or “Goyim.” See the note on the word “nations” in 14:1.
17 tn The Hebrew text has simply “against.” The word “fought” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
18 tn Heb “Now the Valley of Siddim [was] pits, pits of tar.” This parenthetical disjunctive clause emphasizes the abundance of tar pits in the area through repetition of the noun “pits.”
19 tn Or “they were defeated there.” After a verb of motion the Hebrew particle שָׁם (sham) with the directional heh (שָׁמָּה, shammah) can mean “into it, therein” (BDB 1027 s.v. שָׁם).
20 tn Heb “the rest.”
21 sn The reference to the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah must mean the kings along with their armies. Most of them were defeated in the valley, but some of them escaped to the hills.
22 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the four victorious kings, see v. 9) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
23 tn Heb “Lot the son of his brother.”
24 tn Heb “and.”
25 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Lot) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
26 tn This disjunctive clause is circumstantial/causal, explaining that Lot was captured because he was living in Sodom at the time.
27 tn Heb “the fugitive.” The article carries a generic force or indicates that this fugitive is definite in the mind of the speaker.
28 sn E. A. Speiser (Genesis [AB], 103) suggests that part of this chapter came from an outside source since it refers to Abram the Hebrew. That is not impossible, given that the narrator likely utilized traditions and genealogies that had been collected and transmitted over the years. The meaning of the word “Hebrew” has proved elusive. It may be related to the verb “to cross over,” perhaps meaning “immigrant.” Or it might be derived from the name of Abram’s ancestor Eber (see Gen 11:14-16).
29 tn Or “terebinths.”
30 tn Or “a brother”; or “a relative”; or perhaps “an ally.”
31 tn Heb “possessors of a treaty with.” Since it is likely that the qualifying statement refers to all three (Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner) the words “all these” have been supplied in the translation to make this clear.
32 tn This parenthetical disjunctive clause explains how Abram came to be living in their territory, but it also explains why they must go to war with Abram.
33 tn Heb “his brother,” by extension, “relative.” Here and in v. 16 the more specific term “nephew” has been used in the translation for clarity. Lot was the son of Haran, Abram’s brother (Gen 11:27).
34 tn The verb וַיָּרֶק (vayyareq) is a rare form, probably related to the word רֵיק (req, “to be empty”). If so, it would be a very figurative use: “he emptied out” (or perhaps “unsheathed”) his men. The LXX has “mustered” (cf. NEB). E. A. Speiser (Genesis [AB], 103-4) suggests reading with the Samaritan Pentateuch a verb diq, cognate with Akkadian deku, “to mobilize” troops. If this view is accepted, one must assume that a confusion of the Hebrew letters ד (dalet) and ר (resh) led to the error in the traditional Hebrew text. These two letters are easily confused in all phases of ancient Hebrew script development. The present translation is based on this view.
35 tn The words “the invaders” have been supplied in the translation for clarification.
36 sn The use of the name Dan reflects a later perspective. The Danites did not migrate to this northern territory until centuries later (see Judg 18:29). Furthermore Dan was not even born until much later. By inserting this name a scribe has clarified the location of the region.
37 tn The Hebrew text simply has “night” as an adverbial accusative.
38 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
39 tn Heb “he divided himself…he and his servants.”
40 tn Heb “left.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.
41 tn The word “stolen” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
42 tn The phrase “the rest of “ has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
43 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
44 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
45 sn The King’s Valley is possibly a reference to what came to be known later as the Kidron Valley.
46 sn Salem is traditionally identified as the Jebusite stronghold of old Jerusalem. Accordingly, there has been much speculation about its king. Though some have identified him with the preincarnate Christ or with Noah’s son Shem, it is far more likely that Melchizedek was a Canaanite royal priest whom God used to renew the promise of the blessing to Abram, perhaps because Abram considered Melchizedek his spiritual superior. But Melchizedek remains an enigma. In a book filled with genealogical records he appears on the scene without a genealogy and then disappears from the narrative. In Psalm 110 the
47 tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause significantly identifies Melchizedek as a priest as well as a king.
48 tn The preposition לְ (lamed) introduces the agent after the passive participle.
