2.

Abraham's war to rescue Lot

This is a story about two of God's favorite people: Abraham and Lot.

God gave Abraham (He called him "Abram" back then) pretty much everything on earth, as far as he could see.

The LORD said unto Abram ... Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward ... All the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. Genesis 13:14-15

Lot had lots of stuff, too -- too much, in fact, to keep it all separate from Abraham's.

Lot ... had flocks, and herds, and tents. And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together. 13:5-6

So Lot decided to move to Sodom.

Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in ... Sodom. 13:12

Soon after Lot got settled in Sodom, a war broke out between the kingdoms of Sodom and Gomorrah and some of the other local kingdoms. The Sodomites were defeated and Lot was taken prisoner.

They took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed. 14:12

That's when Abraham got involved. He and 318 of his slaves took off after the anti-Sodomites.

And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. 14:14

And they "smote" the heck out of them, chasing them all the way to the left hand of Damascus.

He and his servants ... smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. 14:15

Abraham brought back Lot, the women, and the Sodomite stuff.

And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people. 14:16

When Abraham returned "from the slaughter," the king of Sodom went out to greet him, with Melchizedek, "the priest of the most high God," who brought along some bread and wine.

The king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter ... And Melchizedek ... brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. 14:17-18

(Melchizedek, by the way, had no father or mother, no beginning or end, just like the Son of God.)

Melchisedec ... to whom Abraham gave a tenth part of all ... without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God. Hebrews 7:1-3

And Melchizedek thanked God for helping Abraham slaughter the anti-Sodomites.

Blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. Genesis 14:20a

Then Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of all the stuff he got in the slaughter.

And he gave him tithes of all. 14:20b

A nice fee for such a puny prayer.

(Since this was just an ordinary slaughter, I estimated the number of victims to be 1000.)