Genesis 14 thoughts
Kingdoms in Abram’s time and kingdoms now seem very different. I have a friend whose company recently adding a king to their executive board. I did some googling and found that the man in question was king of a small province within a small African nation. I really don’t know how large Kedorlaomer’s kingdom was, but I can’t imagine Abram’s army defeating the army of Wales, much less the army of Wales and other nations. Even more baffling is why Abram exacted such punishment—I understand his nephew was captured, but it seems a more reasonable request to just ask for his release. Especially given the tawdy reputation of the sodomites & co.
Melchizedek is one of the more interesting characters so far. We know from chapter 4 that people started praying and worshiping to God after Adam and Eve’s son, Seth, was born. But I tend to assume the people we read about are the only believers. In fact, I head a sermon at noted church once where the pastor inferred that anyone mentioned in the Bible by name without the attribution of faith must have been against God. But here is a priest of God (and a king to boot). My inference is that to be a priest, you need a people. So were there other believers around, apart from Abram and Lot? If so, what did they think about their neighbors?
It’s hard to miss the reference to Abram’s gift to the priest—he hands over a tenth of his plunder. We’ve previously seen offerings, but this is the first time we’ve had a gift in the shape of a tithe - traditionally one tenth of your earnings given to the church.
Between the tithe and Melchizedek, I’m reminded that the Bible is not the entire history of God’s interaction with man. Adam spent a long time in the garden (there were a lot of animals to name) and we only know a little of that story. It’s possible that there were a line of faithful after the flood beyond Abram, or that God interjected and called Melchizedek. Or perhaps there’s an in-between. But I’m reminded we’re only seeing a part, though the part I trust is sufficient.
Tags: abram, genesis, genesis 14, lot, Melchizedek
April 20th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
i wonder the same thing about the 318 who killed an army that had basically just won a local version of a world war. I wonder if the army was worn down from all the conquering, thinned out, much like the British during the revolutionary war. Or perhaps it was more like 300 where the 318 servants destroyed a much larger army.
In any case, dudes won, and are RICH.
On the point about “just asking for release”, I don’t think that’s how things worked. Think about it, they just killed and robbed to get those people and posessions. You’re not going to walk up to a pirate and just ask for something back.
It can be argued that the same mentality needs to be applied to our current terror situation. Many just ask “can’t we just talk about it?” In some cases, yes, but in others, it doesnt really work that way.