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Read the Bible

New King James Version

Genesis 19:1

Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Angel (a Spirit);   Gates;   Hospitality;   Manners;   Salutations;   Sodom;   Thompson Chain Reference - Angels;   Lot;   The Topic Concordance - Sending and Those Sent;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Evening, the;   Gates;   Salutations;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Gate;   Lot;   Miracle;   Salutation;   Sodom;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Angels;   City;   Hospitality;   Lot;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Family Life and Relations;   Hospitality;   Immorality, Sexual;   Judges, Theology of;   Theophany;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - All-Sufficiency of God;   Hospitality;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Abraham;   Angel;   Gate;   Lot;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Angels;   Gate;   Meals;   Sadducees;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Angel;   Anthropology;   Commerce;   Gerar;   Homosexuality;   Hospitality;   Lot;   Remnant;   Sodom and Gomorrah;   Sodomite;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Admah;   Ammon, Ammonites;   Angel;   Ben-Ammi;   Greek Versions of Ot;   Israel;   Moab, Moabites;   Plain, Cities of the;   Trinity;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Sodom, Sodoma ;   13 To Worship, Serve;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Lot;   Sodom;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Angel;   Cities;   Gate;   Lot;   Sodom;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Angel of the Lord;   Angels;   Cities;   Gate;   Hospitality;   Lot;   Sod'om;   Zo'ar;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Conversations;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Adoration;   Attitudes;   Gesture;   Lot (1);   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Adam, Book of;   Alexandri;   Eve;   Gate;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for March 20;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
The two angels came to Sedom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sedom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the eretz,
King James Version
And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;
Lexham English Bible
And the two angels came to Sodom in the evening. And Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. Then Lot saw them and stood up to meet them. And he bowed down with his face to the ground.
New Century Version
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting near the city gate. When he saw them, he got up and went to them and bowed facedown on the ground.
New English Translation
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening while Lot was sitting in the city's gateway. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face toward the ground.
Amplified Bible
It was evening when the two angels came to Sodom. Lot was sitting at Sodom's [city] gate. Seeing them, Lot got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.
New American Standard Bible
Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he stood up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And in the euening there came two Angels to Sodom: and Lot sate at the gate of Sodom, and Lot sawe them, and rose vp to meete them, and he bowed himselfe with his face to the ground.
Legacy Standard Bible
Then the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them and rose to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.
Contemporary English Version
That evening the two angels arrived in Sodom, while Lot was sitting near the city gate. When Lot saw them, he got up, bowed down low,
Complete Jewish Bible
(iii) The two angels came to S'dom that evening, when Lot was sitting at the gate of S'dom. Lot saw them, got up to greet them and prostrated himself on the ground.
Darby Translation
And the two angels came to Sodom at even. And Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. And Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he bowed down, the face toward the ground,
Easy-to-Read Version
That evening the two angels came to the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting near the city gates and saw them. He got up and went to them. He bowed to show respect and said, "Sirs, please come to my house, and I will serve you. There you can wash your feet and stay the night. Then tomorrow you can continue your journey." The angels answered, "No, we will stay the night in the city square."
English Standard Version
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed himself with his face to the earth
George Lamsa Translation
AND there came two angels to Sodom in the evening; and Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom; and Lot saw them and rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;
Good News Translation
When the two angels came to Sodom that evening, Lot was sitting at the city gate. As soon as he saw them, he got up and went to meet them. He bowed down before them
Christian Standard Bible®
The two angels entered Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in Sodom’s gateway. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them. He bowed with his face to the ground
Literal Translation
And the two angels came into Sodom at evening. And Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom. And Lot saw, and he rose up to meet them and bowed his face to the earth.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
In the euenynge came the two angels vnto Sodome. And Lot sat vnder the gate of the cite. And whe he sawe them, he rose vp for to mete them, and bowed him self downe to the grounde vpon his face,
American Standard Version
And the two angels came to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face to the earth;
Bible in Basic English
And at nightfall the two angels came to Sodom; and Lot was seated at the way into the town: and when he saw them he got up and came before them, falling down on his face to the earth.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And there came two angels to Sodome at euen, and Lot sate at the gate of Sodome: and Lot seing [them] rose vp to meete them, and he bowed hym selfe with his face towarde the grounde.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the two angels came to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom; and Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he fell down on his face to the earth;
King James Version (1611)
And there came two Angels to Sodome at euen, and Lot sate in the gate of Sodome: and Lot seeing them, rose vp to meet them, and he bowed himselfe with his face toward the ground.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the two angels came to Sodom at evening. And Lot sat by the gate of Sodom, and Lot having seen them, rose up to meet them, and he worshipped with his face to the ground, and said,
English Revised Version
And the two angels came to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face to the earth;
Berean Standard Bible
The two angels entered 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 with his face to the ground,
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And tweyne aungels camen to Sodom in the euentide, while Loth sat in the yatis of the citee. And whanne he hadde seyn hem, he roos, and yede ayens hem, and worschipide lowe to erthe,
Young's Literal Translation
And two of the messengers come towards Sodom at even, and Lot is sitting at the gate of Sodom, and Lot seeth, and riseth to meet them, and boweth himself -- face to the earth,
Webster's Bible Translation
And there came two angels to Sodom at evening; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom; and Lot seeing [them], rose to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face towards the ground;
World English Bible
The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
New Living Translation
That evening the two angels came to the entrance of the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting there, and when he saw them, he stood up to meet them. Then he welcomed them and bowed with his face to the ground.
New Life Bible
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening. Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them. He put his face to the ground
New Revised Standard
The 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.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
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.
Douay-Rheims Bible
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.
Revised Standard Version
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening; and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed himself with his face to the earth,
Update Bible Version
And the two angels came to Sodom at evening; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face to the earth;
THE MESSAGE
The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening. Lot was sitting at the city gate. He saw them and got up to welcome them, bowing before them and said, "Please, my friends, come to my house and stay the night. Wash up. You can rise early and be on your way refreshed." They said, "No, we'll sleep in the street."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.

