The king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (also called Zoar) went out; and they set the battle in array against them in the valley of Siddim against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings against the five. Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and some fell there. Those who remained fled to the hills. They took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their food, and went their way.
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Genesis 14:8-11 sits inside this longer paragraph.
In the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar; Arioch, king of Ellasar; Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; and Tidal, king of Goiim, they made war with Bera, king of Sodom; Birsha, king of Gomorrah; Shinab, king of Admah; Shemeber, king of Zeboiim; and the king of Bela (also called Zoar). All these joined together in the valley of Siddim (also called the Salt Sea). They served Chedorlaomer for twelve years, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer came, and the kings who were with him, and struck the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim, and the Horites in their Mount Seir, to El Paran, which is by the wilderness. They returned, and came to En Mishpat (also called Kadesh), and struck all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that lived in Hazazon Tamar. The king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (also called Zoar) went out; and they set the battle in array against them in the valley of Siddim against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings against the five. Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and some fell there. Those who remained fled to the hills. They took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their food, and went their way. They took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who lived in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.
Parallel Translations
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The king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (also called Zoar) went out; and they set the battle in array against them in the valley of Siddim
against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings against the five.
Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and some fell there. Those who remained fled to the hills.
They took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their food, and went their way.
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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.
Show all 3 translations
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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 set the battle in array against them in the vale of Siddim;
against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, and Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings against the five.
Now the vale of Siddim was full of slime pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they 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.
Cross-references (18)
- Genesis 19:17 (v10) It came to pass, when they had taken them out, that he said, “Escape for your life! Don’t look behind you, and don’t stay anywhere in the…
- Genesis 11:3 (v10) They said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar.
- Genesis 13:10 (v8) Lot lifted up his eyes, and saw all the plain of the Jordan, that it was well-watered everywhere, before Yahweh destroyed Sodom and…
- Genesis 14:16 (v11) He brought back all the goods, and also brought back his relative Lot and his goods, and the women also, and the other people.
- Genesis 14:21 (v11) The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people, and take the goods for yourself.”
Show all 18 cross-references
- Genesis 19:20 (v8) See now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh let me escape there (isn’t it a little one?), and my soul will live.”
- Genesis 19:22 (v8) Hurry, escape there, for I can’t do anything until you get there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
- Genesis 19:30 (v10) Lot went up out of Zoar, and lived in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he was afraid to live in Zoar. He lived in a cave…
- Isaiah 24:18 (v10) It will happen that he who flees from the noise of the fear will fall into the pit; and he who comes up out of the middle of the pit will…
- Jeremiah 48:44 (v10) “He who flees from the terror will fall into the pit; and he who gets up out of the pit will be taken in the snare: for I will bring on…
- Genesis 12:5 (v11) Abram took Sarai his wife, Lot his brother’s son, all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in…
- Genesis 14:2-3 (v8) they made war with Bera, king of Sodom; Birsha, king of Gomorrah; Shinab, king of Admah; Shemeber, king of Zeboiim; and the king of Bela…
- Genesis 14:10 (v8) Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and some fell there. Those who remained fled to…
- Deuteronomy 28:31 (v11) Your ox will be slain before your eyes, and you will not eat any of it. Your donkey will be violently taken away from before your face, and…
- Deuteronomy 28:35 (v11) Yahweh will strike you in the knees and in the legs with a sore boil, of which you cannot be healed, from the sole of your foot to the…
- Deuteronomy 28:51 (v11) They will eat the fruit of your livestock and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed. They also won’t leave you grain, new wine,…
- Joshua 8:24 (v10) When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, in the wilderness in which they pursued them, and they had all…
- Psalms 83:10 (v10) who perished at Endor, who became as dung for the earth.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (14 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On v10 10. And the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled.…
10. And the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled. Some expound that they had fallen into pits: but this is not probable, since they were by no means ignorant of the neighboring places: such an event would rather have happened to foreign enemies. Others say, that they went down into them for the sake of preserving their lives. I, however, understand them to have exchanged one kind of death for another, as is common in the moment of desperation; as if Moses had said, the swords of the enemy were so formidable to them, that, without hesitation, they threw themselves headlong into the pits. For he immediately afterwards subjoins, that they who escaped fled to the mountains. Whence we infer, that they who had rushed into the pits had perished. Only let us know, that they fell, not so much deceived through ignorance of the place, as disheartened by fear.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v10 Or, were discomfited.
Or, were discomfited.
