18:29 Abraham 3 spoke to him again, 4 “What if forty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”
18:30 Then Abraham 5 said, “May the Lord not be angry 6 so that I may speak! 7 What if thirty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
18:31 Abraham 8 said, “Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
18:32 Finally Abraham 9 said, “May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak just once more. What if ten are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”
18:33 The Lord went on his way 10 when he had finished speaking 11 to Abraham. Then Abraham returned home. 12
1 tn The Hebrew verb שָׁחַת (shakhat, “to destroy”) was used earlier to describe the effect of the flood.
2 tn Heb “because of five.”
3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 tn The construction is a verbal hendiadys – the preterite (“he added”) is combined with an adverb “yet” and an infinitive “to speak.”
5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “let it not be hot to the
7 tn After the jussive, the cohortative indicates purpose/result.
8 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
9 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10 tn Heb “And the
11 tn The infinitive construct (“speaking”) serves as the direct object of the verb “finished.”
12 tn Heb “to his place.”