1. יהוה  appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day.

2. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,

3. And said, “My lord, if now I have found favor in your sight, please don’t go away from your servant.

4. Now let a little water be fetched, wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.

5. I will get a morsel of bread so you can refresh your heart. After that you may go your way, now that you have come to your servant.” They said, “Very well, do as you have said.”

6. Abraham  hurried into the tent to  Sarah , and said, “Quickly make ready three measures of fine meal, mix it, and make cakes.”

7. Abraham  ran to the herd, and fetched a tender and good calf, and gave it to the servant. He hurried to dress it.

8. He took butter, milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them. He stood by them under the tree, and they ate.

9. They said to him, “Where is  Sarah , your wife? He said, “See, in the tent.”

10. He said, “I will certainly return to you when the season comes round. Behold,  Sarah , your wife will have a son.”  Sarah  heard in the tent door, which was behind him.

11. Now  Abraham and  Sarah  were old, well advanced in age. It had ceased to be with  Sarah  after the manner of women.

12.  Sarah  laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old will I have pleasure, my lord being old also?”

13. יהוה  said to Abraham , “Why did  Sarah  laugh, saying, ‘Will I really bear a child, yet I am old?’

14. Is anything too hard for יהוה ? At the set time I will return to you, when the season comes round, and  Sarah  will have a son.”

15. Then  Sarah  denied, saying, “I didn’t laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”

16. The men rose up from there, and looked toward Sodom. Abraham  went with them to see them on their way.

17. יהוה  said, “Will I hide from Abraham  that which I do,

18. Seeing that Abraham  has surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed in him?

19. For I have known him, to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of יהוה , to do righteousness and justice; to the end that  יהוה  may bring on Abraham  that which he has spoken of him.”

20. יהוה  said, “Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous,

21. I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it,  which has come to me. If not, I will know.”

22. The men turned from there, and went toward Sodom, but Abraham  stood yet before יהוה .

23. Abraham  drew near, and said, “Will you consume the righteous with the wicked?

24. What if there are fifty righteous within the city? Will you consume and not spare the place for the fifty righteous who are therein?

25. Be it far from you to do things like that, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that be far from you. Shouldn’t the Judge of all the earth do right?”

26. יהוה  said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sake.”

27. Abraham  answered, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Lord, who am but dust and ashes.

28. What if there will lack five of the fifty righteous? Will you destroy all the city for lack of five?”  He said, “I will not destroy it, if I find forty-five there.”

29. He spoke to him yet again, and said, “What if there are forty found there?” He said, “I will not do it for the forty’s sake.”

30. He said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak. What if there are found thirty  there?”  He said, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.”

31. He said, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Lord. What if there are twenty found there?” He said, “I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.”

32. He said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this  once. What if ten are found there?” He said, “I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.”

33. יהוה  went his way, as soon as he had finished communing with Abraham , and Abraham  returned to his place.

Chapter 19

1. 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,

2. And he said, “See now, my lords, please turn aside into your servant’s house, stay all night, wash your feet, and you will rise up early, and go on your way.” They said, “No, but we will stay in the street all night.”

3. He urged them greatly, and they came in with him, and entered into his house. He made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.

4. But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter.

5. They called to Lot , and said to him, “Where are the men who came in to you this night? Bring them out to us, that we may have sex with them.”

6. Lot  went out to them to the door, and shut the door after him.

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

8. See now, I have two virgin daughters. Please let me bring them out to you, and do you  to them as is good in your eyes. Only don’t do anything to these men, because they have come under the shadow of my roof.”

9. They said, “Stand back!” They said, “This fellow came in to live as a foreigner, and he appoints himself a judge. Now will we deal worse with you, than with them!” They pressed hard on the man even Lot , and drew near to break the door.

10. But the men put forth their hand, and brought Lot  into the house to them, and shut the door.

11. They struck the men who were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the door.

12. The men said to Lot , “Do you have anybody else here? Sons-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whoever you have in the city, bring them out of the place:

13. For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them has grown great before יהוה .  יהוה  has sent us to destroy it.”

14. Lot  went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up! Get out of this place, for יהוה  will destroy the city.”  But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be joking.

15. When the morning arose, then the angels hurried Lot , saying, “Arise! Take your wife, and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.”

16. But he lingered; and the men laid hold on his hand, and on the hand of his wife, and on the hand of his two daughters’ , יהוה  being merciful to him; and they took him out, and set him outside of the city.

17. It came to pass, when they had taken them out, that he said, “Escape for your life! Don’t look behind you, neither stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be consumed!”

18. Lot  said to them, “Oh, not so, my lord.

19. See now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your loving kindness, which you have shown to me in saving my life. I can’t escape to the mountain, lest evil overtake me, and I die.

