From The Alpha and the Omega - Chapter Four
by Jim A. Cornwell, Copyright © 1995, all rights reserved "The Significance of 318 Gen. 14:14-17"     This excerpt from Volume I, Chapter Four Section "C", page 471-472 covers the numerical Significance of 318 - Gen. 14:14-17, and has a connection to Gen. 15:2 Eliezer found on page 480.

This begins page 471
Gen. 14:14-17, the Significance of 318

The Significance of 318
    Gen. 14:14 And when Abram heard that his brother (kinsman) [(Vau Yod (C)Heth Aleph) A(aw)Ch(ee), brother - Heb. ‘ach, awkh, a brother, used in the widest sense.   Also see kinsman - Heb. ga’al, gaw-al’, or go’el, a primary root, to redeem, or one who has the right to redeem, in the OT it translates Hebrew words with three distinct ideas: one who has the right to redeem or avenge (Oriental law of kinship); one too closely related for marriage (Heb. she’er); a neighbor (Heb. qarov), friend, or acquaintance (Heb. modha)]
was taken captive, he armed (he emptied out, mustered or he led forth)
his trained servants (men) [(Vau Yod -- Caph Yod Nun (C)Heth – Tau Aleph)
Ch(uh-ah)N(ee)Kh(aw), Trained - Heb. chaniyk, kaw-neek’, from Heb. chanak, khaw-nak’, a primary root, properly to narrow, figurative to initiate or discipline, dedicate, train up, thus initiated, i.e. practised, trained.  In other sources Train in Hebrew is hayil, "army," a much used word that has the meaning of a train or retinue of a monarch, as in the case of the queen of Sheba (I Kings 10:2 KJV; NIV "Caravan");
Y(eh)V as above may be (Daleth Veth Ayin) A(eh)V(eh)Dh, Servants - Heb. ‘ebed, eh’-bed, from Heb. ‘abad, aw-bad’, a root, to work, serve, till, enslave, thus a servant, bondage, bondman, (bond-)servant, (man-)servant.],
born in his own house,
three hundred and eighteen (eight, ten and three hundred),
[Significance of 318]

eight		[(He Nun Mem Shin) Sh(uh)M(oh)N(aw)H.	300 + 40 + 50 + 5 = 395]
ten		[(Resh Sin Ayin) A(aw)S(aw)R.	70 + 300 + 200 = 570]
and three		[(Shin Lamed Shin -- Vau) Sh(uh)L(oh)Sh.	300 + 30 + 300 = 630]
hundred men		[(Tau (Vau vowel) Aleph Mem) M(ay)A(oo)Th.	40 + 1 + 400 = 441]

[as seen in Gen. 15:2 Eliezer [(Resh Zayin Ayin Yod Lamed Aleph) A(uh-eh)L(ee)A(eh)Z(eh)R.]   R   + Z    + O   + Y + L     + A   200 + 7  + 70  + 10 + 30   + 1 = 318                                                                See page 480.]

and pursued them (went in pursuit) unto (as far as) Dan [(Final Nun Daleth) D(aw)N, Dan (Danite, Dan-Jaan, Laish, Mahaneh-Dan) - Heb. Dan, dawn, from Heb. diyn, deen, or (Gen. 6:3) duwn, doon, a root (compare to Heb. ‘adown, aw-done, or ‘adon, from an unused root, to rule, sovereign, controller), to rule, to judge, contend, plead, strive, thus judge, Dan, one of the sons of Jacob, and the tribe descendant from him.   Dan is also found in Genesis 14:14; 30:6; 35:25; 46:23; 49:16, 17.
    Note: that if Dan was translated here, then this chapter of Genesis was not translated by Moses but written by another individual later who called it Dan, since Moses could have only called it Leshem, since Dan did not exist until the Danites overran it.
    Dan is the northernmost city of Palestine, originally Leshem (Josh. 19:47; Judg. 18:29) a common phrase "from Dan to Beersheba" (e.g., Judg. 20:1; Sam. 3:20)].

    Leshem (le’-shem) see Laish - Heb. Leshem, leh’-shem, or leshem, it is the same as Heb. leshem, from an unused root, of uncertain meaning, a gem, perhaps the jacinth, or ligure.  Leshem is the original name of Dan (Josh. 19:47), a city at the extreme north of Palestine (I Sam. 3:20).   Variant of Laish.

