< Genesis 19 >

1 So the two messengers went in towards Sodom at eventide, Lot, being seated in the gate of Sodom, —so Lot beheld and rose up to meet them, and bowed himself with his face to the earth.
And the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of the city. And seeing them, he rose up and went to meet them: and worshipped prostrate to the ground,
2 And he said Behold, I pray you my lords turn aside, I pray you, into the house of your servant, —and tarry the night and bathe your feet, so shall ye rise early, and go on your way. And they said, Nay, but, in the broad way, will we tarry the night.
And said: I beseech you, my lords, turn in to the house of your servant, and lodge there: wash your feet, and in the morning you shall go on your way. And they said: No, but we will abide in the street.
3 But he became exceeding urgent with them, so they turned aside unto him and entered into his house, —and he made for them a banquet, unleavened cakes, also did he bake, and they did eat.
He pressed them very much to turn in unto him: and when they were come into his house, he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread and they ate:
4 Ere yet they lay down, the men of the city—the men of Sodom, had come round against the house, from youth even unto age, —all the people from every quarter,
But before they went to bed, the men of the city beset the house both young and old, all the people together.
5 And they called unto Lot and said to him, Where are the men who have come in unto thee tonight? Bring them forth unto us, and let us know them!
And they called Lot, and said to him: Where are the men that came in to thee at night? bring them out hither that we may know them:
6 And Lot went forth unto them to the entrance; but the door, closed he behind him.
Lot went out to them, and shut the door after him, and said:
7 And he said, —Do not I pray you my brethren act wickedly.
Do not so, I beseech you, my brethren, do not commit this evil.
8 Behold, I pray you, I, have two daughters who have not known man, I must needs now bring, them, forth unto you, and do ye to them, as may be good in your eyes, —Only to these men, ye may do nothing; for on this account, have they come under the shade of my roof.
I have two daughters who as yet have not known man: I will bring them out to you, and abuse you them as it shall please you, so that you do no evil to these men, because they are come in under the shadow of my roof.
9 And they said, Stand back, And they said, This one, by himself, hath come in to sojourn and must always be acting the judge, Now, will we do more wickedly to thee, than to them. So they pressed sore upon the man—upon Lot—exceedingly, and drew near to break open the door.
But they said: Get thee back thither. And again: Thou camest in, said they, as a, stranger, was it to be a judge? therefore we will afflict thee more than them. And they pressed very violently upon Lot: and they were even at the point of breaking open the doors.
10 And the men thrust forth their hand, and brought Lot in unto them into the house—and, the door, they closed:
And behold the men put out their hand, and drew in Lot unto them, and shut the door:
11 the men also who were at the entrance of the house, smote they with blindness, from small even unto great, so that they wearied themselves to find the entrance.
And them that were without, they struck with blindness from the least to the greatest, so that they could not find the door.
12 And the men said unto Lot, Whom besides hast thou here? Son-in-law and thy sons and thy daughters, and all that thou hast in the city, bring thou forth out of the place;
And they said to Lot: Hast thou here any of thine? son in law, or sons, or daughters, all that are thine bring them out of this city:
13 For we are about to destroy this place, —for, great, is the outcry of them unto the face of Yahweh, so that Yahweh hath sent us to destroy it.
For we will destroy this place, because their cry is grown loud before the Lord, who hath sent us to destroy them.
14 And Lot went forth and spake unto his sons-in-law who were about to take his two daughters and said Arise come forth out of this place, for Yahweh is about to destroy the city. And it came to pass, that he was as one that laughed, in the eyes of his sons-in-law.
So Lot went out, and spoke to his sons in law that were to have his daughters, and said: Arise: get you out of this place, because the Lord will destroy this city. And he seemed to them to speak as it were in jest.
15 But as soon as, the dawn had sprung up, the messengers hastened Lot saying, —Arise! take thy wife and thy two daughters that are at hand, lest thou be swept away in the punishment of the city.
And when it was morning, the angels pressed him, saying: Arise, take thy wife, and the two daughters which thou hast: lest thou also perish in the wickedness of the city.
16 And he lingered—so the men laid hold of his hand and of the hand of his wife and of the hand of his two daughters, in the tenderness of Yahweh towards him, —and they brought him out and led him forth outside the city.
And as he lingered, they took his hand, and the hand of his wife, and of his two daughters, because the Lord spared him.
17 And it came to pass when they had brought them forth outside, that they said, Escape for thy life, Look not behind thee, neither stand still in all the vale, —To the mountain, escape thou lest thou be swept away.
