City Life Starter

Written by Nate Warren

The Word

22 So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. 23 Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” 26 And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

27 Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 28 Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” 29 Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30 Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31 He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32 Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” 33 And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Genesis 18:22-33 (ESV)

And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Luke 23:34

Reflection

If you are a bit stumped on the purpose and meaning of this story, then you’re in good company. That’s the point. This passage (and so many others) has been contemplated for millenia, and of course hotly debated due to its paradoxical themes. 

Abraham is surely concerned for his nephew, Lot. Remember, just a few chapters ago Abraham went to war to save Sodom from its enemy in order to rescue Lot and his household. Now instead of contending with an army, He is contending with God Himself for the sake of Lot. Abraham clearly believes what Yahweh pretends not to know – that Sodom is a city full of evil and that the majority of its inhabitants deserve whatever calamity they have coming. Abraham whittles down the number of righteous people, from 50, 45, 40, 30, 20, and finally to 10. Yahweh shockingly accepts His intersession on every count.

The passage ends with an awkward silence. Why does Abraham stop? Was it His satisfaction that Yahweh would not condemn the righteous? Does he run out of nerve to test Yahweh’s just resolve? His mercy?

These are excellent questions that are dramatically left unanswered.

In Exodus 32, Yahweh declares His intention to wipe out the Israelites for their betrayal and idolatry, but Moses reminds Yahweh of His character and offers his own life as an “atonement” for the people. Yahweh relents, accepting Moses’ contention on their behalf.

Conversely, when Jonah is commanded to preach to the Ninevites, instead of contending with Yahweh for their lives, he complains about God’s mercy and tries everything he can to ensure their destruction. Instead of illustrating the motif of Abraham and Moses, he highlights it by doing the exact opposite: he contends against the character of God that he knows is merciful.

We follow this pattern all the way to the cross. When the leaders of Israel hand Jesus over to the nations to be killed on a cross, Jesus contends with His Father, the righteous and merciful judge, saying, “Forgive them, they don’t know what they’re doing.” 

When we see this riddle in light of the whole story of God, we see Yahweh testing Abraham, revealing the intentions and character of both. Ultimately, Jesus, Yahweh-in-the-flesh will go all the way to illustrate His commitment to justice and His loving mercy. This story shows exactly how far Abraham is willing to contend for the life of the evil city of Sodom (and his foolish nephew). It highlights the shocking lengths that Jesus went to personally contend with humanity’s rebellion. Jesus is the Righteous one that becomes the atoning substitute for evil humanity. 

Application

When we find ourselves with more questions than answers when reading a passage of scripture, we step into the nature of the deep wisdom of God’s Word. The point of this is to draw us into a relationship with God through His Word as Teacher, Father, and Lord; His partners in achieving His wonderful purposes in us and the world. There is more to uncover. We need to go back again and again to learn more and more of the deep mysteries of God’s greatness and goodness.

This paradoxical mystery in this story is a feature that can leave us in awe of the God whose mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2:13). Yahweh shows His careful attention to Abraham’s perception of his nature, offering an opportunity to learn of His merciful character in the context of bringing judgment to injustice.

How do you contend for those who still stand in judgment for sin? Jesus has paid the price, but He still relies on those who have fallen on His mercy to offer themselves as ‘martyrs’ (the Greek origin of ‘martyr’ means ‘witness’) who will bring the good news of Him to the world. May we be willing to offer our lives as a living sacrifice, to contend with God and man for the sake of reconciliation through Jesus.

Prayer

Father,
Thank you, that Jesus has contended on my behalf, forgiving me for my rebellion and offering me new life in Your Kingdom. Help me to contend on Your behalf to the world, praying for them and testifying of Your goodness, so that they may know of Your love and wonderful plan.

Amen