Genesis 14:1–24
John Milton, in his great works Paradise
Lost and Paradise Regained,
spoke about the great cosmic combat that occurs in Revelation 12. In describing
that chilling chapter of Revelation, Milton says that heaven and hell are the
central focus, and earth is the battleground in which the cosmic combat takes
place.[1]
That is an accurate description of the spiritual battle that happens within our
world.
With all the talk about war going on in our own society
and around the world, Christians often forget that we are in a war of our own,
a spiritual war, a cosmic combat. The battle is between heaven and hell, but
the fight is here on earth.
The church often loses sight of the truth of spiritual
struggle. American Christians have become so comfortable in our Christianity
that the thought of spiritual warfare hardly even crosses our minds. But it is
paramount that we understand that the Lord has called his people to fight a
spiritual battle, to wage war against the forces that oppose God’s
righteousness and rule.
Understanding the nature of spiritual warfare begins with
understanding the nature of the life of faith. You could say that the life of
faith is really a “life of war.” Yet, the war that we fight is not fought with
conventional weapons nor is it fought against flesh and blood. Instead, we
fight spiritual wars with spiritual weapons against spiritual enemies.
There is no greater description of this type of spiritual
warfare in the New Testament than that found in the book of Ephesians where
Paul gave Christians a command to “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of
his might” (Eph. 6:10). To be “in the Lord” is to be a spiritual person, one
who has started the life of faith by following Jesus Christ. Thus, it takes
spiritual people to handle spiritual combat.
Furthermore it takes spiritual weapons to fight a
spiritual enemy. Paul describes these weapons as the armor of God, which
consists of truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, salvation, the Holy
Spirit, the word of God, and prayer. We need spiritual weapons because “our
struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual
forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12, emphasis added).
Our study of the life of Abraham supports that what is
true of those who live the life of faith under the New Covenant was also true
of believers under the Old Covenant. But notice in Genesis 14 that the
spiritual battles Abram fought often worked themselves out in physical battles
against the enemies of God and his people. This was also true of Moses and of
Joshua. And because these physical battles were the manifestation of spiritual
struggles, we as God’s people can glean great truths for our own cosmic
conflicts.
The life of faith is a life of war with spiritual bullets
and missiles flying overhead. Those who are on the journey of faith cannot
merely ignore the fight; they must be aware of it, but even more importantly,
they must get involved.
The Involvement in Spiritual Warfare (v. 1–16)
In the first sixteen verses of Genesis 14, we
see conflict, casualties, and contribution. The conflict is described in the
first eleven verses of the chapter.
The Conflict
And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar,
Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim,
that they 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 (that
is, Zoar). All these came as allies to the valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt
Sea). Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but the thirteenth year they
rebelled. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him,
came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim and the Zuzim in Ham and the
Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, and the Horites in their Mount Seir, as far as
El-paran, which is by the wilderness. Then they turned back and came to
En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and conquered all the country of the Amalekites,
and also the Amorites, who lived in Hazazon-tamar. And the king of Sodom and
the king of Gomorrah and the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim and the king
of Bela (that is, Zoar) came out; and they arrayed for battle against them in
the valley of Siddim, against Chedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim
and Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five.
Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and
Gomorrah fled, and they fell into them. But those who survived fled to the
hill country. Then they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all
their food supply, and departed. (Gen. 14:1–11)
The conflict recorded in these verses is on the
international level—as “international” as Abram and his contemporaries knew,
not on the international level we know. This is the first record of war and
conflict in the Bible; some say it is the first record of war within the annals
of history.[2]
The conflict takes place between nine kings, four on one
side and five on the other. Because of the advantage of numbers, it would seem
that the five kings would have more power, but as the record of the conflict
unfolds, it is quite obvious that the smaller group of rulers was much more
powerful.
Verse 1 introduces us to the four kings, “Amraphel the
king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedoorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal
king of Goiim.” The four rulers were located east of the five kings, which
today is in Iran and Turkey.[3]
The five kings they warred against were the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah,
Zeboiim, and Bela. They reigned in the same region Abram lived.
