“Genesis 18:22-33”

Monday, December 09, 2019

“Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord. Abraham came near and said, ‘Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?’ So the Lord said, ‘If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.’ And Abraham replied, ‘Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes. Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?’ And He said, ‘I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.’ He spoke to Him yet again and said, ‘Suppose forty are found there?’ And He said, ‘I will not do it on account of the forty.’ Then he said, ‘Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?’ And He said, ‘I will not do it if I find thirty there.’ And he said, ‘Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?’ And He said, ‘I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.’ Then he said, ‘Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?’ And He said, ‘I will not destroy it on account of the ten.’ As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham the Lord departed, and Abraham returned to his place.”

---End of Scripture verses---

“This introduces the great Intercessory Scene in which Abraham pleaded for God to spare the execution of the wicked cities. Note that the two angels are sent on their way to Sodom, but that Jehovah himself remained and heeded the plea of Abraham. The reception that the angels received in Sodom is recorded in the next chapter. The great intercession that Abraham made, and which is next recorded, is, ‘the sublimest act of human intercession, of which Scripture preserves a record.’” (James Burton Coffman)

In this amazing dialogue between the Lord and His righteous servant, many suppose that Abraham is appealing on behalf of total strangers, therefore it speaks even greater to his sense of love and compassion for all humanity. While this is possible, it is very likely that he at least knew of the people in the city of Sodom, and had even seen some of them face to face when he delivered them from the abduction of the coalition of Eastern Kings and returned them safely to their homes as recorded Genesis 14:1-16. Either way you look at it though, his love and compassion and earnest prayers for even the ungodly people of Sin City is exemplary! "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous" (Matthew 6:44-45)

“Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” (verse 25) The Lord of the Universe, even though His is God Almighty and the Judge over all His creation, allows himself to be examined and challenged by His lowly creatures. He is not whimsical in His treatment of humanity as the false pagan deities are depicted to be, and He allows His righteousness and justice to be called into question. It is actually Abraham’s belief in God’s justice that prompts his encounter with the Almighty.

But Abraham doesn’t merely call into question the Lord’s justice in His pronouncement of the destruction of Sodom, he also appeals His mercy by begging for the acquittal of the whole city for the righteousness of a small minority. It should be obvious to us, however, that our loving Lord did not need His arm to be twisted into dealing compassionately. “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

“Far be it from You!” (verse 25) This calls immediately to my mind the Apostle Peter’s castigation of the Lord in Matthew 16:22, after Jesus informed the Twelve that He must soon suffer and be killed at the hands of the hypocritical religious leaders in Jerusalem: “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, 'God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.'” But the Lord does not tell Abraham to “Get behind Me, Satan!” as Jesus told Peter. The difference is that Abraham didn’t “rebuke” the Lord as much as He respectfully appealed to Him in all humility and reverence. The difference is conspicuously evident: “I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes.” (verse 27) “Oh may the Lord not be angry…” (verse 30).

From fifty to ten: While it is possible that Abraham had in mind from the very beginning that he would continue to push for a sweeter deal, I doubt that was the case. When he observed how willingly the Lord granted each of his requests, it probably caused Abraham’s faith in the divine justice to grow stronger, and made it that much easier for Abraham to appeal to the Lord’s mercy and compassion for a more lenient number. We see clearly demonstrated here the truth of James 5:16—“The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” I can’t help but wonder if this righteous servant’s further appeals could have brought that number even lower still. But having pressed the Lord six separate times, maybe he didn’t desire to push his luck another inch and tempt the Lord past His breaking point. Besides, surely in such a large place Sodom ten righteous people could be easily found, right?!

"One deduction that must be made from this passage is that Sodom did not have ten righteous people in it; for God judged them and destroyed the city the very night following this intercession. The next chapter will begin with the experience of the two angels who had proceeded on to Sodom with a view to spending the night there." (James Burton Coffman)

Please read Genesis 19:1-5 for tomorrow.

Have a blessed day!

- Louie Taylor

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