Genesis14_8-12

Genesis 14:8-12

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;

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.

And the 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.

And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.

And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.

Although five kings prepared for war, they ultimately failed. According to the previous description of Sodom and Gomorrah, it was evident that the five kings did not have sufficient power and fighting capacity to defeat the four. Since they had committed sin and lived a promiscuous life, they had lost their will and physical strength. Moreover, they had been vassals under the coalition of four kings and had served them. They did not have enough resources to sustain the war. Thus, it was a weakened state, made so by a sinful way of life, because they had spent their energy on sin and the service of Satan.

There is no doubt that the coalition of five kings was defeated and captured by the other coalition of four kings at the battlefield of Siddim. Therefore, the victors took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals. They also took Lot, who dwelt in Sodom, along with his goods, and departed. Lot was Abram’s nephew. It is significant that this verse preserves this key piece of information.

Even though the war was fierce and brutal, God Elohim took care of those who belong to Him. The narrative seemed to focus on the war, but what truly mattered was the man who was related to God. Human history is only a shell enclosing the core, which is the record of God and His people. At that time, there were perhaps many wars taking place. However, God remembered specifically this war because it concerned His people.

In other words, the many events happening in the world are of no account before God — He cares only for His people. Why did this war happen at that time? On one hand, the five kings had lived a sinful and abundant life with plentiful resources, which attracted others to attack them and seize those resources. On the other hand, God intended to rescue Lot, who was living in a sinful place. For both reasons, this war came to pass.

This is a warning for us to avoid living in a place where sin abounds.