The reason for the war was not an uncommon one. Verse 4
gives an indication of why the war was taking place, “Twelve years they had
served Chedorlaomer, but the thirteenth year they rebelled.” The five kings
served the four others for twelve years, but they finally had enough, so they
rebelled. It was customary for the more powerful to ally together to subjugate
those who were less powerful into serving them by paying tribute through means
of money, produce, and other goods.[4]
After twelve years of paying tribute, the western kings decided that enough was
enough.
It was highly probable that the five kings decided to
rebel against the four because there were troubles in the eastern kingdoms that
would keep them from taking action against the rebellion.[5]
For though the rebellion took place in the thirteenth year, it wasn’t until a
year later that the four kings would respond (v. 5).
When the four kings finally did act against the rebellion,
they began to make their way westward, a journey recorded in verses 6 through
8. Scholars believe they sojourned on what was known as the King’s Highway. As
the four kings made their way down the King’s Highway to deal with the
rebellion of the five kings, we are told in verses 5 and 6 that the four kings
would defeat many others along the way. Most likely the rumors of their coming
and their power was making its way to the five kings because we are told in
verse 8 that the five kings came out to meet the four at the valley of Siddim.
It did not take long for the five kings to see their
enemy’s power, so they retreated. Some did not fair well in the retreat because
they fell into the tar pits that made up that area. Those who did not fall into
the tar pits retreated to the hills.
The retreat of the five kings left the town of those kings
vulnerable. The four kings in verse 11 capitalized on this vulnerability. “Then
they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and their food supply, and
departed.” If the five kings were not going to voluntarily pay tribute, then
the four kings would take it by force.
Up to this point in the narrative it seems the story has
nothing to do with Abram, but that changes in verse 12 when Abram would be
brought into the battle, “They also took Lot, Abram’s nephew, and his
possessions and departed, for he was living in Sodom.” Abram’s nephew would
become one of the casualties of the battle.
The Casualties (12)
It is interesting to see the digression of Lot
revealed in verse 12. According to Genesis 13:12, Lot moved his tents just
outside of Sodom. But now Lot is no longer outside of Sodom; he is living in
Sodom. In Genesis 13 we were warned about the poor choice Lot made to live in
Sodom, and Genesis 14 reveals why it was a mistake.
But Lot is not the only casualty of the battle. One must
understand that the four kings are being unjust. Subjugating weaker people for
the purpose of personal gain is a grave injustice. Because the people who dwelt
in the weaker cities were subjugated to the injustice, they also were
casualties of the battle.
Furthermore, the scope of the spiritual war taking place
surpasses any war that has ever taken place on earth. The spiritual war is a
global war that is taking place in every country, city, church, home, and
family. The casualties of this war are wayward Christians, who like Lot, let
the world consume them. Though we know from Scripture that God saved Lot (2
Peter 2:7–8 tells us that God rescued “righteous Lot”), Abram’s nephew did not
put on the full armor of God and stand firm against the schemes of the devil
(Ephesians 6:11).
This is why those in a life of faith must get involved.
This is where spiritual people must be concerned for those who have gone astray
from the family of faith. This involvement in spiritual warfare is demonstrated
by Abram’s involvement in hand-to-hand combat with the ungodly kings.
The Contribution (vv. 13–16)
Abram has not been mentioned in this story up
to this point, but we see his involvement beginning in verse 13. “Then a
fugitive came and told Abram the Hebrew. Now he was living by the oaks of Mamre
the Amorite.” Abram had not moved since he and Lot separated for the sake of
peace. He was exactly where God wanted him to be. He was comfortable and things
were peaceable because Abram made allies with those around him. But his
peaceable and comfortable situation was about to change.
God, in his providence, had someone escape so that Abram
could know about the battle, the casualties, and especially the fact that the
four kings had taken his nephew Lot captive. The news brought to Abram would be
a test of Abram’s faith. Abram now had to make a decision. Was he going to get
involved in world affairs or was he going to isolate himself?
