Gênesis 18
William MacDonald · Citado em PreceptAustin
Gênesis 18
William MacDonald - The omnipotence of God means that He can do anything that is not inconsistent with His other attributes. Hear the uniform testimony of Scripture! “I am the Almighty God” (Gen. 17:1). “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” (Gen. 18:14). “I know that thou canst do all things, and that no purpose of thine can be thwarted” (Job 42:2 NASB). “There is nothing too hard for Thee” Qer. 32:17). “With God all things are possible” (Mt. 19:26). “For with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37). But it is understood that God cannot do anything that is inconsistent with His own character. For instance, it is impossible for God to lie (Heb. 6:18). He cannot deny Himself (2 Tim. 2:13). He cannot sin because He is absolutely holy. He cannot fail because He is absolutely dependable. The omnipotence of God is seen in His creation and sustaining of the universe, in His providence, in the salvation of sinners, and in the judgment of the impenitent. The greatest display of His power in the Old Testament was the Exodus; in the New Testament, the resurrection of Christ. If God is omnipotent, then no man can fight successfully against Him. “There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel against the Lord” (Prov. 21:30). If God is omnipotent, then the believer is on the winning side. One with God is a majority. “If God be for us, who can be against us” (Rom. 8:31). If God is omnipotent, then in prayer we can deal in the realm of the impossible. As the chorus says, we can laugh at impossibilities and cry, “It shall be done.” If God is omnipotent, then we have the unutterable comfort that: The Savior can solve every problem, The tangles of life can undo. There is nothing too hard for Jesus, There is nothing that He cannot do. “When my weakness leans on His might, all seems light.” The Impossible Dream - A Burden Shared - Encouragement for leaders page 140 Dave Roper Warm-up: Genesis 18:1–15 Is anything too hard for the Lord? Genesis 18:14 "Is anything too hard for the Lord?” That’s what the stranger asked Abraham and Sarah when he met them under the oaks at Mamre. It was a question that became a maxim in Israel. Jeremiah had the same question when he bought a piece of ground near Jerusalem. The Babylonians were outside the city; the siege was on. They were not likely to give it up or go away. Yet Jeremiah’s purchase was made in good faith because God had promised to give the land back to Judah one day. So, based on that word, Jeremiah signed the deed. When challenged he asked, Is anything too hard for the Lord? (Jeremiah 32:17, 27). When the stranger first posed the question to Abraham and Sarah, they were waiting for God to come through. Twenty-five years before, God had promised them a son. Now Abraham, almost one hundred years old, was “as good as dead” (Hebrews 11:12). Sarah herself was almost ninety, and “it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women” (Genesis 18:11 KJV). Nevertheless, the stranger persisted, saying, “I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son” (Genesis 18:14). Sarah laughed, but one year later “the LORD did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him” (Genesis 21:1–2). It was an impossible task that God had—making life in Sarah’s dead body and bringing salvation into the world. But the stranger was right: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” There are those impossible people with whom we work who seem to have no heart for God,who are out of touch with reality and utterly untouched by the preaching of God’s Word. There are those impossible boards that are encumbered by men and women who have consecrated themselves to mild discipleship and devotion and who think and act as though God had never spoken. There are those impossible communities where everything ugly and obscene is permitted and cultivated, but no one wants us to talk about the loveliness of Jesus. There are those impossible churches with their unofficial power centers and self-appointed aristocracies who seem bent upon frustrating every God-given plan. And then, there’s you and me. It’s an impossible job God has—ridding us of our private perversions, our bad habits and compulsions, the unholy attitudes and actions that plague us and inhibit us and, despite God’s extraordinary grace, make us feel defiled and unqualified to serve. Yes, there are people, places, and things that are impossible, but “What is impossible with men is possible with God” (Luke 18:27). He has His way of doing what cannot otherwise be done. He will not be hurried, but He’s always at hand. He “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20). As Hudson Taylor learned, There are three stages in every great work of God. First it is impossible. Then it is difficult. And then it is done! Genesis 18:15 Sarah denied it however, saying, “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh.” denied: Ge 4:9 12:13 Job 2:10 Pr 28:13 Joh 18:17,25-27 Eph 4:23 Col 3:9 1Jn 1:8 No, but you did laugh: Ps 44:21 Pr 12:19 Mk 2:8 Joh 2:25 Ro 3:19 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries SARAH DENIES SHE DOUBTED Sarah denied it however, saying, “I did not laugh - Sarah clearly lies. For she was afraid - For explains why she denied laughing. And He said, “No, but you did laugh.” - The LORD immediately corrects Sarah's denial/lie. Clearly Sarah repented and was restored and is even listed in the Hebrews "Hall of Faith" (Heb 11:11+). Wenstrom has an interesting point - remember Sarah laughed in unbelief and she thought this was an ordinary stranger and not the Lord Himself making this promise to her and Abraham, thus, we see that the Lord seeks to reveal Himself to Sarah in order to trigger her faith in the promise. The Lord does this by revealing His omniscience to Sarah by telling her that she laughed, which she did, but to herself, inaudibly. Only she and the Lord would know that she laughed to herself, thus, by revealing to Sarah that it was indeed the Lord Himself making this promise to Abraham that she would have a child the following year, the Lord caused her to exercise faith in His promise to give her a child in her old age. Life Application Study Bible note (borrow) - Fear is the most common motive for lying. We are