Genesis 14:21-24

ABRAM AND THE KING OF SODOM

"And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself. And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lifted up my hand unto Jehovah, God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not take a thread nor a shoe-latchet nor aught that is thine, lest thou shouldst say, I have made Abram rich: save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of them that went with me, Aner, Eschol, and Mamre; let them take their portion."

Significantly in this passage Abram continued to use the term Jehovah ([~Yahweh]) for God, indicating that he swore by that name, and in his refusal of any of the loot indicated that he promised Jehovah such restraint in case the victory for which he prayed was granted. Melchizedek also acknowledged that it was in answer to Abram's prayers that the victory had been granted. Thus, there is no way to make the passage in Exodus 6:3 refer to anything other than to increased and more specific knowledge of Jehovah than had been granted to Abram, who did most certainly know Jehovah, and by that name, as indicated here.

The generosity and magnanimity of Abram appear dramatically here, as does also his concern for his allies Aner, Eschol, and Mature, for whom he did not usurp the right of speaking, pointing out to the king of Sodom that he should negotiate personally with the allies and that they would speak for themselves.

We feel only disgust for the contradiction-hungry scholar (?) who asks, "How could Abram give a tenth to Melchizedek, if he had sworn not to take even as much as a string for himself?." As Leupold noted, "A religious tenth reveals the same spirit as the refusal for personal use."[24]

In this passage, the king of Sodom having waited until the episode with Melchizedek was concluded, presented himself before Abram with a suggestion that would have indeed added incredibly to the riches of that patriarch. In this must be seen the benefit to Sodom of having had even one righteous person in it, in the person of Lot. At a later time, ten such persons would have spared the city from God's judgment. It is ever thus, that the world is continually indebted to the followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, however dimly they may be aware of it. "Ye are the salt of the earth," as stated by Jesus, is indeed the unqualified truth!