Genesis 18 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Genesis 18

18:1 And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks¹ of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3 and said, “O Lord,² if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, 5 while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” 6 And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs³ of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” 7 And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. 8 Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

9 They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” 10 The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” 13 The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard⁴ for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” 15 But Sarah denied it,⁵ saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”

16 Then the men set out from there, and they looked down 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 surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19 For I have chosen⁶ him, that he may command 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 to Abraham what he has promised him.” 20 Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, 21 I will go down to see whether they have done altogether⁷ according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”

Abraham Intercedes for Sodom

22 So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD. 23 Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death 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?” 26 And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

27 Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 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 and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30 Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31 He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32 Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” 33 And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Footnotes

[1] 18:1 Or terebinths
[2] 18:3 Or My lord
[3] 18:6 A seah was about 7 quarts or 7.3 liters
[4] 18:14 Or wonderful
[5] 18:15 Or acted falsely
[6] 18:19 Hebrew known
[7] 18:21 Or they deserve destruction; Hebrew they have made a complete end

Commentary

v1: The Lord appears again to Abraham; 12.7; 13.3-4; 15.1; 17.1; here is a man available and alert, looking for the coming of the Lord. He has a constant expectation that God has things to say to him, and a work for him to do. In the heat of the day, when many rested, it was an inconvenient time to receive visitors, but Abraham shows respect and hospitality.

v2: Abraham hurries to meet the three men, to greet and receive them to his home. 19.1 indicates that there are two angels accompanying the Lord.

Abraham hurries to speak with Sarah (v6), he hurries to choose a calf (v7), and his young men hurry to prepare it.

v3: "My lord," for Abraham recognises that these are no ordinary guests.

v4-8: Abraham is pleased to be able to serve his visitors.

v9-15: At the appointed time; God's promises to Abraham and Sarah will be fulfilled in His time (17.21). Even Sarah's unbelief cannot prevent God's plan, for the promise is unconditional.

‘Thus, you see what virtue there is in an absolute promise; it carries enough in its own bowels to accomplish the thing promised, whether there be means or not in us to effect it.’ (John Bunyan; Come and welcome to Jesus Christ.)

v16-19: The scene changes; the Lord is with Abraham overlooking Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham is the Friend of God, Is 4.18; John 15.15. He is made aware of God's plan to destroy the cities. Many of God's works are kept secret from men; we should not expect otherwise.

"I have chosen him," for there is a relationship between God and Abraham, initiated by God. He has a great purpose for that relationship, to have obedient offspring, and enjoy the promises of God.

v20-21: God sees man's sin. The words here do not indicate His ignorance of their sins; they are the words of a judge examining the case before pronouncing judgment.

Here God acts, as at Babel, when that sin becomes so bad; He alone can decide when and if to do this. Although God's character and standards have not changed, later He gives the law to restrain man's sin, and later still Christ came to put an end to sin. He is full of grace and truth, as through Christ God overlooks transgressions. How merciful that His righteous anger is not revealed in such a way in today's cities. Here, as now, God is long-suffering, giving sinful man an opportunity to repent.

v22: Abraham is aware of what it about to happen, and stands before the Lord; perhaps he is weighing up his response. Would we be more careful in our prayers if we were more conscious of the Lord's presence?

v23-25: Abraham draws near and prays, having confidence in the character of God. No action of His can be inconsistent with His character; He will always do what is right.

v26-33: Abraham's persistent prayer, but with respect; no flippancy nor complacency. Abraham learns, through this experience, how merciful God is,