Chapter 18
v1-2 –the appearance of three men to Abraham
v3-8 –Abraham’s hospitality
v9-15 –The surety of Sarah having a son
v16-going toward Sodom
v17-19 –Testimony of God about Abraham
v20-22 –Punishment of Sodom announced
v23-33 –Abraham’s intercession for the righteous
v1-2–Abraham sat in the tent door, Abraham was a wanderer in the land, he had no permanent home though he stayed in Mamre for a while. It was custom in those days and in that harsh environment that when travelers came by, one should offer them a place to stay and rest for a while.
v3-8 –Here we read of all that Abraham did for his visitors. It might have been custom for people to provide food and a place to rest for those that would come by but perhaps Abraham went above and beyond what people normally do, it would certainly fit his character.
Often times we forget about hospitality in our own life. We do not open our doors to friends often enough. In the book of Acts we read about the great hospitality and friendliness of folk to their Christian brethren. We read in places like Acts 2 of people selling what they had and giving the money to the brethren. This friendliness and closeness has since gone away. It is more characteristic of house churches and underground churches. In this country at least, we have forgotten hospitality. It should be something we get back to. For Bishops (Pastors), one of the qualifications is that he be given to hospitality (1 Timothy 3:2, Titus 1:8). But it is also something we all should have (Romans 12:13, 1 Peter 4:9). We do have our personal space that is true, but sometimes we have too much of it.
Notice that the guests dropped in unexpectedly. Often we dislike unexpected guests since we don’t have a time to clean and straighten up our homes, or we may have something that we shouldn’t have. Abraham didn’t allow the guests in his tent sure, but he was still pleased to have them and did fellowship with them outside. That might be something we could do, start using our yards, or a park again, or we can close the doors to our bedroom and just use family rooms. Abraham wasn’t so busy so as to be annoyed when guests came by, in fact, he was delighted and treated them well
We need to be given to hospitality, more friendly even. Everyone likes a friendly person, and everyone is having a rough time, so lets be more friendly and hospitable.
v12-Sarah laughed “inside herself” when she overheard that she would have a son.
v13-15 –now it is revealed that one of the persons who came to Abraham was the pre-incarnate Christ, the LORD. And He knew that Sarah laughed, even if just inside herself, not outloud. Often, our thinking of something is the same as our doing of it. Remember Jesus said in Matthew 5 that if one looks at a woman to lust after her, he already has committed adultery in his heart? (Matthew 5:27-28). So we need to be careful with our thoughts, here Sarah by her laugh inside herself showed her unbelief, but we also commit sins by what we think. Thinking and doing sometimes can be the same thing to God.
Also, the promise of a son is given twice.
“Is anything too hard for the LORD?” No, nothing is. God is a miracle working God. He doesn’t even need a man to create a child (think of Jesus’ birth) or even people (Luke 3:8). He has shown Himself true and right all throughout the Bible, doing many miracles. Absolutely nothing is too hard for Him. He divided the Red Sea, sent fire from heaven, made the sun stand still in the sky, made the sun go backwards, cured lepers, made the blind to see, raised the dead and brought salvation to men. Nothing is too hard for Him.
v17-19 –It seems here that God is “thinking” to Himself, or “speaking” to the others in the Trinity. God had a personal relationship with Abraham. He could tell him things, and Abraham told God things. These verses are also a great testimony of Abraham given by God Himself. God says that He knows that Abraham will command his children and house in the right way. So because of this, God decides to tell Abraham what His plans are for Sodom and Gomorrah.
All parents, especially fathers need to remember this. To teach children so that they keep the way of the LORD, and to do justice and judgment. Children look to their parents for direction and guidance, and parents are to be leading them in the right direction.
v20-21 –God “decides” to tell Abraham what He will do to Sodom and Gomorrah. They were exceedingly wicked cities” As we know, Sodom was a city full of homosexuals. Some people say that the city was destroyed because of things mentioned in Ezekiel 16:49 and not for homosexuality. Ezekiel 16:49 says “Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.” But what people who say that leave out is the next verse
Ezekiel 16:50 “And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.”
Sodom committed abomination against God, and all those things brought it to that place, more on that in the next chapter
Also we read in verse 21 that God would go down and see whether they really had done “according to the cry of it” God was being merciful and giving them a chance. He knew that they were doing it, but He was being a just judge. He didn’t need to go down there or send His angels there to see, but He did it, perhaps to show that He doesn’t make arbitrary judgments but that He makes sure of the facts, to give us reassurance that He truly sees what is happening. The greatest measure of love is time. God here says He would “take the time” to make sure what was being said was true, even though He already knew it was.
v22-the men (angels we find out in the next chapter) went to Sodom but God stayed to talk with Abraham.
v23- “Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?” Abraham asks God. Abraham was truly concerned for the people who lived there. Abraham did not question whether God had the right to destroy the city, because He does, He has created all for His pleasure (Revelation 4:11) and if we no longer please Him, He can do with us as He wishes. But He is also loving and does not wish any to perish but all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
v24-25 –”Shall not the Judge of the earth do right?” Of course He shall. And Abraham asks if He would destroy the righteous in the city along with the wicked, and he asks God if He would spare the city if there were 50 righteous people there. We can apply this also to the time right before the Great Tribulation period. God will not pour out His wrath on the world as read about in Revelation until the righteous are taken out of the world (as shown in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Noah being safe in the flood is another example of this.
God is the righteous judge
Abraham is pleading with God for those in Sodom. God and an intercessor have something special. Moses was one of the best well known intercessors; pleading that God not destroy Israel when He could have and was angry enough to do it. Jesus Christ is our intercessor, pleading our case before the Father, as well as on the earth when He said things like “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34). Many kings and priests in the OT interceeded with God for the people. Intercession. God wants intercessors (look at Ezekiel 22:30)
Ezekiel 22:30 “And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.”
v26-32 –In these verses Abraham pleads with God to spare the city, starting by asking God to spare it if 50 righteous were found there and then gradually moving down to 10. If 10 righteous people were found in Sodom then God would not destroy the city. In a few verses (v27, 31) we see that even though he is talking with God, He still does not forget his place, that he still is a person, and to even be able to plead with God is amazing. When we talk with God, let us not forget that even though God may hear, we cannot demand anything because we are still dust and ashes. We can ask in the will of God and have confidence that he will hear, but only if we ask in the will of God, when we know that it is what God wants.