Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Genesis 14:1/אבן עזרא על בראשית י״ד:א׳
אמלך גוים. שם מדינה כמו עילם, כי שושן הבירה ארמון היה בתוכה, או מלך גוים ולא הזכירם, והטעם כי הם אחרים מהשנערים וחביריהם:
1KING OF GOIIM. Goiim like Elam1 is the name of a state. Elam must be the name of a state because shushan ha-birah, which means Shushan the palace, was located in it.2 (shushan ha-birah) which is in the province of Elam. We thus see that Elam was the name of the state and Shushan the name of the palace. On the other hand, king of Goiim3 in Hebrew means a nation. may be rendered as king of nations, Scripture not stating their names. The meaning of the verse is that Tidal was king over nations other than Shinar, Ellasar and Elam.