Genesis 19

Sodom and Gomorrah

1Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, while Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground.

2Then he said, “Here, please my lords, please turn aside to your servant’s house, spend the night and wash your feet. Then you can get up early and go on your way.” But they said, “No. We will spend the night in the open plaza.”

3But he urged them strongly, so they turned aside to him and they came into his house. He prepared a feast for them and baked matzot , and they ate.

4They had not yet lain down when the men of the city (the men of Sodom) surrounded the house—from youth to elderly, all the people without exception.

5And they called out to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have relations with them!”

6But Lot went out to them at the doorway and shut the door behind him,

7and said, “Please, my brothers, don’t act wickedly.

8Look, I have two daughters who haven’t been intimate with a man. Please let me bring them out to you—do to them whatever is good in your eyes! However, do nothing to these men—since they have come under the protection of my roof.”

9“Get out of the way!” they said, and they said, “This one came as an outsider and dares to judge! Now we’ll treat you worse than them!” So they strongly pressed against the man, Lot, and moved in close to break the door down.

10But the men reached out their hands, brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.

11Then they struck the men at the doorway of the house with blindness—from youth to elderly—so that they gave up trying to find the doorway.

12Then the men said to Lot, “Who else related to you is still here? A son-in-law, your sons and your daughters, whoever else is related to you in the city—bring them out of the place!

13For we are about to destroy this place, because their outcry has become so great before Adonai that Adonai has sent us to destroy it.”

14So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters, “Get up!” he said, “Get out of this place! For Adonai is about to destroy the city!” But in the eyes of his sons-in-law, he was like a joker.

15So when morning dawned the angels rushed Lot, saying, “Get up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or else you will be swept away with the city’s iniquity!”

16But he hesitated. So the men grabbed his hand, his wife’s hand and his two daughters’ hands—because of Adonai’s compassion for him—and they brought him out and left him outside the city.

17When they brought them outside, one said, “Flee for your life! Do not look behind you, and do not stop anywhere in the surrounding area! Escape to the hills, or else you’ll be swept away!”

18But Lot said to them, “No, my Lord, please!

19Look, please, your servant has found favor in Your eyes and You have magnified Your merciful loyalty, which You have shown me by letting me live. But I can’t escape to the hill country—for the disaster will overtake me and I’ll die!

20Look, please, this city is close enough to flee there, and it’s little. Please let me escape there. Isn’t it small? And let me live!”

21So He said to him, “Behold, I will grant your request concerning this matter too—not to demolish the city of which you have spoken.

22Hurry! Flee to safety there, because I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” (This is why the town is named Zoar.)

23The moment the sun rose upon the land, Lot entered Zoar,

24and Adonai rained sulfur and fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah from Adonai out of the sky.

25So He demolished these cities and the whole surrounding area, all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation of the ground.

26But his wife looked behind him and she turned into a pillar of salt.

27Now Abraham rose early in the morning to the place where he had stood before Adonai,

28and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward the entire land of the surrounding area, and saw, behold, the smoke of the land ascended like smoke from a furnace.

29So it was, as God destroyed the cities of the surrounding area, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the upheaval, when He demolished the cities where Lot had dwelt.

Lot Fathers Moab and Ammon

30Then Lot went up from Zoar and dwelled on the mountain, his two daughters with him, because he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. So he lived in a cave—he and his two daughters.

31Then the firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to come to us as is the custom of the whole land.

32Come on! Let’s make our father drink wine so that we can lie with him and keep the seed from our father alive.

33So they made their father drink wine that night, and the firstborn came and lay down with her father. Yet he did not know that she lay down and got up.

34On the following day, the firstborn said to the younger, “See! I slept with my father last night. Let’s make him drink wine tonight as well. Come on! Sleep with him so that we’ll keep the seed from our father alive.”

35So they made their father drink wine that night as well, and the younger got up and lay down with him and he did not know that she lay down and got up.

36So Lot’s two daughters become pregnant by their father.

37Then the firstborn gave birth to a son and named him Moab: he is the ancestor of the Moabites to this day.

38The younger also gave birth to a son and named him Ben-Ammi: he is the ancestor of the sons of Ammon to this day.

