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Genesis 14:10–16 — Abram Rescues Lot. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

The Voices✦ 5 public domain

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The Hebrew idiom gives be’erôth be’erôth ḥêmar , “pits, pits of bitumen” = “all bitumen pits.” Cf. 2 Kings 3:16 , “trenches, trenches” = “nothing but trenches.”

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Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Layers of this natural asphalte, well known both to the Greeks and Romans as pia Judaica, Judean pitch, still exist on the western side of the Dead Sea; and the places whence it had been dug out, and which are often very deep, formed dangerous impediments in the way of the defeated side.

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Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

The vale of Siddim was chosen by those five kings for the place of battle, that their adversaries being ignorant of the place might unawares fall into those pits, which they by their knowledge of it thought to escape.

Poole then argues the kings’ persons escaped (v. 17); “fell” means their armies were slain.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fell there, the valley being full of asphalt-pits, and the ground therefore unfavourable for flight; but the others escaped to the mountains (הרה for ההרה), that is, to the Moabitish highlands with their numerous defiles.

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Matthew HenryConcise Commentary on the Whole Bible1706

Neither our own piety, nor our relation to the favourites of Heaven, will be our security when God's judgments are abroad. Many an honest man fares the worse for his wicked neighbours: it is our wisdom to separate, or at least to distinguish ourselves from them

Henry’s note spans 14:1–12; he reads the war as recorded only because Lot, though righteous, was swept up in Sodom’s losses.

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Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some men fell into the pits, but the survivors fled to the hill country.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·‘ê·meq ha·śid·dīm ḥê·mār be·’ĕ·rōṯ be·’ĕ·rōṯ me·leḵ- sə·ḏōm wa·‘ă·mō·rāh way·yā·nu·sū way·yip·pə·lū- šām·māh wə·han·niš·’ā·rîm nā·sū he·rāh

Word by word14 · parsed

וְעֵ֣מֶקwə·‘ê·meqNow the ValleyH6010

√ ʻêmeq — a vale (iConjunctive wawNounmasculine singular construct

עֵמֶק — ‘êmeq, “vale, valley,” a low basin between heights. The same word names the “King’s Valley” where the king of Sodom meets Abram (14:17).

הַשִׂדִּ֗יםha·śid·dīmof SiddimH7708

√ Siddîym — Siddim, a valley in PalestineArticleNounproperfeminine singular

הַשִׂדִּים — ha·śid·dīm, Siddim, the valley of the battle (14:3, 8); Geneva notes it “afterward was overwhelmed with water, and so was called the salt sea.”

חֵמָ֔רḥê·mārwas full of tarH2564

√ chêmâr — bitumen (as rising to the surface)Nounmasculine singular

חֵמָר — ḥêmār, bitumen/asphalt. The valley’s mineral pitch made it, as Keil says, “unfavourable for flight” — the ground itself fights the defeated.

בֶּֽאֱרֹ֤תbe·’ĕ·rōṯpitsH875

√ bᵉʼêr — a pitNounfeminine plural construct

בֶּאֱרֹת֙be·’ĕ·rōṯ. . .H875

√ bᵉʼêr — a pitNounfeminine plural construct

מֶֽלֶךְ־me·leḵ-and as the kingsH4428

√ melek — a kingNounmasculine singular construct

מֶלֶךְ־ — me·leḵ-, “king of,” singular construct though two cities follow; Poole reads “kings of Sodom and Gomorrah, i.e. their armies; a figurative speech,” since the kings’ persons reappear in v. 17.

סְדֹ֥םsə·ḏōmof SodomH5467

√ Çᵉdôm — Sedom, a place near the Dead SeaNounproperfeminine singular

וַעֲמֹרָ֖הwa·‘ă·mō·rāhand GomorrahH6017

√ ʻĂmôrâh — Amorah, a place in PalestineConjunctive wawNounproperfeminine singular

וַיָּנֻ֛סוּway·yā·nu·sūfledH5127

√ nûwç — to flit, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

וַיִּפְּלוּ־way·yip·pə·lū-some men fellH5307

√ nâphal — to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

שָׁ֑מָּהšām·māhinto [the pits]H8033

√ shâm — there (transferring to time) thenAdverbthird person feminine singular

וְהַנִּשְׁאָרִ֖יםwə·han·niš·’ā·rîmbut the survivorsH7604

√ shâʼar — properly, to swell up, iConjunctive waw, ArticleVerbNifalParticiplemasculine plural

וְהַנִּשְׁאָרִים — wə·han·niš·’ā·rîm, “the ones remaining,” Niphal participle of šā’ar, “to remain over” — the remnant, set in deliberate contrast to those who fell.

נָּֽסוּ׃nā·sūfledH5127

√ nûwç — to flit, iVerbQalPerfectthird person common plural

הֶ֥רָהhe·rāhto the hill countryH2022

√ har — a mountain or range of hills (sometimes used figuratively)Nounmasculine singularthird person feminine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-the-Valley (‘êmeq) of-Siddim was pits, pits (be’ĕrōṯ be’ĕrōṯ) of-bitumen (ḥêmār); and-the-king-of Sodom and-Gomorrah fled (way·yā·nusū), and-they-fell there (šām·māh); and-the-survivors fled to-the-hill-country (he·rāh).”

Where the English smooths the original

בֶּאֱרֹת בֶּאֱרֹת BSB’s smooth “full of tar pits” hides a striking Hebrew idiom: the word for pits is written twice — בֶּאֱרֹת בֶּאֱרֹת חֵמָר, literally “pits, pits of bitumen.” The Pulpit Commentary renders it exactly — “was pits, pits… of slime” — and Cambridge explains the construction: the repeated noun is a Hebrew superlative, “pits, pits of bitumen” = “all bitumen pits,” just as 2 Kings 3:16 says “trenches, trenches” = “nothing but trenches.” The doubling is lost in English.
חֵמָר “tar” renders חֵמָר (ḥêmār), bitumen or asphalt — the same rare word (only three times in Scripture) used for the mortar of Babel (Gen 11:3) and the daubing of Moses’ ark (Exod 2:3). Ellicott identifies it with the “Judean pitch” known to Greeks and Romans; the valley that would become the Salt Sea is already named by its pitch.
וַיִּפְּלוּ־ “some men fell into the pits” supplies into the pits; the Hebrew has only וַיִּפְּלוּ־שָׁמָּה, “and they fell there.” The verb נָפַל is genuinely ambiguous, and the commentators split: Keil and the Pulpit read literal stumbling into the asphalt-holes; Poole and Gill argue “fell” here means were slain (as in Josh 8:25; 1 Sam 4:10), since the survivors are set against “those that fell.” The text does not decide between drowning and dying.
הֶרָה “to the hill country” renders the single word הֶרָה (he·rāh) — Keil flags it as a shortened form, הרה for ההרה, “to the mountain.” The directional ending replaces the article. It is the same flight to the mountain that Lot will later take when Sodom itself is destroyed (Gen 19:30).

