Genesis 19:21 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He said to him, “Behold, I grant you this favor also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken.

NIV: He said to him, 'Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of.

NASB: And he said to him, 'Behold, I grant you this request also, not to overthrow the town of which you have spoken.

CSB: And he said to him, "All right, I'll grant your request about this matter too and will not demolish the town you mentioned.

NLT: All right,' the angel said, 'I will grant your request. I will not destroy the little village.

KJV: And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken.

NKJV: And he said to him, “See, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken.

Lot has literally been dragged, by the hand, out of the depraved city of Sodom as God's destruction looms near. This was accomplished by two angels, appearing as men. In the previous verse, Lot has refused the command of the angels for him and his family to run for the hills without stopping in order to escape God's judgment on Sodom. Instead, Lot asked if he and his family might shelter in a much smaller town nearby, if the Lord would be willing not to destroy that little town.

Instead of rebuking Lot for his ingratitude or insisting on judging this little town, which for all intents and purposes was a part of the Sodom and Gomorrah cultures, the Lord simply agrees. He continues to show Lot great favor both in saving his life and granting his requests, apparently in keeping with His covenant promises to bless his uncle Abraham.

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.

Accessed 5/4/2024 8:21:40 PM