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Genesis 19

The Lord Destroys Sodom and Gomorrah

1The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening. Lot was sitting near the gate of the city. When Lot saw the angels, he got up to greet them. He bowed down with his face to the ground. 2“My lords,” he said, “please come to my house. You can wash your feet and spend the night there. Then you can go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered. “We’ll spend the night in the town square.”

3But Lot wouldn’t give up. So they went with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them. He baked bread without using yeast. And they ate. 4Before Lot and his guests had gone to bed, all the men came from every part of the city of Sodom. Young and old men alike surrounded the house. 5They called out to Lot. They said, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us. We want to have sex with them.”

6Lot went outside to meet them. He shut the door behind him. 7He said, “No, my friends. Don’t do such an evil thing. 8Look, I have two daughters that no man has ever slept with. I’ll bring them out to you now. Then do to them what you want to. But don’t do anything to these men. I’ve brought them inside so they can be safe.”

9“Get out of our way!” the men of Sodom replied to Lot. “You came here as an outsider. Now you want to act like a judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept trying to force Lot to open the door. Then they moved forward to break it down.

10But the angels inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11Then they made the men who were at the door of the house blind. They blinded both young and old men so that they couldn’t find the door.

12The two angels said to Lot, “Do you have any other family members here? Do you have sons-in-law, sons, daughters or any other relatives in the city? Get them out of here! 13We are going to destroy this place. Many have cried out to the Lord against the people of this city. So he has sent us to destroy it.”

14Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law. They had promised to marry his daughters. He said, “Hurry up! Get out of this place! The Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

15The sun was coming up. So the angels tried to get Lot to leave. They said, “Hurry up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out! If you don’t, you will be swept away when the city is destroyed.”

16Lot didn’t move right away. So the men grabbed him by the hand. They also took hold of the hands of his wife and two daughters. They led all of them safely out of the city. The Lord had mercy on them. 17As soon as the angels had brought them out, one of them spoke. He said, “Run for your lives! Don’t look back! Don’t stop anywhere in the valley! Run to the mountains! If you don’t, you will be swept away!”

18But Lot said to them, “No, my lords! Please! 19You have done me a big favor. You have been very kind to me by sparing my life. But I can’t run to the mountains. I won’t be able to escape this horrible thing that’s going to happen. And then I’ll die. 20Look, here’s a town near enough to run to. It’s small. Let me run to it. It’s very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

21The Lord said to Lot, “All right. I will also give you what you are asking for. I will not destroy the town you are talking about. 22But run there quickly. I can’t do anything until you reach it.” The town was named Zoar. Zoar means Small.

23By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24Then the Lord sent down burning sulfur. It came down like rain on Sodom and Gomorrah. It came from the Lord. It came out of the sky. 25The Lord destroyed these cities and the whole valley. All the people who were living in the cities were wiped out. So were the plants in the land. 26But Lot’s wife looked back. When she did, she became a pillar made out of salt.

27Early the next morning Abraham got up. He returned to the place where he had stood in front of the Lord. 28He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and the whole valley. He saw thick smoke rising from the land. It looked like smoke from a furnace.

29So when God destroyed the cities of the valley, he showed concern for Abraham. He brought Lot out safely when he destroyed the cities where Lot had lived.

Lot and His Daughters

30Lot and his two daughters left Zoar. They went to live in the mountains because Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar. So he and his daughters lived in a cave. 31One day the older daughter spoke to the younger one. She said, “Our father is old. People all over the earth have men to marry and have children with. We do not. 32So let’s get our father to drink wine. Then we can sleep with him. We can use our father to continue our family line.”

33That night they got their father to drink wine. Then the older daughter went in and slept with him. He wasn’t aware when she lay down or when she got up.

34The next day the older daughter spoke to the younger one again. She said, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight. Then you go in and sleep with him. We can use our father to continue our family line.” 35So they got their father to drink wine that night also. Then the younger daughter slept with him. Again he wasn’t aware when she lay down or when she got up.

36So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. 37The older daughter had a son. She named him Moab. He’s the father of the Moabites of today. 38The younger daughter also had a son. She named him Ben-Ammi. He’s the father of the Ammonites of today.

Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®

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