And they brought him forth, and set him without the city: and there they spoke to him, saying: Save thy life: look not back, neither stay thou in all the country about: but save thyself in the mountain, lest thou be also consumed.
18 And Lot said unto them, —No, I pray thee, My Lord!
And Lot said to them: I beseech thee my Lord,
19 Behold, I pray thee thy servant hath found favour in thine eyes, so that thou hast magnified thy lovingkindness which thou hast performed with me in keeping alive my soul.—But, I, cannot escape to the mountain, lest calamity overtake me so shall I die.
Because thy servant hath found grace before thee, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewn to me, in saving my life, and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil seize me, and I die:
20 Behold, I pray thee, this city, is near for fleeing thither And, it, is a little one, let me I pray thee, escape thither—is it not a, little, one? That my soul may live!
There is this city here at hand, to which I may flee, it is a little one, and I shall be saved in it: is it not a little one, and my soul shall live?
21 And he said unto him, Behold! I have lifted up thy countenance, even as to this thing, —so that I will not overthrow the city, of which thou hast spoken.
And he said to him: Behold also in this, I have heard thy prayers, not to destroy the city for which thou hast spoken.
22 Haste thee escape thither, for I cannot do anything, until thou have come in thither. For this cause: was the name of the city called Zoar.
Make haste and be saved there, because I cannot do any thing till thou go in thither. Therefore the name of that city was called Segor.
23 When, the sun, had come forth on the earth, Lot had entered into Zoar.
The sun was risen upon the earth, and Lot entered into Segor.
24 And, Yahweh, rained, upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah, brimstone and fire, —from Yahweh, out of the heavens:
And the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrha brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.
25 so he overthrew these cities, and all the circuit, —and all the inhabitants of the cities, and the produce of the ground.
And he destroyed these cities, and all the country about, all the inhabitants of the cities, and all things that spring from the earth.
26 But his wife looked from behind him, —and became—a pillar of salt.
And his wife looking behind her, was turned into a statue of salt.
27 And Abraham gat up early in the morning, unto the place where he had stood before Yahweh;
And Abraham got up early in the morning and in the place where he had stood before with the Lord,
28 and he looked out over the face of Sodom and Gomorrah, and over all the face of the land of the circuit, and beheld and lo! the smoke of the land went up, like the smoke of a furnace.
He looked towards Sodom and Gomorrha, and the whole land of that country: and he saw the ashes rise up from the earth as the smoke of a furnace.
29 And it came to pass when God destroyed the cities of the circuit, that God remembered Abraham, and sent forth Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities wherein Lot had dwelt.
Now when God destroyed the cities of that country, remembering Abraham, he delivered Lot out of the destruction of the cities wherein he had dwelt.
30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain and his two daughters with him. for he feared to dwell in Zoar, so he dwelt in a cave, he, and his two daughters.
And Lot went up out of Segor, and abode in the mountain, and his two daughters with him, (for he was afraid to stay in Segor, ) and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters with him.
31 And the firstborn said unto the younger. Our father is old, —and, a man, there is not in the earth to come in unto us, after the way of all the earth.
And the elder said to the younger Our father is old, and there is no man left on the earth, to come in unto us after the manner of the whole earth.
32 Come on! let us cause our father to drink wine and let us lie with him, that we may keep alive from our father, a seed.
Come, let us make him drunk with wine, and let us lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
33 So they caused their father to drink wine that night, —and the firstborn went in. and lay with her father, but he noticed not her lying down nor her rising up.
And they made their father drink wine that night: and the elder went in and lay with her father: but he perceived not neither when his daughter lay down, nor when she rose up.
34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Lo! I lay, last night with my father, let us cause him to drink wine this night also, and go thou in—lie with him, that we may keep alive from our father, a seed.
And the next day the elder said to the younger: Behold I lay last night with my father, let us make him drink wine also to night, and thou shalt lie with him, that we may save seed of our father.
35 So they caused their father, on that night also to drink wine, and the younger arose, and lay with him, but he noticed not her lying down, nor her rising up.
They made their father drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went in, and lay with him: and neither then did he perceive when she lay down, nor when she rose up.
36 Thus did, the two daughters of Lot conceive from their father.
So the two daughters of Lot were with child by their father.
37 And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab, —the same, is the father of Moab, unto this day.
And the elder bore a son, and she called his name Moab: he is the father of the Moabites unto this day.
38 And the younger she also bare a son, and called his name Ben-ammi, —the same, is the father of the sons of Ammon—unto this day.
The younger also bore a son, and she called his name Ammon, that is, the son of my people: he is the father of the Ammonites unto this day.

< Genesis 19 >