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Genesis 18
Darby Translation
Genesis 18
Darby Translation
18 And Jehovah appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre. And he sat at the tent-door in the heat of the day.
2 And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, three men standing near him. And when he saw [them], he ran to meet them from the tent-door, and bowed himself to the earth,
3 and said, Lord, if now I have found favour in thine eyes, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant.
4 Let now a little water be fetched, that ye may wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.
5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread; and refresh yourselves; after that ye shall pass on; for therefore have ye passed on towards your servant. And they said, So do as thou hast said.
6 And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, Knead quickly three seahs of wheaten flour, and make cakes.
7 And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf tender and good, and gave [it] to the attendant; and he hasted to dress it.
8 And he took thick and sweet milk, and the calf that he had dressed, and set [it] before them; and he stood before them under the tree, and they ate.
9 And they said to him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.
10 And he said, I will certainly return to thee at [this] time of the year, and behold, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah was listening at the tent-door, which was behind him.
11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old [and] advanced in age: it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
12 And Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am become old, shall I have pleasure, and my lord old?
13 And Jehovah said to Abraham, Why is this, that Sarah laughs, saying, Shall I indeed bear, when I am become old?
14 Is [any] matter too wonderful for Jehovah? At the time appointed I will return to thee, at [this] time of the year, and Sarah shall have a son.
15 And Sarah denied, saying, I did not laugh; for she was afraid. And he said, No; but thou didst laugh.
16 And the men rose up thence, and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to conduct them.
17 And Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing?
18 Since Abraham shall indeed become a great and mighty nation; and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him.
19 For I know him that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of Jehovah, to do righteousness and justice, in order that Jehovah may bring upon Abraham what he hath spoken of him.
20 And Jehovah said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grievous,
21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come to me; and if not, I will know [it].
22 And the men turned thence, and went towards Sodom; and Abraham remained yet standing before Jehovah.
23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also cause the righteous to perish with the wicked?
24 There are perhaps fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not forgive the place for the sake of the fifty righteous that are therein?
25 Far be it from thee to do so, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that the righteous should be as the wicked—far be it from thee! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?
26 And Jehovah said, If I find at Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will forgive all the place for their sakes.
27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have ventured to speak unto the Lord; I, who am dust and ashes.
28 Perhaps there may want five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city on account of the five? And he said, If I shall find forty-five there, I will not destroy [it].
29 And he continued yet to speak with him, and said, Perhaps there may be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for the forty's sake.
30 And he said, Oh, let not the Lord be angry that I speak! Perhaps there may be thirty found there. And he said, I will not do it if I find thirty there.
31 And he said, Behold now, I have ventured to speak with the Lord. Perhaps there may be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy [it] for the twenty's sake.
32 And he said, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, that I speak yet but this time! Perhaps there may be ten found there. And he said, I will not destroy [it] for the ten's sake.
33 And Jehovah went away when he had ended speaking to Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place.
Genesis 18
New International Version
Genesis 18
New International Version
The Three Visitors
18 The Lord appeared to Abraham(A) near the great trees of Mamre(B) while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent(C) in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up(D) and saw three men(E) standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.(F)
3 He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes,(G) my lord,[a] do not pass your servant(H) by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet(I) and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat,(J) so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”
“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs[b] of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”(K)
7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf(L) and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds(M) and milk(N) and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them.(O) While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.
9 “Where is your wife Sarah?”(P) they asked him.
“There, in the tent,(Q)” he said.
10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year,(R) and Sarah your wife will have a son.”(S)
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old,(T) and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.(U) 12 So Sarah laughed(V) to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord(W) is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’(X) 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord?(Y) I will return to you at the appointed time next year,(Z) and Sarah will have a son.”(AA)
15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Abraham Pleads for Sodom
16 When the men(AB) 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(AC) what I am about to do?(AD) 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,(AE) and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.[c] 19 For I have chosen him(AF), so that he will direct his children(AG) and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord(AH) by doing what is right and just,(AI) so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”(AJ)
20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom(AK) and Gomorrah is so great(AL) and their sin so grievous(AM) 21 that I will go down(AN) 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(AO) turned away and went toward Sodom,(AP) but Abraham remained standing before the Lord.[d](AQ) 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?(AR) 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare[e] the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?(AS) 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing(AT)—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous(AU) and the wicked alike.(AV) Far be it from you! Will not the Judge(AW) of all the earth do right?”(AX)
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.(AY)”
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,(AZ) 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,(BA) 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.(BB) What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten,(BC) I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speaking(BD) with Abraham, he left,(BE) and Abraham returned home.(BF)
Footnotes
- Genesis 18:3 Or eyes, Lord
- Genesis 18:6 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
- 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
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