Contextual Overview

1 Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. 2 And he said, "Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant's house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way." And they said, "No, but we will spend the night in the open square." 3 But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

And there came two angels. Or, rather, "the two angels came," referring to those mentioned in the preceding chapter, and there called "men." It seems - from Genesis 18:22, that these two angels were sent to Sodom, while the third, who was the Lord or Jehovah, remained with Abraham. Genesis 18:1-3, Genesis 18:22

rose: Genesis 18:1-5, Job 31:32, Hebrews 13:2

bowed: Genesis 18:2

Reciprocal: Genesis 11:27 - Lot Genesis 13:12 - pitched Genesis 23:7 - General Genesis 23:12 - General Genesis 42:6 - bowed Genesis 48:12 - he bowed himself Exodus 18:7 - did obeisance Proverbs 24:1 - neither Matthew 10:11 - inquire Matthew 25:35 - I was a Luke 19:5 - for Romans 12:13 - given

Cross-References

Genesis 18:22
Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD.
Genesis 19:1
Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.
Genesis 19:5
And they called to Lot and said to him, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally."
Job 31:32
(But no sojourner had to lodge in the street,For I have opened my doors to the traveler [fn] );
Hebrews 13:2
Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And there came two angels to Sodom at even,.... Or "the two angels" h, the two men who were angels in the likeness of men, that had been with Abraham in the heat of the day at Hebron, on the evening of the same day came to Sodom:

and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: not as a civil magistrate to try causes there, being appointed a judge over them, as Jarchi relates; yea, the Jews say i: that that day five judges were appointed by the men of Sodom, and Lot was the chief of them; but this is not likely, and seems to be contradicted, Genesis 19:9; but he sat there to observe strangers that might pass by, and invite them into his house, and that they might not fall into the hands of the wicked Sodomites, who might abuse them; this being a time when not only travellers would be glad to put up and take refreshment, but his wicked neighbours lay in wait for them to satisfy their lusts on them: he had learnt this hospitality from Abraham;