And afterward was overwhelmed with water, and so was called the salt sea.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv8–11 Gen 14:8 And there went out the king of…
Gen 14:8 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;
Ver. 8. And there went out the king of Sodom, &c.] These five neighbouring kings were combined against the four kings that invaded them. It was not then a civil dissension, that worst of wars, such as was that of France (and is now, alas, of England), wherein the sons fought against their fathers, and brothers against brothers; and even women took arms on both sides for defence of their religion. {a} That was not more monstrous, that the Suevian women threw their young children at the Romans, their enemies, instead of darts, {b} than that other was piteous between the Romans themselves, those that were for Vitellius, and the other for Vespasian; that, when the women brought the Vitellians food by night, into the camp, they not only refreshed themselves, but their adversaries also, with food and drink. Each man called to his adversary by name, and said, Accipe, mi commilito, ede: Non enim tibi gladium proebeo, sed panem. Accipe rursum et bibe: Non enim tibi scutum, sed poculum trado: ut, sive tu me interficias, sive ego te, moriamur facilius: atque ut ne me, enervata atque imbecilla manu occidas, aut ego te. Hae nostrae sunt exequiae, nobis adhuc viventibus. {c} Thus they greeted over night, and the next day despatched one another; they gave wounds, and took wounds; they slew, and were slain, as the same author hath it. {d} Which as oft as I think on, I cannot but highly commend that speech of Otho the Emperor to his soldiers, a little before he took his end: I hate civil wars, though I were sure to overcome. {e} I know not why any Englishman should love it, that shall call to mind, that in the civil dissensions between the houses of York and Lancaster, there were slain (ere the quarrel ended) fourscore princes of the blood royal, and twice as many natives of England as were lost in the two conquests of France. {f} War is easily taken up, saith the wise historian, {g} but not so easily laid down again; neither is the beginning and the end of a war in any one man’s power. If the Scots should come in on the one side, and the French or Irish on the other, what an Aceldama should we soon become! what an Ireland, a seat of wrath, because a seat of war! It is never to be forgotten by us, that the dissension between England and Scotland consumed more Christian blood, wrought more spoil and destruction, and continued longer than ever quarrel we read of did between any two people of the world. Our Edward I adjured his son and nobles, that, if he died on his journey into Scotland, they should carry his corpse about Scotland, and not suffer it to be interred, till they had absolutely subdued the country. A desire more martial than Christian; a design of revenge beyond his life. Such spirits are raised in men "that delight in war". {Psa 68:30} "Oh! pray for the peace of Jerusalem." So saith David. {Psa 122:6} And so doth David in the next verse, "Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces." The Athenians, when they had gotten the better at sea of the Lacedemonians, were so overjoyed, that they then first set up altars to the public peace; and appointed a cushion to be laid thereon, for that goddess to rest upon. {h} Oh, would the Lord but once more grant us, that "righteousness and peace might kiss each other, and mercy and truth meet" in our land, {Psa 85:9-10} how happy should we hold ourselves; how infinitely obliged to sing, Servati sumus, ut serviamus !{ Luk 1:74} How should we prize our restored peace, and improve it as Abram did here, to the paying of tithes, in token of thankfulness; yea, to the setting up of altars, not to public peace, as those heathens, but to the God of peace, as Abram after this did, when he had concluded a peace with King Abimelech, and his general, Phichol! {Gen 21:32-33}
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{a} Hist. of Counc. of Trent, 647.
{b} Heyl. Geog., p. 289.
{c} Dio in Vita Vitellii.
{d} ετιτρωσκον ετιτρωσκοντο: εφονευον, εφονευοντο. - Dio.
{e} Mισω πολεμον εμφυλιον, καν κρατων. - Dio in Vita Othonis.
{f} Daniel’s Chron. continued by Trussel., fol. 249.
{g} Omne bellum sumitur facile, caeterum aegerrime desin it. Non enim in eiusdem potestate est initium belli, eiusque finis . - Salust, in Jug.
{h} Tum primum arae Paci publicae sunt factae, eique Deae pulvinar institutum . - Cornel. Nepos.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On v10 The vale of Siddim was chosen by those five…
The vale of Siddim was chosen by those five kings for the place of battle, that their adversaries being ignorant of the place might unawares fall into those pits, which they by their knowledge of it thought to escape.
