Genesis 14: Looking at it historically

Koot van wyk (DLitt et Phil; Thd)

Visiting Professor

Department of Liberal Arts Education

Kuynpook National University

Sangju Campus

South Korea

Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College

Australia

Scholars are easy to allocate any part of the Word of God as fiction and myth and to put it more bluntly, human fabrications for propaganda purposes. The saying applies: “Two men sat behind bars, the one saw mud, the other, stars”. This saying of Ian Hartley of Helderberg College, emphasized that people believe what they focus on. For this reason, Genesis 14 will be analyzed here historically.

Genesis 14:1 opens with the announcement of kings of the Ancient Near East in the days of Abraham.

“And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim”.

These names are not fictitious. They are real persons in history past.

A cuneiform tablet with copies and duplicates were found from the date of Nabonidus, one of the last kings of Babylon, the father of Belshasar. If we give the cuneiform a date 538 BCE, it would be the first year of Cyrus. The date can be anything for the past 15 years from that date. This cuneiform tablet CT XXXIV 29 ii 1-3 explains that 700 years before the Kassite king Burna-buriash, Hammurabi lived.

It had scholars like John Brinkman of Chicago Oriental Institute in a flat spin and in his doctoral dissertation on the Kassite History and Chronology with the title Materials and Studies for Kassite History 1976, he spent a lot of time trying to make sense of this. The famous Hammurabi that we all know, with the legal code discovered at Susa, is dating to 1790 BCE. In fact, Zimrilim of Mari 11^th year coincided with the 30^th year of Hammurabi and that is the year 1762 (JCS 40/2 1988: 250). If one subtracts 700 from 1792, one ends down in 1092 BCE, a time when Kassites were out of history since Babylon did not belong to them any longer. Brinkman’s criticism is all valid. So is there an error or as Brinkman tries to postulate, a random guess or approximation of time? The ancient were careful with mathematics, with astronomy, with lunar calculations so why would they not be careful with chronology? Instead of ascribing a scribal error to the CT XXXIV text mentioned above, why do we not accept it as correct and just search for another Burna-buriash earlier than the one Brinkman is thinking of.

Brinkman himself listed a number of Burna-buriash personalities in history. Undoubtedly. In fact during the Amarna period a Burna-buriash corresponded with pharaohs in Egypt in letters EA 8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 13; 14 (Brinkman 1976: 108). Then Brinkman also points out a pre-Amarna Burna-buriash.

The chronology of the Amarna period cannot be just during the days of Ikhnaton. What is meant here, is that not all texts from Tell Amarna, the city of Ikhnaton, the hippie pharaoh, is from his time. It was the custom of kings and pharaohs to bring into their archives also the texts and correspondence of their fathers and grandfathers. There is a strong possibility that some EA texts are from Thutmosis IV who died around 1405 BCE and was followed by his son Amenhotep III, the father of Ikhnaton. For example, EA 51 says that the grandfather of the unnamed pharaoh was Thutmosis III, “^mma-naḫ-a-bi-ia the king of Egypt”. Thutmosis III, the pharaoh of the Exodus which happened in 1450 BCE, had the title mn-ḫpr-ra. Also, texts of Amenhotep III, the father of Ikhaton is part of the Amarna corpus. The other important thing about the Amarna corpus is, that not all texts are from the same period. There are early Amarna letters and later Amarna letters. The earlier ones talks of problems with the Habiru and the later ones talks of economic links and intermarriages.

If Burna-buriash was at the height of his role and function in the early Amarna texts, then he may have started his crownprince years in ca. 1428 BCE which 700 years would bring the Hammurabi in 2128 BCE, the year after Isaac was born (see Genesis 21:5).

If 2128 BCE is the year we really should be focused on for Hammurabi or Amraphel, then one should ask, what is the /l/ doing at the end of Hammurabi’s name? There is a dingir or ^d in front of his name in the cuneiform so that ‘god’ sign may led to a semiticising of the dingir as –el also the semitic for God. Thus, instead of adding it at the beginning of the word, the semitic scribes would add it at the end and not as dingir but as –el.

We need to fit the events in the life of Abraham when he was still strong enough to navigate a defensive against enemies.

Hammurabi of Babylon (Shinar); Arioch of Ellasar; Chedorlaomer of Elam; and Tidal of Goiim joined a confederation and came against the kings of the valley of Siddim. The valley where the five cities of Sodom and Gomorrah was, was called Siddim because it is the Salt Sea (Genesis 14:3). It is the area adjacent to the Dead Sea.

