Génesis 14

VBL · Chapter 14/50

1En aquél tiempo Amrafel era el rey de Sumeria, y se había aliado con Arioc, rey de Elasar, Quedorlaómer, rey de Elam, y con Tidal, rey de Goyim.

2Juntos atacaron a Bera, el rey de Sodoma, a Birsá, rey de Gomorra, a Sinab, rey de Admá, a Semeber, rey de Zeboyín, y al rey de Bela (que también se le conocía como Zoar).

3Todos estos en el segundo grupo se aliaron en el Valle de Sidín (el valle del Mar Muerto).

4Habían estado bajo el gobierno de Quedorlaómer durante doce años, pero en el decimotercer año se rebelaron contra él.

5En el decimocuarto año, Querdolaómer los invadió junto con sus reyes aliados. Vencieron a los refaítas en Astarot Carnayin, a los zuzitas en Jam, a los emitas en Save Quiriatayin,

6y a los horeos en su propia región montañosa de Seir, llegando hasta El Parán, junto al desierto.

7Entonces regresaron y atacaron a Enmispat (conocida también como Cades) y conquistaron todo el país que le pertenecía a los amalecitas, así como a los amorreos que vivían en Jazezón Tamar.

8Entonces los reyes de Sodoma, Gomorra, Admá, Zeboyín y Bela (es decir, Zoar), marcharon y se prepararon para la batalla en el Valle de Sidín.

9Pelearon contra Quedorlaómer, rey de Elam; Tidal, rey de Goyim; Amrafel, rey de Sumeria; y Aric, rey de Elasar. Eran cuatro reyes uno al lado del otro contra cinco.

10En ese tiempo, había muchos pozos de alquitrán en el Valle de Sidín, y cuando los reyes de Sodoma y Gomorra huían tras ser vencidos, algunos de sus hombres cayeron en ellos, mientras los demás corrieron hacia las montañas.

11Los invasores saquearon todas las posesiones y alimento de Sodoma y Gomorra, y se fueron.

12También capturaron a Lot, el sobrino de Abram, y tomaron sus posesiones, porque también vivía en Sodoma.

13Pero uno de los capturados escapó y fue a decirle a Abram el hebreo lo que había sucedido. Abram vivía entre los robles de Mamré el amorreo, quien era hermano de Escol y Aner. Todos ellos eran aliados de Abram.

14Cuando Abram se enteró de que su sobrino había sido capturado, convocó a 318 hombres guerreros que habían nacido en su hogar para que los persiguieran hasta llegar a Dan.

15Allí dividió a sus hombres en grupos y atacaron por la noche, venciendo al enemigo y persiguiéndolos hasta llegar a Hobá, al norte de Damasco.

16Abram recuperó todo lo que ellos habían tomado, incluyendo a Lot y sus posesiones, y además trajo consigo a las mujeres y a otras personas que habían sido capturadas.

17Cuando Abram regresó después de conquistar a Quedorlaómer y a sus aliados, el rey de Sodoma salió a su encuentro en el Valle de Save (o Valle del Rey).

18Melquisedec, rey de Salem, trajo pan y vino. Él era sacerdote del Dios Altísimo.

19Y bendijo a Abram, diciéndole: “Que tú, Abram, seas bendito por el Altísimo, Creador del cielo y de la tierra.

20Que el Altísimo sea alabado, por entregar en tu mano a tus enemigos”. Entonces Abram le dio a Melquisedec una décima parte de todo.

21El rey de Sodoma le dijo a Abram: “Devuélveme a mi gente, y quédate con todo lo demás”.

22Pero Abram le respondió al rey de Sodoma: “Levanto mi mano, haciendo una promesa solemne al Señor, al Dios Altísimo, Creador del cielo y de la tierra,

23que me niego a guardar cualquiera de tus pertenencias, ni siquiera un hilo ni la correa de una sandalia. De lo contrario podrías decir: ‘¡Yo fui quien hizo rico a Abram!’

24Por lo tanto no me quedaré con nada, excepto lo que mis hombres han comido, y la parte de los que me han acompañado, es decir, permite que Aner, Escol, y Mamré conserven su parte”.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Four kings defeat a coalition of five kings and carry Lot away captive; Abram organizes his servants, rescues Lot, and is blessed by the mysterious priest-king Melchizedek.

Explanation

This chapter shows Abram in an unexpected role: a courageous military leader who risks his own safety to rescue his nephew Lot, even after they had parted ways amicably. This reveals a loyal character willing to act, not just passively wait for God's promises. The most striking moment, however, is the encounter with Melchizedek, king of Salem (later Jerusalem) and 'priest of the Most High God,' who blesses Abram and receives tithes from him — an enigmatic figure with no recorded genealogy, who appears and disappears from the text. Abram also shows integrity by refusing rewards from the king of Sodom, so that no one could say they had made him rich, preferring that his prosperity come from God alone. The lesson is about family loyalty, practical courage, and financial integrity.

