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Genesis 18:16-33
1599 Geneva Bible
Genesis 18:16-33
1599 Geneva Bible
16 ¶ Afterward, the men did rise up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.
17 And the [a]Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do,
18 Seeing that Abraham shall be indeed a great and a mighty nation, and (A)all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
19 For I know him [b]that he will command his sons and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord to do righteousness and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham, that he hath spoken unto him.
20 Then the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is exceedingly grievous,
21 I will [c]go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to that [d]cry, which is come unto me: and if not, that I may know.
22 And the men turned thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the Lord.
23 Then Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
24 If there be fifty righteous within the city, wilt thou destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
25 Be it far from thee from doing this thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be even as the wicked, be it far from thee. Shall not the Judge of all the world [e]do right?
26 And the Lord answered, If I shall find in Sodom [f]fifty righteous within the city, then will I spare all the place for their sakes.
27 Then Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have begun to speak unto my Lord, and I am [g]but dust and ashes,
28 If there shall lack five of fifty righteous, wilt thou destroy all the city for five? And he said, If I find there five and forty, I will not destroy it.
29 And he yet spake to him again, and said, What if there shall be found forty there? Then he answered, I will not do it for forty’s sake.
30 Again he said, Let not my Lord now be angry that I speak, What if thirty be found there? Then he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31 Moreover he said, Behold now, I have begun to speak unto my Lord, What if twenty be found there? And he answered, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake.
32 Then he said, Let not my Lord be now angry, and I will speak but this [h]once, What if ten be found there? And he answered, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.
33 ¶ And the Lord went his way, when he had left communing with Abraham, and Abraham returned unto his place.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 18:17 Jehovah the Hebrew word which we call Lord, showeth that this Angel was Christ: for this word is only applied to God.
- Genesis 18:19 He showeth that fathers ought both to know God’s judgments, and to declare them to their children.
- Genesis 18:21 God speaketh after the fashion of men: that is, I will enter into judgment with good advice.
- Genesis 18:21 For our sins cry for vengeance, though none accuse us.
- Genesis 18:25 Hebrew, do judgment.
- Genesis 18:26 God declareth that his judgments were done with great mercy, forasmuch as all were so corrupt, that not only fifty but ten righteous men could not be found there, and also that the wicked are spared for the righteous’ sake.
- Genesis 18:27 Hereby we learn, that the nearer we approach unto God, the more doth our miserable estate appear, and the more are we humbled.
- Genesis 18:32 If God refused not the prayer for the wicked Sodomites, even to the sixth request, how much more will he grant the prayers of the godly for the afflicted Church?
Genesis 18:16-33
New International Version
Genesis 18:16-33
New International Version
Abraham Pleads for Sodom
16 When the men(A) got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham(B) what I am about to do?(C) 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,(D) and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.[a] 19 For I have chosen him(E), so that he will direct his children(F) and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord(G) by doing what is right and just,(H) so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”(I)
20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom(J) and Gomorrah is so great(K) and their sin so grievous(L) 21 that I will go down(M) and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”
22 The men(N) turned away and went toward Sodom,(O) but Abraham remained standing before the Lord.[b](P) 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?(Q) 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare[c] the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?(R) 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing(S)—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous(T) and the wicked alike.(U) Far be it from you! Will not the Judge(V) of all the earth do right?”(W)
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.(X)”
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes,(Y) 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”
“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”
29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”
30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry,(Z) but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”
He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”
32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more.(AA) What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten,(AB) I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speaking(AC) with Abraham, he left,(AD) and Abraham returned home.(AE)
Footnotes
- Genesis 18:18 Or will use his name in blessings (see 48:20)
- Genesis 18:22 Masoretic Text; an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition but the Lord remained standing before Abraham
- Genesis 18:24 Or forgive; also in verse 26
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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