Vale of Siddim at Genesis 14: 3
Posted: Fri Feb 28, 2014 3:54 pm
The Vale of Siddim: ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3
The first appearance of the phrase “the vale of Siddim” : ‘MQ H-sDYM is at Genesis 14: 3. A more literal translation of ‘MQ H-sDYM would be either (i) “valley the Siddim”, or (ii) if [as is likely] sDYM is a plural form of sDY at Deuteronomy 32: 13, with sDY there meaning “cultivated field”, and especially if, per BDB, sDYM may also be related to sDD, meaning “to harrow” or “to cultivate [plow] with a harrow”, then: “valley of the cultivated fields”. The only other places where the phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM appears are at Genesis 14: 8, 10: not elsewhere in the Bible, and not in any non-biblical ancient sources. The phrase “the salt sea” [which could more literally be translated as “sea the salt” : YM H-MLX] appears only at Genesis 14: 3 in the Book of Genesis. Outside of Genesis, that phrase appears at Numbers 34: 12 and Deuteronomy 3: 17, where in context it must be referring to the Dead Sea. However, “sea the salt” may be a generic reference to any salt sea, which as such could refer either to the Mediterranean Sea or to the Dead Sea, depending on the context. Thus at Genesis 14: 3 we should examine the context to determine whether YM H-MLX is referring to the Mediterranean Sea, rather than to the Dead Sea as heretofore always supposed, especially since there never was a "valley of cultivated fields" : Vale of Siddim at the Dead Sea. At Genesis 14: 3, first we see ‘MQ H-sDYM, and then comes the ambiguous Hebrew word HW’ [often translated as “that is”], which is the link to YM H-MLX. The Hebrew word HW’ is inherently ambiguous in that it might be followed by what is simply a different [perhaps later] name for the exact same place; yet alternatively, it might instead be identifying some particular aspect of the preceding name.
Let me now set forth several possible translations of Genesis 14: 3. We’ll start with KJV:
“All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.”
Now consider a series of my own translations/paraphrases of Genesis 14: 3, where I have added explanatory material in brackets:
(i) “all the latter operated together at the Valley of Siddim, that is, the salt sea.”
(ii) “all the latter [i.e., the 5 rebellious rulers] operated together at the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim [a reference to a famous ‘valley of cultivated fields’ in western Asia] that is [at] the salt sea.”
(iii) “all the latter [i.e., the 5 rebellious rulers] operated together at the Valley of Siddim [which is referencing a famous ‘valley of cultivated fields’ in western Asia, namely the Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley, which is the breadbasket of both Syria and Lebanon], that is[, i.e., at the western end of the Orontes River Valley, where the Orontes River empties into] the salt sea [i.e., the Mediterranean Sea] -- [namely, at Ugarit].”
Ugarit is located on the Mediterranean Sea, immediately west of the far northwest corner of the Orontes River Valley; that is to say, Ugarit is just north of where the Orontes River empties into the Mediterranean Sea. “At its greatest extent, the kingdom of Ugarit extended… eastward to the Orontes River….” http://ebooks.cambridge.org/chapter.jsf ... 996962A010 . The two keys to describing Ugarit's geographical location are precisely that (i) it is near a "valley of cultivated fields" [vale of Siddim : Orontes River Valley], and that (ii) it is located on a "salt sea" [Mediterranean Sea].
If the phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 is referencing Ugarit [which is my view of the case], then we are being told two different, important things here: (i) Chedorlaomer’s homeland is Ugarit, and (ii) Chedorlaomer’s homeland of Ugarit is now in Year 13 [per Genesis 14: 4] being attacked by a coalition of five rebellious princelings [per Genesis 14: 2]. Genesis 14: 2-4 is therefore specifically and explicitly telling us that in Year 13, Ugarit was raided by a coalition of five rebellious princelings. Historically, that has p-i-n-p-o-i-n-t accuracy in describing both the nature and exact timing of the instigating events of the world-famous Great Syrian War, which was fought the following year [in the “Year 14” referenced at Genesis 14: 5]. Genesis 14: 15 explicitly refers to Damascus, which is in Syria, so Syria is a viable locale to consider for the war being described at Genesis 14: 1-15, and Genesis 14: 4 can be viewed as explicitly referencing “Year 13”. Historically, by far the most important thing that happened in Year 13 in Syria was precisely that 5 rebellious princelings launched a series of raids on Ugarit, near where the most famous “valley of cultivated fields” in western Asia [the Orontes River Valley] meets the most famous “salt sea” in western Asia, the Mediterranean Sea. So shouldn’t we at least ask if ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 means “the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim : ‘valley of cultivated fields’ : Orontes River Valley that is [at] the salt sea : Mediterranean Sea”? No university scholar has ever asked that question.