Fun facts

  • Melchizedek is mentioned again in Psalm 110:4 and extensively in Hebrews 5-7, where he is used as a prophetic figure of Christ — a priest-king with no recorded lineage, pointing to an eternal priesthood different from the Levitical one.
  • Abram's act of giving a tithe (a tenth part) to Melchizedek (v. 20) is the first mention of tithing in the entire Bible, serving as a historical reference point for the practice that would later be formalized in the Law of Moses.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Génesis 14:1This war involves kings from cities in Mesopotamia, such as Shinar and Elam, attacking kings of smaller cities near the Dead Sea, including Sodom. The names all belong to small, now-unknown kingdoms; what matters for the story is that Lot, Abram’s nephew, lives in one of these cities and ends up taken prisoner in the conflict.
  2. Génesis 14:2Lists the five kings of the cities in the Dead Sea region, including Sodom and Gomorrah, who will be attacked by the coalition of kings from the previous verse.
  3. Génesis 14:3All the kings involved gather in the vale of Siddim, identified by the text as the region where the Dead Sea would later be.
  4. Génesis 14:4Explains the reason for the war: the five kings of the region had served Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but rebelled in the thirteenth—it’s this rebellion he comes to crush.
  5. Génesis 14:5Chedorlaomer and his allies advance, defeating several ancient peoples along the way, even before reaching the rebel kings—showing the scope of his military campaign.
  6. Génesis 14:6The campaign continues on to the region of Seir and the edge of the wilderness, defeating still more peoples—the text details the route to show the military strength Abram will face further on.
  7. Génesis 14:7The invaders circle back and also attack the Amalekites and the Amorites, expanding the conquered territory even further before the final clash with the five kings.
  8. Génesis 14:8Finally the five rebel kings, including the king of Sodom, go out to face the invaders in battle in the vale of Siddim.
  9. Génesis 14:9Sums up the clash as four kings against five—the invading coalition led by Chedorlaomer against the kings of the cities of the Dead Sea region.
  10. Génesis 14:10The valley had tar pits, a natural trap: the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fall into them while fleeing, and the rest of the army flees to the mountains.
  11. Génesis 14:11The victors plunder Sodom and Gomorrah, carrying off all the goods and provisions of the defeated cities.
  12. Génesis 14:12Among the prisoners taken is Lot, Abram’s nephew, who lived in Sodom—it’s this capture that will drive the rescue mission told through the rest of the chapter.
  13. Génesis 14:13A survivor escapes and warns Abram about what happened to Lot—the text takes the chance to mention Abram’s allies in the region, Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner.
  14. Génesis 14:14Those “born in his own house” were men raised on Abram’s own property, essentially a private militia trained to defend the family’s holdings—318 of them in all, a remarkably specific number that shows Abram was no poor nomad, but a rich and powerful clan chief.
  15. Génesis 14:15Abram splits his men and launches a surprise attack by night, chasing the enemy as far as Hobah, north of Damascus—a victory won through strategy, not just brute force.
  16. Génesis 14:16Abram recovers everything that had been plundered, including Lot, the women, and the rest of the captured people—the rescue is complete, not partial.
  17. Génesis 14:17Returning from the victory, Abram is met by the king of Sodom in the king’s valley—the setting that sets up the encounter with Melchizedek, told in the next verse.
  18. Génesis 14:18Melchizedek appears out of nowhere, with no genealogy or explanation, as king of Salem—likely the future Jerusalem—and at the same time priest, an unusual combination, since king and priest were normally separate roles. He brings out “bread and wine” to receive Abram, a gesture of hospitality and recognition between the leaders of different peoples.
  19. Génesis 14:19Melchizedek blesses Abram in the name of “the most high God,” calling Him “possessor of heaven and earth”—a title that credits Abram’s victory to this God.
  20. Génesis 14:20Abram gives Melchizedek “tithes of all,” that is, a tenth of what he had won in the war—this happens well before any law about tithing appears anywhere else in the Bible. It was more a gesture of honor to the priest of a most high God than the fulfillment of some already-existing formal rule.
  21. Génesis 14:21The king of Sodom proposes a simple deal: Abram keeps the recovered goods, but returns the rescued people—an offer Abram refuses in the verses that follow.
  22. Génesis 14:22Abram refuses the deal, swearing by the same “most high God” mentioned by Melchizedek, making clear that he doesn’t want to owe anything to the king of Sodom.
  23. Génesis 14:23Abram swears that he won’t keep even “a shoelatchet” of what belonged to the king of Sodom—an exaggerated expression meaning he wouldn’t accept absolutely anything, not even the most insignificant item. He didn’t want anyone later saying he’d grown rich off the king of Sodom, so he returns everything he had taken in the war.
  24. Génesis 14:24Abram makes just one exception to what he returns: what his own soldiers had already eaten, and the share owed to his allies Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, who had also fought in the battle.

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