The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food, and they went on their way.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

way·yiq·ḥū ’eṯ- kāl- rə·ḵuš sə·ḏōm wa·‘ă·mō·rāh wə·’eṯ- kāl- ’ā·ḵə·lām way·yê·lê·ḵū

Word by word10 · parsed

וַ֠יִּקְחוּway·yiq·ḥūThe [four kings] seizedH3947

√ lâqach — to take (in the widest variety of applications)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

וַיִּקְחוּ — way·yiq·ḥū, “and they took,” Qal of lāqaḥ, the all-purpose verb of taking (in the widest variety of applications). Here, of spoil.

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

כָּל־kāl-allH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular construct

רְכֻ֨שׁrə·ḵušthe goodsH7399

√ rᵉkûwsh — property (as gathered)Nounmasculine singular construct

רְכֻשׁ — rᵉḵuš, “goods, property as gathered.” The keyword of the booty (vv. 11, 12, 16, 21).

סְדֹ֧םsə·ḏōmof SodomH5467

√ Çᵉdôm — Sedom, a place near the Dead SeaNounproperfeminine singular

וַעֲמֹרָ֛הwa·‘ă·mō·rāhand GomorrahH6017

√ ʻĂmôrâh — Amorah, a place in PalestineConjunctive wawNounproperfeminine singular

וְאֶת־wə·’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Conjunctive wawDirect object marker

כָּל־kāl-and allH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular construct

אָכְלָ֖ם’ā·ḵə·lāmtheir foodH400

√ ʼôkel — foodNounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine plural

אָכְלָם — ’ā·ḵə·lām, “their food,” + 3mp suffix. Gill: the victors “did not burn these cities, nor… leave garrisons,” but carried off everything portable — the mark of a raid, not a conquest.

וַיֵּלֵֽכוּ׃way·yê·lê·ḵūand they went on their wayH1980

√ hâlak — to walk (in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

וַיֵּלֵכוּ — way·yê·lê·ḵū, “and they went,” Qal of hālak. The departure that gives Abram his opening.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-they-took (way·yiq·ḥū) all the-goods (rᵉḵuš) of-Sodom and-Gomorrah and-all their-food (’āḵəlām), and-they-went (way·yê·lê·ḵū).”

Where the English smooths the original

וַיִּקְחוּ “The four kings seized” supplies a subject the Hebrew leaves unnamed: it is simply וַיִּקְחוּ, “and they took.” Cambridge marks the abruptness — “The subject is abruptly transferred to the victorious army.” The same verb לָקַח (lāqaḥ, “to take”) opens v. 12 of the taking of Lot: the goods and the man are seized by one word.
רְכֻשׁ “goods” renders רְכֻשׁ (rᵉḵuš), property gathered — movable wealth, cattle and possessions. Barnes notes a textual curiosity: the Septuagint here reads τὴν ἵππον, “the cavalry,” implying reḵeḇ for rᵉḵuš — a reading he judges “not supported by other authorities, nor suitable to the context.” The word recurs four times across this unit; the plunder, and its full recovery (v. 16), frame the whole story.
וַיֵּלֵכוּ “they went on their way” renders the bare וַיֵּלֵכוּ (way·yê·lê·ḵū, “and they walked / went off”). The Pulpit fills the geography the verb implies — “ascending up the valley of the Jordan en route for Damascus” — the same northward line Abram will reverse in pursuit.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

Notice this minute description of Lot and the mention of his residence in Sodom, as if chap. 13 had not immediately preceded. In Genesis 14:14 ; Genesis 14:16 , Lot is spoken of as Abram’s brother.

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Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

How would the conscience of that young man now upbraid him for his selfish folly and ingratitude in withdrawing from his kind and pious relative! Whenever we go out of the path of duty, we put ourselves away from God's protection, and cannot expect that the choice we make will be for our lasting good.

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Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

Lot now suffered for his cohabitation with bad neighbours.

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Geneva Study BibleMarginal Notes1599

The godly are plagued many times with the wicked: therefore their company is dangerous.

Geneva’s marginal gloss on Lot’s capture — the oldest voice in the unit, drawing the principle the narrative enacts.

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They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since Lot was living in Sodom.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

way·yiq·ḥū ’eṯ- way·yê·lê·ḵū ’aḇ·rām ben- ’ă·ḥî lō·wṭ wə·’eṯ- rə·ḵu·šōw wə·hū yō·šêḇ bis·ḏōm

Word by word12 · parsed

וַיִּקְח֨וּway·yiq·ḥūThey also carried offH3947

√ lâqach — to take (in the widest variety of applications)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

וַיִּקְחוּ — way·yiq·ḥū, “and they took” (cf. v. 11). The same verb that took the goods now takes the man.

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

וַיֵּלֵ֑כוּway·yê·lê·ḵūH1980

√ hâlak — to walk (in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

אַבְרָ֖ם’aḇ·rāmAbram’sH87

√ ʼAbrâm — Abram, the original name of AbrahamNounpropermasculine singular

בֶּן־ben-nephewH1121

√ bên — a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etcNounmasculine singular construct

אֲחִ֥י’ă·ḥî. . .H251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Nounmasculine singular construct

ל֧וֹטlō·wṭLotH3876

√ Lôwṭ — Lot, Abraham's nephewNounpropermasculine singular

לוֹט — Lôwṭ, Lot. Named here for the sake of all that follows; the entire war is recorded, Henry argues, only because Abram and Lot were caught in it.

וְאֶת־wə·’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Conjunctive wawDirect object marker

רְכֻשׁ֛וֹrə·ḵu·šōwand his possessionsH7399

√ rᵉkûwsh — property (as gathered)Nounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

וְה֥וּאwə·hūsince [Lot]H1931

√ hûwʼ — he (she or it)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine singular

יֹשֵׁ֖בyō·šêḇwas livingH3427

√ yâshab — properly, to sit down (specifically as judgeVerbQalParticiplemasculine singular

יֹשֵׁב — yō·šêḇ, Qal participle of yāšaḇ, “to sit, dwell, settle.” The progression of 13:12 (Lot “pitched toward Sodom”) has become full residence.

בִּסְדֹֽם׃bis·ḏōmin SodomH5467

√ Çᵉdôm — Sedom, a place near the Dead SeaPreposition-bNounproperfeminine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-they-took Lot (Lôwṭ) the-son-of the-brother-of Abram, and-his-possessions (rᵉḵušōw), and-they-went; and-he was-dwelling (yō·šêḇ) in-Sodom.”

