The sermon 'Kings of the Valley Take Lot' by David Green examines the biblical account from Genesis 14, where a coalition of kings led by Kedorlaomer captures Lot, Abram's nephew, during a rebellion in the region. Despite the overwhelming odds and the presence of fierce warriors, including giants, Abram courageously gathers 318 trained men to rescue Lot and his possessions. The sermon draws parallels between historical conflicts and modern-day tensions, emphasizing that God remains in control amidst chaos. The speaker also explores the biblical mentions of giants, suggesting a possible demonic influence in ancient battles. Through Abram's actions, the sermon illustrates themes of faith, leadership, and divine intervention, highlighting Abram's strategic and faithful response to adversity.

We are alive. Alright, so if you have your Bibles, let's go ahead and go to Genesis We'll read for our text, beginning verse 1 and going down to verse 16. It happened in the days of Emrephel king of Shinar, Amraphel king of Shinar, Ariach king of Elessar, Kedur-Leomer king of Aelum, and Tidal king of Gollum, but they made war with Berah king of Sodom, and with Bersha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Adma, and Shumaber king of Zobram, and the king of Bella that is Zoar. And these came as allies to the valley of Sidum that is the salt sea. Now for 12 years they had served Kador Leomer, but the 13th year they rebelled.

So in the 14th year Kador Leomer and the the fourteenth year, Kedur-Leomer and the kings that were with him came and struck the Erythium in Asteroth-Carnium and the Zuzum in ham and the Imim in Shavacharyotham and the Horites in their Mount Seir as far as El-Paran which is by the wilderness. Then they turned back and came to En Mishpat, that is Kaddish, and they struck all the country of the Amalekites and also the Amorites who were living in Hezazan Tamar. The king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Adma, and the king of Zeboam, the king of Bella, that is Zohar, came out and they arranged themselves for battle against them in the valley of Sidum against Kedur-le-omur, king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goim and Amriffel king of Shinar and Ariok king of Elisar, four kings against five. Now the valley of Sidon was full of tar pits, and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled and they fell into them, but those who remained behind fled to the hill country. Then they took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply and departed.

Now watch this, they also took Lot, Verse 12 says, they also took Lot, Abram's nephew and his possessions and departed. Now he was living in Sodom. Then a fugitive came and told Abram the Hebrew. Now he was dwelling by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshkol and brother of Aner, and these were in a covenant with Abram. So Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive and led out his trained men born in his house, 318 in number, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.

And he divided his men against them by night, he and his servants, and struck them and pursued them as far as Hobi, which is north of Damascus. And he brought back all the possessions, and he also brought back his relative Lot with his possessions and also the women and the people. And so today this is what we're going to consider, this event that takes place here in the life of Abram. Abram and Lot, they had recently separated. We read about that and we had considered those things and it was bound to happen.

Even though Abram and Lott were presumably kind of minding their own business and in trying to make a living of their own, they got caught up in this terrible war that was going on. They had enjoyed relative peace since they arrived, yet the calm was interrupted by Confederacy of Kings that swept through the land and devastated everything in their path. As we think about that, we know that we live in a time when there is war and trouble, and there are rumors of wars, and there are things going on in our world and indeed there has been times of trouble and wars and there has been there has been kings and and and certainly kingdoms that have gone to war with each other for thousands of years. This has been ongoing. There's not going to be any peace in this world until Christ comes.

Whenever there is war or a rumor of war, there's a lot of anxiety and a lot of trouble, but we must remember. We must remember that our God is in control of it all. That Yahweh has it all in control just as he did here. This Confederacy, well it included the kings of Shinar which is Babylonia. It included it included Elisar Babylonia.

It included LSR, which is one of the leading tribes of Babylonia. Elam is what is modern day Persia. And so it kind of gives you an idea of where all these people were coming from, what was going on. These are very tribal people, very warlike type individuals. Even though their kingdoms would have been small at this point in time, their armies were fierce and cruel.

These local kings had been placed under the service of this one Codor Leomer, King of Elam, and For about 12 years it seems the city-states in and around the Jordanian plain and southern Dead Sea or Salt Sea, all these, this Confederacy had been formed and Sodom, Gomorrah, Adma, Zobium, Zohar, all these places that we read about. And so then there was an uprising and a rebellion And so this invasion must have been to bring them back in submission. As we read about this and kind of try to follow along in the they had served this one king for 12 years but then in the 13th year they rebelled and in the 14th year verse 5 it tells us that that Cador Leomer and the kings that were with him came and struck. And so this rebellion, It was perhaps not as well planned out as what they might have thought. And didn't go so well as what they might have considered.

I mean, to rebel against a great army or great confederacy or a great leader is kind of risky business. We live here in the United States of America, and our country has gone through two rebellions. One was successful, that's why there is a United States of America, otherwise we might still be a colony of Great Britain. But in 1776 and the colonists declared their independence during a great conflict and a rebellion, and ended up winning that after some time of war and all of that. Go back and read the history of it.

