Bereshis 18
18
[VAYYERA]
1And Hashem appeared unto him in the terebinth trees of Mamre; and he sat in the entrance of the ohel (tent) in the heat of the day;
2And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, hinei, Shloshah Anashim (Three Men)#18:2 Isa 6:3 stood by him; and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the entrance of the ohel, and prostrated himself on the ground,
3And said, Adonoi,#18:3 Hashem, see Gn 18:13 if now I have found chen (favor) in Thy sight, pass not on by, please, from Thy servant;
4Let a little water, please, be brought, and wash Thy feet, and rest under haetz (the tree);
5And I will bring a morsel of bread, and refresh Ye Your hearts; after that Ye shall pass on; because for this purpose are Ye come to Your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.
6And Avraham hastened into the ohel unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly shlosh measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.
7And Avraham ran unto the herd, and brought a calf tender and tov, and gave it unto a servant; and he hasted to prepare it.
8And he took curds, and cholov (milk), and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under haetz, and they did eat.
9And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Hinei, in the ohel.
10And He said, I will certainly return unto thee at this time next year; and, hinei, Sarah thy wife shall have ben (son). And Sarah heard it in the entrance of the ohel, which was behind him.
11Now Avraham and Sarah were zekenim (old ones) and well stricken in age; and [in childbearing] it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
12Therefore Sarah laughed [titzchak, sounds like Yitzchak] within herself, saying, After I am grown old shall I have pleasure, adoni being old also?
13And Hashem said unto Avraham, Why did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I which am old of a surety bear a child?
14Is any thing too hard for Hashem? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, in due season, and Sarah shall have ben (son).
15Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And He said, Oh yes but thou didst laugh.
16And the Anashim rose up from thence, and peered toward Sodom; and Avraham went with them to send them on the way.
17And Hashem said, Shall I hide from Avraham that thing which I do;
18Seeing that Avraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and kol goyei ha'aretz (all the nations of the earth) shall be blessed in him?
19For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall be shomer over the Derech Hashem, to do tzedakah and mishpat; that Hashem may bring upon Avraham that which He hath spoken [promised] of him.
20And Hashem said, Because the outcry of Sodom and Amora is great, and because their sin is very grievous;
21I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the crying out [for punishment] of it, which is come unto Me; and if not, I will have da'as.
22And the Men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom; but Avraham stood yet before Hashem.
23And Avraham drew near, and said, Wilt Thou also destroy the tzaddik with the rasha?
24Suppose there be fifty tzaddikim within the city; wilt Thou also destroy and not nasa (spare)#18:24 take away and bear the guilt of, Isa 53:12 the place lema'an (for the sake of) the fifty tzaddikim that are therein?#18:24 1K 3:18
25That be far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the tzaddik with the rasha; and that the tzaddik should be as the rasha, that be far from Thee: Shall not HaShofet Kol Ha'Aretz (the Judge of All the Earth) do mishpat (right)?
26And Hashem said, If I find in Sodom fifty tzaddikim within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
27And Avraham answered and said, Hinei now, I, which am but aphar and ashes, have taken upon me to speak unto Hashem;
28Suppose there shall lack five of the fifty tzaddikim; wilt Thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And He said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.
29And he spoke unto Him yet again, and said, Suppose there shall be forty found there. And He said, I will not do it for fortyʼs sake.
30And he said unto Him, Oh let not Hashem be angry, and I will speak; suppose there shall thirty be found there. And He said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31And he said, Hinei now, I have taken upon me to speak unto Hashem: suppose there shall be twenty found there. And He said, I will not destroy it for twentyʼs sake.
32And he said, Oh let not Hashem be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: suppose asarah (ten, i.e., a minyan) shall be found there. And He said, I will not destroy it for the sake of haasarah (the ten).
33And Hashem went His way, as soon as He had left communing with Avraham; and Avraham returned unto his makom.
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Bereshis 18: TOJB2011
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THE ORTHODOX JEWISH BIBLE
FOURTH EDITION © Artists For Israel Intl Inc., 2002-2011, 2021.