Where the English smooths the original

בֶּן־אֲחִי “Abram’s nephew” resolves a more literal phrase: בֶּן־אֲחִי אַבְרָם, “son of the brother of Abram.” Cambridge notes the careful, almost re-introductory precision here — “this minute description of Lot… as if chap. 13 had not immediately preceded” — while in vv. 14 and 16 the same Lot is called simply Abram’s brother (אָח), the wider Hebrew sense of kinsman.
יֹשֵׁב “since Lot was living in Sodom” renders the participle יֹשֵׁב (yō·šêḇ, “sitting / dwelling”) — a settled state, not a passing visit. The whole verse is the narrator’s quiet verdict on the choice of chapter 13. Pulpit measures the fall: “It betokens a considerable declension in spiritual life to behold him a citizen of Sodom.”
רְכֻשׁוֹ “his possessions” is the same word, רְכֻשׁוֹ (rᵉḵušōw, “his goods”), used of Sodom’s plunder in v. 11 — Lot’s wealth is now indistinguishable from Sodom’s, swept up in the same seizure. The property he chose the fertile plain to gain (13:10–11) is the first thing he loses.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Alexander MaclarenExpositions of Holy Scripturec. 1905

It is a personal epithet, or, in plain English, a nickname, and it means, probably, as the ancient Greek translation of Genesis gives it, neither more nor less than ‘The man from the other side,’ the man that had come across the water.

From Maclaren’s sermon “Abram the Hebrew” on this verse.

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Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Abram had not occupied Mamre without the consent of the dominant Amorites, and probably there was also a league for mutual defence between him and them.

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

We have here an account of the only military action we ever find Abram engaged in, and to this he was not prompted by avarice or ambition, but purely by a principle of charity.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The name “Hebrew” here occurs for the first time in Scripture. It is a title used of Israelites, either by foreigners, or in speaking of them to foreigners, or in contrast with foreigners.

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Then an escapee came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the Oaks of Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshcol and Aner, all of whom were bound by treaty to Abram.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

hap·pā·lîṭ way·yā·ḇō way·yag·gêḏ lə·’aḇ·rām hā·‘iḇ·rî wə·hū šō·ḵên bə·’ê·lō·nê mam·rê hā·’ĕ·mō·rî ’ă·ḥî ’eš·kōl wa·’ă·ḥî ‘ā·nêr wə·hêm ba·‘ă·lê ḇə·rîṯ- ’aḇ·rām

Word by word18 · parsed

הַפָּלִ֔יטhap·pā·lîṭThen an escapeeH6412

√ pâlîyṭ — a refugeeArticleNounmasculine singular

הַפָּלִיט — hap·pā·lîṭ, “the refugee/fugitive,” with generic article (Ewald §277, cited by Keil). The escaped survivor(s) of v. 10’s rout.

וַיָּבֹא֙way·yā·ḇōcameH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

וַיַּגֵּ֖דway·yag·gêḏand reported [this]H5046

√ nâgad — properly, to front, iConjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

לְאַבְרָ֣םlə·’aḇ·rāmto AbramH87

√ ʼAbrâm — Abram, the original name of AbrahamPreposition-lNounpropermasculine singular

הָעִבְרִ֑יhā·‘iḇ·rîthe HebrewH5680

√ ʻIbrîy — an Eberite (iArticleNounpropermasculine singular

הָעִבְרִי — hā·‘iḇrî, “the Hebrew.” A name used of Israelites by foreigners, or in speaking to them — Maclaren: “a Jew did not call himself a ‘Hebrew’ except in intercourse with foreigners.” Its first appearance, fittingly, is on Canaanite lips.

וְהוּא֩wə·hūNow [Abram]H1931

√ hûwʼ — he (she or it)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine singular

שֹׁכֵ֨ןšō·ḵênwas livingH7931

√ shâkan — to reside or permanently stay (literally or figuratively)VerbQalParticiplemasculine singular

בְּאֵֽלֹנֵ֜יbə·’ê·lō·nênear the OaksH436

√ ʼêlôwn — an oak or other strong treePreposition-bNounmasculine plural construct

מַמְרֵ֣אmam·rêof MamreH4471

√ Mamrêʼ — Mamre, an AmoriteNounproperfeminine singular

מַמְרֵא — mam·rê, Mamre; the same oaks of 13:18, where the Lord will appear to Abram in 18:1.

הָאֱמֹרִ֗יhā·’ĕ·mō·rîthe AmoriteH567

√ ʼĔmôrîy — an Emorite, one of the Canaanitish tribesArticleNounpropermasculine singular

אֲחִ֤י’ă·ḥîa brotherH251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Nounmasculine singular construct

אֶשְׁכֹּל֙’eš·kōlof EshcolH812

√ ʼEshkôl — Eshcol, the name of an Amorite, also of a valley in PalestineNounpropermasculine singular

וַאֲחִ֣יwa·’ă·ḥî[and]H251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Conjunctive wawNounmasculine singular construct

עָנֵ֔ר‘ā·nêrAnerH6063

√ ʻÂnêr — Aner, a Amorite, also a place in PalestineNounpropermasculine singular

וְהֵ֖םwə·hêmall of whomH1992

√ hêm — they (only used when emphatic)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine plural

בַּעֲלֵ֥יba·‘ă·lêwere boundH1167

√ baʻal — a masterNounmasculine plural construct

בַּעֲלֵי — ba·‘ă·lê, “lords / masters of,” construct plural of ba‘al; idiom for parties bound by a thing (here, a covenant). Cambridge: “allies with him by mutual compact.”

בְרִית־ḇə·rîṯ-by treatyH1285

√ bᵉrîyth — a compact (because made by passing between pieces of flesh)Nounfeminine singular construct

בְרִית־ — ḇə·rîṯ-, “covenant,” the great word of Genesis 15 and 17, here first in the book — used not of God’s covenant but of a human defensive league.

אַבְרָֽם׃’aḇ·rāmto AbramH87

√ ʼAbrâm — Abram, the original name of AbrahamNounpropermasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-the-fugitive (hap·pā·lîṭ) came and-told to-Abram the-Hebrew (hā·‘iḇrî); and-he was-dwelling by-the-oaks (’êlōnê) of-Mamre the-Amorite, brother-of Eshcol and-brother-of Aner; and-they were lords-of-a-covenant (ba‘ălê ḇərîṯ) of-Abram.”

Where the English smooths the original

הַפָּלִיט “an escapee” renders הַפָּלִיט (hap·pā·lîṭ) — but the Hebrew has the definite article, “the fugitive.” Keil and the Pulpit explain it as the generic article (“the fugitive party,” the genus), as in “the Canaanite” (12:6) — not one named man but the escaped survivors as a class. English must choose an or the; Hebrew names the type.
הָעִבְרִי “the Hebrew” — הָעִבְרִי (hā·‘iḇrî) — is the first occurrence of the name in Scripture, and a genuine fork. The Septuagint rendered it ὁ περάτης, “the one who crosses over” (from beyond the Euphrates); Cambridge favors the patronymic, “descendant of Eber” (Gen 10:24). Maclaren keeps both senses in tension, hearing in it a Canaanite nickname — “the man from the other side.” The word genuinely carries both the geography and the genealogy.
בְּאֵלֹנֵי “near the Oaks of Mamre” renders בְּאֵלֹנֵי (bə·’ê·lō·nê) — better terebinths (Cambridge) than the KJV’s “plain.” Mamre is here both a place and the Amorite chieftain whose name it bears; the patriarch dwells under the sacred trees, in alliance with the land’s owners.
בַּעֲלֵי בְרִית־ “bound by treaty” renders the vivid בַּעֲלֵי בְרִית־אַבְרָם — literally “lords / masters of a covenant of Abram.” Ellicott renders it “lords, or owners of a covenant”; the Pulpit, “masters or possessors of a treaty” (cf. “lords of the oath,” Neh 6:18). Poole draws the lesson the phrase teaches: “it is not simply and universally unlawful to make a league with persons of a false religion.”