Abram could very well have rationalized away his
involvement in this matter. In regard to helping the five kings he could have
said, “You know, that king of Sodom is an ungodly man. In fact, Sodom and
Gomorrah is filled with sinners. They are only getting what they deserve.” In
regard to his own nephew he could have said, “Lot made his own decision; he
deserves what he is getting. He did not give me one thought when I gave him the
choice. It serves him right.” Abram could have rationalized staying out of the
matter, but he chose not to.
He realized that the life of faith does not mean isolation
from the world, nor does it mean identification with the world. Abram
understood that if he was going to be the blessing bearer to the world, if he
was going to declare the truth of the one true God, he was going to have to get
involved. Paraphrased, Jesus put it this way, “Be in the world, but not of the
world” (John 17:14ff). That would be the balance that Abram would have to find.
After the news of the conquest of the four kings, Abram,
moved by his love for his nephew and his desire to be involved with world
affairs for God’s glory, went into action. We are told in verses 14–15, “When
Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he led out his trained
men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and went in pursuit as far
as Dan. He divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and
defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus.”
Abram got involved in the battle for the sake of the
casualties. In doing so he gathered three hundred and eighteen men from within
his house. At first one may think that three hundred and eighteen is not very
many, and it’s not—if the one you are fighting has more. But the number of men
that came from Abram’s house gives an indication that Abram was prospering. To
have three hundred and eighteen servants in one house is impressive.
We can only speculate on how many troops the four kings
had, but one could speculate that they had quite a few. The number of men that
Abram brought may well have been fewer than the ones they were fighting, but
the fact that they surprised them by night and that God was on their side
enabled them to have victory of the four kings, “He brought back all the goods,
and also brought back his relative Lot with his possessions, and also the
women, and the people.”
Abram’s concern went beyond his nephew Lot; he was also
concerned about all the people who were subjugated to the unjust rule of the
four kings. Abram understood that being the blessing bearer and a witness for
the one true God meant he had to be in the world, but not of the world. He
understood that he had the responsibility of declaring the righteousness and
the salvation of God, and to do this he had to be involved.
Those who live a life of faith today are in a battle, a
spiritual battle, one that we must be involved in. We must avoid isolating
ourselves from the world. Yes, there are sinners out there, and yes, there are
ungodly people out there, but these are not the enemy, they are the casualties
of the war. They need a witness of the righteousness, hope, and salvation of
God found only in the person of Jesus Christ. God accomplishes his will by
using his people, as they get involved in the spiritual battle.
Our Lord gave us marching orders when he said, “You shall
love the Lord your God with all your heart … and your neighbor as yourself
(Luke 10:27)” and “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded” (Matthew 28:19–20). To love our neighbor as
ourselves means that we will get involved in the spiritual battle because we
don’t want our neighbors to be casualties of the war. To go and make disciples
of all nations means that we get involved for the purpose of saving people from
destruction.
God’s people must step into spiritual warfare by using the
weapons of truth and righteousness, by advancing the kingdom of God through the
proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and by standing up for
righteousness and justice. God’s people can do this only by getting involved in
the battle. The life of faith is a life of war. Another truth that we see in
this Genesis 14 concerning spiritual warfare is the truth concerning the
attitude for spiritual warfare.
The Attitude for Spiritual Warfare (vv. 17–20)
After the defeat of the four kings, Abram would
encounter two kings. The arrival of the two kings brought spiritual opposites.
One king ruled over the excessively sinful city Sodom. The other king of
righteousness reigned over the city called Salem, which means “peace.”
The Arrival of Spiritual Opposites
The arrival of the two spiritual opposites is
stated starting in verse 17, “Then after his return from the defeat of
Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to
meet him in the valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek
king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most
High.”