A few years later, the British ended up attacking us and we got into another conflict with them and all that, but praise the Lord, we've been friends with the British ever since. So it's been a good thing. We held on to our independence and we've been friends with the British. In 1860s, the southern states declared their independence from the Union and formed their own Confederacy and and Georgia of course was part of that but when you look at the map you see worse we're one country now and so that rebellion did not go so well but for four years there was a lot of fighting that happened and sadly a lot of people lost their lives even even here and especially throughout the south. And so rebellions are risky.

It was in our country and it certainly was a terrible thing there. They may not have had the same kind of firepower and like what the soldiers did here. I'm saying there wasn't maybe cannons and muskets and things like that, like what our ancestors had when they fought here, but I'll tell you what they did have. It's very interesting as I read the account We get kind of a clue in this text and that is in the fifth verse there. In the fifth verse there says the came and struck the refium, the refium in Ashtaroth, carnaam.

And then at the end of that verse it says the imim in Shavah, Kerythium. The imim is a word that means terrible ones, terrible ones. It's very possibly, well if you go back to Deuteronomy, or you go over to Deuteronomy chapter 2, Deuteronomy chapter 2, we find them mentioned there. To give you an idea of what they were up against and some of the people who were fighting in these battles. Deuteronomy chapter 2 and verse 10.

The imam lived there formerly, a people as great, numerous, and tall as the Anticham. So these were tall people, giants. The passage goes on, like the Anticham, they are also regarded as Rephiam, but the Moabites called them Emim. The Rephiam also mentioned in our text that's a word that means strong ones. Strong ones.

These fellows were fierce fighters, but not only fierce fighters, but also they were giants. Yes, we are talking about giants once again. Now In the land that Yahweh gave to Abram, the land of Canaan there, there were giants. In fact, in Numbers chapter 13, Numbers chapter 13 and verse 33 when the spies later when the children of Israel were checking out the land after they had been in Egypt and all those things, then they came back and they sent spies into the Promised Land. Well, what was the report that came back?

In Numbers chapter 13 verse 33, they said, there also we saw the Nephilim. Now remember, that's a word that we haven't seen since Genesis chapter six. But there we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim, And we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight. And so the report that came from the spies, they used the same word that we saw in Genesis chapter 6 and verse 4. Right before the flood, when the Bible says the Nephilim were in the earth in those days and also afterward when the sons of God came into the daughters of men, they bore children to them, they were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown." I struggled with this because I believe that the things that were going on before the flood had to do with when the sons of God came into the daughters of men and all of those things, the sons of God I believe were angels who had fallen and and all of those things and yet that line was wiped out by the flood.

Had to be, the only thing that survived was Noah and his family. But now all of a sudden here on the other side of the flood we begin to read there in the land of Canaan that there were these giants. Now certainly there are people who are taller than other people, and they have nothing to do with the sons of God who married the daughters of men. They had nothing to do with the Nephilim of Genesis chapter 6 and verse 4, but the spies who went into the land they said we see that And that's what's going on here. It's very possible, very possible that perhaps an unusually demonic invasion was taking place in Canaan, like what had been going on prior to the flood.

The flood. And this may explain why Yahweh God would later tell Joshua and Moses to utterly annihilate all of the men, women, and children who were in the land, much like God had destroyed the Antidiluvians with the flood. Now, I can't be dogmatic about that, of course, but that may have something to do with it. We have this word, refium, which is in our text. The idea that it may have something to do with something demonic is strengthened when it's noticed that this Hebrew word is also used as a term for the spirits of certain of the wicked dead.

And so, so sometimes it's transliterated, like it is in our text, to to to refem, speaking of a certain group of people, but other times, take a look at this over in Job Chapter 26. Job chapter 26 in verse 5. The departed spirits tremble under the waters and their inhabitants. You wouldn't notice anything just reading the English, but if you're using, if you were to get a Bible that's got the Hebrew there beside of it, you would notice that that is the Hebrew word, refiem, there where departed spirits are. In fact, if you have one of the legacy standard Bibles with the cross references in the footnotes, You'll notice there's a small number one there beside of departed spirits.

You look down at your footnote and it does say Hebrew Ref-em. Same word used there as what is used for this group of people who we read about in Genesis. Proverbs chapter 2 Proverbs chapter 2 in verse 18. In verse 18, For her house sinks down to death and her tracks descend to the dead, or the departed spirits, or the rif'im. Same same Hebrew word.

Chapter 9 and verse 18. But he does not know that the dead are there, that those she called are in the depths of Sheol. And so there's other passages we can look at. Now of course, this doesn't mean that this theory is true. It could just be that these people were so evil that that was their nickname.

They just called them all, they're the departed dead. They're so fierce and all that. But it could very well mean that these were demonic and something was going on very demonic there. And that's the reason why I point this out. The fact that the armies of the invading kings could, well, When we look at this battle, we see how powerful the armies must have been.

