HarperCollins Study Bible

by Harold W. Attridge

  9God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your off-spring after you throughout their generations. 10This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12Throughout your generations every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, including the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring. 13Both the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money must be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. 14Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

  15God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” 17Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”18And Abraham said to God, “O that Ishmael might live in your sight!” 19God said, “No, but your wife Sarah shall bear you a son, and you shall name him Isaac.e I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. 20As for Ishmael, I have heard you; I will bless him and make him fruitful and exceedingly numerous; he shall be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. 21But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this season next year.” 22And when he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.

  23Then Abraham took his son Ishmael and all the slaves born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. 24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25And his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised; 27and all the men of his house, slaves born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.

  next chapter

  * * *

  a Traditional rendering of Heb El Shaddai

  b That is exalted ancestor

  c Here taken to mean ancestor of a multitude

  d Heb seed

  e That is he laughs

  17.1–27 The covenant with Abraham is the second of the great covenants in the P source, after the covenant with Noah (9.8–17; see note on 6.18). Here the covenantal focus narrows from all creatures to the patriarchal line from which Israel will come. The Abrahamic covenant includes the promises of land, abundant offspring, and a great nation, and its visible sign is circumcision (cf. the rainbow; see note on 9.8–17). In some respects the P covenant with Abraham is parallel to the J promises to Abram (12.1–3, 7) and to the covenant with Abram in ch. 15 (source unknown).

  17.1–2 Ninety-nine years old. Abram’s advanced age provides a backdrop for his incredulous reaction to God’s promise of a son to him and Sarah in v. 17. El Shaddai probably means “God, the Mountain One,” referring to his dwelling place on a holy mountain (for Horeb/Sinai, see Ex 3.1; 19; for Zion, see Ps 48). God’s revelation of this name to Abraham will be superseded by his revelation of the name Yahweh to Moses in the next covenant (Ex 6.3; see note on 6.18). Walk before me, and be blameless. The Abrahamic covenant is conditioned on Abraham’s virtue.

  17.3–8 Abram’s name change to Abraham is part of his passage to a new covenantal identity, as is Sarai’s name change in v. 15. God explains that Abraham means ancestor (lit. “father”) of a multitude, which creatively links Abraham (a dialectal variant of Abram) to the Hebrew words for “father” (’ab), and “multitude” (hamon). The promise to make Abraham exceedingly fruitful (v. 6) recalls the blessing to Noah (9.1, 7) and the first humans (1.28). The nations and kings descended from Abraham include the dynasties of Israel, Ishmael, and Edom (for the kings of Edom, see 36.31–39). Although the Abrahamic covenant is conditioned on Abraham’s virtue, it is an everlasting covenant (v. 7), and the promised land will be a perpetual holding (v. 8). In the historical context of the P source, which may have included the Babylonian exile, this is an expression of great trust and hope.

  17.9–14 Circumcision is the sign of the covenant (v. 11; cf. the rainbow in 9.12, 17 and the sabbath in Ex 31.12–17). This symbolic mark of the male member is probably related to the blessing to be exceedingly fruitful in v. 6 and functions as a male rite of passage into the covenant. In a patriarchal and patrilineal society such as ancient Israel, this sign covers each household, including women. Eight days old. The timing of the ceremony allows for the mother’s presence, for she is now ritually clean (Lev 12.2–3).

  17.15–22 Sarai’s name change signals her new destiny as the mother of the promised child and as the mother of kings. Sarah, a dialectal variant of Sarai, means “princess.” Ninety years old (v. 17). Her advanced age highlights the miracle of this promise. Abraham un-characteristically laughed at this promise, which provides the motive for the child’s name, Isaac, which means “he laughed.” In the J version of the promise of the child, it is Sarah who laughs (18.12). Abraham understandably assumes that God is referring to Ishmael as his heir, but God clarifies that Isaac will be the heir of the covenant. Because of Abraham’s concern, God grants Ishmael his own patriarchal blessing: abundant offspring, twelve princes (v. 20; see 25.12–16), and a great nation.

  GENESIS 18

  A Son Promised to Abraham and Sarah

  1The LORD appeared to Abrahama by the oaksb of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. 2He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. 3He said, “My lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant. 4Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” 6And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Make ready quickly three measuresc of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.” 7Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. 8Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

  9They said to him, “Where is your wife Sarah?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” 10Then one said, “I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. 11Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?” 13The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14Is anything too wonderful for the LORD? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.” 15But Sarah denied, saying, “I did not laugh” for she was afraid. He said, “Oh yes, you did laugh.”

  Judgment Pronounced on Sodom

  16Then the men set out from there, and they looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18seeing that Abraham shall become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?d 19No, for I have chosene him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice; so that the LORD may bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.” 20Then the LORD said, “How great is the outcry again
st Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! 21I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me; and if not, I will know.”

