Setting: Genesis 12:9-10
To live in proximity to Salem is to know and love the man Melchizedek. He has often visited us in Hebron. He has a fondness for our people and our beautiful oak trees, among which he has often spent a day in prayer. What kind of a king spends the day in prayer? Melchizedek had told us that a man of great importance, humble and kind and exceedingly hospitable, would soon pass by our land. This man, Abram, is to be the patriarch of a great people. He is a loyal follower of El Elyon, as are we, my brothers and I. For to know Melchizedek is to know the power and the wonder of El. As Melchizedek had predicted, the man Abram came through the land with great flocks and herds and with many people. His wife was exceedingly beautiful, and I am sure his children would have been also, but he had none. As if El wanted to make sure Abram stayed humble in the midst of such riches. Our bond with Abram was almost instantly forged. His faith in El is a powerful force, and what a joy it was to meet a brother in that faith. It was our desire to form a pact with this man, that together we might stand against the heathen nations around us and carve out a beautiful land for Adonai. Abram extended to us the right hand of fellowship, and we ate bread and drank wine together. But we knew that he must surely continue south to Egypt, for the land was suffering a great famine and there was no way that his animals would survive without more water. We prayed that we would see this man again. Friendship is surely one of the greatest gifts of this short life.