As was stated earlier these two kings were spiritual
opposites. Sodom ruled an ungodly city, a city that would eventually be
destroyed on the basis of God’s judgment, but Melchizedek is quite the
antithesis. The very name Melchizedek[6]
means “king of righteousness” or “my righteous king.” He ruled over Salem,
which many people believe was Jerusalem. Melchizedek suddenly just showed up on
the scene. The Bible records no genealogy. But the text does tell us that he
was a “priest of God Most High.” It is in the blessing that Melchizedek gives
to Abram that we see the source of the victory of Abram’s battle and also the
source of the victory of the spiritual battle.
The Source of Spiritual Victory
It is important that we understand what the
blessing of Melchizedek means, because it is central to understanding the whole
chapter.[7]
The blessing is set forth in verses 19 and 20, “He blessed him and said,
‘Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed
be God Most High who has delivered your enemies into your hand.’ ” The
blessings that are given are both outward and upward.[8]
The outward blessing is directed toward Abram when he
says, “Blessed be Abram of God Most High.” Abram is blessed because he belongs
to God, because he bears the name of the one true God. The upward blessing is
directed toward the Lord, “Blessed be God Most High who has delivered your
enemies into your hands.” Melchizedek had the proper perspective concerning
Abram and his defeat. He understood that the source of Abram’s victory was “God
Most High, possessor of heaven and earth.”[9]
The Hebrew word “El-Elyon” which we translate “God Most High” refers to the
superiority of God. The phrase “possessor of heaven and earth” refers to God
being owner not only of Abram’s plunder, but also of all creation.[10]
What do we understand from this blessing about the whole
fourteenth chapter of Genesis? We learn from Melchizedek that what Abram
experienced was only realized because the “God Most High, possessor of heaven
and earth” empowered Abram to win this great victory.[11]
Abram responded to this blessing by tithing his plunder as
an act of honor toward God who empowered him to be victorious. Abram’s tithe
was a declaration of trust in the Lord as well as an acknowledgement that the
source of his victory was the Lord. The source of all spiritual victory is the
Lord and it’s important that God’s people cultivate this attitude so we remain
totally dependent on the Lord.
In Experiencing God, Henry Blackaby tells the story
of how he and about two thousand other churches in Vancouver’s Baptist
Association were convinced that the Lord wanted them to reach the more than
twenty-two million people who would come to the World Expo Fair in 1986. They
began making the plans two years before the fair. The budget of the
association, two years before the fair, totaled nine thousand dollars. For the
year of the fair, they set the budget for over two hundred thousand dollars.
They had gained commitments that would cover thirty-five percent; the remaining
sixty-five percent would have to come though prayer. The whole association
prayed fervently for the Lord to provide what they needed. By the end of the
first year the Lord had provided two hundred and sixty-four thousand dollars.
The outreach at the fair that year brought twenty thousand professions of
faith. Blackaby said, “You cannot explain it except in terms of God’s
intervention. Only God could have done what was done.”
This is true of all spiritual victory; only God can bring
the victory. And it is paramount that the life of faith cultivates such an
attitude for spiritual warfare. God’s people involved in spiritual warfare must
say with Zechariah 4:6, “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the
Lord of hosts.”
Abram was granted great victory because the Lord empowered
him to defeat the powerful kings, but the battle was not over. A test of faith
would come to Abram, one that could bring defeat if he did not pass the test,
one that reveals the temptation within spiritual warfare.
The Temptation within Spiritual Warfare
The most vulnerable time for believers in
spiritual warfare is immediately after great victories won by the Lord. This
was the case with Joshua after the triumph over Jericho. In Joshua 6, we learn
that God gave the Israelites great victory, but in Joshua 7 we read that they
were defeated.
Elijah is another example of this truth. In 1 Kings 18,
Elijah was victorious on Mount Carmel, but soon after that victory, he ran for
his life, afraid of what Jezebel would do with him. Again, the reason for such
collapse of faith on Elijah’s part is that God’s people are most vulnerable to
temptation after great victories won by God.