and Lot seeing [them], rose up to meet them: he arose from his seat and went forward to meet them, which showed his readiness and heartiness to receive them:

and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; not in a religious way, as paying worship to angels, for as yet he did not know them to be such, and if he had, would not have given them divine adoration; but in a civil way, as was the custom of the eastern countries to bow very low in their civil respects to men, especially to great personages; and such Lot took these to be by their goodly looks and by their dress, as appears by his salutation of them in Genesis 19:2.

h שני המלאכים "duo illi angeli", Tigurine version, Cocceius; so Ar. "duobus illis angelis", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. i Bereshit Rabba, sect. 50. fol. 44. 4.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Destruction of Sodom and Amorah

9. גשׁ־<הלאה gesh-hāl'âh, “approach to a distant point,” stand back.

11. סנורים sanevērı̂ym, “blindness,” affecting the mental more than the ocular vision.

37. מואב mô'āb, Moab; מאב mē'āb, “from a father.” בן־עמי ben-‛amı̂y, Ben-‘ammi, “son of my people.” עמון ‛amôn, ‘Ammon, “of the people.”

This chapter is the continuation and conclusion of the former. It records a part of God’s strange work - strange, because it consists in punishment, and because it is foreign to the covenant of grace. Yet it is closely connected with Abraham’s history, inasmuch as it is a signal chastisement of wickedness in his neighborhood, a memorial of the righteous judgment of God to all his posterity, and at the same time a remarkable answer to the spirit, if not to the letter, of his intercessory prayer. His kinsman Lot, the only righteous man in Sodom, with his wife and two daughters, is delivered from destruction in accordance with his earnest appeal on behalf of the righteous.

Genesis 19:1-3

The two angels. - These are the two men who left Abraham standing before the Lord Genesis 18:22. “Lot sat in the gate,” the place of public resort for news and for business. He courteously rises to meet them, does obeisance to them, and invites them to spend the night in his house. “Nay, but in the street will we lodge.” This is the disposition of those who come to inquire, and, it may be, to condemn and to punish. They are twice in this chapter called angels, being sent to perform a delegated duty. This term, however, defines their office, not their nature. Lot, in the first instance, calls them “my lords,” which is a term of respect that may be addressed to men Genesis 31:35. He afterward styled one of them Adonai, with the special vowel pointing which limits it to the Supreme Being. He at the same time calls himself his servant, appeals to his grace and mercy, and ascribes to him his deliverance. The person thus addressed replies, in a tone of independence and authority, “I have accepted thee.” “I will not overthrow this city for which thou hast spoken.” “I cannot do anything until thou go thither.” All these circumstances point to a divine personage, and are not so easily explained of a mere delegate. He is pre-eminently the Saviour, as he who communed with Abraham was the hearer of prayer. And he who hears prayer and saves life, appears also as the executor of his purpose in the overthrow of Sodom and the other cities of the vale. It is remarkable that only two of the three who appeared to Abraham are called angels. Of the persons in the divine essence two might be the angels or deputies of the primary in the discharge of the divine purpose. These three men, then, either immediately represent, or, if created angels, mediately shadow forth persons in the Godhead. Their number indicates that the persons in the divine unity are three.

Lot seems to have recognized something extraordinary in their appearance, for he made a lowly obeisance to them. The Sodomites heed not the strangers. Lot’s invitation; at first declined, is at length accepted, because Lot is approved of God as righteous, and excepted from the doom of the city.

