Genesis 14:2

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 14:2 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is Zoar).” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is Zoar).
Genesis 14:2 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 14

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
2that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is Zoar).

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“[That these] made war with Bera king of Sodom, etc.] A city in the plain of Jordan, which with the four following made the Pentapolis, or five cities of the plain. Strabo f956 says, in this place formerly were thirteen cities, the metropolis of which was Sodom, and which yet had remaining a compass of sixty furlongs; according to Dr. Lightfoot f957, it should be placed in the southern extremity of the lake Asphaltites, whereas it is usually set in the maps in the northern bounds of it: and with Birsha king of Gomorrah; another city in the plain of Jordan, called by Solinus f958 Gomorrum: Shinab king of Admah; a third city situated in the same plain: and Shemeber king of Zeboiim; a fourth…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“- Abram Rescues Lot 1. אמרפל 'amrāpel, Amraphel; related: unknown. אלריוך 'aryôk, Ariok, “leonine?” related: ארי 'arı̂y, “a lion:” a name re-appearing in the time of Daniel Daniel 2:14. אלסר 'elāsār Ellasar (related: unknown) is identified with Larsa or Larancha, the Λάρισσα Larissa or Λαράχων Larachōn of the Greeks, now Senkereh, a town of lower Babylonia, between Mugheir (Ur) and Warka (Erek) on the left bank of the Frat. כדרלעמר kedārlā‛omer, Kedorla’omer, was compared by Col. Rawlinson with Kudur-mapula or mabuk, whose name is found on the bricks of Chaldaea, and whose title is Apda martu, ravager of the west. He translates it “servant of Lagamer,” one of the national divinities…”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification