Genesis 19:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and said, “My lords, please turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night and wash your feet. Then you may rise up early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the town square.”

NIV: My lords,' he said, 'please turn aside to your servant's house. You can wash your feet 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.'

NASB: And he said, 'Now behold, my lords, please turn aside into your servant’s house, and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.' They said, 'No, but we shall spend the night in the public square.'

CSB: and said, "My lords, turn aside to your servant's house, wash your feet, and spend the night. Then you can get up early and go on your way.""No," they said. "We would rather spend the night in the square."

NLT: My lords,' he said, 'come to my home to wash your feet, and be my guests for the night. You may then get up early in the morning and be on your way again.' 'Oh no,' they replied. 'We’ll just spend the night out here in the city square.'

KJV: And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.

NKJV: And he said, “Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.” And they said, “No, but we will spend the night in the open square.”

Two angels disguised as men have arrived in Sodom. Lot, sitting at the gate of the city as a leader and elder of the town, has welcomed them. He probably doesn't yet know that these are angels sent to investigate the sins of the city's people in preparation for God's judgment.

What Lot does seem to know is that two men, arriving in the city late in the day, are not safe out in the open. In this and the following verse, Lot will urge them to come to his home for the night and to leave early in the morning. He is offering his hospitality, as demanded by the culture of the time. At the same time, though he does not say so, Lot is also offering his protection from the violent men of his own city.

The angels initially reject his offer, claiming they will simply spend the night in the town square. In an era before large-scale hotels, inns, or other accommodations, it would not have been unusual for travelers to sleep in a public area for a night as they passed through a town. As messengers of God, the angels were not concerned for their own safety. Rather, they seem to be testing Lot to see how hard he would try to protect two unsuspecting "men" from the wickedness of his town.

Genesis 19:1–22 describes what happens following the Lord's assurance to Abraham that He will not destroy Sodom if He finds ten righteous people there. Despite such a low standard, Sodom fails the test. Every man in the city attempts to rape two of the Lord's angels who are in human form. The angels intervene, eventually removing Lot and his family from the city by force, and out of God's mercy. The angels instruct the family to run to the hills, but Lot asks if they can flee to the tiny town of Zoar instead. The angels allow this.

Two angels, disguised as men, visit Abraham's nephew, Lot, in the city of Sodom. After the men of Sodom attempt to rape the angels in Lot's home, the angels rescue Lot and his family, forcibly removing them from the city. Then God sends fire and sulfur from heaven. This destroys all of the land and people in and around the cities. As stated in earlier verses, this is the result of their great and ongoing wickedness. Lot's wife is turned to a pillar of salt when she disobeys the angels by looking back on the destruction. Lot and his daughters flee first to Zoar, then to a cave in the hills. There, Lot's confused and frightened daughters get him drunk, have sex with him, and each become pregnant.

In the previous chapter, Abraham had bargained with God on behalf of his nephew Lot and the people of Sodom. The Lord assured Abraham He would not destroy the cities if He found ten righteous people there. Chapter 19 immediately demonstrates no righteous people are to be found. Every man of Sodom attempts to attack two visitors, who are God's angels in human form. As the angels rescue Lot, God's judgment falls, utterly destroying everything in the area around Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot and his daughters end up in a cave in the hills, where the daughters scheme to conceive children by making their father drunk. This ends Lot's role in the story of Genesis, with future chapters focusing exclusively on the life and descendants of Abraham.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.