Elam we know where it is since it is modern Iran. The other nations we do not know really where it is, but it must have been in adjacent areas. It may have been the nations of the two rivers, the desert nomads, Elam, and the Eastern Europian nations adjacent to Babylon.

They came to the valley of Siddim next to the Dead Sea (Genesis 14:3). In those days, the fauna and flora of Jordan was very beautiful and it was a wetter period than today. During this time, the Caspic sea’s level was 4 meters higher than at present (Iranica Antiqua XVI [1981]: 130). For Ancient Weather patterns one should look at the Nile meter in C. R. Lepsius DAUA Text Vol. V (1975): 223 and also Archiv Orientálni 40 (1972): 105ff.

Elam took over the valley of Siddim and for 12 years 2128-2116 BCE, the king of Sodom, Bera; the king of Gomorrah, Birsha; the king of Admah, Shinab; the king of Zeboiim, Shemeber; and the king of Bela/Zoar served Elam (Genesis 14:4).

In 2115 BCE, these kings of the valley of Siddim rebelled (Genesis 14:4) against Elam, or modern Iran. The rebellion was widespread and not only in the valley of Siddim since many other nations were subdued subsequently by Chedorlaomer of Elam and his alliances (Genesis 14:5). They defeated Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim; Zuzim in Ham and Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim. We are not sure about all these places mentioned but the rebellion was much wider than just the valley of Siddim kings. They also subdued the Horites in Mount Seir as far as El-Paran, which is by the wilderness. The reality today is that everywhere is almost wilderness. They also conquered all the country of the Amalekites and also the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar (Genesis 14:7).

The kings of the valley of Siddim arrayed then a battle arrangement against Hammurabi of Babylon, Chedorlaomer of Elam, Tidal of Goiim and Arioch of Ellasar (Genesis 14:9).

In those days, the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. As they were fleeing, the kings of the valley of Siddim and their men fell in these pits. Those who survived fled to the hill-country (Genesis 14:10).

These invaders took the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah as booty (Genesis 14:11).

They also took the possessions of the nephew of Abraham, Lot, and departed with Lot kidnapped (Genesis 14:12).

Abraham was a Hebrew (Habiru) and a fugitive came to tell him about the events (Genesis 14:13).

When Abraham heard it he took 318 men and led them in a defensive against the kidnappers in the direction of Dan (Genesis 14:14).

Abraham divided his forces and chased the kings in the night beyond Damascus as far as Hobah (Genesis 14:15).

Abraham rescued Lot and his possessions and the women and the people (Genesis 14:16).

It is possible that Abraham came down the Kings Highway and that valley next to it is called the Kings Valley and that is where the king of Sodom went out to meet him, also called the Valley of Shaveh (Genesis 14:17).

Melchizedek the king of Salem or [Jeru]salem came with bread and wine because he was the priest of the Most High (Genesis 14:18). We must remember that every generation God had his people and that what is recorded about Abraham is only selective information of one person of the remnant. There were many like Abraham. He was just chosen as an example for us. So Melchizedek knew about the Sanctuary Message and Christ our High-Priest who will do atonement for us in future in a Heavenly Sanctuary not made by hands. So he had a type of that reality to come at Salem or Jerusalem in the days of Abraham, in 2115 BCE. Abraham had his victory by God and Melchizedek realized that and came out to acknowledge his close relationship with God (Genesis 14:19-20). Abraham gave the priest Melchizedek 10% of all his camels, sheep, cows, gold, silver, precious stones and gems, for the tithe principle existed from Adam and Eve and was not invented by Moses (Genesis 14:20). It was re-introduced by Moses because people tend to forget God’s instructions. The king of Sodom wanted only to take the people and wish Abraham to keep the goods retaken (Genesis 14:21). Abraham said that he sworn to God not to take anything because he does not want anyone from Sodom to say in future, that they have made Abraham rich (Genesis 14:23).

Just the men that were with him, got a small compensation for their hard work, Aner, Eschol, and Mamre “let them take their share” (Genesis 14:24).

It was in 2114 BCE that Abraham and Isaac went up Mount Moriah at the age of 115 (Genesis 22) and three years later, in 2112 BCE, Urnammu started to reign in the Ur III Period which was to last until 2004 with the destruction of the city of Ur.

Dear God

How wonderful is Your history book that selects highlights from the past to direct us in the present. Lead also us and protect us as your did Abraham and his family, in Jesus name. Amen