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 four-tch. xv. 20, teenth year came Chedorlaomer, and the kings that were with him, and smote the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim,

cus.

Deut. ii. 10,
20; iii. 11.
Josh. xii. 4;
xiii. 12;
xvii. 15.

2 Sam. xxi.18.
1 Chron. XX.

4.

is quite unknown as to situation. Knobel says it has been recognized in Tell Ashteroth, in the neighbourhood of DamasBut Mr. Grove, writing at the same date (Biblical Dict., 1860), makes no mention of this recognition. It is elsewhere called Astaroth in Edrei (Deut. i. 4), or simply Ashtaroth (Josh. ix. 10): in Josh. xii. 4, xiii. 12, 31, we have "Ashtaroth and Edrei," as separate cities, pertaining to Og in Bashan. Ashtaroth was his residence (Deut. as above). In later times it was known as Carnaim, 1 Macc. v. 43, 44, or Carnion, 2 Macc. xii. 26. The adjunct Karnaim probably alludes to the worship of the horned goddess Ashtoreth, or the moon (Astarte): but some refer it to a mountain with two peaks or horns, in the neighbourhood. It is somewhat doubtful whether Ham is a proper name at all. The LXX. and Vulgate render the word (Be-ham) “together with them." But the general opinion is, that a place is represented, possibly the Ammonitish capital Rabbath Ammon, the ruins of which are now called Amman. The Samaritan Pentateuch has here the totally different name Lishah, meaning thereby perhaps the Lasha of ch. x. 19. Shaveh Kiriathaim, or the plain Kiriathaim : a city so called is mentioned Num. xxxii. 37 as having been built by the Reubenites, and as pertaining to them, Josh. xiii. 19,as a Moabitish city, Jer. xlviii. 23; Ezek. xxv. 9; by Eusebius and Jerome as Kariatha, 10 miles west of Medeba (which, however, does not appear to lie in a plain). The identification thus seems to be quite uncertain, as it may well be, considering that Kiriathaim simply means two cities.

illustration, not for identification, as we have obviously in this history nothing to do with Galilee. 2.] On all these towns, see notes, ch. xix. Of these kings, whose names are not elsewhere found, nothing is known. The last city, Bela or Zoar (see on ch. xix. 22), has no king named, probably on account of its insignificance. 3.] The vale of Siddim is named only here. The meaning of the name is doubtful. The Hebraists, Gesenius and Kalisch, suppose it to mean "a plain cut up by stony channels, which render it difficult of transit." The word translated vale (Emek) is also applied to the plain of Jezreel, and hence is explained to be "a broad, flattish tract, sometimes of considerable width, enclosed on each side by a definite range of hill." This vale of Siddim, at all events, by the very terms of our text, formed a portion of the low land afterwards submerged by the Salt Sea. See on the whole, Mr. Grove's art. in the Biblical Dict. The notice, which is the salt sea, is one of those added by the writer of Genesis to the ancient document. See vv. 2, 6, 7, and notes. 5.] The Rephaims (see reff.), or giants, appear first here in the E. of Palestine, but are afterwards found in connexion with the Philistines in the W. as enemies of Israel. There is no mention of them in ch. x., so that they were not Canaanites. Their last remaining king was Og, whose sway was very extensive (Josh. xii. 4, 5). The Zuzim and Emim were giant tribes of the Rephaim, dwelling, the former in the country afterwards held by the Moabites (Deut. ii. 10), the latter, called Zamzummims by the Ammonites (Deut. ii. 20), between the Arnon and the Jabbok. Ashteroth 6.] The Horites mean dwellers in Karnaim, or Ashteroth of the two horns, caves, as the inhabitants of Mount Seir (the

F

u Exod. xvii.

8, 14. Num. xxiv. 20. 1

Sam. xv. 3,8. Zezon-tamar.

