Abraham's Heart..and..God's Wrath

Genesis

Chapter 18

Before Destruction
   ... God Visits
       ... the Righteous

v.1

"And the LORD 

appeared unto him 

[Abraham]

in the plains
of Mamre: 

and he sat
in the tent door 

in the heat
of the day; ..."

"Mamre"
[H4471]
= place of nourishment

= for "strength".. vigour

Abraham was sitting in a place of "strength" in the plains of "Mamre"

... positioned in spiritual ... as well as physical ... strength.

It was not his own strength that had brought him to Mamre.

... It was all God's doing ... for we are told in Hebrews 11:8 ... that Abraham was a man of faith 

... He had been thoroughly nourished by the Word of God.

Therefore ... we can also assume that it was not uncommon for Abraham to commune with God in his tent ... in the heat of the day.

... HOWEVER ... there was something very different about this particular "visit" with the Lord ... on this particular day.

v.2

"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, ..."

Interesting ... Abraham is visited by "three" men ... reminding us of the Godhead

...then bowing and referring to this Visitor(s) addressing (T)Him as, "My Lord." 

v.3

"And said, My Lord, 

if now I have found 

favour in thy sight, 

pass not away,

I pray thee, 

from thy servant:

v.4

Let a little water,
I pray you, 

be fetched, 

and
wash your feet, 

and
rest yourselves 

under the tree:
v.5

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."

Abraham is definitely being blessed by this visit.

... He begs his Lord to ... please stay ... offers to provide Him with some water to wash His feet ... inviting Him to rest under his tree

... offering to bring a little bit of bread ... so they can find comfort and be refreshed from their journey.

But ... then ... Abraham's next remark reveals some presumption

... He presumes that the entire purpose of their visit is to find comfort and refreshment

...or... is Abraham actually ... very politely asking them if there could be more to this visit?

... a visit that already holds a very unusual blessing.

If these visitors have more on their mind at this point ... they aren't telling.

... So Abraham just continues serving them ... content with being blessed with their company and their willingness to stay.

In any case ... Abraham's "morsel of bread" ... suddenly turns into a huge banquet

...perhaps another maneuver to enjoy their presence and fellowship a little longer.

v.6

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.
v.7

And
Abraham ran
unto the herd, 

and 
fetcht a calf

tender and good, 

and
gave it unto
a young man; 

and
he hasted to dress it.
v.8

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."

Abraham has just spent a lot of time and effort to make his Visitors/Lord welcome in his home.

... Will he be rewarded with some vital information now?

... We will see.

* * * * *
God Informs
   ... Righteous Servants

v.16

And
the men rose up
from thence, 
and

looked toward Sodom,

and
Abraham
went with them 

to bring them
on the way.

When the men/"his Lord" rose up to head toward Sodom ... Abraham walked with them.

Abraham proved to be a worthy servant.

Apparently his joy in serving his Lord ... gave him the privilege of walking with them.

Maybe Abraham thought he was showing them the way 

... but if this "Visitor" is ... Who we think He is ... They surely could have found Sodom on their own

... In fact ... when the men "rose up"... they were already looking "toward Sodom."

v.17

And
the LORD said, 

Shall I hide from Abraham 

that thing
which I do; 

The Lord considers whether to reveal His plans to Abraham ... or to hide this information from him.

In making this consideration ... the Lord takes a close look at the character of Abraham

... and reviews all of the plans He has made for Him: 

v.18

Seeing that Abraham 

shall surely become 

a great
and
mighty nation, 

and
all the nations
of the earth 

shall be
blessed in him?

(1)..The Lord has big plans for Abraham

... He intends that all the nations of the earth will be blessed in him.  

These plans seem to be a directly linked

... determining factor

... regarding the type of information the Lord will entrust to Abraham.

v.19

For I know him, 

that he will command 

his children 

and 

his household
after him, 

and 

they shall 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.

"justice"
[H6666]

= right

= morally virtuous

[H6663]

= just

= clear .. cleanse

"judgment"
[H4941]

= right in legal sense

= lawful

= proper

[H8199]

= judge .. legal
   .. right and wrong

(2)..The Lord already knows everything about Abraham.

He knows that Abraham will make certain his family keeps the "way"... Word of the Lord

...and that they will do what is ..."justice" and "judgment"... according to the will of the Lord. 

... Abraham will be faithful in commanding ... and instructing his family

... so they will do what is morally clean ... right 
... proper ... and lawful before God.

