“Abraham’s Gate” at Tel Dan and the Battle Account in Genesis 14

Above is the mud-brick gate, flanked by two mud-brick towers of the Canaanite city of Dan. To keep the gate from collapsing, it has been bricked up. This gate and towers date to the time of Abraham (Dan was called Laish during the time of the Patriarchs, Judges 18:27, 29). This town was the northernmost in the land of Israel, “from Dan even to Beersheba” is the Biblical equivalent to saying “the entire land of Israel.” Did Abraham ever enter this gate? Let’s look at what the scriptures say by reviewing Genesis chapter 14.

In verse 1, four kings in Mesopotamia begin a military campaign in the land of Canaan. The kings of Shinar, Ellasar, Elam, and the king of the nations (which cannot be identified without a proper place name). To understand the text it is easiest to map it out.

Please excuse my hand drawings, I’m not a cartographer. From this it seems that the four cities are in lower Mesopotamia (in today’s Iraq). The red line is the approximate route of travel, avoiding the waterless deserts.

In verses 5 through 12, we read about the cities and peoples the four kings conquered; Ashteroth Karnaim, Ham, Shaveh Kiriathaim, Mount Seir, Kadesh, Hazezon-tamar, battle with five kings at Zoar near the Dead Sea, finally taking Sodom and Gomorrah. From there they returned north via Dan, which they apparently also wanted to conquer. See the next map.

In verses 13 and 14, Abram (his name has not yet been changed to Abraham) learns that his nephew, Lot, and his family have been taken captive. Abram arms 400 men of his household and “pursued them unto Dan.”

Verse 15, “And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto… [near] Damascus.” My understanding from this is that the four kings had not yet taken Dan, but were camped outside the walls. Else why would they flee northward when it is much easier to defend yourself from within the walls? They must not have captured the city yet. Abram divided his small force and attacked at night (not a common tactic anciently), defeated a superior sized force, and liberated his relatives. It appears Abram let the remnants of the invaders return home. Also the freed captives from all the conquered cities returned home, including those from Sodom and Gomorrah.

In verses 18 to 20, Abram returns to his home in Mamre (next to Hebron) via Salem (a.k.a. Jerusalem) where he pays tithes to Melchizedek.

In conclusion, Abram certainly would have seen the mud-brick gate of Dan, but the scriptures are silent as to whether or not he actually entered through them.

The next question is: what about the account of Lot and the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah? I will cover that in my next blog.