Genesis 18
18
Abraham’s Three Visitors
1The Lord appeared to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre#Gn 13:18; 14:13; 23:17–19 while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent during the heat of the day. 2He looked up, and he saw three men standing near him.#Gn 18:16,22; 19:1; 32:24; Jos 5:13; Jdg 13:6–11; Heb 13:2 When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them, bowed to the ground, 3and said, “My lord, if I have found favor with you, please do not go on past your servant. 4Let a little water be brought, that you may wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree. 5I will bring a bit of bread so that you may strengthen yourselves. This is why you have passed your servant’s way. Later, you can continue on.”
“Yes,” they replied, “do as you have said.”
6So Abraham hurried into the tent and said to Sarah, “Quick! Knead three measures#18:6 Lit three seahs; about 21 quarts of fine flour and make bread.”#18:6 A round, thin, unleavened bread 7Abraham ran to the herd and got a tender, choice calf. He gave it to a young man, who hurried to prepare it. 8Then Abraham took curds#18:8 Or butter and milk, as well as the calf that he had prepared, and set them before the men. He served#18:8 Lit was standing by them as they ate under the tree.
Sarah Laughs
9“Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.
“There, in the tent,” he answered.
10The Lord said, “I will certainly come back to you in about a year’s time, and your wife Sarah will have a son!” #Gn 17:10; 21:1; Rm 9:9 Now Sarah was listening at the entrance of the tent behind him.
11Abraham and Sarah were old and getting on in years.#18:11 Lit days Sarah had passed the age of childbearing.#Gn 17:17; Rm 4:19; Heb 11:11–12 12So she laughed to herself: “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I have delight?” #Gn 17:17; Lk 1:18; 1Pt 3:6
13But the Lord asked Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Can I really have a baby when I’m old?’ 14Is anything impossible for the Lord?#Jb 34:10; Jr 32:17,27; Mt 19:26; Mk 10:27; Lk 1:37; 18:27; Heb 6:18 At the appointed time I will come back to you, and in about a year she will have a son.”
15Sarah denied it. “I did not laugh,” she said, because she was afraid.
But he replied, “No, you did laugh.”
Abraham’s Plea for Sodom
16The men got up from there and looked out over Sodom, and Abraham was walking with them to see them off. 17Then the Lord said, “Should I hide what I am about to do from Abraham?#Am 3:7 18Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him.#Gn 12:3; 26:4; Gl 3:8 19For I have chosen#18:19 Lit known him so that he will command his children and his house after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. This is how the Lord will fulfill to Abraham what he promised him.” 20Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is immense, and their sin is extremely serious. 21I will go down#Gn 11:5; Ex 3:8; Ps 14:2 to see if what they have done justifies the cry that has come up to me. If not, I will find out.”
22The men turned from there and went toward Sodom#Gn 19:1 while Abraham remained standing before the Lord.#18:22 Alt Hb tradition reads while the Lord remained standing before Abraham 23Abraham stepped forward and said, “Will you really sweep away the righteous with the wicked?#Ex 23:7; Nm 16:22; 2Sm 24:17; Ps 11:4–7 24What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away instead of sparing the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people who are in it? 25You could not possibly do such a thing: to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. You could not possibly do that! Won’t the Judge of the whole earth do what is just?” #Dt 1:16–17; 32:4; Jb 8:3,20; Ps 58:11; 94:2; Is 3:10–11; Rm 3:5–6
26The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”#Jr 5:1
27Then Abraham answered, “Since I have ventured to speak to my lord — even though I am dust and ashes — 28suppose the fifty righteous lack five. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?”
He replied, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29Then he spoke to him again, “Suppose forty are found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it on account of forty.”
30Then he said, “Let my lord not be angry, and I will speak further. Suppose thirty are found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31Then he said, “Since I have ventured to speak to my lord, suppose twenty are found there?”
He replied, “I will not destroy it on account of twenty.”
32Then he said, “Let my lord not be angry, and I will speak one more time.#Jdg 6:39 Suppose ten are found there?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it on account of ten.” 33When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he departed, and Abraham returned to his place.
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