Milchemet Hamelachim – Lessson 1
Four-lesson unit on Bereshit 14: 1-24. Students participate in multiple intelligence exercises to understand the battle of the kings.
Lesson objectives
Students will be able to:
1.Describe how the kings got involved in the battle (e.g. jealous of leadership).
2. Describe how the kings developed their alliances.
3. Explain how Sedom and Amora fell into pits.
4. Relate how the rest of their group escaped to the mountains.
5. Relate the victory of the Kedorlaomer alliance.
6. Describe how the Kedorlaomer alliance took its enemy’s belongings and disappeared.
Skills
Students will be able to:
Identify Biblical words meaning “to fight”.
Values
Students will be able to:
1. Appreciate the consequences/horrors of war.
2. Appreciate God’s special assistance to Kedorlaomer’s alliance on the battlefield.
Terms
1. Spoils of war /רכוש
2. Fleeing as a consequence of losing a battle
Vocabulary:
|
פסוק |
||
|
joined |
חברו |
ד |
|
rebelled (fought against existing leadership) |
מרדו |
ה |
|
and they fought |
ויכו |
ה |
|
and they fought with them in battle |
ויערכו אתם מלחמה |
ח |
|
construction pits |
בארות בארות חמר |
י |
|
and they fled |
וינסו |
י |
|
and they fell there |
ויפלו שמה |
י |
|
the rest fled to a mountain |
והנשארים הרה נסו |
י |
|
property |
רכוש |
יא |
Resources & Equipment needed
- Chumashim or Sefaria link to text for all students
- Whiteboard and board markers
- Highlighters, paper, and pens for all students
Procedure
Teacher Preparation (Optional)
Write the vocabulary chart on the board.
Textual Reading
Ask a student to begin reading pesukim 1-3. Draw the kings on the board as the voices are read. As each king is mentioned, draw a cartoon king with a crown and write his name, and the name of his kingdom on a crown on his head. Then, draw a line down the middle of the whiteboard to divide it into 2, drawing a sword in the middle. Inside the sword, write “עשו מלחמה”.
Check for Comprehension
Ask students: Who is the head of Group A? Kedorlaomer. Who is the head of Group B? Sedom and Amora.
Then ask: Which group waged war on the other group? Kedorlaomer’s kings against Sedom and Amora.
Battle Word Search
Students should identify the war/battle words/phrases from the vocabulary list and copy them on their papers. Give them a few minutes to complete this exercise and then review it.
Answers: מרדו, ויכו, ויערכו אתם מלחמה, ויפלו שמה. The word וינסו can also be considered a war word.
Textual Reading and Review
After all this fighting, who is winning? Read the beginning of verse 10 and translate.
Then ask students: Who fell? The Kings of Sedom and Amora! What happened to the rest of King Group B? Let’s finish the rest of the verse! They fled to the mountains. Who won the battle, Kedorlaomer’s Group or Sedom and Amora’s Group? Kedorlaomer’s Group. What happened to the Kings of Sedom and Amora? They fell into pits. What happened to the rest of their King Group? They fled to the mountains.
‘Consequences of War’ Discussion
Read pasuk 11. Ask students: what happened to their property? The enemy – Kedorlaomer’s group took it. Explain that, in this case, רכוש is special property – called ‘spoils of war.’ When you lose a war, all your belongings suddenly become a bonus for the winning team. Explain that Lot was lucky that Avram went after him so quickly and was successful.
Discussion on the Significance of Victory
Ask students: which group of kings had more men – Kedorlaomer’s or Sedom and Amora’s? Sedom and Amora’s – they had 5 Kings altogether. Kedorlaomer’s only had 4. Then, ask: who usually wins a war, the larger or smaller group? Why did Kedorlaomer’s group defeat the other kings? What could have helped him win? Explain that he had a good strategy. For example, maybe Kedorlaomer’s group planted those pits in secret so that Sedom and Amora would fall into them. Explain that Sedom’s group was taken by surprise and didn’t have time to plan to fight back.
Conclusion
Explain that God helped Kedorlaomer’s group win, something that will be discussed further in the coming lessons.