Genesis 19
1 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening. Lot happened to be sitting at the entrance to Sodom, and when he saw them he stood up to meet them, and bowed low with his face to the ground.
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,
2 “Sirs, please come and stay with me for the night,” he said. “You can wash your feet and then be on your way early in the morning.” They replied, “No, it's fine. We'll spend the night here in the square.”
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.”
3 But Lot insisted, and they went with him to his house. He made them a meal and baked bread for them to eat.
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.
4 But they hadn't even gone to bed before the men of Sodom, young and old, from every part of town, came and surrounded the house.
Before they had gone to bed, all the men of the city of Sodom, both young and old, surrounded the house.
5 They shouted out to Lot, “Where are the men who came to stay with you tonight? Bring them out here to us so we can have sex with them.”
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!”
6 Lot went out to talk to them in the doorway, closing the door behind him.
Lot went outside to meet them, shutting the door behind him.
7 “My friends, please don't do such an evil thing!
“Please, my brothers,” he pleaded, “don’t do such a wicked thing!
8 Listen, I've got two virgin daughters. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you want, but please don't do anything to these men. It's my responsibility to look after them.”
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.”
9 “Out of our way!” they shouted. “Who do you think you are, coming to live here and now trying to judge us? We'll do even worse things to you than we were going to do to these men!” They rushed forward at Lot and tried to break down the door.
“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.
10 But the men inside reached out and grabbed Lot, dragged him inside, and slammed the door shut.
But the men inside reached out, pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.
11 Then they made all the men in the doorway, young and old, suddenly go blind so they couldn't find the door.
And they struck the men at the entrance, young and old, with blindness, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the door.
12 The two men asked Lot, “Is there anyone else here who's part of your family—sons-in-law, or sons or daughters, or anyone else in the town? If there are, make sure they leave,
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,
13 because we are about to destroy this place. The complaints that have reached the Lord about its people have become so bad that he has sent us to destroy it.”
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.”
14 Lot went immediately to speak to the men who were engaged to marry his daughters. “Get up quickly and leave,” he said, “because the Lord is about to destroy the town!” But they thought it was just a joke.
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.
15 At dawn, the angels begged Lot to be quick, telling him, “Hurry up! Leave right now with your wife and your two daughters here, otherwise you'll be wiped out when the city is punished.”
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.”
16 But Lot hesitated. The men grabbed his hand, and those of his wife and two daughters, and dragged them along, leaving them outside the town. The Lord was kind to them to do this.
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.
17 As soon as they were outside, one of the men said, “Run for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the valley! Run to the mountains otherwise you'll be destroyed!”
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!”
18 “Please sir, not that!” Lot replied.
But Lot replied, “No, my lords, please!
19 “If you don't mind, since you have already been so kind to me by saving my life, don't make me run to the mountains—I just can't make it. The destruction will overtake me and I'll die!
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.
20 Look, there's a town nearby that's close enough to run to, and it's so small. Please let me run there—it's really very small. It would save my life.”
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.”
21 “Fine—I'll do as you ask,” he replied. “I won't destroy this town you've mentioned.
“Very well,” he answered, “I will grant this request as well, and will not demolish the town you indicate.
22 But hurry up and run there quickly, because I can't do anything until you get there.” (This is why the town was called Zoar.)
Hurry! Run there quickly, for I cannot do anything until you reach it.” That is why the town was called Zoar.
23 The sun had already risen by the time Lot reached Zoar.
And by the time the sun had risen over the land, Lot had reached Zoar.
24 Then the Lord rained down fire and burning sulfur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah.
Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.
25 He completely destroyed the towns and all their inhabitants, the whole valley and everything growing there.
Thus He destroyed these cities and the entire plain, including all the inhabitants of the cities and everything that grew on the ground.
26 But Lot's wife, who was lagging behind, looked back, and she turned into a pillar of salt.
But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
27 Abraham got up early the next morning and went back to where he had stood before the Lord.
Early the next morning, Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD.
28 He looked down at Sodom and Gomorrah and the whole valley floor, and saw the land burning, sending up smoke like from a furnace.
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.
29 When God destroyed the towns of the valley he didn't forget the promise he made Abraham, and he saved Lot from the destruction of the towns where Lot was living.
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.
30 Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, so he left town and went to live in a cave in the mountains with his two daughters.
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.
31 Sometime later the older daughter said to the younger one, “Our father is growing old, and there's no men left to give us children like everyone does.
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.
32 Come on, let's get our father drunk with wine and sleep with him so we can keep his family line going.”
Come, let us get our father drunk with wine so we can sleep with him and preserve his line.”
33 So they got their father drunk with wine that night. The older daughter went and slept with him, and he didn't notice when she lay down or when she got up.
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.
34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger one, “Last night I slept with our father. Let's get him drunk with wine again tonight and you can go and sleep with him so we can keep his family line going.”
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.”
35 So once again that night they got their father drunk with wine and the younger daughter went and slept with him, and he didn't notice when she lay down or when she got up.
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.
36 This is how both Lot's daughters became pregnant by their father.
Thus both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father.
37 The older daughter had a son, and she called him Moab. He is the ancestor of the Moabites of today.
The older daughter gave birth to a son and named him Moab. He is the father of the Moabites of today.
38 The younger daughter had a son too, and she called him Ben-ammi. He is the ancestor of the Ammonites of today.
The younger daughter also gave birth to a son, and she named him Ben-ammi. He is the father of the Ammonites of today.
