Genesis 14:4

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 14:4 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
Genesis 14:4 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 14

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
4Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, etc.] King of Elam, who was of the race of Shem, and so the prophecy of Noah began to be fulfilled, that Canaan should be servant to Shem, (<010926>Genesis 9:26); for the kings of Sodom, etc. and their subjects, were of the race of Ham in the line of Canaan, who had by violence seized on that part of the earth which was allotted to the sons of Shem, and therefore Chedorlaomer being a descendant of his claimed his right, and made them tributary to him, which they were for the space of twelve years: and in the thirteenth year they rebelled; refused homage to Chedorlaomer and to pay tribute to him.”
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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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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“14:4-5 This was Kedorlaomer’sChedorlaomer’s war. Under the feudal system of tribal affiliations, those in covenant with him had to fight. It was also Abram’s battle to rescue Lot, and those under treaty with him had to accompany him. 14:4 King Kedorlaomer apparently defeated the Siddim Valley kings at an earlier time and put them under tribute for asphalt, olive oil, and copper. In the thirteenth year they refused to send it; in the fourteenth year (14:5), the invaders returned to subjugate them again.”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification