Genesis 18 - The Scriptures 1998

¹ And יהוה  appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamrĕ

² So he lifted his eyes and looked, and saw three men standing opposite him. And when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground,

³ and said, “יהוה, if I have now found favour in Your eyes, please do not pass Your servant by.

⁴ “Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.

⁵ “And let me bring a piece of bread and refresh your hearts, and then go on, for this is why you have come to your servant.” And they said, “Do as you have said.”

⁶ So Aḇ

⁷ And Aḇ

⁸ And he took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them, and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.

⁹ And they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “See, in the tent.”

¹⁰ And He said, “I shall certainly return to you according to the time of life, and see, Sarah your wife is to have a son!” And Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.

¹¹ Now Aḇ

¹² And Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my master being old too?”

¹³ And יהוה  said to Aḇ

¹⁴ “Is any matter too hard for יהוה ? At the appointed time I am going to return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah is to have a son.”

¹⁵ But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh!”

¹⁶ And the men rose up from there and looked toward Seḏ

¹⁷ And יהוה  said, “Shall I hide from Aḇ

¹⁸ since Aḇ

¹⁹ “For I have known him, so that he commands his children and his household after him, to guard the way of יהוה, to do righteousness and right-ruling, so that יהוה  brings to Aḇ

²⁰ And יהוה  said, “Because the outcry against Seḏ

²¹ “I am going down now to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me, and if not, I know.”

²² So the men turned away from there and went toward Seḏ

²³ And Aḇ

²⁴ “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city, would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it?

²⁵ “Far be it from You to act in this way, to slay the righteous with the wrong, so that the righteous should be as the wrong. Far be it from You! Does the Judge of all the earth not do right?”

²⁶ And יהוה  said, “If I find in Seḏ

²⁷ And Aḇ

²⁸ “Suppose there are five less than the fifty righteous, would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?” And He said, “If I find there forty-five, I do not destroy it.”

²⁹ And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there are found forty?” And He said, “I would not do it for the sake of forty.”

³⁰ And he said, “Let not יהוה  be displeased, and let me speak: Suppose there are found thirty?” And He said, “I would not do it if I find thirty there.”

³¹ And he said, “Look, please, I have taken it upon myself to speak to יהוה : Suppose there are found twenty?” And He said, “I would not destroy it for the sake of twenty.”

³² And he said, “Let not יהוה  be displeased, and let me speak only this time: Suppose there are found ten?” And He said, “I would not destroy it for the sake of ten.”

³³ Then יהוה  went away as soon as He had ended speaking to Aḇ