2 Chron. XX. 2, only.

6 and the Horites in their mount Seir, unto El-paran, which
is by the wilderness. 7 And they returned, and came to En-
mishpat, which is Kadesh, and smote all the country of the
Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt in ▾ Ha-
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

rugged, full of clefts and caverns) or Petra
might well be called. Their expulsion and
destruction by the Edomites are recorded
in Deut. ii. 12. El-paran, the oak (or
terebinth) of Paran, the E. limit of the
wilderness of Paran. On this latter see
note, Deut. i. 1. Here we have another
of the explanatory notices which abound
in this history. 7.] If they marched
northward, they arrived in the desert of
Zin, which formed a part of the great
wilderness of Paran. Here lay, on the fron-
tier of the Idumæan land, the old province
and town of Kadesh or Kadesh-barnea
(Num. xiii. 26; xx. 16). It was not
distant from the town Gerar (ch. xx. 1),
extended from here to the S. districts of
Canaan, and formed its southern boundary
(Num. xxxiv. 4; Josh. xv. 3). Therefore
Moses could from here send the scouts for
the exploration of the promised land, and
treat with the King of Edom regarding
the transit of the Hebrew army (Num.
xiii. 20; xx. 14). "The town contained
a celebrated well which, from an unknown
but no doubt important cause, was called
En-mishpat, Well of Judgment, which more
ancient name later gave way to that of
Kadesh (holy), likewise pointing to the holy
character of the place." Kalisch.
nexion with both names, it may be remem-
bered that it was here Moses, in striking the
rock, spake unadvisedly with his lips (Num.
xx. 10, 11), and was judged for his offence:
and here also "the children of Israel strove
with the Lord, and He was sanctified in
them" (Num. v. 13). The objection to con-
necting these incidents with the name seems
to be that because of that strife the water
did receive a name, viz. that of Meribah

In con

(ib.). The explanatory words, which is
Kadesh, have apparently been inserted by
the Supplementer. There is some difficulty
in the mention of the Amalekites here, seeing
that "duke Amalek," who is ordinarily
taken as the progenitor of that people, was
the grandson of Esau (ch. xxxiv. 12,
16). If that were so, then this mention
of the country of the Amalekites must
be understood as meaning, which was
afterwards that of the Amalekites.
some (see Mr. Bevan, Biblical Dict.) suppose
that the assumption with regard to Esau's
grandson is unfounded, and that the Ama-
lekites were the ancient inhabitants of the
peninsula of Sinai and the wilderness inter-
vening between the southern hill-ranges of
Palestine and the border of Egypt. For their
subsequent history see reff., and notes
thereon.

But

Hazezon

the Amorites] See on ch. x. 16, and note on the report of the spies, Num. xiii. 29. Mr. Grove in Biblical Dict. regards the name not as indicating a distinct tribe, but as being a local term only, supporting the opinion by the curious blending of the designation Amorite with the various Canaanitish Gentile appellations-Hittite, Canaanite, Hivite, Jebusite. tamar] In the only other place where this name occurs (ref.) it is explained to be Engedi. The word is said to mean "the felling of palm-trees," and the place may be the "city of palm-trees" of Judg. i. 16. See Stanley, Sinai and Palestine, p. 297, note. 8.] Here we have another parenthetical notice of the identity of Bela with Zoar. 10.] There is, perhaps, an implication that the bitumen pits were connected with the overthrow of the kings: they fell there, i. e. in the pits, probably by

vale of Siddim was full of slimepits; 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 oak-grove 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
tried servants, born in his own house, three hundred and
eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. 15 And he divided

being entangled in them, and unable to
escape. From the bitumen found on its sur-
face and shores the sea received the name of
Lacus Asphaltites. The sentence is literally,
"The vale of Siddim was pits pits of bitu-
men," i. e. was all pits. The remainder,
the three kings of Admah, Zeboiim, and
Bela, fled, as Lot afterwards, to the heights
of Moab. 13.] There has been much
discussion over the words Abram the He-
brew. The simplest explanation of all is that
of Knobel, that the term is to be understood
in its obvious later sense, as distinguishing
Abram from the Gentile races and people
who occur in the narrative. Thus we have,
"Let the Hebrews hear," 1 Sam. xiii. 3.
See also ib. ver. 7, and xiv. 21. The chief
objection to this view is that there does not
appear here any sufficient reason for such
contrast being made. Another explanation
is, that Abram is thus called here owing to
his descent from Eber, ch. x. 21. It is true
that Eber's descendants there seem to be
specially mentioned as constituting a race by
themselves; but again there would be against
this the former objection that no reason exists
here for thus distinguishing the patriarch.
There remains the solution afforded by the
Septuagint rendering, which the Hebrew
word will bear, Abram the crosser-over, or
the immigrant, viz. from the other side of the
Euphrates. If this were a name by which
Abram was known among his Canaanitish
contemporaries, and if this remarkable docu-
ment were, as has been by some supposed, a
fragment of Canaanitish history incorporated
by the Jehovist, then a reason would be