  22So the men turned from there, and went toward Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the LORD.f 23Then Abraham came near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it? 25Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” 26And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.” 27Abraham answered, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 28Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” 29Again he spoke to him, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30Then he said, “Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31He said, “Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32Then he said, “Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” 33And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place.

  next chapter

  * * *

  a Heb him

  b Or terebinths

  c Heb seahs

  d Or and all the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by him

  e Heb known

  f Another ancient tradition reads while the LORD remained standing before Abraham

  18.1–15 The J version of the divine announcement that Sarah will bear Abraham’s child (cf. the P version in ch. 17). It is a turning point in the narrative, solving the problem of Sarah’s barrenness and Abraham’s need for an heir. The story also highlights Abraham’s virtue and hospitality, providing a foil for the story of Lot and the angels in ch. 19.

  18.1–3 In v. 1 the LORD appeared to Abraham, but in v. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men. This initial ambiguity is resolved as we understand later that God is accompanied by two angels (e.g., 19.1). The point here is that Abraham thinks they are men, while we know otherwise. This dual perspective on the identity of the visitors is also sounded in v. 3, where Abraham addresses them as My lord, which in the Hebrew is the plural form (“lords”), also the standard form for addressing God.

  18.3–8 Ran (vv. 2, 7), hastened (vv. 6–7), indications of Abraham’s great hospitality and generosity toward the strangers. A little water, a little bread. Abraham’s humble offer turns into a magnificent feast: cakes of choice flour rather than bread, curds and milk rather than water, and a calf, tender and good (vv. 6–8). Finally, he honors the strangers by standing while they eat (v. 8).

  18.9–15 God’s announcement that Sarah will have a son is followed by the scene of Sarah’s laughter and God’s response (cf. Abraham’s laughter in 17.17). The repetition of laugh(ed) (four times, vv. 12, 13, 15) motivates the name of Isaac (from the root “to laugh”). This is itself a comical scene, as Sarah is listening in on the conversation between Abraham and his guests and doesn’t realize that God is also listening in on her. Her denial of the possibility of postmenopausal pleasure (v. 12; better “fruitfulness, abundance,” i.e., pregnancy) is met by God’s affirmation of his wondrous powers, which signals that this will be a miraculous birth. God also shows great tact, omitting Sarah’s remark my husband is old (v. 12) when he repeats her words to Abraham. Sarah’s denial of her laughter is met by God’s denial of her denial, which is both dramatic and humorous.

  18.16–33 From the J source, the dispute over the fate of Sodom shows the great moral virtue of Abraham and affirms God’s choice of him as Israel’s patriarch. Interestingly, God also shows himself to be amenable to moral instruction. Abraham’s greatness consists of being willing to contend with God about moral principles, and, remarkably, he prevails (contrast the book of Job). In some respects this scene is God’s test of Abraham, which Abraham passes magnificently.

  18.17–21 God’s inner monologue announces the theme of doing righteousness and justice (v. 19), which is Abraham’s task as the chosen patriarch and which Abraham must teach his descendants. The investigation and punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah also concerns this issue; hence God decides to confide in Abraham. Outcry (v. 20), a call for justice. The appropriate punishment for the cities’ injustice is not stated, but Abraham assumes that it is destruction of the cities (as the angels state in 19.13). God is deliberately silent about his plan, since he wants to see what Abraham has to say.

  18.22–33 While the angels go off to investigate, Abraham stands alone with God and has the courage to speak. With great diplomacy and humility, he argues that God must be just (v. 23), and even more that God must be merciful (v. 24). When God grants Abraham’s plea (v. 26), Abraham presses his advantage and in a remarkable rhetorical exchange talks God down from fifty righteous to ten (v. 32). There is an element of humor in the Middle Eastern custom of haggling, here not over the price of goods, but the proper balance of justice and mercy and the fate of Sodom. As it happens, Abraham prevails in establishing the right moral principle, but God still destroys the cities, since of all its inhabitants only Lot and his immediate family are not wicked.

  GENESIS 19

  The Depravity of Sodom

  1The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2He said, “Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the square.” 3But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 4But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house; 5and they called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, so that we may know them.” 6Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, 7and said, “I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. 8Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please; only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof.” 9But they replied, “Stand back!” And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near the door to break it down. 10But the men inside reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11And they struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small and great, so that they were unable to find the door.

  Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

  12Then the men said to Lot, “Have you anyone else here? Sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone you have in the city—bring them out of the place. 13For we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry against its people has become great before the LORD, and the LORD has sent us to destroy it.” 14So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, “Up, get out of this place; for the LORD is about to destroy the city.” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.

  15When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Get up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or else you will be consumed in the punishment of the city.” 16But he lingered; so the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the LORD being merciful to him, and
they brought him out and left him outside the city. 17When they had brought them outside, theya said, “Flee for your life; do not look back or stop anywhere in the Plain; flee to the hills, or else you will be consumed.” 18And Lot said to them, “Oh, no, my lords; 19your servant has found favor with you, and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life; but I cannot flee to the hills, for fear the disaster will overtake me and I die. 20Look, that city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there—is it not a little one?—and my life will be saved!” 21He said to him, “Very well, I grant you this favor too, and will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken. 22Hurry, escape there, for I can do nothing until you arrive there.” Therefore the city was called Zoar.b 23The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.

  24Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of heaven; 25and he overthrew those cities, and all the Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. 26But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

  27Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD; 28and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the Plain and saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of a furnace.