< Genesis 19 >

1 Now the two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them, bowed facedown,
The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
2 and said, “My lords, please turn aside into the house of your servant; wash your feet and spend the night. Then you can rise early and go on your way.” “No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”
and he said, “See now, my lords, please come into your servant’s house, stay all night, wash your feet, and you can rise up early, and go on your way.” They said, “No, but we will stay in the street all night.”
3 But Lot insisted so strongly that they followed him into his house. He prepared a feast for them and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
He urged them greatly, and they came in with him, and entered into his house. He made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men of the city of Sodom, both young and old, surrounded the house.
But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter.
5 They called out to Lot, saying, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Send them out to us so we can have relations with them!”
They called to Lot, and said to him, “Where are the men who came in to you this night? Bring them out to us, that we may have sex with them.”
6 Lot went outside to meet them, shutting the door behind him.
Lot went out to them through the door, and shut the door after himself.
7 “Please, my brothers,” he pleaded, “don’t do such a wicked thing!
He said, “Please, my brothers, do not act so wickedly.
8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them to you, and you can do to them as you please. But do not do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”
See now, I have two virgin daughters. Please let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them what seems good to you. Only do not do anything to these men, because they have come under the shadow of my roof.”
9 “Get out of the way!” they replied. And they declared, “This one came here as a foreigner, and he is already acting like a judge! Now we will treat you worse than them.” And they pressed in on Lot and moved in to break down the door.
They said, “Stand back!” Then they said, “This one fellow came in to live as a foreigner, and he appoints himself a judge. Now we will deal worse with you than with them!” They pressed hard on the man Lot, and came near to break the door.
10 But the men inside reached out, pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.
But the men reached out their hand, and brought Lot into the house to them, and shut the door.
11 And they struck the men at the entrance, young and old, with blindness, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the door.
They struck the men who were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
12 Then the two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—a son-in-law, your sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here,
The men said to Lot, “Do you have anybody else here? Sons-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in the city, bring them out of the place:
13 because we are about to destroy this place. For the outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that He has sent us to destroy it.”
for we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown so great before the LORD that the LORD has sent us to destroy it.”
14 So Lot went out and spoke to the sons-in-law who were pledged in marriage to his daughters. “Get up,” he said. “Get out of this place, for the LORD is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
Lot went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up! Get out of this place, for the LORD will destroy the city!” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be joking.
15 At daybreak the angels hurried Lot along, saying, “Get up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.”
When the morning came, then the angels hurried Lot, saying, “Get up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.”
16 But when Lot hesitated, the men grabbed his hand and the hands of his wife and his two daughters. And they led them safely out of the city, because of the LORD’s compassion for them.
But he lingered; and the men grabbed his hand, his wife’s hand, and his two daughters’ hands, the LORD being merciful to him; and they took him out, and set him outside of the city.
17 As soon as the men had brought them out, one of them said, “Run for your lives! Do not look back, and do not stop anywhere on the plain! Flee to the mountains, or you will be swept away!”
It came to pass, when they had taken them out, that he said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you, and do not stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be consumed!”
18 But Lot replied, “No, my lords, please!
Lot said to them, “Oh, not so, my lord.
19 Your servant has indeed found favor in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness by sparing my life. But I cannot run to the mountains; the disaster will overtake me, and I will die.
See now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your loving kindness, which you have shown to me in saving my life. I cannot escape to the mountain, lest evil overtake me, and I die.
20 Look, there is a town nearby where I can flee, and it is a small place. Please let me flee there—is it not a small place? Then my life will be saved.”
See now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh let me escape there (is not it a little one?), and my soul will live.”
21 “Very well,” he answered, “I will grant this request as well, and will not demolish the town you indicate.
He said to him, “Behold, I have granted your request concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken.
22 Hurry! Run there quickly, for I cannot do anything until you reach it.” That is why the town was called Zoar.
Hurry, escape there, for I cannot do anything until you get there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
23 And by the time the sun had risen over the land, Lot had reached Zoar.
The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.
24 Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.
Then the LORD rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of the sky.
25 Thus He destroyed these cities and the entire plain, including all the inhabitants of the cities and everything that grew on the ground.
He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground.
26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
But Lot’s wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
27 Early the next morning, Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD.
Abraham went up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD.
28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of the plain, and he saw the smoke rising from the land like smoke from a furnace.
He looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and saw that the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.
29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, He remembered Abraham, and He brought Lot out of the catastrophe that destroyed the cities where he had lived.
When God destroyed the cities of the plain, God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the middle of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot lived.
30 Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains—for he was afraid to stay in Zoar—where they lived in a cave.
Lot went up out of Zoar, and lived in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he was afraid to live in Zoar. He lived in a cave with his two daughters.
31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to sleep with us, as is the custom over all the earth.
The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us in the way of all the earth.
32 Come, let us get our father drunk with wine so we can sleep with him and preserve his line.”
Come, let’s make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s family line.”
33 So that night they got their father drunk with wine, and the firstborn went in and slept with her father; he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up.
They made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father. He did not know when she lay down, nor when she arose.
34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Look, I slept with my father last night. Let us get him drunk with wine again tonight so you can go in and sleep with him and we can preserve our father’s line.”
It came to pass on the next day, that the firstborn said to the younger, “Behold, I lay last night with my father. Let’s make him drink wine again tonight. You go in, and lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s family line.”
35 So again that night they got their father drunk with wine, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him; he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up.
They made their father drink wine that night also. The younger went and lay with him. He did not know when she lay down, nor when she got up.
36 Thus both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father.
Thus both of Lot’s daughters were with child by their father.
37 The older daughter gave birth to a son and named him Moab. He is the father of the Moabites of today.
The firstborn bore a son, and named him Moab. He is the father of the Moabites to this day.
38 The younger daughter also gave birth to a son, and she named him Ben-ammi. He is the father of the Ammonites of today.
The younger also bore a son, and called his name Ben Ammi. He is the father of the children of Ammon to this day.

< Genesis 19 >