Kejadian 13:1-13
Konteks13:1 So Abram went up from Egypt into the Negev. 1 He took his wife and all his possessions with him, as well as Lot. 2 13:2 (Now Abram was very wealthy 3 in livestock, silver, and gold.) 4
13:3 And he journeyed from place to place 5 from the Negev as far as Bethel. 6 He returned 7 to the place where he had pitched his tent 8 at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai. 13:4 This was the place where he had first built the altar, 9 and there Abram worshiped the Lord. 10
13:5 Now Lot, who was traveling 11 with Abram, also had 12 flocks, herds, and tents. 13:6 But the land could 13 not support them while they were living side by side. 14 Because their possessions were so great, they were not able to live 15 alongside one another. 13:7 So there were quarrels 16 between Abram’s herdsmen and Lot’s herdsmen. 17 (Now the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land at that time.) 18
13:8 Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no quarreling between me and you, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are close relatives. 19 13:9 Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself now from me. If you go 20 to the left, then I’ll go to the right, but if you go to the right, then I’ll go to the left.”
13:10 Lot looked up and saw 21 the whole region 22 of the Jordan. He noticed 23 that all of it was well-watered (before the Lord obliterated 24 Sodom and Gomorrah) 25 like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, 26 all the way to Zoar. 13:11 Lot chose for himself the whole region of the Jordan and traveled 27 toward the east.
So the relatives separated from each other. 28 13:12 Abram settled in the land of Canaan, but Lot settled among the cities of the Jordan plain 29 and pitched his tents next to Sodom. 13:13 (Now 30 the people 31 of Sodom were extremely wicked rebels against the Lord.) 32
Kejadian 14:8-12
Konteks14:8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and prepared for battle. In the Valley of Siddim they met 33 14:9 Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of nations, 34 Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar. Four kings fought against 35 five. 14:10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. 36 When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, they fell into them, 37 but some survivors 38 fled to the hills. 39 14:11 The four victorious kings 40 took all the possessions and food of Sodom and Gomorrah and left. 14:12 They also took Abram’s nephew 41 Lot and his possessions when 42 they left, for Lot 43 was living in Sodom. 44
Kejadian 14:17-23
Konteks14:17 After Abram 45 returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram 46 in the Valley of Shaveh (known as the King’s Valley). 47 14:18 Melchizedek king of Salem 48 brought out bread and wine. (Now he was the priest of the Most High God.) 49 14:19 He blessed Abram, saying,
“Blessed be Abram by 50 the Most High God,
Creator 51 of heaven and earth. 52
14:20 Worthy of praise is 53 the Most High God,
who delivered 54 your enemies into your hand.”
Abram gave Melchizedek 55 a tenth of everything.
14:21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people and take the possessions for yourself.” 14:22 But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I raise my hand 56 to the Lord, the Most High God, Creator of heaven and earth, and vow 57 14:23 that I will take nothing 58 belonging to you, not even a thread or the strap of a sandal. That way you can never say, ‘It is I 59 who made Abram rich.’
Kejadian 19:1-28
Konteks19:1 The two angels came to Sodom in the evening while 60 Lot was sitting in the city’s gateway. 61 When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face toward the ground.
19:2 He said, “Here, my lords, please turn aside to your servant’s house. Stay the night 62 and wash your feet. Then you can be on your way early in the morning.” 63 “No,” they replied, “we’ll spend the night in the town square.” 64
19:3 But he urged 65 them persistently, so they turned aside with him and entered his house. He prepared a feast for them, including bread baked without yeast, and they ate. 19:4 Before they could lie down to sleep, 66 all the men – both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom – surrounded the house. 67 19:5 They shouted to Lot, 68 “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sex 69 with them!”
19:6 Lot went outside to them, shutting the door behind him. 19:7 He said, “No, my brothers! Don’t act so wickedly! 70 19:8 Look, I have two daughters who have never had sexual relations with 71 a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you please. 72 Only don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection 73 of my roof.” 74
19:9 “Out of our way!” 75 they cried, and “This man came to live here as a foreigner, 76 and now he dares to judge us! 77 We’ll do more harm 78 to you than to them!” They kept 79 pressing in on Lot until they were close enough 80 to break down the door.
19:10 So the men inside 81 reached out 82 and pulled Lot back into the house 83 as they shut the door. 19:11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, from the youngest to the oldest, 84 with blindness. The men outside 85 wore themselves out trying to find the door. 19:12 Then the two visitors 86 said to Lot, “Who else do you have here? 87 Do you have 88 any sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or other relatives in the city? 89 Get them out of this 90 place 19:13 because we are about to destroy 91 it. The outcry against this place 92 is so great before the Lord that he 93 has sent us to destroy it.”
19:14 Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters. 94 He said, “Quick, get out of this place because the Lord is about to destroy 95 the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was ridiculing them. 96
19:15 At dawn 97 the angels hurried Lot along, saying, “Get going! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, 98 or else you will be destroyed when the city is judged!” 99 19:16 When Lot 100 hesitated, the men grabbed his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters because the Lord had compassion on them. 101 They led them away and placed them 102 outside the city. 19:17 When they had brought them outside, they 103 said, “Run 104 for your lives! Don’t look 105 behind you or stop anywhere in the valley! 106 Escape to the mountains or you will be destroyed!”
19:18 But Lot said to them, “No, please, Lord! 107 19:19 Your 108 servant has found favor with you, 109 and you have shown me great 110 kindness 111 by sparing 112 my life. But I am not able to escape to the mountains because 113 this disaster will overtake 114 me and I’ll die. 115 19:20 Look, this town 116 over here is close enough to escape to, and it’s just a little one. 117 Let me go there. 118 It’s just a little place, isn’t it? 119 Then I’ll survive.” 120
19:21 “Very well,” he replied, 121 “I will grant this request too 122 and will not overthrow 123 the town you mentioned. 19:22 Run there quickly, 124 for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” (This incident explains why the town was called Zoar.) 125
19:23 The sun had just risen 126 over the land as Lot reached Zoar. 127 19:24 Then the Lord rained down 128 sulfur and fire 129 on Sodom and Gomorrah. It was sent down from the sky by the Lord. 130 19:25 So he overthrew those cities and all that region, 131 including all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation that grew 132 from the ground. 19:26 But Lot’s 133 wife looked back longingly 134 and was turned into a pillar of salt.
19:27 Abraham got up early in the morning and went 135 to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 19:28 He looked out toward 136 Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of that region. 137 As he did so, he saw the smoke rising up from the land like smoke from a furnace. 138
[13:1] 1 tn Or “the South [country]” (also in v. 3).
[13:1] sn Negev is the name for the southern desert region in the land of Canaan.
[13:1] 2 tn Heb “And Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all which was his, and Lot with him, to the Negev.”
[13:2] 4 tn This parenthetical clause, introduced by the vav (ו) disjunctive (translated “now”), provides information necessary to the point of the story.
[13:3] 5 tn Heb “on his journeys”; the verb and noun combination means to pick up the tents and move from camp to camp.
[13:3] 6 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:3] 7 tn The words “he returned” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:3] 8 tn Heb “where his tent had been.”
[13:4] 9 tn Heb “to the place of the altar which he had made there in the beginning” (cf. Gen 12:7-8).
[13:4] 10 tn Heb “he called in the name of the
[13:5] 12 tn The Hebrew idiom is “to Lot…there was,” the preposition here expressing possession.
[13:6] 13 tn The potential nuance for the perfect tense is necessary here, and supported by the parallel clause that actually uses “to be able.”
[13:6] 14 tn The infinitive construct לָשֶׁבֶת (lashevet, from יָשַׁב, yashav) explains what it was that the land could not support: “the land could not support them to live side by side.” See further J. C. de Moor, “Lexical Remarks Concerning Yahad and Yahdaw,” VT 7 (1957): 350-55.
[13:6] 15 tn The same infinitive occurs here, serving as the object of the verb.
[13:7] 16 tn The Hebrew term רִיב (riv) means “strife, conflict, quarreling.” In later texts it has the meaning of “legal controversy, dispute.” See B. Gemser, “The rîb – or Controversy – Pattern in Hebrew Mentality,” Wisdom in Israel and in the Ancient Near East [VTSup], 120-37.
[13:7] 17 sn Since the quarreling was between the herdsmen, the dispute was no doubt over water and vegetation for the animals.
[13:7] 18 tn This parenthetical clause, introduced with the vav (ו) disjunctive (translated “now”), again provides critical information. It tells in part why the land cannot sustain these two bedouins, and it also hints of the danger of weakening the family by inner strife.
[13:8] 19 tn Heb “men, brothers [are] we.” Here “brothers” describes the closeness of the relationship, but could be misunderstood if taken literally, since Abram was Lot’s uncle.
[13:9] 20 tn The words “you go” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons both times in this verse.
[13:10] 21 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes and saw.” The expression draws attention to the act of looking, indicating that Lot took a good look. It also calls attention to the importance of what was seen.
[13:10] 22 tn Or “plain”; Heb “circle.”
[13:10] 23 tn The words “he noticed” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:10] 24 sn Obliterated. The use of the term “destroy” (שַׁחֵת, shakhet) is reminiscent of the Noahic flood (Gen 6:13). Both at the flood and in Sodom the place was obliterated by catastrophe and only one family survived (see C. Westermann, Genesis, 2:178).
[13:10] 25 tn This short temporal clause (preposition + Piel infinitive construct + subjective genitive + direct object) is strategically placed in the middle of the lavish descriptions to sound an ominous note. The entire clause is parenthetical in nature. Most English translations place the clause at the end of v. 10 for stylistic reasons.
[13:10] 26 sn The narrative places emphasis on what Lot saw so that the reader can appreciate how it aroused his desire for the best land. It makes allusion to the garden of the
[13:11] 27 tn Heb “Lot traveled.” The proper name has not been repeated in the translation at this point for stylistic reasons.
[13:11] 28 tn Heb “a man from upon his brother.”
[13:11] sn Separated from each other. For a discussion of the significance of this event, see L. R. Helyer, “The Separation of Abram and Lot: Its Significance in the Patriarchal Narratives,” JSOT 26 (1983): 77-88.
[13:12] 29 tn Or “the cities of the plain”; Heb “[the cities of] the circle,” referring to the “circle” or oval area of the Jordan Valley.
[13:13] 30 tn Here is another significant parenthetical clause in the story, signaled by the vav (וו) disjunctive (translated “now”) on the noun at the beginning of the clause.
[13:13] 31 tn Heb “men.” However, this is generic in sense; it is unlikely that only the male residents of Sodom were sinners.
[13:13] 32 tn Heb “wicked and sinners against the
[14:9] 34 tn Or “Goyim.” See the note on the word “nations” in 14:1.
[14:9] 35 tn The Hebrew text has simply “against.” The word “fought” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[14:10] 36 tn Heb “Now the Valley of Siddim [was] pits, pits of tar.” This parenthetical disjunctive clause emphasizes the abundance of tar pits in the area through repetition of the noun “pits.”
[14:10] sn The word for “tar” (or “bitumen”) occurs earlier in the story of the building of the tower in Babylon (see Gen 11:3).
[14:10] 37 tn Or “they were defeated there.” After a verb of motion the Hebrew particle שָׁם (sham) with the directional heh (שָׁמָּה, shammah) can mean “into it, therein” (BDB 1027 s.v. שָׁם).
[14:10] 39 sn The reference to the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah must mean the kings along with their armies. Most of them were defeated in the valley, but some of them escaped to the hills.
[14:11] 40 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the four victorious kings, see v. 9) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[14:12] 41 tn Heb “Lot the son of his brother.”
[14:12] 43 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Lot) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:12] 44 tn This disjunctive clause is circumstantial/causal, explaining that Lot was captured because he was living in Sodom at the time.
[14:17] 45 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:17] 46 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:17] 47 sn The King’s Valley is possibly a reference to what came to be known later as the Kidron Valley.
[14:18] 48 sn Salem is traditionally identified as the Jebusite stronghold of old Jerusalem. Accordingly, there has been much speculation about its king. Though some have identified him with the preincarnate Christ or with Noah’s son Shem, it is far more likely that Melchizedek was a Canaanite royal priest whom God used to renew the promise of the blessing to Abram, perhaps because Abram considered Melchizedek his spiritual superior. But Melchizedek remains an enigma. In a book filled with genealogical records he appears on the scene without a genealogy and then disappears from the narrative. In Psalm 110 the
[14:18] 49 tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause significantly identifies Melchizedek as a priest as well as a king.
[14:18] sn It is his royal priestly status that makes Melchizedek a type of Christ: He was identified with Jerusalem, superior to the ancestor of Israel, and both a king and a priest. Unlike the normal Canaanites, this man served “God Most High” (אֵל עֶלְיוֹן, ’el ’elyon) – one sovereign God, who was the creator of all the universe. Abram had in him a spiritual brother.
[14:19] 50 tn The preposition לְ (lamed) introduces the agent after the passive participle.
[14:19] 51 tn Some translate “possessor of heaven and earth” (cf. NASB). But cognate evidence from Ugaritic indicates that there were two homonymic roots ָקנָה (qanah), one meaning “to create” (as in Gen 4:1) and the other “to obtain, to acquire, to possess.” While “possessor” would fit here, “creator” is the more likely due to the collocation with “heaven and earth.”
[14:19] 52 tn The terms translated “heaven” and “earth” are both objective genitives after the participle in construct.
[14:20] 53 tn Heb “blessed be.” For God to be “blessed” means that is praised. His reputation is enriched in the world as his name is praised.
[14:20] 54 sn Who delivered. The Hebrew verb מִגֵּן (miggen, “delivered”) foreshadows the statement by God to Abram in Gen 15:1, “I am your shield” (מָגֵן, magen). Melchizedek provided a theological interpretation of Abram’s military victory.
[14:20] 55 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Melchizedek) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:22] 56 tn Abram takes an oath, raising his hand as a solemn gesture. The translation understands the perfect tense as having an instantaneous nuance: “Here and now I raise my hand.”
[14:22] 57 tn The words “and vow” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[14:23] 58 tn The oath formula is elliptical, reading simply: “…if I take.” It is as if Abram says, “[May the
[14:23] 59 tn The Hebrew text adds the independent pronoun (“I”) to the verb form for emphasis.
[19:1] 60 tn The disjunctive clause is temporal here, indicating what Lot was doing at the time of their arrival.
[19:1] 61 tn Heb “sitting in the gate of Sodom.” The phrase “the gate of Sodom” has been translated “the city’s gateway” for stylistic reasons.
[19:1] sn The expression sitting in the city’s gateway may mean that Lot was exercising some type of judicial function (see the use of the idiom in 2 Sam 19:8; Jer 26:10; 38:7; 39:3).
[19:2] 62 tn The imperatives have the force of invitation.
[19:2] 63 tn These two verbs form a verbal hendiadys: “you can rise up early and go” means “you can go early.”
[19:2] 64 sn The town square refers to the wide street area at the gate complex of the city.
[19:3] 65 tn The Hebrew verb פָּצַר (patsar, “to press, to insist”) ironically foreshadows the hostile actions of the men of the city (see v. 9, where the verb also appears). The repetition of the word serves to contrast Lot to his world.
[19:4] 66 tn The verb שָׁכַב (shakhav) means “to lie down, to recline,” that is, “to go to bed.” Here what appears to be an imperfect is a preterite after the adverb טֶרֶם (terem). The nuance of potential (perfect) fits well.
[19:4] 67 tn Heb “and the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, from the young to the old, all the people from the end [of the city].” The repetition of the phrase “men of” stresses all kinds of men.
[19:5] 68 tn The Hebrew text adds “and said to him.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[19:5] 69 tn The Hebrew verb יָדַע (yada’, “to know”) is used here in the sense of “to lie with” or “to have sex with” (as in Gen 4:1). That this is indeed the meaning is clear from Lot’s warning that they not do so wickedly, and his willingness to give them his daughters instead.
[19:5] sn The sin of the men of Sodom is debated. The fact that the sin involved a sexual act (see note on the phrase “have sex” in 19:5) precludes an association of the sin with inhospitality as is sometimes asserted (see W. Roth, “What of Sodom and Gomorrah? Homosexual Acts in the Old Testament,” Explor 1 [1974]: 7-14). The text at a minimum condemns forced sexual intercourse, i.e., rape. Other considerations, though, point to a condemnation of homosexual acts more generally. The narrator emphasizes the fact that the men of Sodom wanted to have sex with men: They demand that Lot release the angelic messengers (seen as men) to them for sex, and when Lot offers his daughters as a substitute they refuse them and attempt to take the angelic messengers by force. In addition the wider context of the Pentateuch condemns homosexual acts as sin (see, e.g., Lev 18:22). Thus a reading of this text within its narrative context, both immediate and broad, condemns not only the attempted rape but also the attempted homosexual act.
[19:7] 70 tn Heb “may my brothers not act wickedly.”
