1 And there came H935 two H8147 angels H4397 to Sodom H5467 at even; H6153 and Lot H3876 sat H3427 in the gate H8179 of Sodom: H5467 and Lot H3876 seeing H7200 them rose up H6965 to meet H7125 them; and he bowed H7812 himself with his face H639 toward the ground; H776
2 And he said, H559 Behold now, my lords, H113 turn in, H5493 I pray you, into your servant's H5650 house, H1004 and tarry all night, H3885 and wash H7364 your feet, H7272 and ye shall rise up early, H7925 and go H1980 on your ways. H1870 And they said, H559 Nay; but we will abide H3885 in the street H7339 all night. H3885
3 And he pressed H6484 upon them greatly; H3966 and they turned in H5493 unto him, and entered H935 into his house; H1004 and he made H6213 them a feast, H4960 and did bake H644 unleavened bread, H4682 and they did eat. H398
4 But before they lay down, H7901 the men H582 of the city, H5892 even the men H582 of Sodom, H5467 compassed H5437 the house H1004 round, H5437 both old H2205 and young, H5288 all the people H5971 from every quarter: H7097
5 And they called H7121 unto Lot, H3876 and said H559 unto him, Where are the men H582 which came in H935 to thee this night? H3915 bring them out H3318 unto us, that we may know H3045 them.
6 And Lot H3876 went out H3318 at the door H6607 unto them, and shut H5462 the door H1817 after him, H310
7 And said, H559 I pray you, brethren, H251 do not so wickedly. H7489
8 Behold now, I have two H8147 daughters H1323 which have not known H3045 man; H376 let me, I pray you, bring them out H3318 unto you, and do H6213 ye to them as is good H2896 in your eyes: H5869 only unto these H411 men H582 do H6213 nothing; H408 H1697 for therefore came H935 they under the shadow H6738 of my roof. H6982
9 And they said, H559 Stand H5066 back. H1973 And they said H559 again, This one H259 fellow came in H935 to sojourn, H1481 and he will needs H8199 be a judge: H8199 now will we deal worse H7489 with thee, than with them. And they pressed H6484 sore H3966 upon the man, H376 even Lot, H3876 and came near H5066 to break H7665 the door. H1817
10 But the men H582 put forth H7971 their hand, H3027 and pulled H935 Lot H3876 into the house H1004 to them, and shut H5462 to the door. H1817
11 And they smote H5221 the men H582 that were at the door H6607 of the house H1004 with blindness, H5575 both small H6996 and great: H1419 so that they wearied H3811 themselves to find H4672 the door. H6607
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Genesis 19
Commentary on Genesis 19 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 19
Ge 19:1-38. Lot's Entertainment.
1. there came two angels—most probably two of those that had been with Abraham, commissioned to execute the divine judgment against Sodom.
Lot sat in the gate of Sodom—In Eastern cities it is the market, the seat of justice, of social intercourse and amusement, especially a favorite lounge in the evenings, the arched roof affording a pleasant shade.
2. turn in, I pray you … tarry all night—offer of the same generous hospitalities as described in Ge 18:2-8, and which are still spontaneously practised in the small towns.
And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night—Where there are no inns and no acquaintance, it is not uncommon for travellers to sleep in the street wrapped up in their cloaks.
3. entered into his house—On removing to the plain, Lot intended at first to live in his tent apart from the people [Ge 13:12]. But he was gradually drawn in, dwelt in the city, and he and his family were connected with the citizens by marriage ties.
4. men of Sodom, compassed the house—Appalling proofs are here given of their wickedness. It is evident that evil communications had corrupted good manners; otherwise Lot would never have acted as he did.
12, 13. Hast thou here any besides? … we will destroy this place—Apostolic authority has declared Lot was "a righteous man" (2Pe 2:8), at bottom good, though he contented himself with lamenting the sins that he saw, instead of acting on his own convictions, and withdrawing himself and family from such a sink of corruption. But favor was shown him: and even his bad relatives had, for his sake, an offer of deliverance, which was ridiculed and spurned (2Pe 3:4).
15-17. The kindly interest the angels took in the preservation of Lot is beautifully displayed. But he "lingered." Was it from sorrow at the prospect of losing all his property, the acquisition of many years? Or was it that his benevolent heart was paralyzed by thoughts of the awful crisis? This is the charitable way of accounting for a delay that would have been fatal but for the friendly urgency of the angel.
18, 19. Lot said … Oh, not so, my Lord … I cannot escape to the mountain—What a strange want of faith and fortitude, as if He who had interfered for his rescue would not have protected Lot in the mountain solitude.
21. See, I have accepted thee concerning this … also—His request was granted him, the prayer of faith availed, and to convince him, from his own experience, that it would have been best and safest at once to follow implicitly the divine directions.
22. Haste … for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither—The ruin of Sodom was suspended till he was secure. What care God does take of His people (Re 7:3)! What a proof of the love which God bore to a good though weak man!
24. Then the Lord rained … brimstone and fire from … heaven—God, in accomplishing His purposes, acts immediately or mediately through the agency of means; and there are strong grounds for believing that it was in the latter way He effected the overthrow of the cities of the plain—that it was, in fact, by a volcanic eruption. The raining down of fire and brimstone from heaven is perfectly accordant with this idea since those very substances, being raised into the air by the force of the volcano, would fall in a fiery shower on the surrounding region. This view seems countenanced by Job [Job 1:16; 18:15]. Whether it was miraculously produced, or the natural operation employed by God, it is not of much consequence to determine: it was a divine judgment, foretold and designed for the punishment of those who were sinners exceedingly.
26. Lot was accompanied by his wife and two daughters. But whether it was from irresistible curiosity or perturbation of feeling, or that she was about to return to save something, his wife lingered, and while thus disobeying the parting counsel, "to look not back, nor stay in all the plain" [Ge 19:17], the torrent of liquid lava enveloped her so that she became the victim of her supine indolence or sinful rashness.
27. Abraham gat up early in the morning, &c.—Abraham was at this time in Mamre, near Hebron, and a traveller last year verified the truth of this passage. "From the height which overlooks Hebron, where the patriarch stood, the observer at the present day has an extensive view spread out before him towards the Dead Sea. A cloud of smoke rising from the plain would be visible to a person at Hebron now, and could have been, therefore, to Abraham as he looked toward Sodom on the morning of its destruction by God" [Hackett]. It must have been an awful sight, and is frequently alluded to in Scripture (De 29:23; Isa 13:19; Jude 7). "The plain which is now covered by the Salt or Dead Sea shows in the great difference of level between the bottoms of the northern and southern ends of the lake—the latter being thirteen feet and the former thirteen hundred—that the southern end was of recent formation, and submerged at the time of the fall of the cities" [Lynch].
29. when God destroyed the cities, &c.—This is most welcome and instructive after so painful a narrative. It shows if God is a "consuming fire" to the wicked [De 4:24; Heb 12:29], He is the friend of the righteous. He "remembered" the intercessions of Abraham, and what confidence should not this give us that He will remember the intercessions of a greater than Abraham in our behalf.