Genesis 19
19
Lot’s Guests Are Assaulted
1The two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gateway. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed with his face touching the ground. 2He said, “Please, gentlemen, why don’t you come to my home and spend the night? ⌞You can⌟ wash your feet there. Then early tomorrow morning you can continue your journey.”
“No,” they answered, “we’d rather spend the night in the city square.”
3But he insisted so strongly that they came with him and went into his home. He prepared a special dinner for them, baked some unleavened bread, and they ate. 4Before they had gone to bed, all the young and old male citizens of Sodom surrounded the house. 5They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to ⌞stay with⌟ you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”
6Then Lot went outside and shut the door behind him. 7“Please, my friends, don’t be so wicked,” he said. 8“Look, I have two daughters who have never had sex. Why don’t you let me bring them out to you? Do whatever you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, since I’m responsible for them.”
9But the men yelled, “Get out of the way! This man came here to stay awhile. Now he wants to be our judge! We’re going to treat you worse than those men.” They pushed hard against Lot and lunged forward to break down the door. 10The men ⌞inside⌟ reached out, pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11Then they struck all the men who were in the doorway of the house, young and old alike, with blindness so that they gave up trying to find the door.
Lot Leaves Sodom, and the Cities Are Destroyed
12Then the men asked Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—any in-laws, sons, daughters, or any other relatives in the city? Get them out of here 13because we’re going to destroy this place. The complaints to the Lord against its people are so loud that the Lord has sent us to destroy it.”
14So Lot went out and spoke to the men engaged to his daughters. He said, “Hurry! Get out of this place, because the Lord is going to destroy the city.” But they thought he was joking.
15As soon as it was dawn, the angels urged Lot by saying, “Quick! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you’ll be swept away when the city is punished.” 16When he hesitated, the men grabbed him, his wife, and his two daughters by their hands, because the Lord wanted to spare Lot. They brought them safely outside the city. 17As soon as they were outside, one ⌞of the angels⌟ said, “Run for your lives! Don’t look behind you, and don’t stop on the plain. Run for the hills, or you’ll be swept away!”
18Lot answered, “Oh no! 19Even though you’ve been so good to me and though you’ve been very kind to me by saving my life, I can’t run as far as the hills. This disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20Look, there’s a city near enough to flee to, and it’s small. Why don’t you let me run there? Isn’t it small? Then my life will be saved.”
21The angel said to him, “Alright, I will grant you this request too. I will not destroy the city you’re talking about. 22Run there quickly, because I can’t do anything until you get there.” (The city is named Zoar [Small].)
23The sun had just risen over the land as Lot came to Zoar. 24Then the Lord made burning sulfur and fire rain out of heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah. 25He destroyed those cities, the whole plain, all who lived in the cities, and whatever grew on the ground. 26Lot’s wife looked back and turned into a column of salt.
27Early the next morning Abraham came to the place where he had stood in front of the Lord. 28When he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land in the plain, he saw smoke rising from the land like the thick smoke of a furnace.
29When God destroyed the cities on the plain, he remembered Abraham. Lot was allowed to escape from the destruction that came to the cities where he was living.
Lot’s Daughters Have Sons by Their Father
30Lot left Zoar because he was afraid to stay there. He and his two daughters settled in the mountains where they lived in a cave. 31The older daughter said to the younger one, “Our father is old. No men are here. We can’t get married as other people do. 32Let’s give our father wine to drink. Then we’ll go to bed with him so that we’ll be able to preserve our family line through our father.” 33That night they gave their father wine to drink. Then the older one went to bed with her father. He didn’t know when she came to bed or when she got up. 34The next day the older daughter said to the younger one, “I did it! Last night I went to bed with my father. Let’s give him wine to drink again tonight. Then you go to bed with him so that we’ll be able to preserve our family line through our father.” 35That night they gave their father wine to drink again. Then the younger one went to bed with him. He didn’t know when she came to bed or when she got up. 36So Lot’s two daughters became pregnant by their father. 37The older one gave birth to a son and named him Moab. He is the ancestor of the Moabites of today. 38The younger daughter also gave birth to a son and named him Ben Ammi. He is the ancestor of the Ammonites of today.