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Heb., led forth, or literally, let them loose, let them pour forth, the verb indicating both their number and also their haste. The word for trained comes from the same root as the name Enoch

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

He drew-out his trained servants, or his catechised servants; not only instructed in “the art of war,” but instructed in the principles of religion; for Abram commanded his household to “keep the way of the Lord.”

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The old Jewish commentators explained it by pointing out that the numerical value of the Heb. letters of the name “Eliezer,” Abram’s steward ( Genesis 15:2 ), was 318.

Cambridge sets the gematria and a lunar-myth theory side by side as equally ingenious and improbable.

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Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

If Abram could spare three hundred and eighteen slaves and leave a sufficient number to take care of the flocks, what a large establishment he must have had.

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And when Abram heard that his relative had been captured, he mobilized the 318 trained men born in his household, and they set out in pursuit as far as Dan.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’aḇ·rām way·yiš·ma‘ kî ’ā·ḥîw niš·bāh way·yā·req ’eṯ- šə·mō·nāh ‘ā·śār ū·šə·lōš mê·’ō·wṯ ḥă·nî·ḵāw yə·lî·ḏê ḇê·ṯōw way·yir·dōp̄ ‘aḏ- dān

Word by word17 · parsed

אַבְרָ֔ם’aḇ·rāmAnd when AbramH87

√ ʼAbrâm — Abram, the original name of AbrahamNounpropermasculine singular

וַיִּשְׁמַ֣עway·yiš·ma‘heardH8085

√ shâmaʻ — to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience, etcConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

וַיִּשְׁמַע — way·yiš·ma‘, “and he heard.” Cambridge: had Lot not been taken, Abram “would not have stirred” — the rescue is kinship, not conquest.

כִּ֥יkîthatH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

אָחִ֑יו’ā·ḥîwhis relativeH251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Nounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

נִשְׁבָּ֖הniš·bāhhad been capturedH7617

√ shâbâh — to transport into captivityVerbNifalPerfectthird person masculine singular

נִשְׁבָּה — niš·bāh, Niphal of šāḇāh, “to be carried into captivity.” The single fact that moves the patriarch to war.

וַיָּ֨רֶקway·yā·reqhe mobilizedH7324

√ rûwq — to pour out (literally or figuratively), iConjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

שְׁמֹנָ֤הšə·mō·nāhthe 318H8083

√ shᵉmôneh — a cardinal number, eight (as if a surplus above the 'perfect' seven)Numbermasculine singular

עָשָׂר֙‘ā·śār. . .H6240

√ ʻâsâr — ten (only in combination), iNumbermasculine singular

וּשְׁלֹ֣שׁū·šə·lōš. . .H7969

√ shâlôwsh — threeConjunctive wawNumberfeminine singular construct

מֵא֔וֹתmê·’ō·wṯ. . .H3967

√ mêʼâh — a hundredNumberfeminine plural

חֲנִיכָ֜יוḥă·nî·ḵāwtrained menH2593

√ chânîyk — initiatedNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine singular

חֲנִיכָיו — ḥănîḵāw, “his trained / initiated men,” root ḥānak (to dedicate, train up). The same root names Enoch (4:17) and the Feast of Dedication.

יְלִידֵ֣יyə·lî·ḏêbornH3211

√ yâlîyd — bornNounmasculine plural construct

יְלִידֵי בֵיתוֹ — yə·lî·ḏê ḇê·ṯōw, “born of his house,” home-born slaves (cf. 17:12) — the most trusted retainers, not purchased.

בֵית֗וֹḇê·ṯōwin his householdH1004

√ bayith — a house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etcNounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

וַיִּרְדֹּ֖ףway·yir·dōp̄and they set out in pursuitH7291

√ râdaph — to run after (usually with hostile intentConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

עַד־‘aḏ-asH5704

√ ʻad — as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)Preposition

דָּֽן׃dānfar as DanH1835

√ Dân — Dan, one of the sons of JacobNounproperfeminine singular

דָּן — Dān, the northern boundary marker of later Israel (“from Dan to Beersheba”). Its use here is widely judged a later editorial updating of an older place-name.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-Abram heard (way·yiš·ma‘) that his-brother had-been-taken-captive (niš·bāh); and-he-emptied-out (way·yā·req) his-trained-men (ḥănîḵāw), born-of his-house, three-hundred and-eighteen, and-he-pursued as-far-as Dan (Dān).”

Where the English smooths the original

וַיָּרֶק “he mobilized” tames a forceful and unusual verb: וַיָּרֶק (way·yā·req), from a root meaning “to pour out / empty out.” Ellicott: “led forth, or literally, let them loose, let them pour forth, the verb indicating both their number and also their haste.” Cambridge adds the alternate sense, “unsheathed,” used of a sword drawn from its scabbard. The image is of men poured out in a rush, not a tidy muster.
חֲנִיכָיו “trained men” renders חֲנִיכָיו (ḥănîḵāw) — a word from the same root as the name Hanoch / Enoch and ḥănukkāh (“dedication”): the initiated, dedicated ones. Keil reads “practised in arms”; Benson hears more — “not only instructed in ‘the art of war,’ but instructed in the principles of religion.” The single word carries both soldiery and discipleship.
שְׁמֹנָה עָשָׂר וּשְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת “the 318” compresses the spelled-out Hebrew, “eight ten and three hundred.” Cambridge records the ancient gematria: “the numerical value of the Heb. letters of the name ‘Eliezer,’ Abram’s steward (Genesis 15:2), was 318,” and dryly weighs it against a modern lunar-myth theory — both “possess a certain kind of resemblance in their ingenuity and their improbability.” The plain number already implies a household of more than a thousand.
דָּן “as far as Dan” names a place that did not yet bear the name: דָּן (Dān) is the later name of Laish/Leshem, conquered and renamed only in Judges 18. Cambridge calls it “strictly speaking, an anachronism, though quite intelligible” — and finds it not without significance that Abram overtakes the enemy “at the furthest northern limit of the future Israelite country.” Keil dissents, arguing for a different Dan in Gilead. The name is debated; the reach northward is not.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

he divided his men into companies, who fell upon the enemy by night from different sides

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Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

This war between the petty princes of ancient Canaan is exactly the same as the frays and skirmishes between Arab chiefs in the present day. When a defeated party resolves to pursue the enemy, they wait till they are fast asleep; then, as they have no idea of posting sentinels, they rush upon them from different directions

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

Skinner rightly points out that “it is idle to pretend that Abram’s victory was merely a surprise attack on the rearguard, and the recovery of part of the booty. A pursuit carried so far implies the rout of the main body of the enemy”

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Albert BarnesNotes on the Bible1834

An Eastern, in fixing the points of the heavens, faces the rising sun, in which position the east is before him, the west behind, the south at the right hand, and the north at the left.

