Bible Strands
Genesis 18:24
What if there are fifty righteous ones in the city? Will You really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous ones who are there?
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Abraham addresses God, stepping forward after his opening question about the righteous and the wicked. He poses a conditional inquiry regarding the impending destruction of Sodom.
The words — The Hebrew adverb אוּלַי (ʾûlay) renders literally as "perhaps" or "what if," framing a hypothetical condition. The verb תִסְפֶּה (tispeh) means "will you sweep away," directly questioning whether the judgment will be total.
The thread — The text explicitly notes the possibility of a righteous remnant sparing a city, a pattern repeated in Isaiah 1:9 where survivors prevent total ruin and Jeremiah 5:1 where God commands a search for a single just person. Abraham later tests this principle further in Genesis 18:32 by proposing a threshold of ten.
Why it lands — The verse records a direct challenge to divine action, asking whether the presence of fifty righteous individuals will halt the sweeping destruction. It requires the reader to evaluate how collective righteousness functions as a boundary against total judgment.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
Cross-references
- Isaiah 1:9 Unless the LORD of Hosts had left us a few survivors, we would have become like Sodom, we would have resembled Gomorrah.
- Jeremiah 5:1 “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem. Look now and take note; search her squares. If you can find a single person, anyone who acts justly, anyone who seeks the truth, then I will forgive the city.
- Genesis 18:32 Finally, Abraham said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak once more. Suppose ten are found there?” And He answered, “On account of the ten, I will not destroy it.”
- Matthew 7:13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
- Acts 27:24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And look, God has granted you the lives of all who sail with you.’