Genesis 18.

This chapter begins with the conjunction "And".

The events we are about to look at follow on very soon after what happened in the previous chapter. And what did we read about in the previous chapter. We read of the covenant of God with Abraham.

God had changed the name of Abram to Abraham ( from exalted father to father of a multitude, and God changed Sarai to Sarah. God had promised Abraham that God would cause Sarah to bear a son to Abraham in his old age.

Abraham was to call his son Isaac. What does Isaac mean?

"He laughs" ( that is what Abraham received for laughing at God. )

KJV Genesis 17:8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. 9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

As a sign and seal of this covenant between God and Abraham God requires that all males who come into Abraham's family whether by birth, or whether they are purchased to be Abraham's servants, all males who would be aligned with Abraham had to be circumcised.

Abraham does as he is told and all the males in his family and otherwise committed to him are brought under the covenant.

There is no choice here. If a man is committed to Abraham he is committed to the covenant. The whole household came under the covenant when the men were circumcised. We read of no objections. To be involved with Abraham is to be involved in the covenant of Abraham's God.

This is an important Biblical principal that is often not acknowledged.

If a father is committed to God he is required to have his family in all subjection to him, particularly if he is a leader of God's people ( 1 Timothy 3:4;

KJV 1 Timothy 3:4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;

5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)

KJV 1 Timothy 3:12 Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

Elders and deacons are to be examples to other fathers.

1 Peter 3:1-5; ) a Father is required to bring his children up in the nurture and understanding of God's way, God's Truth.

KJV Ephesians 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

He is required to teach his children God's law and his way.

KJV Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

The word of God is to be that by which Christian families live make decisions, the code that guides every part of their lives.

When there was gross sin in the Father then the iniquity was passed on to their children. E.g.

KJV Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,

KJV Exodus 34:7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

People today fail to see that link, that God puts on families to commit themselves to one another in covenant with God.

And fail to see that God places obligations on families under the Father.

If you worship God your children worship God. A father in his house should be able to say to his children, "We will now look at God's word," and everyone should knock off what they are doing and do so. There is a covenant obligation. As Abraham was faithful so should also all Godly fathers commit their families under God.

We should note the difference between Abraham and Lot. Lot mingled freely with unbelievers and paid the price. Abraham kept the contact pretty minimal.

I behoves Christian parents to see that their children do not mix with ungodly people on a regular basis.

KJV Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Let them be trained by ungodly teachers and they will tend to go the ungodly way. Rather it is important to give them Godly contacts and the teaching of God's word and keep them with you under God's covenant.

2 Corinthians 6 cannot be stressed too much:

KJV 2 Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Salvation is all of grace and God has chosen his own before the foundation of the world yet for those under God's covenant there will be an obedience. His plan is laid out whereby he calls families to obedience that they may serve Him:

9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

he will command his children and his household after him,

Abraham's household have committed themselves to the Covenant with Abraham.

As an obedient father who has met his covenant obligation Abraham sits in the door of his tent in the heat of the day. God

hw"hy> appears to this obedient man.

Abraham looks up and standing before him are three men.

The instant Abraham sees them he is on his feet and running to meet them and bowing before them.

"My lord, ( the word for "lord" used here is yn"doa]

)yn"doa] is sometimes used as a general word for

a master or lord but is also used of God. ) "My lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away from thy servant."

Note Abraham's hospitality here. How many of us have failed to entertain angels unawares?

KJV Hebrews 13:2 Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Let us be careful not to overlook the importance of hospitality.

On the day of judgement the Lord Jesus will say to some:

KJV Matthew 25:35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

and to others:

KJV Matthew 25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

KJV Matthew 25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

Whether Abraham recognised the Lord's presence first up is hard to say. I tend to think that Abraham would have naturally been a hospitable man and that as he moved out to these visitors in a natural way he may then have become aware that he was standing in the Lord's presence.

We note that Abraham offers a "morsel" of bread, yet he provides much more.

Nothing is spared. Here it is the hot part of the day, yet meat is prepared and bread, Sarah as old as she is, obeys Abraham and cooks in the heat of the day to feed these guests. A calf is killed to feed only three men.

Note only three cakes of bread are cooked. Presumably one for each guest.

Butter and Milk is also provided and Abraham stands while his guests eat. Apparently it is a Bedouin custom among some bedouin for the host to remain standing until his guests have finished their meal. Some people want to see the three men ~yvin"a]here as the three persons of the Trinity, but only one is referred to as the Lord and while the Lord stays to talk to Abraham the other two go off to Sodom, see verse 22 and also verse one of the next chapter. We need to be careful not to read into scripture things which are not stated.

Verse 9 the men ask "Where is your wife Sarah?" This is perhaps reminiscent of the Garden of Eden when God asks Adam "Where are you?" Likewise here God would know where Sarah was, but by mentioning her name he assures that she is listening.