Begins page 472 Continued Gen. 14:14-17, the Significance of 318
    Laish (la’-ish) - Heb. Layish, lah’-yish, from the Heb. luwsh, loosh, a root, to knead, or kneading, in the sense of crushing, a lion (from his destructive blows), (old) lion, the name of two places in Palestine, Laish.   Compare to Heb. Luwsh, Lush.
    Laish is a city in the upper Jordan Valley, captured by Danites and renamed Dan (Judg. 18:7, 14, 27, 29).   It is called Leschem in Joshua 19:47.   Laish in the KJV and NEB of Isaiah 10:30 is Laishah in other versions (e.g., NASB, NIV).   It is a town a short distance north of Jerusalem.

    Lachish (la’-kish) - Heb. Lachiysh, law-keesh’, or lakhish, perhaps meaning rough, but from an unused root of uncertain meaning.   Lakish or Lachish is a southern Canaanite royal city and Judean border fortress twenty-five miles SW of Jerusalem, NE of Gaza, Gerar, west of Hebron (Mamre).   Lachish has now been identified by written evidence with Tell ed-Duweir, a 22 acre mound excavated by J. K. Starkey in 1932 A.D.   (See Josh. 10:3, 5, 31-35, etc.).
    Even before 3000 B.C. Lachish was inhabited by chalcolithic cave dwellers, but in about 2700 B.C. a Early-Bronze city was constructed on the virgin rock.   Following a gap occasioned by invaders of calciform culture (c. 2300), Middle-Bronze Lachish arose, exhibiting cultural and political ties with Middle-Kingdom Egypt (2000-1780 B.C.).

    Gen 14:15 And he divided against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote (routed), and pursued them unto Hobah [(He Veth (Vau vowel) (C)Heth) Ch(oh)V(aw)H, Hobah (ho’-bah) - Heb. chowbah, kho-baw’, feminine active particle of Heb. chuws, khoos, a primary root, to cover, i.e. (fig.) to compassionate, pity, regard, spare, thus a hiding place, Chobah, a place in Syria, thus Hobah a place north of Damascus to which Abram pursued the captors of his nephew Lot.],
which is on the left (north) of Damascus [(Qoph Sin Mem Daleth -- Lamed) Dh(ah)MM(aw)S(eh)Q, Damascus - (da-mas’-cus) see also Damascenes, Syria-Damascus - Heb. Dammeseq, dam-meh’-sek, or Duwmiseq, doo-meh’-sek, or Darmeseq, dar-meh’-sek, of foreign origin.   It is on the left hand of Damascus as seen in Gen. 14:15, between Mount Hermon and the Syrian Desert.   It was a well-known landmark here, where Abram also found in Syria a steward, Eliezer, in Genesis 15:2].

    Gen. 14:16 And he brought back all the goods, and his goods, and also brought again his brother (kinsman) Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people [(Final Mem Ayin - He) H(aw) A(aw)M, people - Heb. ‘am, am, from Heb. ‘amam, aw-mam’, a primary root, to associate, by implication to overshadow (by huddling together), become dim, hide, thus a people (as a congregated unit), specific, a tribe (as those of Israel), hence (collect.) troops or attendants, (fig.) a flock, folk, men, nation, people.].   [Note: Lot and all his people? His tribe! Therefore Abram was also a tribe. ]

    Gen. 14:17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter (defeat) of Chedorlaomer, and the kings that (who) were with him,
at the Valley of [(Qoph Mem Ayin – Lamed Aleph) A(ay)M(eh)Q, Valley - Heb. ‘emeq, ay’-mek, from Heb. ‘amaq, aw-mak’, a primary root, to be deep, thus a vale (i.e. broad depression), dale, vale, valley (usually part of proper names) as seen in the Heb. Beyth ha-‘Emeq.]
Shaveh [(He Vau Shin) Sh(aw)V(ay)H, Shaveh - Heb. Shaveh, shaw-vay’, or shaweh, from Heb. shavah, shaw-vaw’, a primary root, properly to level, thus plain.   Shaveh, Valley Of, also called "the kings dale," a place near Salem (i.e., Jerusalem, Ps. 76:2) where after rescuing his nephew Lot, Abram met the king of Sodom in Gen. 14:17.   Earlier in Gen. 14:5 Shaveh is connected to Shaveh-Kiriathaim - Heb. Shaveh Qirythayim, shaw-vay’, Kir-yaw-thah’-yim, meaning plain of a double city, east of the Dead Sea.],
which (that) is the king’s dale (Valley of) (same as the Valley above) (the King) [(Final Kaph Lamed Mem - He) M(eh)L(eh)Kh, king - Heb. melek, meh’-lek, from Heb. malak, maw-lak’, a primary root, to reign, to ascend the throne, thus a king, royal, i.e. Malach.].

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the priest of the Most High God
Gen. 14:18-24, was Melchizedek a Samaritan high priest?