A Journey of Kings: The Fierce Battle That Shaped an Era

The four kings ruled over the Middle East, compelling the ancient tribes beyond the Jordan River, even the formidable giants known as Rephaim, to submit to their authority. The Emim, the Zuzim, and others were all subject to the kings' coalition from the East, paying taxes and pledging allegiance for twelve long years. But in the thirteenth year, the inhabitants of the eastern Jordan united, led by the kings of the Valley cities, and proclaimed: No more. We will no longer pay taxes to the residents of the land of rivers, for we are strong enough to defend ourselves.

Faced with the threat to their honor and prestige, the four kings could not relent and launched a military campaign. They succeeded in destroying and subduing the tribes beyond the Jordan, focusing particularly on the giants, whom they annihilated. These giants were considered the guardians and relied upon for protection. They dwelled in Ashtaroth-Karnaim, high cliffs located around Daraa in modern-day southern Syria. Relying on their strength and the fortification of their city, the local tribes overlooked a critical Egyptian curse centuries old, believing the city impregnable. Yet the four kings laid waste to them, with only Og remaining—a sole survivor of the Rephaim race, later to be King of Bashan as the 'remnant of the Rephaim.'

Archaeologists excavating beyond the Jordan have found that around 1900 BCE, a massive devastation befell the forts and settlements, leading to the extinction of entire cultures, never to return. New peoples migrated and settled the lands only several centuries later, triggered by the eradication of the ancient Rephaim, sparking a 'Migration of Peoples,' as identified in archaeological findings, where tribes sought to replace those vanished people.

Everywhere the victorious four kings marched, they seized the land's elites, kings, judges, and the wealthy. Some were killed on the spot, while others were captured for their value. The kings reached the Valley cities, where the battle took place in the Valley of Sidim. The southern Dead Sea is known for its cyclical nature; sometimes it overflows and connects to the northern sea with a land strip in between. This was the scenario fifty years earlier, as historical records depict, though during the United Israelites period, it was inundated, with only a land strip remaining, as described in the Book of Joshua. In this valley, the armies of the Valley cities, Sodom and her daughters, confronted the four kings and suffered defeat. They fell into sinkholes, despite their local knowledge. No one survived in the Valley of Sidim. Those who did not fall fled to Mount Sodom to hide from the four kings' wrathful army.

The four kings and their armies vanquished the forces of the Valley cities, looting their food stores and goods, also capturing the city's elites, including Lot. Curiously, the kings spared the King of Sodom, finding him unimportant. Lot, possibly due to his close kinship and perceived as learned, was taken, potentially due to their shared language.

At this time, Abraham resided in Mamre's territory, whose oak grove bordered Kiriyat Arba, the ancient Hebron. Abraham camped there with his flocks, forming a friendship alliance with Mamre and two other locals: Aner and Eshkol. These residents were likely descendants of Shem, not Canaanites, establishing a pact of mutual protection should any be attacked—a possible connection to the ancient giants who ruled Kiriyat Arba initially. Abraham, a scion of noble heritage, was formidable and of noble stature, akin to his ancestors, ten generations post-flood. As Maimonides explained, Adam's curse of shortened years and diminished strength spread gradually. The ten enduring generations revealed this delay, maintaining strength and enabling late-life parenthood.

One survivor of the battle, aware of Lot's identity and his formidable, wealthy uncle residing in the hills, embarked on a quest from the battlefield to Mamre's Oaks to deliver news to Abraham. This messenger was no ordinary man (as the sages recount, believed to be Og, though some suggest not the same Og who was King of Bashan in Moses' days, but a lineage of Rephaim kings referred to as Og. According to Torah commentators, he astutely recognized the possibility of Abraham engaging in battle against the kings' coalition deemed global rulers.