20. See now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh let me escape there (isn’t it a little one?), and my soul will live.”

21. He said to him, “Behold, I have granted your request concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken.

22. Hurry, escape there, for I can’t do anything until you get there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.

23. The sun was risen on the earth when Lot  came to Zoar.

24. Then יהוה  rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from יהוה  out of the sky.

25. He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground.

26. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

27. Abraham  got up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before יהוה .

28. He looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and looked, and saw that the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.

29. It happened, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham , and sent Lot  out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot  lived.

30. Lot  went up out of Zoar, and lived in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he was afraid to live in Zoar. He lived in a cave with his two daughters.

31. The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth.

32. Come, let’s make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s seed.”

33. They made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father. He didn’t know when she lay down, nor when she arose.

34. It came to pass on the next day, that the firstborn said to the younger, “Behold, I lay last night with my father. Let us make him drink wine again, tonight. You go in, and lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s seed.”

35. They made their father drink wine that night also. The younger arose and lay with him. He didn’t know when she lay down, nor when she got up.

36. Thus both of Lot  daughters were with child by their father.

37. The firstborn bore a son, and named him Moab . The same is the father of the Moabites to this day.

38. The younger also bore a son, and called his name Ben Ammi . The same is the father of the children of Ammon to this day.

Chapter 20

1. Abraham  traveled from there toward the land of the South, and lived between Kadesh and Shur. He lived as a foreigner in Gerar.

2. Abraham  said about  Sarah  his wife, “She is my sister.” Abimelech , king of Gerar, sent and took  Sarah .

3. But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man, because of the woman whom you have taken. For she is a man’s wife.”

4. Now Abimelech had not come near her. He said, “Lord, will you kill even a righteous nation?

5. Didn’t he tell me, ‘She is my sister?’ She, even she herself, said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands have I done this.”

6. God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also withheld you from sinning against me. Therefore I didn’t allow you to touch her.

7. Now therefore, restore the man’s wife. For he is a prophet, and he will pray for you, and you will live. If you don’t restore her, know for sure that you will die, you, and all who are yours.”

8. Abimelech  rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ear. The men were very scared.

9. Then Abimelech called Abraham , and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done!”

10. Abimelech  said to Abraham , “What did you see, that you have done this thing?”

11. Abraham  said, “Because I thought, ‘Surely the fear of God is not in this place. They will kill me for my wife’s sake.’

12. Moreover, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

13. It happened, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is your kindness which you shall show to me. Everywhere that we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”

14. Abimelech  took sheep and oxen, male servants and womale servants, and gave them to Abraham , and restored  Sarah , his wife, to him.

15. Abimelech  said, “Behold, my land is before you. Dwell where it pleases you.”

16. To  Sarah  he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver. Behold, it is for you a covering of the eyes to all that are with you. In front of all you are vindicated.”

17. Abraham  prayed to God. God healed Abimelech , and his wife, and his maid servants, and they bore children.

18. For  יהוה had closed up tight all the wombs of the house of Abimelech , because of  Sarah , Abraham ’s wife.

Chapter 21

1. יהוה  visited  Sarah  as he had said, and יהוה  did to  Sarah  as he had spoken.

2.  Sarah  conceived, and bore Abraham  a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

3. Abraham  called his son who was born to him, whom  Sarah  bore to him, Isaac .

4. Abraham  circumcised his son, Isaac , when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.

5. Abraham  was one hundred years old when his son, Isaac , was born to him.

6.  Sarah  said, “God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears will laugh with me.”

7. She said, “Who would have said to Abraham , that  Sarah  would nurse children? For I have born him a son in his old age.”

8. The child grew, and was weaned. Abraham  made a great feast on the day that Isaac  was weaned.

9.  Sarah  saw the son of Hagar , the Egyptian, whom she had born to Abraham , mocking.

10. Therefore she said to Abraham , “Cast out this handmaid and her son! For the son of this handmaid will not be heir with my son, even with Isaac .”

11. The thing was very grievous in Abraham  sight on account of his son.

12. God said to Abraham , “Don’t let it be grievous in your sight because of the boy, and because of your handmaid. In all that  Sarah  says to you, listen to her voice. For from Isaac  will your seed be called.

13. Also of the son of the handmaid, I will make a nation, because he is your seed.”

14. Abraham  rose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar , putting it on her shoulder; and gave her the child, and sent her away. She departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

15. The water in the bottle was spent, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

16. She went and sat down opposite him, a good way off, about a bow shot away. For she said, “Don’t let me see the death of the child.” She sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.