Genesis 14:1-17

During the reign of Amraphel king of Babylon, he allied with three other kings: Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goyim. These four kings went to war against five kings: Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, which is Zoar. Kedorlaomer had oppressed these five kings for twelve years until they rebelled against him in the thirteenth year. They all became regional allies in the valley of Siddim, which is now the Dead Sea. In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer went to war with his allied kings. They defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shavah-kiriathaim, and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, as far as El Paran near the desert. Then they turned back and attacked En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and subdued all the country of the Amalekites and the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar. Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar), marched out in battle formation in the valley of Siddim. There they faced off against Kedorlaomer, king of Elam; Tidal, king of Goyim; Amraphel, king of Babylon; and Arioch, king of Ellasar—four kings against five. Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies retreated from the battle and fled, some of them fell into the tar pits, and the rest fled to the hill country. The four victorious kings captured all the possessions and all the food of Sodom and Gomorrah and left. They captured Lot, Abram’s nephew who had been living in Sodom, and took him and all his possessions. One who escaped came to Abram the Hebrew and told him what had happened to Lot. Abram was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre had two brothers, Eshcol and Aner, who were allied by treaty with Abram. When Abram heard that his nephew Lot had been taken captive by the four kings, he mobilized all the men in his camp, 318 in all who had been born and trained in his own household, and he pursued the invaders as far north as Dan. Then, during the night, Abram strategically divided his forces and defeated them. His forces attacked them and routed them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. He recovered all the stolen possessions and brought back his nephew Lot, together with the women and all the prisoners. After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram at the valley of the Shaveh (known as the King’s Valley).