Kings of Sodom and Gomorrah, i.e. their armies; a figurative speech, frequent in Scripture and other authors; for their persons escaped: see Gen 14:17. They either,
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1. Fell into the pits which they designed for others; or rather,
2. Were slain, as this word is oft used, as Jos 8:24-25; Jdg 8:10; 12:6; and here too; for those that fell are here opposed to those that remained.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv8–11 And there went out the king of Sodom,.... With…
And there went out the king of Sodom,.... With his armed men to meet the four kings, and give them battle, being so near him, and in so much danger from them, that if they could not stand their ground, they might flee to the mountains, and not perish in the city:
and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the King of Zeboiim; whose names are before given, Gen 14:2,
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and the king of Bela, the same is Zoar: as in Gen 14:2,
and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim; where the five Canaanitish kings met, of which see Gen 14:3; and fought the four kings that were come forth against them, and whose names are repeated, and are as follow:
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 Verse 8. Bela, the same is Zoar] That is,…
Verse 8. Bela, the same is Zoar] That is, it was called Zoar after the destruction of Sodom, c., mentioned in Ge 19:24 Ge 19:25.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v10 Of slime. Bituminis. This was a kind of pitch,…
Of slime. Bituminis. This was a kind of pitch, which served for mortar in the building of Babel, Genesis xi. 3, and was used by Noe in pitching the ark. (Challoner) --- Moses does not make this remark without reason. This bitumen would easily take fire, and contribute to the conflagration of Sodom. (Calmet) --- Overthrown, not all slain, for the king of Sodom escaped, ver. 17.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv9–11 9. Four kings with five — And the four,…
9. Four kings with five — And the four, flushed with many victories and grown fierce by war, conquered the five. What were the weapons and what the modes of warfare used by these ancient kings we have no means of knowing. Their principal arms were probably the sword, the bow, and the spear.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv9–11 9. four kings against the five] After Gen_14:8 we…
9. four kings against the five] After Gen_14:8 we should expect the “five kings against the four.” Notice the impressive repetition of the names of the kings, and the variation in the order of the names or the eastern kings, Chedorlaomer coming first, as the over-lord against whom the rebellion had been made.
The description of the battle itself has most unfortunately not been preserved.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv8, 10 (8) They joined battle with them.—Heb., they set themselves…
(8) They joined battle with them.—Heb., they set themselves in array against them. As the five kings left their cities to do battle with the invaders “in the vale of Siddim,” it is plain, as was said in Gen_14:3, that the vale embraces a far wider extent of country than merely the site of the five cities.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 Vers. 8, 9. And there went out (to resist…
Vers. 8, 9. And there went out (to resist the onslaught of the victorious Asiatics) 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); (i.e. the five revolted monarchs of the Pentapolis) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim (vide Ver. 3); 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.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v8 The Capture of Lot
The Capture of Lot
v. 8. 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;
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v. 9. 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. Flushed with their recent conquests, by which they had eliminated all the possible confederates of the southern confederacy, the kings of the north poured their victorious hordes into the vale of Siddim, near the beautiful Sea of the Plain.
v. 10. And the vale of Siddim was full of slime-pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled and fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain. This was the outcome of the battle: the five southern kings were routed by the armies of the north and sought to save their lives. The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah were familiar with the country and fell into one of the asphalt-pits which abounded in the neighborhood, that is, they quickly hid themselves there, while their allies fled to the secluded canyons of what was afterward the country of Moab, where the many hiding-places prevented their being found by the enemy.
v. 11. And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their victuals, and went their way. Even in those days the spoils belonged to the victors; they plundered the cities of the conquered armies, down to the last remnant of food, and then marched on.
v. 12. And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed. Thus Lot was obliged to suffer with the godless people among whom he lived, whose city he had chosen for his home, This was to prove an excellent chastisement and correction for him.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v10 This word introduces background information about the valley of…
Now
This word introduces background information about the valley of Siddim. Your language may have another way of introducing background information. (See: Background Information)
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was full of tar pits
"had many tar pits." These were holes in the ground that had tar in them.
tar
a thick, sticky, black liquid that comes up from the ground. See how this is translated in Genesis 11:3.
the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah
Here the kings represent themselves and their armies. AT: the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies" (See: Synecdoche)
they fell in there
Possible meanings are 1) some of their soldiers fell in the tar pits or 2) the kings themselves fell in the tar pits. Since Genesis 14:17 says that the king of Sodom went to meet Abram, the first meaning is more likely correct. (See: Metonymy)
Those who were left
"Those who did not die in battle and did not fall in the pits"
the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah
The words "Sodom" and "Gomorrah" are metonyms for the people who lived in those cities. AT: "the wealth of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah" or "the property of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah" (See: Metonymy)
their provisions
"their food and drink"
went their way
"they went away"
they also took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who was living in Sodom, along with all his possessions
The phrases "Abram's brother's son" and "who was living in Sodom" remind the reader of things that were written earlier about Lot. AT: "they also took Lot, along with all his possessions. Lot was Abram's brother's son and was living in Sodom at that time" (See: Distinguishing versus Informing or Reminding)
translationWords
king
Sodom
Gomorrah
Lot
Abraham
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v8 14:8-12 The five cities of the plain were close…
14:8-12 The five cities of the plain were close together at the south end of the Dead Sea. The Mesopotamian kings defeated the frail uprising, looted the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and carried off Lot with the other captives.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.