The War of the Kings

¹In those days Amraphel king of Shinar,Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim

²went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).

³The latter five came as allies to the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea).

⁴For twelve years they had been subject to Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

⁵In the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh-kiriathaim,

⁶and the Horites in the area of Mount Seir, as far as El-paran, which is near the desert.

⁷Then they turned back to invade En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.

⁸Then 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 and arrayed themselves for battle in the Valley of Siddim

⁹against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five.

Abram Rescues Lot

¹⁰Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some men fell into the pits, but the survivors fled to the hill country.

¹¹The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food, and they went on their way.

¹²They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since Lot was living in Sodom.

¹³Then an escapee came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the Oaksof Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshcol and Aner, all of whom were bound by treatyto Abram.

¹⁴And when Abram heard that his relative had been captured, he mobilized the 318 trained men born in his household, and they set out in pursuit as far as Dan.

¹⁵During the night, Abram divided his forces and routed Chedorlaomer’s army, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.

¹⁶He retrieved all the goods, as well as his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the rest of the people.

Melchizedek Blesses Abram

¹⁷After Abram returned from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).

¹⁸Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine—since he was priest of God Most High—

¹⁹and he blessed Abram and said:“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,Creator of heaven and earth,

²⁰and blessed be God Most High,who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything.

²¹The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people, but take the goods for yourself.”

²²But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,

²³that I will not accept even a thread, or a strap of a sandal, or anything that belongs to you, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’

²⁴I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share for the men who went with me—Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. They may take their portion.”

A Call to Repentance

¹Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God,for you have stumbled by your iniquity.

²Bring your confessionsand return to the LORD.Say to Him: “Take away all our iniquityand receive us graciously,that we may presentthe fruit of our lips.

³Assyria will not save us,nor will we ride on horses.We will never again say, ‘Our gods!’to the work of our own hands.For in You the fatherless find compassion.”

A Promise of God’s Blessing

⁴I will heal their apostasy;I will freely love them,for My anger has turned away from them.

⁵I will be like the dew to Israel;he will blossom like the lilyand take root like the cedars of Lebanon.

⁶His shoots will sprout,and his splendor will be like the olive tree,his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.

⁷They will return and dwell in his shade;they will grow grain and blossom like the vine.His renown will be like the wine of Lebanon.

⁸O Ephraim,what have I to doanymore with idols?It is I who answer and watch over him.I am like a flourishing cypress;your fruit comes from Me.

⁹Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;whoever is discerning, let him know them.For the ways of the LORD are right,and the righteous walk in thembut the rebellious stumble in them.

Woe to Those at Ease in Zion

¹Woe to those at ease in Zionand those secure on Mount Samaria,the distinguished ones of the foremost nation,to whom the house of Israel comes.

²Cross over to Calneh and see;go from there to the great Hamath;then go down to Gath of the Philistines.Are you better than these kingdoms?Is their territory larger than yours?

³You dismiss the day of calamityand bring near a reign of violence.

⁴You lie on beds inlaid with ivory,and lounge upon your couches.You dine on lambs from the flockand calves from the stall.

⁵You improvise songs on the harp like Davidand invent your own musical instruments.

⁶You drink wine by the bowlfuland anoint yourselves with the finest oils,but you fail to grieveover the ruin of Joseph.

⁷Therefore, you will now go into exileas the first of the captives,and your feasting and loungingwill come to an end.

The Pride of Israel

⁸The Lord GOD has sworn by Himself—the LORD, the God of Hosts, has declared:“I abhor Jacob’s prideand detest his citadels,so I will deliver up the cityand everything in it.”

⁹And if there are ten men left in one house, they too will die.

¹⁰And when the relative who is to burn the bodiespicks them up to remove them from the house, he will call to one inside, “Is anyone else with you?”“None,” that person will answer.“Silence,” the relative will retort, “for the name of the LORD must not be invoked.”

¹¹For the LORD gives a command:“The great house will be smashed to pieces,and the small house to rubble.”

¹²“Do horses gallop on the cliffs?Does one plow the seawith oxen?But you have turned justice into poisonand the fruit of righteousness into wormwood—

¹³you who rejoice in Lo-debarand say,‘Did we not take Karnaimby our own strength?’

¹⁴For behold, I will raise up a nationagainst you, O house of Israel,”declares the LORD, the God of Hosts,“and they will oppress youfrom Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah.”

Thanksgiving for Deliverance

¹Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;His loving devotion endures forever.

²Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy

³and gathered from the lands,from east and west, from north and south.

⁴Some wandered in desert wastelands,finding no path to a city in which to dwell.

⁵They were hungry and thirsty;their soul fainted within them.

⁶Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He delivered them from their distress.

⁷He led them on a straight pathto reach a city where they could live.

⁸Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

⁹For He satisfies the thirstyand fills the hungry with good things.

¹⁰Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,prisoners in affliction and chains,

¹¹because they rebelled against the words of Godand despised the counsel of the Most High.

¹²He humbled their hearts with hard labor;they stumbled, and there was no one to help.

¹³Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He saved them from their distress.

¹⁴He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of deathand broke away their chains.

¹⁵Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

¹⁶For He has broken down the gates of bronzeand cut through the bars of iron.

¹⁷Fools, in their rebellious ways,and through their iniquities, suffered affliction.

¹⁸They loathed all foodand drew near to the gates of death.

¹⁹Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He saved them from their distress.

²⁰He sent forth His word and healed them;He rescued them from the Pit.

²¹Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

²²Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgivingand declare His works with rejoicing.

²³Others went out to sea in ships,conducting trade on the mighty waters.

²⁴They saw the works of the LORD,and His wonders in the deep.

²⁵For He spoke and raised a tempestthat lifted the waves of the sea.

²⁶They mounted up to the heavens, then sunk to the depths;their courage melted in their anguish.

²⁷They reeled and staggered like drunkards,and all their skill was useless.

²⁸Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He brought them out of their distress.

²⁹He calmed the storm to a whisper,and the waves of the seawere hushed.

³⁰They rejoiced in the silence,and He guided them to the harbor they desired.

³¹Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

³²Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the peopleand praise Him in the council of the elders.

³³He turns rivers into deserts,springs of water into thirsty ground,

³⁴and fruitful land into fields of salt,because of the wickedness of its dwellers.

³⁵He turns a desert into pools of waterand a dry land into flowing springs.

³⁶He causes the hungry to settle there,that they may establish a city in which to dwell.

³⁷They sow fields and plant vineyardsthat yield a fruitful harvest.

³⁸He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;He does not let their herds diminish.

³⁹When they are decreased and humbledby oppression, evil, and sorrow,

⁴⁰He pours out contempt on the noblesand makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.

⁴¹But He lifts the needy from afflictionand increases their families like flocks.

⁴²The upright see and rejoice,and all iniquity shuts its mouth.

⁴³Let him who is wise pay heed to these thingsand consider the loving devotion of the LORD.