Genesis 18:16-33
New English Translation
Abraham Pleads for Sodom
16 When the men got up to leave,[a] they looked out over[b] Sodom. (Now[c] Abraham was walking with them to see them on their way.)[d] 17 Then the Lord said, “Should I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?[e] 18 After all, Abraham[f] will surely become[g] a great and powerful nation, and all the nations on the earth may receive blessing[h] through him. 19 I have chosen him[i] so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep[j] the way of the Lord by doing[k] what is right and just. Then the Lord will give[l] to Abraham what he promised[m] him.”
20 So the Lord said, “The outcry against[n] Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so blatant[o] 21 that I must go down[p] and see if they are as wicked as the outcry suggests.[q] If not,[r] I want to know.”
22 The two men turned[s] and headed[t] toward Sodom, but Abraham was still standing before the Lord.[u] 23 Abraham approached and said, “Will you really sweep away the godly along with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty godly people in the city? Will you really wipe it out and not spare[v] the place for the sake of the fifty godly people who are in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the godly with the wicked, treating the godly and the wicked alike! Far be it from you! Will not the judge[w] of the whole earth do what is right?”[x]
26 So the Lord replied, “If I find in the city of Sodom fifty godly people, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
27 Then Abraham asked, “Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord[y] (although I am but dust and ashes),[z] 28 what if there are five less than the fifty godly people? Will you destroy[aa] the whole city because five are lacking?”[ab] He replied, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29 Abraham[ac] spoke to him again,[ad] “What if forty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”
30 Then Abraham[ae] said, “May the Lord not be angry[af] so that I may speak![ag] What if thirty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham[ah] said, “Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
32 Finally Abraham[ai] said, “May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak just once more. What if ten are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”
33 The Lord went on his way[aj] when he had finished speaking[ak] to Abraham. Then Abraham returned home.[al]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 18:16 tn Heb “And the men arose from there.”
- Genesis 18:16 tn Heb “toward the face of.”
- Genesis 18:16 tn The disjunctive parenthetical clause sets the stage for the following speech.
- Genesis 18:16 tn The Piel of שָׁלַח (shalakh) means “to lead out, to send out, to expel”; here it is used in the friendly sense of seeing the visitors on their way.
- Genesis 18:17 tn The active participle here refers to an action that is imminent.
- Genesis 18:18 tn Heb “And Abraham.” The disjunctive clause is probably causal, giving a reason why God should not hide his intentions from Abraham. One could translate, “Should I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation?”
- Genesis 18:18 tn The infinitive absolute lends emphasis to the finite verb that follows.
- Genesis 18:18 tn Or “find blessing.” The denominative verb בָּרַךְ (barakh) mainly occurs in the D-stems: Piel for actice, Pual for passive, Hitpael for middle or reflexive. Only in three formulations of the Abrahamic covenant does it occur in the Niphal. Few other verbs that occur in the Piel and Pual also occur in the Niphal but not the Qal; the tendency is for such Niphals to be middle rather than passive. The middle voice may be expressed here as “they may consider themselves blessed through him,” “they may find/receive blessing through him,” or “they may become blessed through him.” Verses 18-19 refer back to Gen 12:1-3 which include how others may receive blessing or cursing from the Lord.
- Genesis 18:19 tn Heb “For I have known him.” The verb יָדַע (yadaʿ) here means “to recognize and treat in a special manner, to choose” (see Amos 3:2). It indicates that Abraham stood in a special covenantal relationship with the Lord.
- Genesis 18:19 tn Heb “and they will keep.” The perfect verbal form with vav consecutive carries on the subjective nuance of the preceding imperfect verbal form (translated “so that he may command”).
- Genesis 18:19 tn The infinitive construct here indicates manner, explaining how Abraham’s children and his household will keep the way of the Lord.
- Genesis 18:19 tn Heb “bring on.” The infinitive after לְמַעַן (lemaʿan) indicates result here.
- Genesis 18:19 tn Heb “spoke to.”
