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