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During the night, Abram divided his forces and routed Chedorlaomer’s army, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

lay·lāh hū way·yê·ḥā·lêq ‘ă·lê·hem wa·‘ă·ḇā·ḏāw way·yak·kêm way·yir·də·p̄êm ‘aḏ- ḥō·w·ḇāh ’ă·šer miś·śə·mōl lə·ḏam·mā·śeq

Word by word12 · parsed

לַ֛יְלָהlay·lāhDuring the nightH3915

√ layil — properly, a twist (away of the light), iNounmasculine singular

ה֥וּאhū[Abram]H1931

√ hûwʼ — he (she or it)Pronounthird person masculine singular

וַיֵּחָלֵ֨קway·yê·ḥā·lêqdividedH2505

√ châlaq — to be smooth (figuratively)Conjunctive wawVerbNifalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

וַיֵּחָלֵק — way·yê·ḥā·lêq, Niphal of ḥālaq, “to divide.” The reflexive form: Abram divided himself — i.e. his force — for a multi-pronged night assault.

עֲלֵיהֶ֧ם׀‘ă·lê·hem. . .H5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPrepositionthird person masculine plural

וַעֲבָדָ֖יוwa·‘ă·ḇā·ḏāwhis forcesH5650

√ ʻebed — a servantConjunctive wawNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine singular

וַיַּכֵּ֑םway·yak·kêmand routed [Chedorlaomer’s army]H5221

√ nâkâh — to strike (lightly or severely, literally or figuratively)Conjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singularthird person masculine plural

וַיַּכֵּם — way·yak·kêm, “and he smote them,” Hiphil of nāḵāh + 3mp suffix; the verb of military defeat.

וַֽיִּרְדְּפֵם֙way·yir·də·p̄êmpursuing themH7291

√ râdaph — to run after (usually with hostile intentConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singularthird person masculine plural

עַד־‘aḏ-as far asH5704

√ ʻad — as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)Preposition

חוֹבָ֔הḥō·w·ḇāhHobahH2327

√ chôwbâh — Chobah, a place in SyriaNounproperfeminine singular

חוֹבָה — ḥō·w·ḇāh, Hobah, a place north of Damascus, possibly preserved (Keil) in the village of Hoba near Damascus.

אֲשֶׁ֥ר’ă·šerH834

√ ʼăsher — who, which, what, thatPronounrelative

מִשְּׂמֹ֖אלmiś·śə·mōlnorthH8040

√ sᵉmôʼwl — properly, dark (as enveloped), iPreposition-mNounmasculine singular

מִשְּׂמֹאל — miś·śə·mōl, “to the left,” i.e. north, by the Hebrew custom of facing east to orient the compass (cf. Gen 2:24 idiom).

לְדַמָּֽשֶׂק׃lə·ḏam·mā·śeqof DamascusH1834

√ Dammeseq — Damascus, a city of SyriaPreposition-lNounproperfeminine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-he-divided-himself (way·yê·ḥā·lêq) against-them by-night (lay·lāh), he and-his-servants, and-he-struck (way·yak·kêm) them, and-he-pursued them as-far-as Hobah, which is-to-the-left (miś·śə·mōl) of-Damascus.”

Where the English smooths the original

וַיֵּחָלֵק “divided his forces” renders the reflexive וַיֵּחָלֵק (way·yê·ḥā·lêq, Niphal), “he divided himself” — Abram personally splitting his band. Keil: “he divided his men into companies, who fell upon the enemy by night from different sides.” Poole sees the stratagem — striking “from several quarters” so the enemy “thought his army far more numerous than it was.” The verb makes Abram the tactician, not just the commander.
לַיְלָה “During the night” opens the verse on its first Hebrew word, לַיְלָה (lay·lāh) — the night attack is foregrounded. JFB likens it to desert warfare still seen “between Arab chiefs”: the pursuers “wait till they are fast asleep; then… rush upon them from different directions.” The surprise, not the numbers, wins.
וַיַּכֵּם “routed Chedorlaomer’s army” interprets the plain verb וַיַּכֵּם (way·yak·kêm, Hiphil of nāḵāh), “and he struck / smote them.” The same verb is used for decisive defeat throughout the conquest narratives. Cambridge insists the language means a real rout: “it is idle to pretend that Abram’s victory was merely a surprise attack on the rearguard… A pursuit carried so far implies the rout of the main body.”
מִשְּׂמֹאל “north of Damascus” renders מִשְּׂמֹאל (miś·śə·mōl), literally “from the left (hand).” Barnes explains the orientation: an Easterner “faces the rising sun… the north at the left.” The Hebrew fixes direction by the body facing dawn; English must convert “left” into “north.”

He retrieved all the goods, as well as his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the rest of the people.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

way·yā·šeḇ ’êṯ kāl- hā·rə·ḵuš wə·ḡam ’eṯ- ’ā·ḥîw lō·wṭ ū·rə·ḵu·šōw hê·šîḇ wə·ḡam ’eṯ- han·nā·šîm wə·’eṯ- hā·‘ām

Word by word15 · parsed

וַיָּ֕שֶׁבway·yā·šeḇHe retrievedH7725

√ shûwb — to turn back (hence, away) transitively or intransitively, literally or figuratively (not necessarily with the idea of return to the starting point)Conjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

וַיָּשֶׁב — way·yā·šeḇ, Hiphil of šûḇ, “he brought back / restored.” The verb of total restitution; the unit ends where it began, with the goods — now returned.

אֵ֖ת’êṯH853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

כָּל־kāl-allH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular construct

הָרְכֻ֑שׁhā·rə·ḵušthe goodsH7399

√ rᵉkûwsh — property (as gathered)ArticleNounmasculine singular

וְגַם֩wə·ḡamas well asH1571

√ gam — properly, assemblageConjunction

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

אָחִ֤יו’ā·ḥîwhis relativeH251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Nounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

אָחִיו — ’āḥîw, “his brother,” the kinship term (H251) covering nephew; the object of the whole campaign.

ל֨וֹטlō·wṭLotH3876

√ Lôwṭ — Lot, Abraham's nephewNounpropermasculine singular

וּרְכֻשׁוֹ֙ū·rə·ḵu·šōwand his possessionsH7399

√ rᵉkûwsh — property (as gathered)Conjunctive wawNounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

הֵשִׁ֔יבhê·šîḇ. . .H7725

√ shûwb — to turn back (hence, away) transitively or intransitively, literally or figuratively (not necessarily with the idea of return to the starting point)VerbHifilPerfectthird person masculine singular

וְגַ֥םwə·ḡamtogether withH1571

√ gam — properly, assemblageConjunction

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

הַנָּשִׁ֖יםhan·nā·šîmthe womenH802

√ ʼishshâh — a womanArticleNounfeminine plural

הַנָּשִׁים — han·nā·šîm, “the women,” + the people (hā·‘ām): the full body of captives, restored beyond what Abram set out to recover.