49 tn Some translate “possessor of heaven and earth” (cf. NASB). But cognate evidence from Ugaritic indicates that there were two homonymic roots ָקנָה (qanah), one meaning “to create” (as in Gen 4:1) and the other “to obtain, to acquire, to possess.” While “possessor” would fit here, “creator” is the more likely due to the collocation with “heaven and earth.”
50 tn The terms translated “heaven” and “earth” are both objective genitives after the participle in construct.
51 tn Heb “blessed be.” For God to be “blessed” means that is praised. His reputation is enriched in the world as his name is praised.
52 sn Who delivered. The Hebrew verb מִגֵּן (miggen, “delivered”) foreshadows the statement by God to Abram in Gen 15:1, “I am your shield” (מָגֵן, magen). Melchizedek provided a theological interpretation of Abram’s military victory.
53 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Melchizedek) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
54 tn Abram takes an oath, raising his hand as a solemn gesture. The translation understands the perfect tense as having an instantaneous nuance: “Here and now I raise my hand.”
55 tn The words “and vow” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarification.
56 tn The oath formula is elliptical, reading simply: “…if I take.” It is as if Abram says, “[May the
57 tn The Hebrew text adds the independent pronoun (“I”) to the verb form for emphasis.
58 tn The words “I will take nothing” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
59 tn Heb “except only what the young men have eaten.”
60 tn Heb “And the years of Sarah were one hundred years and twenty years and seven years, the years of the life of Sarah.”
61 tn Heb “on his journeys”; the verb and noun combination means to pick up the tents and move from camp to camp.
62 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
63 tn The words “he returned” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
64 tn Heb “where his tent had been.”
65 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator וַיְהִי (vayÿhi) followed by “in the days of.”
66 sn Shinar (also in v. 9) is the region of Babylonia.
67 tn Or “king of Goyim.” The Hebrew term גּוֹיִם (goyim) means “nations,” but a number of modern translations merely transliterate the Hebrew (cf. NEB “Goyim”; NIV, NRSV “Goiim”).
68 sn The line of attack ran down the eastern side of the Jordan Valley into the desert, and then turned and came up the valley to the cities of the plain.
69 tn The Hebrew text simply has “night” as an adverbial accusative.
70 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
71 tn Heb “he divided himself…he and his servants.”
72 tn Heb “left.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.
73 tn Heb “made war.”
74 sn On the geographical background of vv. 1-2 see J. P. Harland, “Sodom and Gomorrah,” The Biblical Archaeologist Reader, 1:41-75; and D. N. Freedman, “The Real Story of the Ebla Tablets, Ebla and the Cities of the Plain,” BA 41 (1978): 143-64.
75 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative indicates consequence. If Abram is blameless, then the
76 tn Heb “I will multiply you exceedingly, exceedingly.” The repetition is emphatic.
77 sn He trains my hands. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement. Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.
78 tn Heb “and a bow of bronze is bent by my arms”; or “my arms bend a bow of bronze.” The verb נָחַת (nakhat) apparently means “pull back, bend” here (see HALOT 692 s.v. נחת). The third feminine singular verbal form appears to agree with the feminine singular noun קֶשֶׁת (qeshet, “bow”). In this case the verb must be taken as Niphal (passive). However, it is possible that “my arms” is the subject of the verb and “bow” the object. In this case the verb is Piel (active). For other examples of a feminine singular verb being construed with a plural noun, see GKC 464 §145.k.
79 tn Heb “and you give to me the shield of your deliverance.”
80 tc 2 Sam 22:36 omits this line, perhaps due to homoioarcton. A scribe’s eye may have jumped from the vav (ו) prefixed to “your right hand” to the vav prefixed to the following “and your answer,” causing the copyist to omit by accident the intervening words (“your right hand supports me and”).
81 tn The MT of Ps 18:35 appears to read, “your condescension,” apparently referring to God’s willingness to intervene (cf. NIV “you stoop down”). However, the noun עֲנָוָה (’anavah) elsewhere means “humility” and is used only here of God. The form עַנְוַתְךָ (’anvatÿkha) may be a fully written form of the suffixed infinitive construct of עָנָה (’anah, “to answer”; a defectively written form of the infinitive appears in 2 Sam 22:36). In this case the psalmist refers to God’s willingness to answer his prayer; one might translate, “your favorable response.”
