Genesis 14:15 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Genesis 14:15
And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
to be smooth (figuratively) · conjunction + verb, niphal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
servants
וַעֲבָדָ֖יוva.'a.va.Dav
H5650
a servant · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
night
לַ֛יְלָהLay.lah
H3915
properly · noun, common masculine singular absolute
smote
וַיַּכֵּ֑םvai.ya.Kem
H5221
to strike (lightly or severely · conjunction + verb, hiphil sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
pursued
וַֽיִּרְדְּפֵם֙vai.yir.de.Fem
H7291
to run after (usually with hostile intent · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
Hobah
חוֹבָ֔הcho.Vah
H2327
Chobah · proper noun, a place name
hand
מִשְּׂמֹ֖אלmi.se.Mol
H8040
properly · preposition + noun, common masculine singular absolute
Damascus
לְדַמָּֽשֶׂקle.da.Ma.sek
H1834
Damascus · preposition + proper noun, a place name
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Acts 9:2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring t…
Deuteronomy 15:2 And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release it; he shall not exact it of his n…
1 Kings 15:18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house, a…
Psalms 112:5 A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.
Isaiah 41:2-3 Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave th…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Genesis 14:13-16
We have here an account of the only military action we ever find Abram engaged in, and this he was prompted to, not by his avarice or ambition, but purely by a principle of charity; it was not to enrich himself, but to help his friend. Never was any military expedition undertaken, prosecuted, and finished, more honourably than this of Abram's. Here we have,
I. The tidings brought him of his kinsman's distress. Providence so ordered it that he now sojourned not far off, that he might be a very present help. 1. He is here called Abram the Hebrew, that is, the son and follower of Heber, in whose family the profession of the true religion was kept up in that degenerate age. Abram herein acted li…
he divided himself . . . by night--This war between the petty princes of ancient Canaan is exactly the same as the frays and skirmishes between Arab chiefs in the present day. When a defeated party resolves to pursue the enemy, they wait till they are fast asleep; then, as they have no idea of posting sentinels, they rush upon them from different directions, strike down the tent poles--if there is any fight at all, it is the fray of a tumultuous mob--a panic commonly ensues, and the whole contest is ended with little or no loss on either side.
Adam Clarke on Genesis 14:15
And he divided himself against them - It required both considerable courage and address in Abram to lead him to attack the victorious armies of these four kings with so small a number of troops, and on this occasion both his skill and his courage are exercised. His affection for Lot appears to have been his chief motive; he cheerfully risks his life for that nephew who had lately chosen the best part of the land, and left his uncle to live as he might, on what he did not think worthy his own acceptance. But it is the property of a great and generous mind, not only to forgive, but to forget offenses; and at all times to repay evil with good.
John Gill on Genesis 14:15
And he divided himself against them, he and his servants by night,.... Together with his confederates; and very probably their whole three was divided into four parts, under their four leaders; and this might be done in order to attack the four kings and their soldiers, who might be in four separate bodies; or to fall upon their camp in the four quarters of it, and to make a show of a greater army, thereby to intimidate the enemy: Abram seems to have understood the art of war, and the use of stratagems in it; and, as it might be night before he could come up to them, he took the advantage of that, and fell upon them unawares, when some were asleep in their beds, and others drunk, as Josephus…
The Church Fathers
"Abraham counted servants, born in his house … as far as Hobah, which is to the right of Damascus." Even the number is of vital importance. For in that number there is life, if we believe in the passion in the name of the Lord Jesus. In fact, this is the interpretation of the abovementioned name, Hobah, that is, "life." Appropriately too it is said that Hobah is located to the right of Damascus. For the sheep stand on the right, while the goats are on the left. The trained mind knows how many soldiers to choose to finish the battle, with what arms to supply them, with what banners to lead them. It does not lead its forces with images of eagles or dragons, but it marches into battle with the cross of Christ and in the name of Jesus, deriving courage from this sign, loyal to this banner. Rightly then is that mind called trained which has received the true wisdom of the just man. And justice is quick to correct, and by admonishing it calls back sinners, it stems the assaults of the passions. .
"Abraham counted 318 servants, born in his house … as far as Hobah, which is to the right of Damascus." Even the number is of vital importance. For in that number there is life, if we believe in the passion in the name of the Lord Jesus. In fact, this is the interpretation of the above-mentioned name, Hobah, that is, "life." Appropriately too it is said that Hobah is located to the right of Damascus. For the sheep stand on the right, while the goats are on the left. The trained mind knows how many soldiers to choose to finish the battle, with what arms to supply them, with what banners to lead them. It does not lead its forces with images of eagles or dragons, but it marches into battle with the cross of Christ and in the name of Jesus, deriving courage from this sign, loyal to this banner. Rightly then is that mind called trained which has received the true wisdom of the just man. And justice is quick to correct, and by admonishing it calls back sinners, it stems the assaults of the passions.