It is my opinion that the Hebrew wording translated by KJV as “the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea” is an accurate description of the geographical location of Ugarit. I see “the vale of Siddim” : ‘MQ H-sDYM as being the most famous “valley of cultivated fields” in western Asia, namely the Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley, which is the breadbasket of both west-central Syria and eastern Lebanon. I see “the salt sea” : “sea the salt” : YM H-MLX as being, out of context, a generic reference to any salt sea, and as here, in context, referencing the Mediterranean Sea, which is the most famous, and most important, salt sea in western Asia, and which, unlike the Dead Sea, adjoins a "valley of cultivated fields" : Vale of Siddim at Ugarit. I see HW’, which links the above two geographical references, as in context delineating here which portion of the vast Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley is being referenced at Genesis 14: 3, namely the far northwest corner of the Orontes River Valley, where the Orontes River empties into the Mediterranean Sea. Moreover, I see the phrase HW’ YM H-MLX as applying exclusively to Genesis 14: 3, and n-o-t to Genesis 14: 8 or Genesis 14: 10, which latter two verses are, rather, referring to entirely different portions of the vast Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley.
By contrast to my above historical analysis of the key Biblical phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3, university scholars insist, believe it or not, that Biblical inerrantists are spot on in saying that the Biblical author envisioned the Vale of Siddim as being a valley of cultivated fields in the Patriarchal Age which, by the Biblical author’s own time centuries later, had been flooded and was now lying underneath the southern half of the Dead Sea. I kid you not. That is what the freshmen are taught every fall at university by mainstream scholars as to how the Biblical author wanted us to understand Genesis 14: 3. But rather than being pure, unadulterated, non-historical fantasy as today’s university scholars would have it, I myself see ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 as being an historically accurate geographical reference [with no fantasy whatsoever involved] to Ugarit’s location: “the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim : ‘valley of cultivated fields’ : Orontes River Valley that is [at] the salt sea : Mediterranean Sea.”
There is no valley of cultivated fields lying at the bottom of the southern half of the Dead Sea. Nor did the Biblical author of Genesis 14: 3 intend to reference any such bizarre, totally irrelevant fantasy. Nor, for that matter, does the Biblical author post-date the “four kings against five” : Great Syrian War that he accurately reports as a contemporary at Genesis 14: 1-15. Rather, it is my contention that, contra the scholarly approach, we should adopt a fully historical explanation of ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3.
Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois
The first appearance of the phrase “the vale of Siddim” : ‘MQ H-sDYM is at Genesis 14: 3. A more literal translation of ‘MQ H-sDYM would be either (i) “valley the Siddim”, or (ii) if [as is likely] sDYM is a plural form of sDY at Deuteronomy 32: 13, with sDY there meaning “cultivated field”, and especially if, per BDB, sDYM may also be related to sDD, meaning “to harrow” or “to cultivate [plow] with a harrow”, then: “valley of the cultivated fields”. The only other places where the phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM appears are at Genesis 14: 8, 10: not elsewhere in the Bible, and not in any non-biblical ancient sources. The phrase “the salt sea” [which could more literally be translated as “sea the salt” : YM H-MLX] appears only at Genesis 14: 3 in the Book of Genesis. Outside of Genesis, that phrase appears at Numbers 34: 12 and Deuteronomy 3: 17, where in context it must be referring to the Dead Sea. However, “sea the salt” may be a generic reference to any salt sea, which as such could refer either to the Mediterranean Sea or to the Dead Sea, depending on the context. Thus at Genesis 14: 3 we should examine the context to determine whether YM H-MLX is referring to the Mediterranean Sea, rather than to the Dead Sea as heretofore always supposed, especially since there never was a "valley of cultivated fields" : Vale of Siddim at the Dead Sea. At Genesis 14: 3, first we see ‘MQ H-sDYM, and then comes the ambiguous Hebrew word HW’ [often translated as “that is”], which is the link to YM H-MLX. The Hebrew word HW’ is inherently ambiguous in that it might be followed by what is simply a different [perhaps later] name for the exact same place; yet alternatively, it might instead be identifying some particular aspect of the preceding name.
Let me now set forth several possible translations of Genesis 14: 3. We’ll start with KJV:
“All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.”
Now consider a series of my own translations/paraphrases of Genesis 14: 3, where I have added explanatory material in brackets:
(i) “all the latter operated together at the Valley of Siddim, that is, the salt sea.”
(ii) “all the latter [i.e., the 5 rebellious rulers] operated together at the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim [a reference to a famous ‘valley of cultivated fields’ in western Asia] that is [at] the salt sea.”