Now the promise of a son to Abraham has a time for it's fulfilment.

"According to the time of life". Sarah will have a normal pregnancy in her old age and in nine months a son will be born.

Scripture emphasises again the ancient state of Abraham and Sarah.

We are looking at something here that under normal circumstances would be regarded as an impossibility. Like Abraham Sarah laughs, but not out loud. She laughs within herself. "After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord (the word

ynIdoaw: is used here.) being old also?" ( V 12.) Old

as she is however to her to have a child would be a pleasure.

What was their son's name to be? "He laughs". Both Abraham and Sarah have laughed. ( Genesis 17:17 )

KJV Genesis 17:17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?

But, hey, who has made this promise?

Here in Verse 14 is one of the great statements of Scripture.

"Is anything too hard for the Lord?" ( hw"hy> )

Let us remind our selves frequently of this statement. Far too many Christians go around lamenting "how bad things are" and by focussing on the difficulties and the seeming impossibilities they fail to see how great God is.

God speaks to Abraham. Abraham is Sarah's head and God addresses Abraham. "Wherefore did Sarah Laugh?"

Had Abraham failed to tell Sarah about the son to be born? If he had told her then it multiplies the problem because if she knows about it and still laughs faith is not yet active. If Abraham hasn't told her perhaps there is a rebuke there.

Then Sarah lies to try and save face. She has been caught out and the natural sinful desire is to deny she laughed.

Note, she has not laughed out loud, yet God knew that she laughed. We cannot hide our thoughts or emotions from God he sees and hears all.

"Nay, but you didst laugh."

Caught out and no doubt embarrassed, she will not easily forget that she laughed at the all knowing all seeing Almighty God.

Sarah is left to ponder God's promise, how she had laughed and lied about her laughing. When God pinpoints something in your life you do not easily forget your encounter with Him.

Abraham politely rises with his guests and joins them on the first part of their journey toward Sodom.

Then comes this moving statement, God speaking says, "Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do;

KJV Genesis 18:18 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?

God did not have to tell Abraham anything. He could have just gone ahead and dealt with Sodom.

But God will speak to Abraham of what he is to do.

I am reminded That God calls Abraham his friend.

KJV James 2:23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

KJV Isaiah 41:8 But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

Likewise Jesus calls those whom he has chosen his friends.

KJV John 15:15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

But does God tell Abraham because he is his friend?

I believe there are a number of issues here.

1. God has chosen Abraham by grace and God is working out His purposes through him. God is building this man and what Abraham is to be because of God working through him, God declares.

KJV Genesis 18:19 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.

Note again his command of his children and his household, even those who come after him. And why? Because they come into the covenant and the reason why this command is there and his family and retainers come under God's covenant is so that God's purposes will be worked out.

Note that God initiates in Abraham this concern for Sodom. Unless God had breached the subject Abraham would not have known what was ahead.

Are we aware of what God is initiating in our own lives?

2. God is awakening in Abraham his sense of Justice. God is here helping Abraham to see things, as best as a man can, from God's point of view.

There is a time when judgement must fall.

3. Abraham has an interest in Sodom because his nephew Lot is there.

The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah has come up before God. ( V 20 ) God must act. Abraham must think about the case of Lot in this situation.

We must not think from verse 21 that God did not know the real situation of Sodom. God is God and knows all things, sees all things hears all things. We have just seen his awareness of Sarah laughing within herself. Way back in chapter 13 we had this statement:

KJV Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

So this final visitation from God is rather as it were the city coming to trial before God His final judgement will fall.

God knows how Abraham feels toward family and it is gracious of God to give Abraham the opportunity to work through what is involved when men who claim some sort of commitment to God make the choice of having close links with ungodly people. More of that next time.

The two men with God head off to Sodom but God remains with Abraham.

Abraham draws near to God. Some think the word hear for drawing near vG:nI

could mean that Abraham drew near in worship. Whether there is enough evidence that the word can be used in that sense can be used in that way is doubtful, except to say that anyone who draws near to God can hardly not worship.

Abraham with his concern for Lot cautiously and reverently seeks to find the line of God's mercy.

If there are 50 righteous within the city will the city be destroyed?

Surely God you will not slay the righteous with the wicked?

God assures him about the fifty.

Verse 27 shows how much Abraham is experiencing the awesomeness of being in God's presence. How much he is humbled by this experience.

Forty five righteous? God will not destroy the city.

Forty righteous? God will not destroy the city.

By this stage Abraham is really feeling the presence of God and so he is almost frightened to ask. " Oh let not the Lord be angry."

Thirty? No.

Twenty No.

Ten? No.

At this point God takes the initiative and moves away.

Abraham does not ask about 4, Lot his wife and his two daughters.

The answer to that comes in the next chapter.