Genesis 13-14 -- By this time, Abram's flocks and herds required too much range to share comfortably with Lot. His nephew had become a sheik in his own right. Their respective herdsmen were beginning to fight over resources. Lot chose to dwell in the fertile Jordan Valley.
The Jordan River ran roughly 120 miles in a deep rift to the Dead Sea. South of the Dead Sea, the lowest point, the deep rift continued another 120 miles or so to the Gulf of Aqaba. In 2000 BC the Dead Sea was much shallower, almost unrecognizable from today. In the past, most scholars were convinced that the Pentapolis ("Five Cities") lay in the southern end of the Dead Sea: Sodom ("Volcanic"), Gomorrah ("Ruined Heap"), Admah ("Red" as in dirt), Zeboiim ("Beautiful Ones"), and Zoar ("Ignoble") or Bela (a single "Gulp"). Recent investigation now seems to indicate that they were scattered on the north end. The two largest cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, had already distinguished themselves in moral depravity among Canaanite cities. By degrees, Lot changed from Amorite shepherd-sheik to urban dweller in Sodom.
Abram remained in the sparsely populated central highlands. Though Hebron was not built for another 300 years or more, it serves as the reference point to identify the location of lands used by the Amorite Mamre ("Lusty"). The site of Hebron today is 3040 feet (927 meters) above sea level, and it may have afforded Abram a good view of part of the Pentapolis. He would have seen at least the smoke of destruction from the Mesopotamian invaders. Their raid on the area is placed at about 2080 BC, when Abram was 86 years old.
The Coalition of invaders are easily identifiable with known historical figures. Chedorlaomer (or Kudar-Lagamer, "Servant of Lagamer") was probably a title, not a proper name. It indicated he served Lagamer, a patron deity of his people, the Elamites. Elam is a well-known region in the foothills of the Zagros Mountains, just east of Lower Mesopotamia, near the ancient Persian Gulf coast. The Elamites probably dominated the invading Coalition. Amraphel is mentioned as King of Shinar, a broad plain in Upper Mesopotamia. The name of the place was often applied by Hebrew writers to the whole of the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. In this context, it seems to cover the middle portion of that. Arioch is a Babylonian title for the Lord of Ellasar, or Larsa, a major city in southern Babylon. Tidal ("Fearfulness") seems to have been a Canaanite mercenary warlord. He is called King of Goiim ("Nations" or "Gentiles"), indicating a collection of people, not a place. He probably commanded an army for hire.
After conquering the cities of Lower Mesopotamia, including destroying Ur, the Coalition raided their way up the Mesopotamian Valley. After passing through Damascus, the Coalition struck the major power centers along the East Bank of the Jordan. The Rephaim ("Giants") of Ashtoreth-karnaim ("Astarte of the Double Horns," a reference to a symbol of power) in the Golan area are mentioned, along with the Zuzim ("Bigshots") of Ham in Gilead. Further south were the Emim ("Terrors") of Shaveh-kiriathaim ("Plain of the Double City"). The Hebrew names for people were more of a description than an identification. Finally, the Horites (Hurrians) in Mount Seir. These were non-Semites who established themselves around 2400 BC as strong rivals of the Sumerians and Hittites in culture and learning. They were later displaced by the descendants of Esau (Edom). This raid hastened a decline into which the Horites had slipped some time before.
South and west of the Dead Sea, the Coalition made a sweep of just about every place that had anything of value. En-mishpat ("Fountain of Judgment") is identified with Kadesh-Barnea. The Hebrew scribe is careful to make the appropriate geographical references himself. El-paran ("Oak of Paran") is the area around Kadesh. There were tribes of the Amalekites and Amorites living near Hazazon-tamar ("Row of Palm Trees") as the raiders approached from the south their ostensible target in all this. The Hebrew writer explains that the Pentapolis had rebelled against the Coalition after twelve years of paying tribute. Part of their great wealth was due to petroleum tar, salts, and rare metals, especially copper. The Coalition's objective was movable goods and captives, not destruction, and perhaps to reassert their rule over the area.