וְאֶת־wə·’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Conjunctive wawDirect object marker

הָעָֽם׃hā·‘āmand the rest of the peopleH5971

√ ʻam — a people (as a congregated unit)ArticleNounmasculine singular

הָעָם — hā·‘ām, “the people,” here the captured population of the plain; the victory benefits even the men of Sodom, foreshadowing the meeting of v. 17 and the tithe to Melchizedek (v. 20).

Literal — word-for-word from the original

“And-he-brought-back (way·yā·šeḇ) all the-goods, and-also his-brother (’āḥîw) Lot and-his-possessions he-brought-back, and-also the-women (han·nā·šîm) and-the-people (hā·‘ām).”

Where the English smooths the original

וַיָּשֶׁב … הֵשִׁיב “He retrieved” renders וַיָּשֶׁב (way·yā·šeḇ, Hiphil of šûḇ, “to cause to return / bring back”) — and the verb is used twice in the verse (again as הֵשִׁיב of Lot), framing the recovery. Poole sums it: “He brought back all the goods which the victorious kings had taken.” The word of return answers the word of taking (vv. 11–12): all that was seized is turned back.
אָחִיו “his relative Lot” renders אָחִיו (’āḥîw, “his brother”) — the wider Hebrew sense of kinsman (cf. v. 14). The narrator who in v. 12 was careful to call Lot “son of Abram’s brother” now twice calls him simply brother: the deliverer treats the nephew as a brother, recovering him by name.
הַנָּשִׁים וְאֶת־הָעָם “the women and the rest of the people” renders הַנָּשִׁים וְאֶת־הָעָם — the women and the people. The recovery is total: not only Lot and the goods, but the captive populace of the cities. Gill notes the rescue extended “not only that belonged to Lot, but to Sodom and Gomorrah, who had been taken and carried captive.” Abram’s charity overflows its own occasion.

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. The valley that swallows the victors — verse 10

The unit opens not with Abram but with a battlefield that fights for no one. The Valley of Siddim, the narrator says, was בֶּאֱרֹת בֶּאֱרֹת חֵמָר — and the Hebrew stammers the noun: “pits, pits of bitumen.” Cambridge reads the doubling as a Hebrew superlative — “pits, pits of bitumen” = “all bitumen pits,” on the model of 2 Kings 3:16’s “trenches, trenches” = “nothing but trenches.” Ellicott grounds the pitch in geology: layers of “Judean pitch” known to Greeks and Romans, the holes “often very deep,” forming “dangerous impediments in the way of the defeated side.” Poole notes the bitter irony the kings of the plain built into their own strategy — they chose this ground “that their adversaries being ignorant of the place might unawares fall into those pits, which they by their knowledge of it thought to escape,” only to be undone there themselves.

What exactly happened when they “fell there” the Hebrew leaves open, and the voices honestly divide. Keil and the Pulpit take it literally — the asphalt-pits made the ground “unfavourable for flight,” and the defeated stumbled in. Poole and Gill argue the verb “fell” here means were slain (as in Josh 8:25; 1 Sam 4:10), since v. 17 will show the king of Sodom alive. The narrator records the rout, not the manner of death. The survivors flee הֶרָה, “to the mountain” — the same refuge Lot will one day seek when Sodom itself is undone (19:30).

ii. The plunder and the nephew — the cost of Sodom — verses 11–12

The camera turns abruptly to the winners. Cambridge marks the seam: “The subject is abruptly transferred to the victorious army… the victorious troops did not wait; but after inflicting punishment hurried off, like a predatory horde, with their booty.” The same verb takes the goods (v. 11) and the man (v. 12): לָקַח, “they took.” And here the narrator’s real reason for telling the story surfaces — Lot. Matthew Henry sees the whole war as recorded only for his sake: had “Abram and Lot… not been concerned,” Scripture would have passed the campaign over in silence.

The capture of Lot is told as the harvest of a choice. The narrator pointedly re-describes him, Cambridge notes, “as if chap. 13 had not immediately preceded,” and pins the cause in five Hebrew words at the verse’s end: “and he was dwelling in Sodom.” The Pulpit measures the fall — “a considerable declension in spiritual life to behold him a citizen of Sodom” — and JFB hears the conscience that should now “upbraid him for his selfish folly.” Poole states it flatly: “Lot now suffered for his cohabitation with bad neighbours.” The wealth he chose the fertile plain to gain (13:10–11) is, by the same word rᵉḵuš, the first thing seized.

iii. Abram the Hebrew — the man from the other side — verse 13

Then the first new name in the chapter’s second half, and the first of its kind in all Scripture: Abram the Hebrew. The word הָעִבְרִי arrives, fittingly, in a Canaanite’s report — Maclaren hears it as a nickname, “the man from the other side,” following “the ancient Greek translation… ‘The man from the other side,’ the man that had come across the water.” Cambridge records both its novelty and its function: “The name ‘Hebrew’ here occurs for the first time in Scripture. It is a title used of Israelites, either by foreigners, or in speaking of them to foreigners.” Whether it means the immigrant from beyond the Euphrates (so the Septuagint) or the descendant of Eber (so Cambridge, Calvin, Benson) is genuinely undecided — and the verse lets the ambiguity stand.

The verse also discloses, almost in passing, that Abram is not alone: he is בַּעֲלֵי בְרִית, “lord of a covenant” with Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner — Ellicott’s “league for mutual defence,” and the first occurrence of the great covenant-word bᵉrîṯ in Genesis, here human rather than divine. Poole draws the principle the alliance teaches: “it is not simply and universally unlawful to make a league with persons of a false religion.” The pilgrim who lives in a tent under the oaks is nonetheless bound to his neighbors — and, as Benson notes, his coming war is moved “not… by avarice or ambition, but purely by a principle of charity.”

iv. The pursuit — poured out by night — verses 14–15

When Abram hears that his brother is taken, he acts at once. The verb is arresting: וַיָּרֶק, which Ellicott renders “let them loose, let them pour forth, the verb indicating both their number and also their haste.” His men are חֲנִיכָיו, “trained,” from the root of Enoch and dedication — Keil’s “practised in arms,” Benson’s “catechised servants… instructed in the principles of religion.” Their number, 318, has drawn endless ingenuity; Cambridge soberly notes the old gematria (the letters of Eliezer, Abram’s steward, total 318) and a modern lunar-myth theory, judging both to share “a certain kind of resemblance in their ingenuity and their improbability.” JFB simply reckons the household it implies: “what a large establishment he must have had.”

