Chedorlaomer

Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, led a coalition of kings against Sodom and Gomorrah and was later defeated by Abraham.

Chedorlaomer was the king of Elam, a powerful nation located east of Mesopotamia, during the time of Abraham (Gen.14.1, 4, 5, 9, 17). He formed a coalition with three other kings: Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, and Tidal king of Goiim. For twelve years, the cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, and others in the region served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year, they rebelled. In response, Chedorlaomer and his allies waged war against the rebellious cities, defeating them and taking captives, including Abraham's nephew Lot. When Abraham learned of Lot's capture, he gathered his 318 trained men and pursued Chedorlaomer's army. With God's help, Abraham defeated Chedorlaomer and his allies, rescuing Lot and recovering the stolen goods. This event showcases Abraham's military prowess and his loyalty to his family, as well as God's faithfulness in granting victory to Abraham and his small force against a powerful coalition of kings.

(= Khudur-Lagamar of the inscriptions), king of Elam. Many centuries before the age of Abraham, Canaan and even the Sinaitic peninsula had been conquered by Babylonian kings, and in the time of Abraham himself Babylonia was ruled by a dynasty which claimed sovereignity over Syria and Palestine. The kings of the dynasty bore names which were not Babylonian, but at once South Arabic and Hebrew. The most famous king of the dynasty was Khammu-rabi, who united Babylonia under one rule, and made Babylon its capital. When he ascended the throne, the country was under the suzerainty of the Elamites, and was divided into two kingdoms, that of Babylon (the Biblical Shinar) and that of Larsa (the Biblical Ellasar). The king of Larsa was Eri-Aku (“the servant of the moon-god”), the son of an Elamite prince, Kudur-Mabug, who is entitled “the father of the land of the Amorites.” A recently discovered tablet enumerates among the enemies of Khammu-rabi, Kudur-Lagamar (“the servant of the goddess Lagamar”) or Chedorlaomer, Eri-Aku or Arioch, and Tudkhula or Tidal. Khammu-rabi, whose name is also read Ammi-rapaltu or Amraphel by some scholars, succeeded in overcoming Eri-Aku and driving the Elamites out of Babylonia. Assur-bani-pal, the last of the Assyrian conquerors, mentions in two inscriptions that he took Susa 1635 years after Kedor-nakhunta, king of Elam, had conquered Babylonia. It was in the year B.C. 660 that Assur-bani-pal took Susa.