Genesis 19:4-11

The wicked violence of the citizens displays itself. They compass the house, and demand the men for the vilest ends. How familiar Lot had become with vice, when any necessity whatever could induce him to offer his daughters to the lust of these Sodomites! We may suppose it was spoken rashly, in the heat of the moment, and with the expectation that he would not be taken at his word. So it turned out. “Stand back.” This seems to be a menace to frighten Lot out of the way of their perverse will. It is probable, indeed, that he and his family would not have been so long safe in this wicked place, had he not been the occasion of a great deliverance to the whole city when they were carried away by the four kings. The threat is followed by a taunt, when the sorely vexed host hesitated to give up the strangers. “He will needs be a judge.” It is evident Lot had been in the habit of remonstrating with them. From threats and taunts they soon proceed to violence. His guests now interfere. They rescue Lot, and smite the rioters with blindness, or a wandering of the senses, so that they cannot find the door. This ebullition of the vilest passion seals the doom of the city.

Genesis 19:12-23

The visitors now take steps for the deliverance of Lot and his kindred before the destruction of the cities. All that are related to him are included in the offer of deliverance. There is a blessing in being connected with the righteous, if men will but avail themselves of it. Lot seems bewildered by the contemptuous refusal of his connections to leave the place. His early choice and his growing habits have attached him to the place, notwithstanding its temptations. His married daughters, or at least the intended husbands of the two who were at home (“who are here”), are to be left behind. But though these thoughts make him linger, the mercy of the Lord prevails. The angels use a little violence to hasten their escape. The mountain was preserved by its elevation from the flood of rain, sulphur, and fire which descended on the low ground on which the cities were built. Lot begs for a small town to which he may retreat, as he shrinks from the perils of a mountain dwelling, and his request is mercifully granted.

Genesis 19:24-26

Then follows the overthrow of the cities. “The Lord rained brimstone and fire from the Lord from the skies.” Here the Lord is represented as present in the skies, whence the storm of desolation comes, and on the earth where it falls. The dale of Siddim, in which the cities were, appears to have abounded in asphalt and other combustible materials Genesis 14:10. The district was liable to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions from the earliest to the latest times. We read of an earthquake in the days of king Uzziah Amos 1:1. An earthquake in 1759 destroyed many thousands of persons in the valley of Baalbec. Josephus (De Bell. Jud. iii. 10, 7) reports that the Salt Sea sends up in many places black masses of asphalt, which are not unlike headless bulls in shape and size. After an earthquake in 1834, masses of asphalt were thrown up from the bottom, and in 1837 a similar cause was attended with similar effects.

The lake lies in the lowest part of the valley of the Jordan, and its surface is about thirteen hundred feet below the level of the sea. In such a hollow, exposed to the burning rays of an unclouded sun, its waters evaporate as much as it receives by the influx of the Jordan. Its present area is about forty-five miles by eight miles. A peninsula pushes into it from the east called the Lisan, or tongue, the north point of which is about twenty miles from the south end of the lake. North of this point the depth is from forty to two hundred and eighteen fathoms. This southern part of the lake seems to have been the original dale of Siddim, in which were the cities of the vale. The remarkable salt hills lying on the south of the lake are still called Khashm Usdum (Sodom). A tremendous storm, accompanied with flashes of lightning, and torrents of rain, impregnated with sulphur, descended upon the doomed cities.

From the injunction to Lot to “flee to the mountain,” as well as from the nature of the soil, we may infer that at the same time with the awful conflagration there was a subsidence of the ground, so that the waters of the upper and original lake flowed in upon the former fertile and populous dale, and formed the shallow southern part of the present Salt Sea. In this pool of melting asphalt and sweltering, seething waters, the cities seem to have sunk forever, and left behind them no vestiges of their existence. Lot’s wife lingering behind her husband, and looking back, contrary to the express command of the Lord, is caught in the sweeping tempest, and becomes a pillar of salt: so narrow was the escape of Lot. The dashing spray of the salt sulphurous rain seems to have suffocated her, and then encrusted her whole body. She may have burned to a cinder in the furious conflagration. She is a memorable example of the indignation and wrath that overtakes the halting and the backsliding.