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Genesis 19: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
B'resheet (Gen) 19
19
1(iii) The two angels came to S’dom that evening, when Lot was sitting at the gate of S’dom. Lot saw them, got up to greet them and prostrated himself on the ground. 2He said, “Here now, my lords, please come over to your servant’s house. Spend the night, wash your feet, get up early, and go on your way.” “No,” they answered, “we’ll stay in the square.” 3But he kept pressing them; so they went home with him; and he made them a meal, baking matzah for their supper, which they ate.
4But before they could go to bed, the men of the city surrounded the house — young and old, everyone from every neighborhood of S’dom. 5They called Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to stay with you tonight? Bring them out to us! We want to have sex with them!” 6Lot went out to them and stood in the doorway, closing the door behind him, 7and said, “Please, my brothers, don’t do such a wicked thing. 8Look here, I have two daughters who are virgins. Please, let me bring them out to you, and you can do with them what seems good to you; but don’t do anything to these men, since they are guests in my house.” 9“Stand back!” they replied. “This guy came to live here, and now he’s decided to play judge. For that we’ll deal worse with you than with them!” Then they crowded in on Lot, in order to get close enough to break down the door. 10But the men inside reached out their hands, brought Lot into the house to them and shut the door. 11Then they struck the men at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they couldn’t find the doorway.
12The men said to Lot, “Do you have any people here besides yourself? Whomever you have in the city — son-in-law, your sons, your daughters — bring them out of this place; 13because we are going to destroy it. Adonai has become aware of the great outcry against them, and Adonai has sent us to destroy it.” 14Lot went out and spoke with his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, “Get up and leave this place, because Adonai is going to destroy the city.” But his sons-in-law didn’t take him seriously.
15When morning came, the angels told Lot to hurry. “Get up,” they said, “and take your wife and your two daughters who are here; otherwise you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.” 16But he dallied, so the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand and the hands of his two daughters — Adonai was being merciful to him — and led them, leaving them outside the city. 17When they had brought them out, he said, “Flee for your life! Don’t look behind you, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain, but escape to the hills! Otherwise you will be swept away.” 18Lot said to them, “Please, no, my lord! 19Here, your servant has already found favor in your sight, and you have shown me even greater mercy by saving my life. But I can’t escape to the hills, because I’m afraid the disaster will overtake me, and I will die. 20Look, there’s a town nearby to flee to, and it’s a small one. Please let me escape there — isn’t it just a small one? — and that way I will stay alive.”
(iv) 21He replied, “All right, I agree to what you have asked. I won’t overthrow the city of which you have spoken. 22Hurry, and escape to that place, because I can’t do anything until you arrive there.” For this reason the city was named Tzo‘ar [small].
23By the time Lot had come to Tzo‘ar, the sun had risen over the land. 24Then Adonai caused sulfur and fire to rain down upon S’dom and ‘Amora from Adonai out of the sky. 25He overthrew those cities, the entire plain, all the inhabitants of the cities and everything growing in the ground. 26But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a column of salt.
27Avraham got up early in the morning, went to the place where he had stood before Adonai, 28and looked out toward S’dom and ‘Amora, scanning the entire plain. There before him the smoke was rising from the land like smoke from a furnace! 29But when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Avraham and sent Lot out, away from the destruction, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot lived.
30Lot went up from Tzo‘ar and lived in the hills with his two daughters, because he was afraid to stay in Tzo‘ar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. 31The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there isn’t a man on earth to come in to us in the manner customary in the world. 32Come, let’s have our father drink wine; then we’ll sleep with him, and that way we’ll enable our father to have descendants.”
33So they plied their father with wine that night, and the older one went in and slept with her father; he didn’t know when she lay down or when she got up. 34The following day, the older said to the younger, “Here, I slept last night with my father. Let’s make him drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him, and that way we’ll enable our father to have descendants.” 35They plied their father with wine that night also, and the younger one got up and slept with him, and he didn’t know when she lay down or when she got up. 36Thus both the daughters of Lot became pregnant by their father.
37The older one gave birth to a son and called him Mo’av; he is the ancestor of Mo’av to this day. 38The younger also gave birth to a son, and she called him Ben-‘Ammi; he is the ancestor of the people of ‘Amon to this day.
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