Genesis 18:16–19:13
16 When the menc 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 Abrahamd what I am about to do?e 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,f and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.c 19 For I have chosen himg, so that he will direct his childrenh and his household after him to keep the way of the Lordi by doing what is right and just,j so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”k
20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodoml and Gomorrah is so greatm and their sin so grievousn 21 that I will go downo and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”
22 The menp turned away and went toward Sodom,q but Abraham remained standing before the Lord.d r 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?s 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not sparee the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?t 25 Far be it from you to do such a thingu—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteousv and the wicked alike.w Far be it from you! Will not the Judgex of all the earth do right?”y
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.z”
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,a 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,b 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.c What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten,d I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speakinge with Abraham, he left,f and Abraham returned home.g
19 The two angelsh arrived at Sodomi in the evening, and Lotj was sitting in the gateway of the city.k When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.l 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feetm and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”
“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”n
3 But he insistedo so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house.p He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast,q and they ate.r 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodoms—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”t
6 Lot went outside to meet themu and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”v
9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner,w and now he wants to play the judge!x We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.
10 But the meny inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindnessz so that they could not find the door.
12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you?a Get them out of here, 13 because web are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so greatc that he has sent us to destroy it.”d