God is thee Preeminent God ... His hallmark is to reveal to His servants ... the events that will take place in the future.  

He does not give this important information to everyone.

... only to the servants He can trust to obey His will

... servants like the Apostle John ... who was called to share end time information with the other trustworthy servants of God:

The Revelation
of
Jesus Christ,

which God gave
unto him, 

to shew
unto his servants 

things
which must 

shortly 
come to pass; 

and
he sent and signified it 

by
his angel 

unto
his servant John:  

-Rev.1:1

Now I tell you 

before it come, 

that, 

when it is
come to pass, 

ye may believe 

that I am he.  

-John 13:19

God Warns
   ... the Righteous 
       ... of Wrath
           ... to Come

v.20

And
the LORD said, 

Because
the cry of 
Sodom

and
Gomorrah
is great, 

and because 

their sin
is very grievous;

"Cry"
[H2201]

= outcry .. clamour

"grievous"
[H3513]

= heavy .. burdensome

Something is very wrong in Sodom and Gomorrah.

The sounds coming out of these places are not normal.

Perhaps they are very vexing sounds of misery ... the sounds of extremely dark places ... so deeply burdened with sin ... they have become void of the knowledge and love of God

...and are now only able to experience the pain and suffering that accompanies the final stages of man's deadly spiritual disease

... called "sin." 

While men build towers to achieve powers ... in reality ... they are spiraling downward on the wide road that leads to destruction.

The only direction they are going is backwards ... de-volving

...such is the nature of sin 

... It is an increasingly eroding process ... that ends in personal death

... as well as the death of a civilization.

At this point ... a loving God must step in to stop the cancer of sin from totally destroying all He has created ... and intended to use ... to bless mankind.

v.21

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.

The Lord confirms the reason for His visit.

God has come to evaluate the situation

... and ... in doing so

...has chosen Abraham to be a witness for humanity.

God Willing
   ... to Extend Mercy 

       ... on Behalf
           ... of the Righteous

v.22

And the men 

turned their faces
from thence, 
and

went toward Sodom: 

but
Abraham stood yet 

before the LORD.

Here is a mystery ... How can the "men"/"Lord" go toward Sodom and yet the "Lord" remain behind with Abraham?"

Simple answer ... God can do anything ... He certainly is able to be in many places at the same time.

v.23

And
Abraham drew near, 

and said, 

Wilt thou also
destroy the righteous 

with the wicked?

The Spirit of God stayed with Abraham ... knowing he was being called to be an advocate for the righteous

.. and ..

for the purpose of establishing the fact that

... it is not in God's nature

... to pour out His wrath on the righteous 

..or..

include them in the punishment of the wicked.

Abraham begins to bargain with the Lord:

v.24

Peradventure 

there be fifty righteous 

within the city: 

wilt thou also destroy 

and
not spare the place 

for the fifty righteous 

that are therein?
v.25

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?

God is clearly using Abraham's discourse to establish the workings of God's heart for the record

... validating His great mercy and perfect justice.

Abraham is a man of faith ... he has walked with God ... he has experienced God's personal involvement in his own life.

He knows that God is consistent with His own Word and nature

... Therefore ... Abraham has confidence in knowing that it is "far from thee"

... totally outside of God's nature

...to include the righteous with the wicked

... when He pours out His wrath.

So Abraham continues to bargain for the lives of the righteous ... to the point of exhaustion:

v.26

And
the LORD said, 

If I find in Sodom 

fifty righteous 

within the city, 

then I will spare 

all the place 

for their sakes.
v.27

And
Abraham answered
and said, 

Behold now, 

I have taken upon me 

to speak unto the Lord, 

which am but 

dust and ashes:
v.28

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.
v.29

And he spake 

unto him yet again, 

and said, 

Peradventure 

there shall be forty 

found there. 

And he said, 

I will not do it 

for forty's sake.
v.30

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.
v.31

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.
v.32

And he said, 

Oh let not 

the Lord be angry, 

and I will speak 

yet but this once: 

Peradventure 

ten shall be 

found there. 

And he said, 

I will not destroy it 

for ten's sake.

v.33

And the LORD
went his way, 

as soon as 

he had left communing 

with Abraham: 

and Abraham 

returned unto his place.

... HOWEVER ... while the Lord could not find ten righteous

... And symbolically ... God's limit had been reached.

... NEVERTHELESS ... God remained consistent with His Word and nature

... and did not pour out His wrath on even three righteous. 

... BUT ... instead 

... REMOVED them
... BEFORE destruction.

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