The king of S’dom said to Avram, “Give me the people, and keep the goods for yourself.”   But Avram answered the king of S’dom, “I have raised my hand in an oath to Adonai, El ‘Elyon, maker of heaven and earth,  “I will not take so much as a thread or a sandal strap of what is yours; you […]

“Melchizedek king of Shalem brought out bread and wine. He was cohen of El ‘Elyon[God Most High],…”-Genesis 14:18 After rescuing Lot, Abram is greeted by a mysterious character known as Melchizedek, King of Shalem. We are given the information that he is a high priest and that he worships El’Elyon-the God most high. A ceremony of sorts take […]

“When Avram heard that his nephew had been taken captive, he led out his trained men, who had been born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. “-Genesis 14:14 It is interesting to note that the strategy that Abram employed in the rescue mission to reacquire Lot was […]

Genesis Chapter 14 is introduces some good examples showing how the Bible has undergone certain revisions throughout history. This is also a good opportunity to introduce a technical term that you most likely are not familiar with unless you’ve attended a seminary. The word I’m talking about is “redacted” and it basically means “edited”. The […]

Today we start Genesis Chapter 14. For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here. For the King James Bible, click here. Chapter 14 of Genesis represents a radical departure from the smoothly flowing tone and rhythm of the Torah presented thus far. Our protagonist Abram, who up until now has been portrayed as a humble nomadic […]