Page images
PDF
EPUB

And God said- .

:

'Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou 'shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my 'covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.'

And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; and he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground, and said, 'My lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, 6 pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant: let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and ' rest yourselves under the tree and I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on for therefore are ye come to your servant.' And they said, 'So do, as thou hast said.' And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, 'Make ready ' quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make 'cakes upon the hearth.' And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it. And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

[ocr errors]

And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way. And the LORD said

[ocr errors]

Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; see'ing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be 'blessed in him? For I know him, that he will command ' his children and his household after him, and they shall B

[ocr errors]

keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which He 'hath spoken of him.'

And the LORD 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 they have done altogether according to 'the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will 'know.'

And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.

And Abraham drew near, and said, 'Wilt thou also de'stroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure there 'be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are 'therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked and that the 'righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: 'Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?' And the LORD said

[ocr errors]

If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then 'I will spare all the place for their sakes.'

And Abraham answered and said, 'Behold now, I have 'taken upon me to speak unto the LORD, which am but 'dust and ashes. Peradventure there shall lack five of 'the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack ' of five?' And HE said

If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.' And he spake unto HIM yet again, and said, 'Peradven'ture there shall be forty found there?' And HE said—

'I will not do it for forty's sake.'

And he said unto HIM, 'Oh let not the LORD be angry,

' and I will speak! Peradventure there shall thirty be 'found there?' And He said

'I will not do it, if I find thirty there.'

And he said, 'Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak 'unto the LORD. Peradventure there shall be twenty 'found there?' And HE said

'I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.'

And he said, 'Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will 'speak yet but this once!

'found there?'

Peradventure ten shall be

And He said

'I will not destroy it for ten's sake.'

And the LORD went his way, as soon as He had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.

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; and he said, 'Behold now, my lords, turn in, 6 I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways.' And they said, 'Nay; but we will abide in 'the street all night.' And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.

[ocr errors]

And the men said unto Lot, 'Hast thou here any be'sides? son-in-law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and ' whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this 'place for we will destroy this place, because the cry of 'them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and 'the LORD hath sent us to destroy it.' And Lot went out,

and spake unto his sons-in-law, and said, 'Up, get you out ' of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city.' But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons-in-law.

And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, 'Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, ' which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of 'the city.' And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, 'Escape for thy life; look 'not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape 'to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.' And Lot said unto them, 'Oh! not so: behold now, thy ser' vant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast mag'nified thy mercy, which thou hast showed unto me in 'saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, 'lest some evil take me, and I die: behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh! let me escape thither, and my soul shall live.' And he said unto him, 'See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which 'thou hast spoken. Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither.' Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.

[ocr errors]

6

[ocr errors]

Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire out of heaven; and HE overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the

set time of which GOD had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, being eight days old, as GOD had commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old

when his son Isaac was born unto him.

And it came to pass that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him

'Abraham:'

And he said, 'Behold, here I am.' And HE said

'Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou 'lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer 'him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the moun'tains which I will tell thee of.'

And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood, for the burnt-offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, 'Abide ye here with the ass; and I and 'the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.' And Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, 'Be'hold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a 'burnt-offering?' And Abraham said, 'My son, God will ' provide himself a lamb for a burnt-offering.'

And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand,

« PreviousContinue »