Commentaire sur La Genèse 14:2

ברע BERA —Evil (רע) towards God and evil towards mankind (Midrash Tanchuma, Lech Lecha 8).

AND THE KING OF BELA. The reason [why Scripture does not mention his name as it does with the kings of Sodom, et al], is that he ruled over a small city with few men in it and he had no generally recognized reputation.

עשו מלחמה, now the Torah tells of the battle between them in the valley of Sidim. The fact that there had been previous wars resulting in the five kings becoming subservient to the four kings is mentioned only as a backdrop to this war that prompted Avram’s involvement.

מלך בלע, i.e. a king who ruled only over a small city, a city boasting few inhabitants.

He set his wings ... Meaning, he made himself wings to fly.

עשו, es scheint dies der frühere Krieg gewesen zu sein, in welchem Kedar laomer sich die Könige der Jordanebene dienstbar gemacht hatte. מלחמה, rad. לחם, verwandt mit דברי נרגן כמתלהמים) להם) und לאם, der Staat. להם: Streit, לֶחֶם: das im sozialen Wettkampf Errungene, d. i. das Mittel der Selbstexistenz: Brot, und מלחמה לָחֶם: der wirkliche Krieg. Beide Teile streiten um die Erhaltung oder Vermehrung der nationalen Selbstexistenz. לאום, während גוי die Volkseinheit nach außen, עם die Volksgesellschaft nach innen bedeutet, ist לאום: die, die sozialen und nationalen Gegensätze in ihrem Gegensatz, d. h. in ihrer Berechtigung und Begrenzung schützende und haltende, das Volk und die Gesellschaft vertretende Macht, אין לאום אלא מלכות: der Staat.

מלך צביים, although the word: צביים is spelled as shown, it is read as if it had been spelled: .צבוים

ברשע BIRSHA — Because he rose by means of wickedness (רָשַׁע) (Midrash Tanchuma, Lech Lecha 8)).

The name of the city. Rashi knows this because it says בלע היא צוער. If Bela was the name of a person, it would not say היא צוער. We need not ask how Rashi knew these kings’ names were mentioned to tell us their wickedness, and thus interprets Shinav to mean, “He hated his Father in Heaven,” etc. For the answer is: Since the king of Zoar’s name is omitted, it must be that the others’ names were mentioned to convey their wickedness. It is likely that the king of Zoar was not wicked, thus his name did not show his wickedness. For it says concerning Lot (19:20): “Let me escape there [to Zoar],” and Rashi explains there [that Zoar’s sins were few].

ומלך בלע היא, the pronoun היא (feminine), shows that the word בלע refers to the name of the city, not the name of the king, (who is masculine).

שנאב SHINAB — He hated (שנא) his Father (אב) in heaven (Midrash Tanchuma, Lech Lecha 8)).

שמאבר SHEMEBER — He set his wings (שם אבר) to fly, flapping them to rebel against the Holy One, blessed be He (Midrash Tanchuma, Lech Lecha 8)).

בלע BELA is the name of this king’s city (but the king’s own name is not mentioned here).