And as they got in there, Chapter 14 of Genesis, Genesis. It says in verse 11, and they took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply and departed. So like what happens in war today, so it is so it's always been. And they gathered the spoils of war, but also in verse 12, they also took a lot, Abraham's nephew and his possessions and departed. Now he was living in Sodom.

So here he was, he was in Sodom, they were at war with Sodom, he was a rich man, he had lots of possessions, they said he must be important, he's got a lot of stuff, we're going to take him. So he became a casualty of war. Now he wasn't killed, he was just captured. Him and his family and all his possessions. In those days they didn't have Fox News or CNN.

There was no social media. The other night when things started happening in Venezuela, I started seeing stuff on on X on Twitter and I mean man I started seeing live feed of helicopters flying into the capital of Venezuela. I started seeing video of somebody throwing missiles into the capital of Venezuela and all over the social media they were saying, somebody is attacking Venezuela. It must be the United States. And I, right away I thought, oh, I'm sure it is.

You know, I mean we'd had we'd had a naval blockade there for months and so guess what I did? I didn't go to sleep. I watched it. I watched it all unfold. I think probably the first war that ever happened that we were able to watch anything happen like that was probably a desert storm or when George HW Bush and all them started bombing Iraq and CNN was there and we were able to see it live on TV.

I mean it was a big deal. I was probably 10 or 11 years old then. All my life I've pretty much I've been able to see these things unfold live on TV and on the internet and it's a it's a big deal but in those days they didn't have that. But a fugitive came. A fugitive, someone who was caught up in this and escaped.

Maybe Lot said go tell Abram. Maybe he knew about Abram. Somebody knew moving into town and yeah you know if you're curious you're gonna say man where did you come from? How'd you get all these possessions and all that? Anyway, somehow they knew the connection.

And so a fugitive came and ran to Abram. Told him, told Abram the Hebrew. Now this is the first time that you'll find the term Hebrew associated with Abram. This is to distinguish him from the other people of Canaan. He was different and by this time while he wasn't, there was no nation of Israel yet, there was no nation of the Hebrews, there was no, The Hebrews hadn't developed yet into what they would later become.

It was getting there. Abram was so rich and powerful and had so many servants and all of these things that he was practically a king or at least a chieftain. And when they ran, they came to him and they said, hey, Lot's in trouble. He needs your help. Abram could have said, I'm done with Lot.

I see him his own way. He shouldn't have. What's he doing this autumn? I ain't got time for that. Yahweh has plans for me, and I don't remember hearing anything about Lot, so he can sort it out.

No, no, he didn't do that. He was able to gather 318 men, armed men, to go after these kings. They were trained in his own household and they went to rescue Lot and to help Lot out and to get Lot's possessions and his women and all those things. Sometimes people in our day they say, oh well if you're a Christian, you ought to stay out of politics, you ought to stay out of war, you ought not to own weapons and all. Listen, that's not what the Bible teaches.

A man ought to know how to defend his family. And certainly, there is a time for war. I'm thankful. I'm thankful for men like Abram. I'm thankful for men like David.

I'm thankful for men like Hedzik in our government now. Christian men who are willing to take their post. Others who defend their families. I'm thankful for those heroes that we've had in the past. Stonewall Jackson, Robert E.

Lee, George Washington, Christian men. So we see Christian men. So we see Abram's character as he, without hesitation, he gathers up what he needs to do. He gathers this small army of 318, arms them and goes to take care of business, but also consider his faith. Lot had been taken by some pretty severe fighters, fierce warriors, giants even.

Some folks who would have been pretty scary and no doubt he was aware that he was outnumbered but he went anyway knowing that Yahweh was with him. And look there in verses 15 and 16 it says it says here in our text in chapter 14, and he divided his men against them by night, he and his servants, and struck them and pursued them as far as Hoboth, which is north of Damascus, and he brought back all the possessions, and he also brought back his relative lot with his possessions and also the women and the people. Abram didn't have a book to follow, he didn't have an army manual to go by, he didn't have a lot of examples to use like what we've got at this point. But he had his greatest weapon and that is his mind and the Lord was with him. God gives us common sense And so he went under cover of darkness.

He divided up his men and he attacked in all directions at once. This group that had thought they were so mighty, well they become demoralized and fled, but Abram chased them all the way to north of Damascus. And he was able to bring Lot home as well as all his possessions and the women and the people. I don't believe that anybody was left behind. No doubt This would have been a surprise not only to the armies, but also the captives who figured that there would have been no hope for them.

When you read through the Bible, and you come to these and there are others whether it's Abram against this bunch of this this army or Gideon's 300 against 135, 000 the Midianites and judges six or Dave David against Goliath, or whatever it is. Number one, who said the Bible is a boring book? Someone that ain't never read it. But number two, all the praise goes to our God. And I'm thankful.

I'm thankful that these passages are recorded for us. That we can rejoice and we can thank God for such good examples, where we see the hand of God as he worked in and through these men.