In Genesis 14, four kings attack five kings; NINE kingdoms go to battle. Initially, the four capture the five and keep them captive 13 years. Then the five escape, and the four pursue and capture the five kingdoms and their people a second time. In the process, they also capture the rich man Lot and all his possessions. When Abram hears that, he rallies his 318 men and goes to war, defeating the four kingdoms and rescuing the captives, including his nephew Lot.
After the battle, the rescued kings come to meet Abram and thank him properly.
Imagine the mood. What is the prevailing feeling among victorious troops returning from battle? Brotherhood? Friendship? Camaraderie?
Men get together in such times and make toasts and give each other gifts and swear oaths of allegiance and loyalty. In fact, one of the kings, Melchizedek, “a priest to God Most High,” prophesies great things over Abram, and Abram gives him a tenth of all his possessions (this is the origin of tithing). After defeating the enemies, all the men would have hugged and sworn loyalty and been brothers for life.
But you might be surprised by the identity of two of those five kings Abram saved: the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah. That’s right. Abram was friendly with the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah. They had fought battles together. And when God later told Abram what he had planned for the two evil cities, Abram secured God’s promise not to destroy the cities if he found 10 righteous people there. But there were not even ten.
Sometimes even your friends, people you may love, are destined for God’s judgment. It’s not always people who seem like monsters. Some of them may be brothers, teammates, trusted colleagues, loyal friends. They almost never seem like monsters—they seem ordinary or “just like us.” But they are lost.
God, give us opportunities to share the hope and joy of knowing you. Place people on our hearts and give us the words to share.
ΑΩ
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