82 tn Heb “makes me great.”
83 tn Heb “you make wide my step under me.” “Step” probably refers metonymically to the path upon which the psalmist walks. Another option is to translate, “you widen my stride.” This would suggest that God gives the psalmist the capacity to run quickly.
84 tn Heb “lower legs.” On the meaning of the Hebrew noun, which occurs only here, see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 112. A cognate Akkadian noun means “lower leg.”
85 tn 2 Sam 22:38 reads “destroy.”
86 tn Or “smash them.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “and I wiped them out and smashed them.”
87 tn Heb “until they are unable to rise.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “until they do not rise.”
88 sn They fall at my feet. For ancient Near Eastern parallels, see O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 294-97.
89 tn Heb “clothed me.” See v. 32.
90 tn Heb “you make those who rise against me kneel beneath me.”
91 tn Heb “and [as for] my enemies, you give to me [the] back [or “neck”].” The idiom “give [the] back” means “to cause [one] to turn the back and run away.” Cf. Exod 23:27.
92 sn Those who hate me. See v. 17, where it is the
93 tn Heb “but there is no deliverer.”
94 tn Heb “to the
95 tn Heb “I pulverize them like dust upon the face of the wind.” The phrase “upon the face of” here means “before.” 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “like dust of the earth.”
96 tc Ps 18:42 reads, “I empty them out” (Hiphil of ריק), while 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “I crush them, I stomp on them” (juxtaposing the synonyms דקק and רקע). It is likely that the latter is a conflation of variants. One, but not both, of the verbs in 2 Sam 22:43 is probably original; “empty out” does not form as good a parallel with “grind, pulverize” in the parallel line.
97 tn Or “mud.”
98 tn Heb “from the strivings of a people.” In this context the Hebrew term רִיב (riv, “striving”) probably has a militaristic sense (as in Judg 12:2; Isa 41:11), and עָם (’am, “people”) probably refers more specifically to an army (for other examples, see the verses listed in BDB 766 s.v. I עַם, עָם 2.d). Some understand the phrase as referring to attacks by the psalmist’s own countrymen, the “nation” being Israel. However, foreign enemies appear to be in view; note the reference to “nations” in the following line.
99 tn 2 Sam 22:44 reads, “you keep me.”
100 tn Heb “a people whom I did not know serve me.” In this context “know” (יָדַע, yada’) probably refers to formal recognition by treaty. People who were once not under the psalmist’s authority now willingly submit to his rulership to avoid being conquered militarily (see vv. 44-45). The language may recall the events recorded in 2 Sam 8:9-10 and 10:19.
101 tn Heb “at a report of an ear they submit to me.” The report of the psalmist’s exploits is so impressive that those who hear it submit to his rulership without putting up a fight.
102 tn For the meaning “be weak, powerless” for כָּחַשׁ (kakhash), see Ps 109:24. The next line (see v. 45a), in which “foreigners” are also mentioned, favors this interpretation. Another option is to translate “cower in fear” (see Deut 33:29; Pss 66:3; 81:15; cf. NIV “cringe”; NRSV “came cringing”).
103 tn Heb “wither, wear out.”
104 tn The meaning of חָרַג (kharag, “shake”) is established on the basis of cognates in Arabic and Aramaic. 2 Sam 22:46 reads חָגַר (khagar), which might mean here, “[they] come limping” (on the basis of a cognate in postbiblical Hebrew). The normal meaning for חָגַר (“gird”) makes little sense here.
105 tn Heb “from.”
106 tn Heb “their prisons.” The besieged cities of the foreigners are compared to prisons.
107 tn Elsewhere the construction חַי־יְהוָה (khay-yÿhvah) is used exclusively as an oath formula, “as surely as the
108 tn Heb “my rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor for protection. See similar phrases in vv. 2, 31.
109 tn Or “blessed [i.e., praised] be.”
110 tn Heb “the God of my deliverance.” 2 Sam 22:48 reads, “the God of the rocky cliff of my deliverance.”
111 tn The words “as king” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Elsewhere in the psalms the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”), when used of God, refers to his exalted position as king (Pss 99:2; 113:4; 138:6) and/or his self-revelation as king through his mighty deeds of deliverance (Pss 21:13; 46:10; 57:5, 11).