Genesis 19:27-29

Abraham rises early on the following morning, to see what had become of the city for which he had interceded so earnestly, and views from afar the scene of smoking desolation. Remembering Abraham, who was Lot’s uncle, and had him probably in mind in his importunate pleading, God delivered Lot from this awful overthrow. The Eternal is here designated by the name Elohim, the Everlasting, because in the war of elements in which the cities were overwhelmed, the eternal potencies of his nature were signally displayed.

Genesis 19:30-38

The descendants of Lot. Bewildered by the narrowness of his escape, and the awful death of his wife, Lot seems to have left Zoar, and taken to the mountain west of the Salt Sea, in terror of impending ruin. It is not improbable that all the inhabitants of Zoar, panic-struck, may have fled from the region of danger, and dispersed themselves for a time through the adjacent mountains. He was now far from the habitations of people, with his two daughters as his only companions. The manners of Sodom here obtrude themselves upon our view. Lot’s daughters might seem to have been led to this unnatural project, first, because they thought the human race extinct with the exception of themselves, in which case their conduct may have seemed a work of justifiable necessity; and next, because the degrees of kindred within which it was unlawful to marry had not been determined by an express law. But they must have seen some of the inhabitants of Zoar after the destruction of the cities; and carnal intercourse between parent and offspring must have been always repugnant to nature. “Unto this day.” This phrase indicates a variable period, from a few years to a few centuries: a few years; not more than seven, as Joshua 22:3; part of a lifetime, as Numbers 22:30; Joshua 6:25; Genesis 48:15; and some centuries, as Exodus 10:6. This passage may therefore have been written by one much earlier than Moses. Moab afterward occupied the district south of the Arnon, and east of the Salt Sea. Ammon dwelt to the northeast of Moab, where they had a capital called Rabbah. They both ultimately merged into the more general class of the Arabs, as a second Palgite element.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

CHAPTER XIX

The two angels mentioned in the preceding chapter, come in

the evening to Sodom, 1.

Lot, who was sitting at the gate, invites them to enter his

house, take some refreshment, and tarry all night; which they

at first refuse, 2;

but on being pressingly solicited, they at last comply, 3.

The abominable conduct of the men of Sodom, 4, 5.

Lot's deep concern for the honour and safely of his guests, which leads

him to make a most exceptionable proposal to those wicked men, 6-8.

The violent proceedings of the Sodomites, 9.

Lot rescued from their barbarity by the angels, who smite them with

blindness, 10, 11.

The angels exhort Lot and his family to flee from that wicked place,

as God was about to destroy it, 12, 13.

Lot's fruitless exhortation to his sons-in-law, 14.

The angels hasten Lot and his family to depart, 15, 16.

Their exhortation, 17.

Lot's request, 18-20.

He is permitted to escape to Zoar, 21-23.

Fire and brimstone are rained down from heaven upon all the cities

of the plain, by which they are entirely destroyed, 24, 25.

Lot's wife, looking behind, becomes a pillar of salt, 26.

Abraham, early in the morning, discovers the desolation of those

iniquitous cities, 27-29.

Lot, fearing to continue in Zoar, went with his two daughters

to the mountain, and dwelt in a cave, 30.

The strange conduct of his daughters, and his unhappy

deception, 31-36.

Moab and Ammon born, from whom sprang the Moabites and

Ammonites, 37, 38.

NOTES ON CHAP. XIX

Verse Genesis 19:1. Two angels — The two referred to Genesis 18:22.

Sat in the gate — Probably, in order to prevent unwary travellers from being entrapped by his wicked townsmen, he waited at the gate of the city to bring the strangers he might meet with to his own house, as well as to transact his own business. Or, as the gate was the place of judgment, he might have been sitting there as magistrate to hear and determine disputes.

Bowed himself — Not through religious reverence, for he did not know the quality of his guests; but through the customary form of civility. See on verses Genesis 18:3-5 of the preceding chapter.


 
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