GOD Reaffirms His Promise

Until you get to the New Testament, you may wonder why the eighteenth and nineteenth chapters of Genesis are included in the Bible.

They seem rather detached from the story of Abraham.

They deal with the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Chapter 18 is a rather lengthy chapter in which God tells Abraham about the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah and Abraham intercedes on behalf of the cities of the plain.

This is an illustration, I think, of the blessed Christian life, of life in fellowship with God.

But in chapter 19, down in Sodom and Gomorrah with Lot, we will see what I would call the blasted life—all because of a decision that was made.

Unfortunately, we have both kinds among Christians today—those living a blessed life and those living a blasted life.

There are those who have really made shipwreck of their lives; they have gotten entirely out of the will of God.

I would not suggest even for a moment that they have lost their salvation, but they sure have lost everything else.

As Paul says, they are saved, “. . . yet so as by fire” (l Cor. 3:15).

Genesis 18:1-16 KJV

[1] And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

[2] And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,

[3] And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:

[4] Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

[5] And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.

[6] And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.

[7] And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.

[8] And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

[9] And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.

[10] And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.

[11] Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.

[12] Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?

[13] And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?

[14] Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.

[15] Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.

[16] And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.

Genesis 18:1

And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

Abraham is living down there in Mamre, and he’s an old man, by the way.

Genesis 18:2

And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,

Notice the hospitality that Abraham extends.
The little story that I told in the previous chapter has a basis of fact, at least, although I don’t think it ever took place.
The point is that this man Abraham is a very gracious, hospitable man.

Genesis 18:3

And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:

Abraham is really entertaining these men royally.

Genesis 18:4

Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

It seems very strange to us to tell a visiting stranger to wash his feet and come in. We wouldn’t quite say that today, but this is probably the oldest custom that is known.
Remember that in the Upper Room our Lord washed the disciples’ feet—and there is a tremendous spiritual message there.
Here Abraham says, “Wash your feet.” It was a token of real hospitality when someone came into a home to have him take off his shoes and wash his feet.
In that day they did not take off their hat, but they did take off their shoes.
Today we have reversed it. When you come to visit somebody, you leaves your shoes on and take off your hat.

Genesis 18:5

And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.

Isn’t this a marvelous way of entertaining?

Genesis 18:6

And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.

Abraham has prepared a sumptuous meal.

Genesis 18:7

And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.

He took a little calf, a servant killed and prepared it, and the chef probably barbecued it.
They had veal steaks or veal roast, I imagine, and all the trimmings that went with it.

Genesis 18:8

And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

“And he took butter, and milk”—my, it was a real feast!

Genesis 18:9

And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.

In the culture of the day, it is not customary for a man to inquire about the wife of another man.
Therefore Abraham is probably curious about the inquiry we see here.
Perhaps there is something about these men that causes Abraham to accept the question, so he replies that she is in the tent.

Genesis 18:10

And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.

One of the guests speaks, and in so doing he states that he will return later.
Opinions vary on the figure of speech according to the time of life used to describe when the return will occur.
One view is that it will be at the beginning of another year from the present moment.
Another opinion is that it will be when the dormancy of winter is changing to the new life of spring. Romans 9: 9 offers the translation “at this time will I come,” but this doesn’t help much in pointing to one interpretation over the other.
Genesis 18: 1 implies that this conversation takes place in the heat of summer, so the interpretations of the timing of the promised return vary by only a few months in any case.
As the special guest continues, Sarah has positioned herself on the other side of the tent flap, directly behind the one who is speaking.
What she overhears is a shocking statement to one of her age, for the man announces that at the time of his return she will have a son.

Genesis 18:11

Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.

At this point, Abraham is 99 and Sarah is 89 years of age (compare Genesis 17: 17, above).
Sarah’s age means that she is no longer experiencing the monthly cycle that is associated with the ability to conceive children.
We may compare the life situation of these two with that of Zacharias and Elisabeth in Luke 1:5-7.

Genesis 18:12

Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?

Sarah quickly evaluates the announcement by the stranger to be preposterous, and this prompts a silent laughter within herself.
To burst forth in laughter would reveal that she is eavesdropping on the conversation of the men.
Sarah is fully aware that both she and her husband are waxed old.
To her, it is quite unreasonable to think that she can conceive and bear a child (compare Romans 4: 17, 19).
Therefore both Abraham’s laughter of delight and the laughter of Sarah’s doubt are reflected in the name of their son to be born (see the commentary on 17: 17).
At some point, Sarah’s doubt gives way to faith since Hebrews 11: 11 says, “Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.”

Genesis 18:13

And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?

The most important fact of this verse is that the speaker is now designated as the Lord. When the four letters of this word are all capital letters, it indicates that this is the divine name Yahweh.
The speaker is the Lord himself, and He is the special messenger from Heaven. Some scholars believe that this is a manifestation of God the Son before He is born as a babe in Bethlehem.
The special nature of this messenger is seen in the bold pronouncement and in being able to know the unexpressed thoughts and silent laughter of Sarah.
The three guests were earlier called “men” (Genesis 18: 2), and Hebrews 13: 2 uses the term “angels.” The word angel can mean “messenger,” and that is the situation here.

Genesis 18:14

Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.

The Lord’s responses continue with a rhetorical question and an affirmation.
The thrust of the question Is any thing too hard for the Lord? is repeated in different circumstances in both the Old and New Testaments.
As a question, we see it in Jeremiah 32: 27.
As a statement, we see it in Jeremiah 32: 17; Matthew 19: 26; Luke 1: 37; and Romans 4: 21.
The difficult statement I will return unto thee, according to the time of life is identical in Hebrew to the one found in Genesis 18: 10 (above), except for the added word certainly there.

Genesis 18:15

Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.

Sarah reacts with a feeble attempt to defend herself. Perhaps she rationalizes that there has been no audible laughter, but God knows a person’s heart and thoughts (compare Matthew 9: 4; 12: 25).

Genesis 18:16

And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.

Abraham didn’t have a front gate, so he walked out with them a little farther than the front gate to bid them good-bye.

And as they walked out from where Abraham lived, they could look down to Sodom and Gomorrah.

Abraham walked out a ways with these guests, and down below there, they saw Sodom and Gomorrah.

They were the great resorts of that day, and they must have been very delightful and beautiful places to be.

I hope that you have really enjoyed this post,

GOD REAFFIRMS HIS PROMISE