(iii) “all the latter [i.e., the 5 rebellious rulers] operated together at the Valley of Siddim [which is referencing a famous ‘valley of cultivated fields’ in western Asia, namely the Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley, which is the breadbasket of both Syria and Lebanon], that is[, i.e., at the western end of the Orontes River Valley, where the Orontes River empties into] the salt sea [i.e., the Mediterranean Sea] -- [namely, at Ugarit].”
Ugarit is located on the Mediterranean Sea, immediately west of the far northwest corner of the Orontes River Valley; that is to say, Ugarit is just north of where the Orontes River empties into the Mediterranean Sea. “At its greatest extent, the kingdom of Ugarit extended… eastward to the Orontes River….” http://ebooks.cambridge.org/chapter.jsf ... 996962A010 . The two keys to describing Ugarit's geographical location are precisely that (i) it is near a "valley of cultivated fields" [vale of Siddim : Orontes River Valley], and that (ii) it is located on a "salt sea" [Mediterranean Sea].
If the phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 is referencing Ugarit [which is my view of the case], then we are being told two different, important things here: (i) Chedorlaomer’s homeland is Ugarit, and (ii) Chedorlaomer’s homeland of Ugarit is now in Year 13 [per Genesis 14: 4] being attacked by a coalition of five rebellious princelings [per Genesis 14: 2]. Genesis 14: 2-4 is therefore specifically and explicitly telling us that in Year 13, Ugarit was raided by a coalition of five rebellious princelings. Historically, that has p-i-n-p-o-i-n-t accuracy in describing both the nature and exact timing of the instigating events of the world-famous Great Syrian War, which was fought the following year [in the “Year 14” referenced at Genesis 14: 5]. Genesis 14: 15 explicitly refers to Damascus, which is in Syria, so Syria is a viable locale to consider for the war being described at Genesis 14: 1-15, and Genesis 14: 4 can be viewed as explicitly referencing “Year 13”. Historically, by far the most important thing that happened in Year 13 in Syria was precisely that 5 rebellious princelings launched a series of raids on Ugarit, near where the most famous “valley of cultivated fields” in western Asia [the Orontes River Valley] meets the most famous “salt sea” in western Asia, the Mediterranean Sea. So shouldn’t we at least ask if ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 means “the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim : ‘valley of cultivated fields’ : Orontes River Valley that is [at] the salt sea : Mediterranean Sea”? No university scholar has ever asked that question.
It is my opinion that the Hebrew wording translated by KJV as “the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea” is an accurate description of the geographical location of Ugarit. I see “the vale of Siddim” : ‘MQ H-sDYM as being the most famous “valley of cultivated fields” in western Asia, namely the Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley, which is the breadbasket of both west-central Syria and eastern Lebanon. I see “the salt sea” : “sea the salt” : YM H-MLX as being, out of context, a generic reference to any salt sea, and as here, in context, referencing the Mediterranean Sea, which is the most famous, and most important, salt sea in western Asia, and which, unlike the Dead Sea, adjoins a "valley of cultivated fields" : Vale of Siddim at Ugarit. I see HW’, which links the above two geographical references, as in context delineating here which portion of the vast Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley is being referenced at Genesis 14: 3, namely the far northwest corner of the Orontes River Valley, where the Orontes River empties into the Mediterranean Sea. Moreover, I see the phrase HW’ YM H-MLX as applying exclusively to Genesis 14: 3, and n-o-t to Genesis 14: 8 or Genesis 14: 10, which latter two verses are, rather, referring to entirely different portions of the vast Orontes River Valley/Beqa Valley.
By contrast to my above historical analysis of the key Biblical phrase ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3, university scholars insist, believe it or not, that Biblical inerrantists are spot on in saying that the Biblical author envisioned the Vale of Siddim as being a valley of cultivated fields in the Patriarchal Age which, by the Biblical author’s own time centuries later, had been flooded and was now lying underneath the southern half of the Dead Sea. I kid you not. That is what the freshmen are taught every fall at university by mainstream scholars as to how the Biblical author wanted us to understand Genesis 14: 3. But rather than being pure, unadulterated, non-historical fantasy as today’s university scholars would have it, I myself see ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3 as being an historically accurate geographical reference [with no fantasy whatsoever involved] to Ugarit’s location: “the [portion of the] Valley of Siddim : ‘valley of cultivated fields’ : Orontes River Valley that is [at] the salt sea : Mediterranean Sea.”
There is no valley of cultivated fields lying at the bottom of the southern half of the Dead Sea. Nor did the Biblical author of Genesis 14: 3 intend to reference any such bizarre, totally irrelevant fantasy. Nor, for that matter, does the Biblical author post-date the “four kings against five” : Great Syrian War that he accurately reports as a contemporary at Genesis 14: 1-15. Rather, it is my contention that, contra the scholarly approach, we should adopt a fully historical explanation of ‘MQ H-sDYM HW’ YM H-MLX at Genesis 14: 3.
Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois