18:1 Now the LORD appeared to ①Abraham by the ②oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day.
▷ ①Lit him ②Or terebinths
18:2 When he raised his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed down to the ground,
18:3 and said, “ ①My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not ②pass Your servant by.
▷ ①Or O Lord ②Lit pass away from Your servant
18:4 Please let a little water be brought and wash ①your feet, and make yourselves comfortable under the tree;
▷ ①I.e., referring to the three visitors
18:5 and I will ①bring a piece of bread, so that you may ②refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have ③visited your servant.” And they said, “So do as you have said.”
▷ ①Lit take ②Lit sustain your heart ③Lit come to
18:6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and said, “ ①Quickly, prepare three ②measures of fine flour, knead it, and make bread cakes.”
▷ ①Lit Hasten three measures ②Heb seah; one seah is about 7 qt. or 7.7 liters
18:7 Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a tender and ①choice calf and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it.
▷ ①Lit good
18:8 He took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he was standing by them under the tree ①as they ate.
▷ ①Lit and
18:9 Then they said to him, “Where is your wife Sarah?” And he said, “There, in the tent.”
18:10 He said, “I will certainly return to you ①at this time next year; and behold, your wife Sarah will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him.
▷ ①Lit when the time revives
18:11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past ①childbearing.
▷ ①Lit the way of women
18:12 So Sarah laughed ①to herself, saying, “After I have become old, am I to have pleasure, my lord being old also?”
▷ ①Lit within
18:13 But the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I actually give birth to a child, when I am so old?’
18:14 Is anything too ①difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, ②at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
▷ ①Or wonderful ②Lit when the time revives
18:15 Sarah denied it, however, saying, “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh.”
18:16 Then the men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off.
18:17 The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do,
18:18 since Abraham will certainly become a great and ①mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed?
▷ ①Or populous
18:19 For I have ①chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.”
▷ ①Lit known
18:20 And the LORD said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.
18:21 I will go down now and see whether they have done entirely as the outcry, which has come to Me indicates; and if not, I will know.”
18:22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the LORD.
18:23 Abraham approached and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
18:24 Suppose there are fifty righteous people within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not ①spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?
▷ ①Or forgive
18:25 Far be it from You to do ①such a thing, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth ②deal justly?”
▷ ①Lit like this thing ②Lit do justice
18:26 So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will ①spare the entire place on their account.”
▷ ①Or forgive
18:27 And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ①ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am only dust and ashes.
▷ ①Or resolved
18:28 Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the entire city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
18:29 And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.”
18:30 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
18:31 And he said, “Now behold, I have ①ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.”
▷ ①Or resolved
18:32 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once: suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.”
18:33 As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham the LORD departed, and Abraham returned to his place.