The campaign reaches Dan — a name, Cambridge grants, that is “strictly speaking, an anachronism” (Laish was renamed Dan only in Judges 18), “though quite intelligible,” and not without the symbolic weight of victory “at the furthest northern limit of the future Israelite country” — though Keil dissents, locating a different Dan in Gilead. The battle itself is a model of asymmetric war: Abram “divided himself” (Keil: “fell upon the enemy by night from different sides”); JFB compares the desert raids of “Arab chiefs” who strike the sleeping foe. Cambridge refuses to shrink the result — “a pursuit carried so far implies the rout of the main body of the enemy.” The pursuit ends north of Damascus, at Hobah, “on the left hand” — Barnes: the Easterner faces dawn, so “the north at the left.”

v. The bringing-back — all of it — verse 16

The unit ends on a single, doubled verb of restoration: וַיָּשֶׁב … הֵשִׁיב, “he brought back… he brought back.” The word of return deliberately answers the word of taking in vv. 11–12. Poole sums the completeness — “He brought back all the goods which the victorious kings had taken” — and Gill marks how far the rescue overflowed its occasion: Abram recovered “not only that belonged to Lot, but to Sodom and Gomorrah, who had been taken and carried captive.” The deliverer who went out for one kinsman returns with the captives, the women, and the whole people. Matthew Henry draws the plain charge of the unit: “Abram rescued the captives. As we have opportunity, we must do good to all.” The man called brother’s son in v. 12 is twice called simply brother here — recovered, restored, and re-claimed.

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

Read under the rule that Scripture alone is the final authority — offered as a reading to be tested, not a verdict to be trusted — three things in this unit press on the conscience. First, the chapter is a quiet meditation on the cost of Lot’s choice. Genesis does not moralize; it simply notes, at the precise hinge of his capture, that “he was dwelling in Sodom.” The wealth he moved toward the plain to gain (13:10–11) is the very rᵉḵuš seized first, and the danger he pitched his tent toward becomes the captivity he is dragged into. The Hebrew lets the geography do the preaching. Second, the rescue is the first portrait in Scripture of the man of faith as deliverer — and it is charity, not conquest. Abram, who lives in a tent and waits on the promise, does not seize the land he could; he pours out his trained household by night to recover one kinsman, and brings back everyone. Benson is right that the action springs “purely by a principle of charity,” and Henry rightly universalizes it: “we must do good to all.” Third, the title earned here — Abram the Hebrew, “the man from the other side” — names the believer’s standing in the world. The first man of the covenant is known to the nations as the foreigner, the one who crossed over; he fights for the city of the plain without belonging to it, bound by treaty yet dwelling apart. The narrative that will rise, in the verses just beyond this unit, to Melchizedek and the tithe (vv. 18–20) is grounded first in this: a stranger who keeps faith with his neighbors, and a God who gives the victory (v. 20) to the one who waited for it.

The man who lives in a tent and waits for a city is the one who, when the kings have fled, brings everyone home. — a reading to be tested, not a verse

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

Bitumen, three times — Babel, the ark, and the valley of the pits verbal / quotation — confirmed

The word for the valley’s pitch, חֵמָר (ḥêmār, H2564), occurs only three times in all Scripture, and the Verifier ties this verse to both of the others: Babel, where the builders used “bitumen for mortar” (Gen 11:3), and the Nile, where Moses’ mother daubed the basket with “bitumen and pitch” (Exod 2:3). Because the lexeme is so rare (3 occurrences), this is a genuine verbal link rather than a chance overlap. The same substance binds the tower of human pride, seals the ark of an infant deliverer, and pits the ground that swallows the kings of Sodom — a single material running through three very different scenes of human building, rescue, and ruin.

Genesis 14:10 · Genesis 11:3 · Exodus 2:3

basis: shared rare lexeme ḥêmār (H2564), only 3 occurrences in Scripture (Gen 11:3; Exod 2:3; Gen 14:10) — Verifier-computed; rarity makes the verbal link genuine, not chance

Mamre, Eshcol, Aner — the allies named again at the close verbal / quotation — confirmed

The three Amorite confederates introduced in v. 13 — Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner — return by name at the end of the same chapter (14:24), where Abram, refusing Sodom’s spoil for himself, insists that “Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre… take their share.” The Verifier records three shared lexemes: אֶשְׁכֹּל Eshcol (H812, only 6 occurrences), עָנֵר Aner (H6063, only 3 occurrences), and מַמְרֵא Mamre (H4471). Two of the three are genuinely rare proper names, so this is a true verbal continuity — but it is continuity within one account, the same allies framing the campaign, not an external quotation.

Genesis 14:13 · Genesis 14:24

basis: shared rare proper names Eshcol (H812, 6×) + Aner (H6063, 3×) + Mamre (H4471); same allies reappear at 14:24 — Verifier-computed; rarity of the names makes the verbal tie genuine

The oaks of Mamre — the dwelling-place and the theophany structural / thematic — confirmed

Abram’s home “by the oaks of Mamre” (14:13) ties back to 13:18, where he first “moved his tent and came and dwelt by the oaks of Mamre,” and forward to 18:1, where “the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre.” The Verifier confirms shared lexemes אֵלוֹן ’êlôn (“oak/terebinth,” H436, only 9 occurrences) and מַמְרֵא Mamre (H4471). The same grove is the patriarch’s settled dwelling, his base for the rescue, and the place of the Lord’s visitation — a structural anchor for the Abraham narrative, marked verbally by the recurring (and uncommon) word for the sacred trees.

Genesis 14:13 · Genesis 13:18 · Genesis 18:1

basis: shared lexemes ’êlôn (H436, 9×) + Mamre (H4471); the oaks of Mamre as recurring locale (13:18 dwelling, 14:13 base, 18:1 theophany) — Verifier-computed; tiered structural as recurring setting, not a quotation

Sodom and Gomorrah — the proverbial pair of judgment structural / thematic — confirmed

The paired names Sodom and Gomorrah (14:10–12) recur across Scripture as the byword for cities ripe for judgment — Genesis 13:10; 19:28; Deuteronomy 32:32; Isaiah 1:9. The Verifier finds shared lexemes סְדֹם Sodom (H5467, 38 occurrences) and עֲמֹרָה Gomorrah (H6017, 19 occurrences) in each. Because these are common proper names that simply co-occur — not a rare lexeme nor a quotation — we deliberately under-claim here against the Verifier’s default “verbal” tier: the names ringing together across the canon is a thematic motif (the doomed cities) carried by recurring nouns, not a verbal allusion in the citation sense. Genesis 14 shows the pair already imperiled by war, long before the fire of chapter 19; the prophets later make them the standing image of a people deserving destruction.