[19:8] 71 tn Heb “who have not known.” Here this expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.
[19:8] 72 tn Heb “according to what is good in your eyes.”
[19:8] 74 sn This chapter portrays Lot as a hypocrite. He is well aware of the way the men live in his city and is apparently comfortable in the midst of it. But when confronted by the angels, he finally draws the line. But he is nevertheless willing to sacrifice his daughters’ virginity to protect his guests. His opposition to the crowds leads to his rejection as a foreigner by those with whom he had chosen to live. The one who attempted to rescue his visitors ends up having to be rescued by them.
[19:9] 75 tn Heb “approach out there” which could be rendered “Get out of the way, stand back!”
[19:9] 76 tn Heb “to live as a resident alien.”
[19:9] 77 tn Heb “and he has judged, judging.” The infinitive absolute follows the finite verbal form for emphasis. This emphasis is reflected in the translation by the phrase “dares to judge.”
[19:9] 78 tn The verb “to do wickedly” is repeated here (see v. 7). It appears that whatever “wickedness” the men of Sodom had intended to do to Lot’s visitors – probably nothing short of homosexual rape – they were now ready to inflict on Lot.
[19:9] 79 tn Heb “and they pressed against the man, against Lot, exceedingly.”
[19:9] 80 tn Heb “and they drew near.”
[19:10] 81 tn Heb “the men,” referring to the angels inside Lot’s house. The word “inside” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[19:10] 82 tn The Hebrew text adds “their hand.” These words have not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[19:10] 83 tn Heb “to them into the house.”
[19:11] 84 tn Heb “from the least to the greatest.”
[19:11] 85 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the men of Sodom outside the door) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[19:12] 86 tn Heb “the men,” referring to the angels inside Lot’s house. The word “visitors” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[19:12] 87 tn Heb “Yet who [is there] to you here?”
[19:12] 88 tn The words “Do you have” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[19:12] 89 tn Heb “a son-in-law and your sons and your daughters and anyone who (is) to you in the city.”
[19:12] 90 tn Heb “the place.” The Hebrew article serves here as a demonstrative.
[19:13] 91 tn The Hebrew participle expresses an imminent action here.
[19:13] 92 tn Heb “for their outcry.” The words “about this place” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[19:13] 93 tn Heb “the
[19:14] 94 sn The language has to be interpreted in the light of the context and the social customs. The men are called “sons-in-law” (literally “the takers of his daughters”), but the daughters had not yet had sex with a man. It is better to translate the phrase “who were going to marry his daughters.” Since formal marriage contracts were binding, the husbands-to-be could already be called sons-in-law.
[19:14] 95 tn The Hebrew active participle expresses an imminent action.
[19:14] 96 tn Heb “and he was like one taunting in the eyes of his sons-in-law.” These men mistakenly thought Lot was ridiculing them and their lifestyle. Their response illustrates how morally insensitive they had become.
[19:15] 97 tn Heb “When dawn came up.”
[19:15] 98 tn Heb “who are found.” The wording might imply he had other daughters living in the city, but the text does not explicitly state this.
[19:15] 99 tn Or “with the iniquity [i.e., punishment] of the city” (cf. NASB, NRSV).
[19:16] 100 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Lot) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[19:16] 101 tn Heb “in the compassion of the
[19:16] 102 tn Heb “brought him out and placed him.” The third masculine singular suffixes refer specifically to Lot, though his wife and daughters accompanied him (see v. 17). For stylistic reasons these have been translated as plural pronouns (“them”).
[19:17] 103 tn Or “one of them”; Heb “he.” Several ancient versions (LXX, Vulgate, Syriac) read the plural “they.” See also the note on “your” in v. 19.
[19:17] 105 tn The Hebrew verb translated “look” signifies an intense gaze, not a passing glance. This same verb is used later in v. 26 to describe Lot’s wife’s self-destructive look back at the city.
[19:17] 106 tn Or “in the plain”; Heb “in the circle,” referring to the “circle” or oval area of the Jordan Valley.
[19:18] 107 tn Or “my lords.” See the following note on the problem of identifying the addressee here. The Hebrew term is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[19:19] 108 tn The second person pronominal suffixes are singular in this verse (note “your eyes,” “you have made great,” and “you have acted”). Verse 18a seems to indicate that Lot is addressing the angels, but the use of the singular and the appearance of the divine title “Lord” (אֲדֹנָי, ’adonay) in v. 18b suggests he is speaking to God.