And he pursued them as far as Dan, and having divided his companions, he fell upon them at night and struck them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is to the left of Damascus. The entire series of sacred scripture is full of mystic figures, and not only in what is said and done, but even in the very places and times where these things take place, it agrees with that apostolic saying, "For all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition" (1 Cor. 10:11). Dan is interpreted as Judgment, Hobah as Condemnation, Damascus as the Cup of Blood. Therefore, Abraham, pursuing his enemies, found them in Dan and struck them by night when they were unsuspecting and secure, those who were rejoicing as if with captured prey, boasting that they had raged up to that point; for all sinners and those exalting themselves in the riches of this life and in the oppression of the innocent are permitted to boast up to the brink of divine judgment about their works; but with imprudent blindness, as if set in the midst of the night, when they say peace and safety, then sudden destruction will come upon them: hence it is well said that he struck them and pursued them to Hobah, that is, Condemnation, which is understood to mean no other condemnation than sudden and eternal destruction. It is said, he says, 'to the left of Damascus.' Damascus, as we have said, is interpreted as the Cup of Blood; by which name the delight of vices is rightly signified. For what is the delight of sin but a cup of blood, when one strives to fulfill the desires of the flesh and blood without any hesitation? And Hobah is where Abraham struck his adversaries, to the left of Damascus, because the condemnation that is going to punish the impious will thrust them into eternal punishment with the devil and his angels, which is usually designated by the left. However, Damascus is a noble city of Phoenicia and formerly the metropolis of all Syria. Dan was also a town of Phoenicia, the boundary of the province of Judea towards the north where today is Paneas, which was formerly called Caesarea Philippi; from where also the Jordan derived its name, which flows from Lebanon. For Dan is one of its sources; the other is called Jor, which is interpreted as Stream. Therefore, with the two sources not far from each other united into one stream, it is thenceforth called the Jordan.
Dictionary and topics
Amraphel — King of Shinar, southern Chaldea, one of the confederates of Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, in a war against Sodom and cities of the plain (Gen. 14:1, 4). It is now found that Amraphel (or Ammirapaltu)…
Damascus — Activity, the most ancient of Oriental cities; the capital of Syria (Isa. 7:8; 17:3); situated about 133 miles to the north of Jerusalem. Its modern name is Esh-Sham; i.e., “the East.” The situation…
Hobah — Hiding-place, a place to the north of Damascus, to which Abraham pursued Chedorlaomer and his confederates (Gen. 14:15).
Left hand — Among the Hebrews, denoted the north (Job 23:9; Gen. 14:15), the face of the person being supposed to be toward the east.
Lot — (Heb. goral, a “pebble”), a small stone used in casting lots (Num. 33:54; Jonah 1:7). The lot was always resorted to by the Hebrews with strictest reference to the interposition of God, and as a…
Northward — (Heb. tsaphon), a “hidden” or “dark place,” as opposed to the sunny south (Deut. 3:27). A Hebrew in speaking of the points of the compass was considered as always having his face to the east, and…
Sodom — Burning; the walled, a city in the vale of Siddim (Gen. 13:10; 14:1-16). The wickedness of its inhabitants brought down upon it fire from heaven, by which it was destroyed (18:16-33; 19:1-29; Deut.…
Syria — (Heb. Aram), the name in the Old Testament given to the whole country which lay to the north-east of Phoenicia, extending to beyond the Euphrates and the Tigris. Mesopotamia is called (Gen. 24:10;…
Wars of the Lord, The Book of the — (Num. 21:14, 15), some unknown book so called (comp. Gen. 14:14-16; Ex. 17:8-16; Num. 14:40-45; 21:1-3, 21-25, 33-35; 31. The wars here recorded might be thus designated).
And he divided himself against them. Some explain the words to mean that Abram alone, with his domestic troops, rushed upon the enemy. Others, that he and his three confederates divided their bands, in order to strike greater terror into the foe. A third class suppose the phrase to be a Hebraism, for making an irruption into the midst of the enemy. I rather embrace the second exposition; namely, that he invaded the enemy on different sides, and suddenly inspired them with terror. For the circumstance of time favors this view, because he attacked them by night. And although examples of similar bravery occur in profane history; yet it ought to be ascribed to the faith of Abram, that with a sma…
A fugitive (lit., the fugitive; the article denotes the genus, Ewald, 277) brought intelligence of this to Abram the Hebrew (העברי, an immigrant from beyond the Euphrates). Abram is so called in distinction from Mamre and his two brothers, who were Amorites, and had made a defensive treaty with him. To rescue Lot, Abram ordered his trained slaves (חניכיו, i.e., practised in arms) born in the house (cf. Gen 17:12), 318 men, to turn out (lit., to pour themselves out); and with these, and (as the supplementary remark in Gen 14:24 shows) with his allies, he pursued the enemy as far as Dan, where "he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night," - i.e., he divided his men into com…
Damascus was 40 miles north of Dan. Hobah was about 60 miles north of Damascus.
Rashi on Genesis 14:15
ויחלק עליהם AND HE DIVIDED HIMSELF AGAINST THEM — In accordance with its plain sense you must invert the order of the words of the verse: “And he divided himself, he and his servants, against them, at night”, as is the manner of those who pursue their enemies — they divide themselves up to follow after those of whom they are in pursuit when these flee in different directions.
לילה BY NIGHT, meaning, even after it became dark they did not give up pursuing them. According to the Midrashic explanation, it was the night that was divided): during its first half a miracle was wrought for him, and the second half was kept in reserve for the miracle of the midnight in Egypt (Genesis Rabbah 43:3).…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
· Generally in three divisions
— Generally in three divisions
Chedorlaomer · King of Elam — King of Elam
Damascus · An ancient city — An ancient city
Friendship · .Abraham and Lot — .Abraham and Lot
Hands, The · Distinguished as: The left — Distinguished as: The left
Hobah · A place north of Damascus — A place north of Damascus
Lot · .Taken — .Taken
Patriarchal Government · Exercised in: Vindicating their wrongs — Exercised in: Vindicating their wrongs
Rulers · .Abraham — .Abraham
Strategy · In war — In war
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