furnished for this title being given. But the
question why Abram is here thus called,
cannot be considered as satisfactorily solved.
On the oak-grove of Mamre, see note, ch.
xiii. 18. Eshcol, the cluster of grapes, was
in after times the name given by the children
of Israel to a valley near Hebron, because
of the bunch which the spies brought from
thence. But there can hardly be any con-
nexion between the two names. Of Aner
nothing is known. confederates with
Abram] Literally, lords of the oath of
Abram, possessors of a treaty with A.
14. his brother] i. e. his near relative. See
ch. xiii. 8. armed] Literally, poured
out or emptied out. tried] Or proved-
faithful and skilled. The root of the word
signifies to narrow, hence to initiate or im-
bue with.
unto Dan] If this is the
same place as that afterwards named Dan by
the Danites, the word must have been sub-
stituted here for its older appellation Laish
(see Josh. xix. 47). But this (though held
by Ewald) seems very improbable, as other
ancient names have not been thus changed,
but have been parenthetically explained.
See vv. 2, 7, 8. And yet we can hardly fix
on any other place, as Dan lies almost in the
line of the way from Sichem to the neigh-
bourhood of Damascus, along which Abram
pursued the kings. Another place, if it be
another, Dan-jaan, is by Keil supposed to
be this Dan. It is mentioned 2 Sam. xxiv.
6, but corresponds there again very well with
the Danite city, formerly Laish.
He divided himself against them, i. e. split
his forces into two portions. Hobah has not

15.]

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 valley of the king. 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the high God. 19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:

been satisfactorily made out. It was to the left hand, i. e. the north, of Damascus. The Hebrews regarded themselves as facing the East, and named the quarters of the compass accordingly. The Jews regard the village of Jobar, a few miles N. E. of Damascus, as answering to Hobah. At Burzeh, very near, is a spot held in veneration by the people as having been the "praying-place" of Abraham, where he returned thanks to God after the discomfiture of the kings. See Mr. Porter's art, Biblical Dict. 17.] Nothing is known of the name or the site of the valley of Shaveh. It is probable that the word itself (see on ver. 5) means a valley, in which case the valley of Shaveh is a reduplication. In 2 Sam. xviii. 18 we read that Abraham erected for himself a monument in the valley of the king," but we are not told where it was: see there.

18-24.] Abram's meeting with Melchizedek. His renunciation of the spoil. It would exceed the limits of a note to give the many different opinions about this mysterious personage, Melchizedek. "Bearing a title which Jews in after-ages would recognize as designating their own sovereign, bearing gifts which recall to Christians the Lord's Supper, this Canaanite crosses for a moment the path of Abram, and is unhesitatingly recognized as a person of higher spiritual rank than the friend of God. Disappearing as suddenly as he came in, he is lost to the sacred writings for a thousand years; and then a few emphatic words for another moment bring him into sight as a type of the coming Lord of David. Once more, after another thousand years, the Hebrew Christians are taught to see in him a proof that it

was the consistent purpose of God to abolish the Levitical priesthood. His person, his office, his relation to Christ, and the seat of his sovereignty, have given rise to innumerable discussions, which even now can scarcely be considered as settled." Mr. Bullock, Biblical Dict.