[19:19] 109 tn Heb “in your eyes.”
[19:19] 110 tn Heb “you made great your kindness.”
[19:19] 111 sn The Hebrew word חֶסֶד (khesed) can refer to “faithful love” or to “kindness,” depending on the context. The precise nuance here is uncertain.
[19:19] 112 tn The infinitive construct explains how God has shown Lot kindness.
[19:19] 114 tn The Hebrew verb דָּבַק (davaq) normally means “to stick to, to cleave, to join.” Lot is afraid he cannot outrun the coming calamity.
[19:19] 115 tn The perfect verb form with vav consecutive carries the nuance of the imperfect verbal form before it.
[19:20] 116 tn The Hebrew word עִיר (’ir) can refer to either a city or a town, depending on the size of the place. Given that this place was described by Lot later in this verse as a “little place,” the translation uses “town.”
[19:20] 117 tn Heb “Look, this town is near to flee to there. And it is little.”
[19:20] 118 tn Heb “Let me escape to there.” The cohortative here expresses Lot’s request.
[19:20] 119 tn Heb “Is it not little?”
[19:20] 120 tn Heb “my soul will live.” After the cohortative the jussive with vav conjunctive here indicates purpose/result.
[19:21] 121 tn Heb “And he said, ‘Look, I will grant.’” The order of the clauses has been rearranged for stylistic reasons. The referent of the speaker (“he”) is somewhat ambiguous: It could be taken as the angel to whom Lot has been speaking (so NLT; note the singular references in vv. 18-19), or it could be that Lot is speaking directly to the
[19:21] 122 tn Heb “I have lifted up your face [i.e., shown you favor] also concerning this matter.”
[19:21] 123 tn The negated infinitive construct indicates either the consequence of God’s granting the request (“I have granted this request, so that I will not”) or the manner in which he will grant it (“I have granted your request by not destroying”).
[19:22] 124 tn Heb “Be quick! Escape to there!” The two imperatives form a verbal hendiadys, the first becoming adverbial.
[19:22] 125 tn Heb “Therefore the name of the city is called Zoar.” The name of the place, צוֹעַר (tso’ar) apparently means “Little Place,” in light of the wordplay with the term “little” (מִצְעָר, mits’ar) used twice by Lot to describe the town (v. 20).
[19:23] 126 sn The sun had just risen. There was very little time for Lot to escape between dawn (v. 15) and sunrise (here).
[19:23] 127 tn The juxtaposition of the two disjunctive clauses indicates synchronic action. The first action (the sun’s rising) occurred as the second (Lot’s entering Zoar) took place. The disjunctive clauses also signal closure for the preceding scene.
[19:24] 128 tn The disjunctive clause signals the beginning of the next scene and highlights God’s action.
[19:24] 129 tn Or “burning sulfur” (the traditional “fire and brimstone”).
[19:24] 130 tn Heb “from the
[19:24] sn The text explicitly states that the sulfur and fire that fell on Sodom and Gomorrah was sent down from the sky by the
[19:25] 131 tn Or “and all the plain”; Heb “and all the circle,” referring to the “circle” or oval area of the Jordan Valley.
[19:25] 132 tn Heb “and the vegetation of the ground.”
[19:26] 133 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Lot) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[19:26] 134 tn The Hebrew verb means “to look intently; to gaze” (see 15:5).
[19:26] sn Longingly. Lot’s wife apparently identified with the doomed city and thereby showed lack of respect for God’s provision of salvation. She, like her daughters later, had allowed her thinking to be influenced by the culture of Sodom.
[19:27] 135 tn The words “and went” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[19:28] 136 tn Heb “upon the face of.”
[19:28] 137 tn Or “all the land of the plain”; Heb “and all the face of the land of the circle,” referring to the “circle” or oval area of the Jordan Valley.
[19:28] 138 tn Heb “And he saw, and look, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.”
[19:28] sn It is hard to imagine what was going on in Abraham’s mind, but this brief section in the narrative enables the reader to think about the human response to the judgment. Abraham had family in that area. He had rescued those people from the invasion. That was why he interceded. Yet he surely knew how wicked they were. That was why he got the number down to ten when he negotiated with God to save the city. But now he must have wondered, “What was the point?”
