Genesis 14:21-24

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 ¹  to the Lord, the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth, and vow ²  14:23 that I will take nothing ³  belonging to you, not even a thread or the strap of a sandal. That way you can never say, ‘It is I ⁴  who made Abram rich.’ 14:24 I will take nothing ⁵  except compensation for what the young men have eaten. ⁶  As for the share of the men who went with me – Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre – let them take their share.”

[14:22]  ¹ 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.”

[14:22]  ² tn The words “and vow” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[14:23]  ³ tn The oath formula is elliptical, reading simply: “…if I take.” It is as if Abram says, “[May the Lord deal with me] if I take,” meaning, “I will surely not take.” The positive oath would add the negative adverb and be the reverse: “[God will deal with me] if I do not take,” meaning, “I certainly will.”

[14:23]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text adds the independent pronoun (“I”) to the verb form for emphasis.

[14:24]  ⁵ tn The words “I will take nothing” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[14:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “except only what the young men have eaten.”