It may be stated briefly, that he has been variously supposed to have been Shem, authorized by the dignity of age and by paramount lordship of Canaan, to bless Abram and convey to him his right over the land, (so the Jewish opinion in Jerome's time,— the Samaritan, as reported by Epiphanius,

the later Targums, or Jewish commentaries,-and in modern times, Luther and Melanchthon, Lightfoot, and others),—an angel (ascribed to Origen by Jerome), a Power or Virtue of God, or even the Holy Ghost (various heretics blamed by the Christian Fathers), the Son of God, in human form (some of the ancients, to whose opinion Ambrose inclines, as well as some modern critics), the Messiah (a Jewish opinion), Ham, or Enoch, or Job. But we may safely treat all these as fanciful and unneeded. The typology connected with Melchizedek does not require that he himself should be regarded as any superhuman person, but merely exalts the human circumstances under which he appears into symbols of superhuman things. Everything combines to shew that Melchizedek was a Canaanitish king who had retained the worship of the true God, and combined in his own person the offices of king and priest. It is to be observed that there is not used regarding him, nor does he use, the title of Jehovah, but that of the HIGH GOD, a title found also in the question ad

20 And blessed be the 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 lift up mine hand unto JEHOVAH the high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, 23 x That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine,

dressed (Micah vi. 6) by the Moabitish king Balak, to his prophet Balaam: but that Abram in answering the King of Sodom probably in his presence, affirms the identity of his covenant-God, Jehovah, with the High God, possessor of heaven and earth, of whom Melchizedek had spoken.

Respecting Salem, the city of Melchizedek, there is much discussion. Mr. Grove (Biblical Dict.) thinks that no satisfactory identification is possible. He quotes Dr. Wolff, who maintains that Salem is not a place, but part of the title, "King of peace." This is also held by Bleek and others. The general idea has been in ancient and modern times that Salem is Jerusalem, because it is so called in Ps. lxxvi. 2. Certainly it is: but this is no argument whatever for this Salem being also Jerusalem. Jerome identifies it with the Salem (Saleim in the Greek) near where John the Baptist was baptizing, John iii. 23. He reports that in his time the ruins of Melchizedek's palace were shewn there. But this Salem would be at a great distance from any point where Abram might be met and if we are to take the account strictly, this incident happened (ver. 17) after Abram's return, and consequently in Hebron, which makes it likely that after all Salem may be Jerusalem. On all other points connected with this history, see notes on Heb. vii. 1—4. There the sacred writer adduces this incident as manifesting the superiority of the priesthood of Christ, who (Ps. cx. 4) was to be a priest after the order of Melchizedek, to the Levitical priesthood here represented by Levi's ancestor, Abraham. Melchizedek is greater than Abraham, because Abraham receives blessing at his hand, and pays tithes to him of all his spoil. It is interesting to see the view taken of this incident by Kalisch, a Jew: "Everything is here significant, everything typical: it is obvious that the dim background is designed to veil a grand religious and po

w Exod. vi. 8.

Num. xiv. 30.
Deut. xxxii.
40. Dan.
xii. 7.

x So ch. xxi.
23; xxvi. 29;
xlii. 15. Ps.
xcv. 11 (Heb.
iv. 5).

litical future. . . . . Melchizedek brought forth to Abraham bread and wine, not to refresh him or his men, for Abraham had, among the booty of the enemies, seized their large stores of provisions also (vv. 11, 24), but to perform a symbolical ceremony, in which bread and wine had a typical meaning. For bread represents the ordinary daily food, the necessities of physical subsistence, whilst the wine points to the cheering delights of life and to the spiritual cravings of religion, in the rites of which it formed an important object." He also notices that whereas the Canaanitish king served only the most High God, but Abram the same God by the sublimer name of Jehovah, the religious enlightenment of the king of Salem was but a ray of the sun of Abraham's faith. "This is another instance of the extreme carefulness of the Scriptures in the application of the names of the Deity: the serpent was not allowed to profane the holy name (iii. 1-5); Japheth, though blessed, stood not under the direct protection of Jehovah (ix. 27); and Melchizedek, though a believer in God, had not entirely understood the God of the Hebrews.

On the blessing, and the paying of tithes, in their deeper significance, see on Hebrews, as above. 21.] Certainly the impression is that the offer of the spoils by the king of Sodom takes place at the same time and in the presence of Melchizedek. And this is confirmed by the repetition in Abram's mouth of the name and designation of God used. already by Melchizedek. On the prefacing this by the special Divine name, see above. The king of Sodom appears moved by the liberality of Abram to a like generous return. But there is no league between Abram and Sodom, nor will he give his riches to the idolaters about him. This is at least a different spirit from that in which he acquired his riches in Egypt, ch. xii. 16. I lift up my hand, i. e. I swear: see reff. The