- Genesis 18:20 tn Heb “the outcry of Sodom,” which apparently refers to the outcry for divine justice from those (unidentified persons) who observe its sinful ways.
- Genesis 18:20 tn Heb “heavy” or “severe.”sn Ezekiel 16:49-50 includes three types of sins of Sodom: failure to help the poor and needy while having prosperity, pride (or haughtiness), and committing abomination.
- Genesis 18:21 tn The cohortative indicates the Lord’s resolve.sn I must go down. The descent to “see” Sodom is a bold anthropomorphism, stressing the careful judgment of God. The language is reminiscent of the Lord going down to see the Tower of Babel in Gen 11:1-9.
- Genesis 18:21 tn Heb “[if] according to the outcry that has come to me they have done completely.” Even the Lord, who is well aware of the human capacity to sin, finds it hard to believe that anyone could be as bad as the “outcry” against Sodom and Gomorrah suggests.
- Genesis 18:21 sn The short phrase if not provides a ray of hope and inspires Abraham’s intercession.
- Genesis 18:22 tn Heb “And the men turned from there.” The word “two” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied here for clarity. Gen 19:1 mentions only two individuals (described as “angels”), while Abraham had entertained three visitors (18:2). The implication is that the Lord was the third visitor, who remained behind with Abraham here. The words “from there” are not included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 18:22 tn Heb “went.”
- Genesis 18:22 tc An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition reads “but the Lord remained standing before Abraham.” This reading is problematic because the phrase “standing before” typically indicates intercession, but the Lord would certainly not be interceding before Abraham.
- Genesis 18:24 tn Heb “lift up,” perhaps in the sense of “bear with” (cf. NRSV “forgive”).
- Genesis 18:25 tn Or “ruler.”
- Genesis 18:25 sn Will not the judge of the whole earth do what is right? For discussion of this text see J. L. Crenshaw, “Popular Questioning of the Justice of God in Ancient Israel,” ZAW 82 (1970): 380-95, and C. S. Rodd, “Shall Not the Judge of All the Earth Do What Is Just?” ExpTim 83 (1972): 137-39.
- Genesis 18:27 tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here and in vv. 30, 31, 32 is אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay).
- Genesis 18:27 tn The disjunctive clause is a concessive clause here, drawing out the humility as a contrast to the Lord.
- Genesis 18:28 tn The Hebrew verb שָׁחַת (shakhat, “to destroy”) was used earlier to describe the effect of the flood.
- Genesis 18:28 tn Heb “because of five.”
- Genesis 18:29 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 18:29 tn The construction is a verbal hendiadys—the preterite (“he added”) is combined with an adverb “yet” and an infinitive “to speak.”
- Genesis 18:30 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 18:30 tn Heb “let it not be hot to the Lord.” This is an idiom which means “may the Lord not be angry.”
- Genesis 18:30 tn After the jussive, the cohortative indicates purpose/result.
- Genesis 18:31 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 18:32 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 18:33 tn Heb “And the Lord went.”
- Genesis 18:33 tn The infinitive construct (“speaking”) serves as the direct object of the verb “finished.”
- Genesis 18:33 tn Heb “to his place.”
Genesis 18:16-33
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Judgment Pronounced on Sodom
16 Then the men set out from there, and they looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17 The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18 seeing that Abraham shall become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?[a](A) 19 No, for I have chosen[b] him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”(B) 20 Then the Lord said, “How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin!(C) 21 I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me, and if not, I will know.”(D)
22 So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the Lord.[c](E) 23 Then Abraham came near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?(F) 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it?(G) 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”(H) 26 And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.” 27 Abraham answered, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to my lord, I who am but dust and ashes.(I) 28 Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” 29 Again he spoke to him, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30 Then he said, “Oh, do not let my lord be angry if I speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31 He said, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to my lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32 Then he said, “Oh, do not let my lord be angry if I speak just once more. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.”(J) 33 And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
Read full chapterNET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.