For the Genesis 18:26-33 PODCAST, Click Here!
26 So the Lord said, "If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes." 27 Then Abraham answered and said, "Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: 28 Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?" So He said, "If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it." 29 And he spoke to Him yet again and said, "Suppose there should be forty found there?" So He said, "I will not do it for the sake of forty." 30 Then he said, "Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?" So He said, "I will not do it if I find thirty there." 31 And he said, "Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?" So He said, "I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty." 32 Then he said, "Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?" And He said, "I will not destroy it for the sake of ten." 33 So the Lord went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place. ~ Genesis 18:26-33
Today, we close out our study of Genesis 18 where we find Abraham engaged in a conversation with the unnamed Lord Jesus Christ. As we mentioned previously, this One has many of the characteristics of God. This is why I conclude that it is the Lord Jesus in His pre-incarnate condition.
As we enter back into Genesis 18, we come to this conversation that Abraham had begun with God. Abraham had asked if there were 50 righteous people in Sodom, would God refrain from destroying it. In today's passage, God responds to Abraham's question with a readied heart for gracious action. But, as we will see, there weren't 50 righteous people living in Sodom.
When we are engaged in a conversation with God, we call it prayer. Elisabeth Elliot once said, "Prayer lays hold of God's plan and becomes the link between his will and its accomplishment on earth. Amazing things happen, and we are given the privilege of being the channels of the Holy Spirit's prayer." Some feel that prayer is crawling out on a limb and then begging God to keep someone from sawing the limb off. That is not prayer, that is presumption upon God. If God makes it clear that He wants any of us out on a limb, we will be perfectly safe there. If not, it is presumptuous of us to crawl out on a limb, expecting God to save us from there.
As is illustrated in today's passage, prayer is a conversation with God to which He always responds. Because of this, prayer is the most important thing we can do in a single day. Every one of us who is a saved believer in the Lord Jesus Christ has the responsibility before God to pray on the behalf of others around us. Abraham exercised his responsibility by petitioning the Lord on the behalf of others. As Corrie Ten Boom once pointed out, "Prayer will be either our steering wheel or our spare tire."
The Lord is the Judge of all the earth and when He judges it is in absolute righteousness. The Bible proclaims that despite being a loving Creator, which He is, God is also holy and will not look favorably upon the sins of the people who violate God's perfect nature. By coming to Abraham before going to Sodom, the account is placed in the Bible chronologically and it allows us to understand more clearly the somewhat confusing things which lie ahead.
In v.26-28 of today's passage we read, "So the Lord said, 'If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.' 27 Then Abraham answered and said, 'Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: 28 Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?' So He said, 'If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.'"
Abraham knew the wickedness of the people in Sodom. Sodom was morally bankrupt. However, Lot had moved there and he was a follower of the one true God. He had a large camp with many employees. We know according to 2 Peter that Lot was a righteous man. So, he obviously wasn’t only a follower of the Lord, but also one who shared the good news about Him with those around him. Perhaps, Abraham thought to himself, "Lot surely has convinced 49 people about the path of righteousness."
When Abraham spoke with God, he included the idea that he was but dust and ashes. Dust and ashes is a reference to two concepts about the human being. First that we came from the dust when the Lord created us. Second, that we are ashes, we are beings deserving of the judgment of fire in the presence of pure holiness. From dust we came and to ashes we deserve to go. Abraham had been around Lot enough to know that he might not have told others about the Lord. As a result, Abraham lowered his number.
In v.29 of today's passage we read, "And he spoke to Him yet again and said, 'Suppose there should be forty found there?' So He said, 'I will not do it for the sake of forty.'"
Abraham thought it through again and concluded that maybe Lot had not shared with as many as he first thought. So, Abraham reduced the number to 40. Over and over, as Abraham conversed with God, he appealed to His mercy. Abraham was not trying to shame God into doing the right thing by appealing to His self-respect. God does not need anyone to remind him to do the right thing. Rather, Abraham based his appeal on his knowledge of God's nature. He knew God would never destroy the righteous with the wicked. So, Abraham took it a step further and asked God to spare the wicked for the sake of the righteous. What a biblical concept that was consummated at the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Abraham never asked God to spare Lot and his family, but out of compassion for the wicked, he appealed to God to save the whole city for the sake of Lot and his family. Abraham appealed to God like this because when anyone comes into a personal relationship with God, God always makes it a point to give to us His heart for those who have not a personal relationship with Him.
In v.32-33 of today's passage we read, "32 Then he said, 'Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.' 33 So the Lord went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place."
After all of his cajoling, Abraham was left with the family of Lot in Sodom. As it was in the days of Noah, no one else was interested in being defined by the God of the truth. Six times Abraham pleaded with the Lord and at the end of the day, Abraham had no other choice but to trust that the Lord would do what was right and just. We can pray for the lost and we can plead with them all the day long, but, we cannot believe for them. God knows even the condition of the hearts of those who just will not receive His free gift of forgiveness. Billy Graham once gave us great piece of advice with this quote that I end with today.
"I firmly believe God continues to answer the prayers of His people even after He has taken them to heaven. Never forget that God isn’t bound by time the way we are. We see only the present moment; God sees everything. We see only part of what He is doing; He sees it all."
