Tidal

Tidal, styled "king of nations" (or "king of Goiim"), was one of the four kings who joined the coalition of Chedorlaomer against the five kings of the Sodom plain (Gen. 14:1-9). His name may mean that breaks the yoke or knowledge of elevation. He is generally identified with a Hittite king, possibly Tudhalia, mentioned in Assyrian and Hittite records, making this an early biblical contact with the Hittite world of Asia Minor.

The battle of Genesis 14, in which this coalition defeated the five Canaanite cities and carried Lot captive, prompted Abraham's rescue mission with his 318 trained men and the subsequent encounter with Melchizedek king of Salem (Gen. 14:14-20). Tidal himself is not mentioned beyond the coalition list; he serves to locate the episode within the broader ancient Near Eastern political landscape of the patriarchal period.