Genesis 19:21-25

19:21 “Very well,” he replied, ¹  “I will grant this request too ²  and will not overthrow ³  the town you mentioned. 19:22 Run there quickly, ⁴  for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” (This incident explains why the town was called Zoar.) ⁵ 

19:23 The sun had just risen ⁶  over the land as Lot reached Zoar. ⁷  19:24 Then the Lord rained down ⁸  sulfur and fire ⁹  on Sodom and Gomorrah. It was sent down from the sky by the Lord. ¹⁰  19:25 So he overthrew those cities and all that region, ¹¹  including all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation that grew ¹²  from the ground.

[19:21]  ¹ tn Heb “And he said, ‘Look, I will grant.’” The order of the clauses has been rearranged for stylistic reasons. The referent of the speaker (“he”) is somewhat ambiguous: It could be taken as the angel to whom Lot has been speaking (so NLT; note the singular references in vv. 18-19), or it could be that Lot is speaking directly to the Lord here. Most English translations leave the referent of the pronoun unspecified and maintain the ambiguity.

[19:21]  ² tn Heb “I have lifted up your face [i.e., shown you favor] also concerning this matter.”

[19:21]  ³ tn The negated infinitive construct indicates either the consequence of God’s granting the request (“I have granted this request, so that I will not”) or the manner in which he will grant it (“I have granted your request by not destroying”).

[19:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “Be quick! Escape to there!” The two imperatives form a verbal hendiadys, the first becoming adverbial.

[19:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “Therefore the name of the city is called Zoar.” The name of the place, צוֹעַר (tso’ar) apparently means “Little Place,” in light of the wordplay with the term “little” (מִצְעָר, mits’ar) used twice by Lot to describe the town (v. 20).

[19:23]  ⁷ sn The sun had just risen. There was very little time for Lot to escape between dawn (v. 15) and sunrise (here).

[19:23]  ⁸ tn The juxtaposition of the two disjunctive clauses indicates synchronic action. The first action (the sun’s rising) occurred as the second (Lot’s entering Zoar) took place. The disjunctive clauses also signal closure for the preceding scene.

[19:24]  ¹⁰ tn The disjunctive clause signals the beginning of the next scene and highlights God’s action.

[19:24]  ¹¹ tn Or “burning sulfur” (the traditional “fire and brimstone”).

[19:24]  ¹² tn Heb “from the Lord from the heavens.” The words “It was sent down” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[19:25]  ¹³ tn Or “and all the plain”; Heb “and all the circle,” referring to the “circle” or oval area of the Jordan Valley.

[19:25]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and the vegetation of the ground.”