Yahweh
said, “Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is
very grievous, I will go down now, and see whether their deeds are as bad
as the reports which have come to me. If not, I will know.”
The
men turned from there, and went toward Sodom, but Abraham stood yet before
Yahweh. Abraham came near, and said, “Will you consume the righteous with
the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous within the city? Will you
consume and not spare the place for the fifty righteous who are in it? May
it be 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?”
Yahweh
said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare
the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered, “See now, I have taken
it on myself to speak to the Lord, although I am dust and ashes. What if
there will lack five of the fifty righteous? Will you destroy all the city for
lack of five?”
Yahweh
said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
Abraham
spoke to him yet again, and said, “What if there are forty found there?”
Yahweh
said, “I will not do it for the forty’s sake.”
Abraham
said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak. What if there are
thirty found there?”
Yahweh
said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
Abraham
said, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Lord. What if there
are twenty found there?”
Yahweh
said, “I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.”
Abraham
said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak just once more. What if
ten are found there?”
Yahweh
said, “I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.”
Yahweh
went his way as soon as he had finished communing with Abraham, and Abraham
returned to his place.
Genesis 18:20-33
The
story of Sodom and Gomorrah is often assumed to be about a wrathful God
punishing bad behavior. But the story
really isn’t about that at all. The vast
majority of the text consists of an extraordinary discussion between Abraham
and God in which Abraham ask God if He will spare the city if just a few
innocent people can be found there. God’s
answer is inevitably, “yes.”
In
the Biblical narrative, it sometimes seems like God’s concern is with the Israelites
as a group rather than with each individual.
And in our lives, it is easy to feel very small and insignificant – one person
in a world of billions. We might ask, “does
God take notice of me?” The story of Sodom and the discussion between
Abraham and God reveals that God does not love groups; He loves each of us as His
unique creation and takes notice of each one of us as though we are the center
of His universe.
Jesus
said something similar in the Gospel of Matthew:
Aren’t two sparrows sold for an Assarion
coin? Not one of them falls on the ground apart from your Father’s notice, but
the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore, don’t be afraid.
You are of more value than many sparrows.
Matthew 10:29-33