Genesis 14:10 · Genesis 13:10 · Genesis 19:28 · Deuteronomy 32:32 · Isaiah 1:9

basis: shared proper names Sodom (H5467, 38×) + Gomorrah (H6017, 19×) — Verifier returns these but they are common co-occurring names, not rare or a quotation; deliberately downgraded from ‘verbal’ to thematic (the proverbial doomed-cities motif)

Lot’s property and the choice that cost it — the rᵉkûš motif structural / thematic — confirmed

Lot’s “possessions” (רְכֻשׁ, rᵉḵuš, H7399), seized in vv. 11–12 and restored in v. 16, are verbally linked by the Verifier to 12:5 (the substance Abram and Lot gathered in Haran) and to 14:21 (the goods the king of Sodom asks Abram to keep). The word, occurring 27 times, is the thread of movable wealth running through the Abraham–Lot story: the substance that grew so great the two had to part (13:6), the goods Lot lost to the four kings, and the spoil Abram will refuse to take for himself. The connection is structural — the same keyword tracing the theme of possessions through the cycle — rather than a quotation.

Genesis 14:12 · Genesis 12:5 · Genesis 14:21

basis: shared lexeme rᵉkûš (H7399, 27×) + Lôwṭ (H3876) with 12:5; rᵉkûš + Sodom with 14:21 — Verifier-computed; common keyword tracing the ‘possessions’ theme, so tiered structural not verbal

Abram the Hebrew — the patronymic from Eber flagged — verify source

The first occurrence of “Hebrew” (עִבְרִי, H5680) in Scripture (14:13) is read by Cambridge, Benson, and the Pulpit as the patronymic “descendant of Eber” (Gen 10:24; 11:14), the same root standing behind Joshua’s later summary that the fathers “dwelt beyond the River” (Josh 24:2). The Verifier returns no shared original-language lexeme between Genesis 14:13 and Joshua 24:2 — the connection is interpretive (the meaning of the name, and the “crossing over” it may encode), argued by the commentators, not asserted by a shared Strong’s number. We flag it accordingly: the etymology of ‘iḇrî (from Eber, or from ‘āḇar, “to cross over”) is itself the disputed point, so the link to Joshua 24:2 must be argued, not claimed as verbal.

Genesis 14:13 · Genesis 10:24 · Joshua 24:2

basis: Verifier finds NO shared lexeme between Gen 14:13 and Josh 24:2; the tie rests on the contested etymology of ‘iḇrî (‘Hebrew’ = descendant of Eber, or ‘one who crossed over’) — interpretive, not verbal; flagged because the basis itself is disputed

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

Melchizedek and the victorious deliverer — the unit that opens the priest-king ancient/widely-held

This unit is the immediate setup for the figure the New Testament treats as the great type of Christ’s priesthood. Abram’s victory over the kings (14:14–16) is precisely the occasion on which Melchizedek, “king of Salem… priest of God Most High,” comes out to bless him (14:18–20) — and Hebrews 7:1 names this very scene: “this Melchizedek… met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him.” The triumphant, tithe-giving deliverer of Genesis 14 stands at the threshold of the only Old-Testament priest-king, whom Psalm 110 and Hebrews 5–7 make the pattern of the Messiah. Because this reaches from Hebrew narrative to a Greek epistle, no shared Strong’s lexeme is possible; the link is the express citation of the scene in Hebrews 7:1, and the typology of Melchizedek it introduces is ancient and widely held.

Genesis 14:14 · Genesis 14:16 · Hebrews 7:1

The kinsman-deliverer — Abram going after the captives novel

Abram’s rescue of his captive brother — going out at cost, by night, to bring back the taken and set the prisoners free — has been read as a figure of Christ the deliverer who comes after his own. Maclaren draws the line in his exposition of this passage, urging that the man of faith who lives well apart from the world is precisely the one fitted to redeem it: “our religion should fit us for the prompt and heroic undertaking, as it certainly does for the successful accomplishment, of all deeds of brotherly kindness and sympathy, bringing help and solace to the weak and the wearied, liberty to the captives, and hope to the despairing.” The pattern is the gospel in miniature: the man of faith who does not belong to the doomed city nonetheless lays down his ease to redeem those held by a stronger power, and brings them home — rᵉḵuš, Lot, the women, and all the people (v. 16) restored. Maclaren himself disciplines the figure, adding that “Abram is in that respect the Old Testament type of a God-fearing hero, with the actual sword in his hands.” Its New Testament counterpart, he insists, fights without one — a caution against pressing the military letter too far. This is a typological reading (figural, not a stated prophecy); it is widely echoed in devotional exegesis but novel in this specific application rather than a fixed item of ancient creedal teaching, and is offered to be weighed against the text.

Genesis 14:14 · Genesis 14:16

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
Alexander Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (c. 1905)
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
Keil & Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1860s)
Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain. The named voices are quoted verbatim from public-domain commentaries on Genesis 14 (Ellicott, Benson, Henry, Barnes, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, Poole, Gill, Geneva Study Bible, Cambridge Bible, Pulpit Commentary, Keil & Delitzsch, and Maclaren), each attributed and linked to its BibleHub source. The Hebrew is the Masoretic tradition; transliterations, parsings, glosses, and Strong’s numbers follow the Berean interlinear. The literal renderings, the “where the English smooths the Hebrew” divergences, the word-notes, the movements, and the Sola reading are this tool’s own work (⚙) — careful but fallible; weigh them against the text. Unit-specific honesty notes: (1) v. 10 — the verb “fell” (nāphal) is genuinely ambiguous: Keil and the Pulpit read literal stumbling into the asphalt-pits, while Poole and Gill read it as were slain, since the king of Sodom is alive in v. 17; the text does not decide. (2) v. 13 — the meaning of ‘iḇrî (“Hebrew”) is undecided between “immigrant from beyond the Euphrates” (LXX ὁ περάτης) and “descendant of Eber”; both are recorded and neither is asserted as certain. (3) v. 14 — Dan is, by wide agreement (Cambridge, and implied by Joshua 19:47 / Judges 18:29), the later name of Laish, making its use here an editorial updating of an older place-name; Keil dissents, arguing for a separate Dan in Gilead. The 318 retainers attract a Jewish gematria (Eliezer = 318) and a modern lunar-myth theory, both recorded by Cambridge as ingenious and improbable; we assert neither. (4) The Sodom/Gomorrah thread is deliberately under-claimed: the Verifier’s default tiers the shared proper names as “verbal,” but common co-occurring place-names are not a quotation, so we downgrade to structural/thematic (the proverbial doomed-cities motif). (5) The “Abram the Hebrew → Eber / Joshua 24:2” thread is flagged: the Verifier finds no shared lexeme, and the basis is the contested etymology of the name itself, which must be argued rather than asserted. (6) Cross-Testament threads and the Melchizedek/Christ readings (Hebrews 7:1) cannot carry a shared Strong’s lexeme and are tiered structural/typological on the strength of the named NT citation, never ‘verbal.’ The second Christ reading (Abram as kinsman-deliverer) is marked novel, a figural application offered to be tested, not an ancient creedal datum. This unit does not contain Joshua 1:5, so the mandatory Joshua 1:5 → Hebrews 13:5 flag does not apply here.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)