The late preacher Andrew Bonar understood this when he
said, “Let us be as watchful after the victory as before the battle.”[12]
And what is true of Joshua and Elijah is going to be true of Abram. After this
great victory that the Lord gave him, Abram is going to be vulnerable and
tempted.
The Temptation Presented (v. 21)
We see the temptation presented in verse 21,
“The king of Sodom said to Abram, ‘Give the people to me and take the goods for
yourself.’ ” The proposition from the king of Sodom at first glance seems
proper in light of what Abram just did for the five kings. It was usual that
the defeating general got the spoils of the war and for the people to go back
to the king who was rescued. But within this offer was a subtle temptation, a
temptation of compromise. Yet unlike his time in Egypt, Abram would now pass
the test and avoid the temptation.
The Test Passed (vv. 22–24)
Abram responded to the king of Sodom, “I have
sworn to the Lord God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not
take a thread or a sandal thong or anything that is yours for fear you would
say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ I will take nothing except what the young men
have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre;
let them take their share.” Abram’s response reveals that he was learning to
trust the Lord rather than to manipulate circumstances for his own gain.
Abram made an oath with the Lord of no-compromise.
Although he deserved the spoils from the fight, Abram recognized that the
spoils were not from the Lord and that to take them would compromise the Lord’s
honor as well has his total trust in God.
The actions of Abram in these verses are completely
different than those he chose in Genesis 12:16. In Egypt Abram had no problem
receiving the goods Pharaoh gave him. Why such different actions? In Egypt
Abram had compromised his faith, but Abram had learned his lesson and
therefore, before he was tempted again, he made an oath to the Lord of
no-compromise when tempted by the things of this world. If Abram were going to
be involved instead of remaining isolated, he had to be indifferent to the ways
of the world. The only way Abram could be in the world, but not of the world
was by making an oath of no-compromise.
A few years ago, before my wife and I had children, some
dear friends of ours took us on a trip to Colorado. While there we were able to
visit the Continental Divide, a ridge of mountains that separate streams that
flow west into the Pacific Ocean from those that flow east into the Atlantic
Ocean.[13]
The snowcap was full of snow and it seemed that the snow was in unity, but it
really was a great illusion. It was an illusion because it set on a great
divide. When the snow melts in the spring, the water on the western side makes
its way to the Pacific Ocean and the water on the eastern side makes its way to
the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. What seemed unified at one point
would end up thousands of miles apart. The Continental Divide marks a dividing
line.
There is a great dividing line between being in the world
and living the life of faith. There is a great dividing live between being in
the world, yet not being of the world. God’s people have to be careful to end
up on the right side of the dividing line. We have to be careful not to
compromise godly principles by accommodating the prevailing culture. For when
we compromise, our involvement and effectiveness in the spiritual battle is
diminished.
It was A. W. Tozer who put it well when he said, “Religion
today is not transforming people; rather it is being transformed by the people.
It is not raising the moral level of society; it is descending to society’s own
level, and congratulating itself that it has scored a victory because society
is smiling accepting its compromise.”
There is a war taking place in every community,
city, and church. A war that is global. God’s spiritual people must get
involved having total dependence upon the Lord who gives the
[1]Philip Yancy,
“CT Classic: Cosmic Combat Part 3,” Christianity Today Magazine 1
December 1999 .
[2]Phillips 125.
[3]Walton and
Matthews 39.
[4]Ross 298.
[5]Hartley 147.
[6]This is the
first mention of a priest in the Bible. Melchizedek is mentioned again about
900 years later in Psalm 110, and then another 1,000 years later in the book of
Hebrews. There is much scholarly debate on whether Melchizedek was the
pre-incarnate Christ or a type of Christ; however, for the purpose of our
study, we’ll discuss Melchizedek only in the context of Abram’s life.
[7]Ross 302.
[8]Hamilton 412.
[9]Hamilton.
412.
[10]Hartley 150.
[11]Hartley 150.
[12]Wiersbe 37.
[13]“Continental
Divide,” Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia, CD-ROM (Microsoft
Corporation, 1997).
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