Their captives included Lot and his household. As the Coalition headed north with all this, Abram was notified of his nephew's capture. In his own household, Abram had 318 trained professional fighters, as a sort of bodyguard, a good indication of his wealth and status at the time. He also had the help of fighters mobilized from the households of his neighbors and allies, Mamre, Eschol and Aner. It appears that Abram led the expedition himself. The Coalition camp was at the north end of the Jordan Rift Valley, a march of 120 miles. Catching up with them at the future site of Dan, called Laish at that time, Abram employed highly unusual tactics. Many pagan believers refused to fight at night, in fear that their souls would not find the way to their rest. Also, it was rare to divide one's army, when concentrated force was considered the key to winning. The Coalition army fled, leaving everything behind. The huge load of captured goods and slaves had forced them to travel slowly. Abram pursued them another hundred miles to Hobah, or Chobah ("Hiding Place").
Abram's motives were to fulfill his customary obligation to rescue a relative from slavery. He would have been loathe to enrich himself with property from the likes of Sodom and Gomorrah, though it would certainly have been his customary right to do so. As commander of the rescuing army, he used his prerogatives to allow his allies their share of the plunder, and to give a tithe to Melchizedek ("King of Righteousness"), who was priestly king of Salem ("Peace and Prosperity"), later Jerusalem. Abram and Melchizedek quickly recognized each other as fellow worshipers of El Elyon ("God Most High"). Nothing else is known of this priest and king. We also have no way of knowing how this city and its priest-king became a pagan stronghold in later times.
What we do see is Abram growing comfortable with the land promised to his descendants, and his new life style.
Genesis 15-17 -- The next appearance by Jehovah was to confirm the continuation of Abram's blood line. As was the custom, Abram had taken steps to bequeath his property to his chief servant, Eliezer ("God is my Helper") of Damascus. Jehovah had other plans. To solemnify the promise, Jehovah instructed Abram to prepare the Ritual of Covenant. This was widely used by Semitic tribes, usually to seal agreements between equals. Today's contracts bear only a vague resemblance to covenants. The latter were a deeper commitment of the person, rather than their simple performance of deeds.
Abram took one each of several animals -- later included under Kosher Law -- and cut them through at the midriff. The halves were arranged on either side of a sloped trench, so that their blood and other fluids flowed into a trough at the bottom. Normally, the participants would wade the length of the trough barefoot to signify the horrible consequences of breaking the covenant. In this case, Jehovah Himself passed alone through the trench. His presence was symbolized by a torch and a fire pot. For the descendants of Abram -- the Jews -- these came to mean light and heat, revelation and trial. This signified the prophecy of their later captivity in Egypt. Before the promise was fulfilled, the descendants of Abram must pass through severe testing of their faith, much as was the case with Abram. Yet in that testing would the greatness and power of God be revealed.
This solemn vow by Jehovah was insufficient to prevent Abram from following customs of his time, as a sort of shortcut to a son. He impregnated a concubine designated by his barren wife. This half-way measure was a time-honored tradition, acceptable practice in Abram's time. It would hardly be contested by his relatives in Charan. However, it resulted in a very painful domestic situation. When tensions became too high for peace between Hagar and Sarai, Hagar was dismissed. The flight of the Egyptian slave, Hagar, pregnant with a legal heir would have been viewed as scandalous. Abram was legally obliged to treat her far better than a simple slave, and to have restrained his wife's hand. Only God's gracious intervention prevented Abram destroying the great good will he had built up with the local population.
Ishmael ("God Hears") was born in the same year as the Coalition invasion. The events as related in the Bible overlap somewhat. Various threads are followed as separate stories to reduce confusion. Thirteen years after Ishmael's birth, Jehovah institutes the rite of circumcision as a requirement for Abram and his family. While it was common in Egypt and with some Canaanites, Mesopotamians despised the practice as barbaric. Accepting this custom was yet another painful sacrifice for Abram, in more than one way. It was to be done on the eighth day of life. For the Jews, it became the day when males were presented to Jehovah, and publicly named. For Abram, it was the day Jehovah changed his name to Abraham ("Father of a Multitude"). Sarai became Sarah ("Princess").
As is typical of Jehovah, he reaffirms yet again His intentions via His covenant with Abraham. We do well to notice the time lag between the first revelation of that promise of an heir at age 75, and the final birth of that heir at 100. A quarter-century just for the first part of the promise. Abraham never did see the possession of the land in his lifetime, yet learned to regard that future promise as truth, and act as though it were present possession. That no one else living in the land knew of it was a small matter.
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Ed Hurst
revised 28 January 2004
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