afraid that our inner thoughts and emotions will be exposed or our wrongdoings discovered. But lying causes greater complications than telling the truth and brings even more problems. You will be far better off telling the truth right from the start. Genesis 18:16 Then the men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off. to send them off: Ac 15:3 20:38 21:5 Ro 15:24 3Jn 1:6 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries Related Passage: Genesis 13:10+ Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere–this was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah–like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar. EYES LOOKING TO SODOM Then the men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off - As the passage unfolds it appears two of the men headed off for Sodom (cf Ge 19:1). The three were looking toward Sodom, and One of them, the Holy One in pre-incarnate form as a man, saw that the cup of evil of Sodom was filled to the brim (cf Ge 15:16KJV+). Abraham would send them off, but as of yet he was unaware of their mission which Jehovah would soon reveal to him. Looked down is the verb shaqaph which means, look down from above. The basic idea is "to look down at a sharp angle from a great height" as one would look down from a pinnacle or onto the street from a high housetop and Genesis 18:1 records this high elevation as being the “oaks of Mamre.” (3040 ft elevation). From this location in Hebron, 3,040 feet above sea level, the Lord, the angels and Abraham looked down in a southeasterly direction toward Sodom, which according to Genesis 13:10 was located in the Jordan valley. NET NOTE - send off - The Piel of שָׁלַח (shalakh) means “to lead out, to send out, to expel”; here it is used in the friendly sense of seeing the visitors on their way. Bob
Gênesis 18
William MacDonald - Don’t miss the tribute God paid to Abraham as an outstanding family man (v. 19). Something worth coveting! He may command his children and his household after him to keep (shamar; Lxx - phulasso - guard, watch) the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice - The idea of keep means to observe conscientiously in the sense that Abraham would be careful, thoughtful, heedful, attentive, and meticulous in conforming his actions in compliance with the way of the Lord. Note the word children, for at this time he had only one child, but this clearly implies more children (beginning with Isaac a year from now). This command speaks of calling for a lifestyle of obedience for those who are in the Abrahamic covenant (cf "Walk before Me, and be blameless" -- Ge 17:1). Abraham would be responsible for passing this truth on to his offspring. How were Abraham's household to keep the way of the LORD? Jehovah says it is by doing righteousness and justice. We do what is right and with a sense of fairness. Wenstrom The statement “so that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him,” indicates that the blessings the Lord promised to Abraham in the covenant that He made with Abraham were conditioned upon him doing righteousness and justice. Although the fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant was unconditional, the “blessings” of the attached to the covenant would be conditioned upon Abraham doing righteousness and justice. Steven
Gênesis 18
William MacDonald - Abraham’s prayer is a wonderful example of effectual intercession. It was based on the righteous character of the Judge of all the earth (v. 25) and evidenced that boldness, yet deep humility which only an intimate knowledge of God can give. Only when Abraham stopped pleading did the Lord close the matter and depart (v. 33). There are many mysteries in life for which the truth of verse 25 is the only satisfying answer. David Jeremiah - Sanctuary - WHEN IN DOUBT, DON’T! page 68 GENESIS 18:25 Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? Everyone has doubted God’s justice at times. We may not think of it that way; we may just wonder, “Why did God allow an event to happen that way?” I know I have wondered the same thing on many occasions. I have learned to take many things in my Christian walk purely by faith. I have learned enough about God through Scripture and His faithfulness in my life that when I come to a place where I am tempted to doubt—I don’t. I take by faith the fact that God is good, that the Judge of all the earth shall do right (Genesis 18:25). Not to have that core conviction governing one’s thoughts daily is to live in a world of vacillation and shifting shadows. If we do not live our lives based on the fact that God is righteous, we have no basis for righteousness in our own lives. Charles Stanley - Evaluation and Reward SCRIPTURE READING: Romans 7:18–25 KEY VERSE: Genesis 18:25 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? Concerning the judgment of God, theologian Henry Thiessen explains, The whole philosophy of the future judgments rests upon the sovereign right of God to punish disobedience and the personal right of the individual to plead his case in court. Though God is sovereign, as judge of all the earth, he will do right (Genesis 18:25). He will do this not in order to submit to an external law, but as the expression of his own character. The individual will have the opportunity to show why he acted as he did and to know the reasons for his sentence. These are fundamental factors in every righteous government. Insofar as human governments follow this order, they are imitating God’s methods of government. God’s judgment always fits the crime. He never responds to sin out of His character. His first desire is to save you so that you might enjoy His fellowship for eternity. In Revelation 16, the judgment of God is poured out on the earth because man has chosen another way—a way opposed to God. In Romans 7:24, Paul asked, “Who will deliver me from this body of death?” The answer: only the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 7:25)! Judgment for the believer is a time of evaluation and reward, but for the nonbeliever it is the beginning of eternal death. Lord, I praise You for the future You have planned for me—eternal life in Your presence. Help me live today with that hope in mind. Vance Havner - THE JUDGE WILL DO RIGHT Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? Genesis 18:25. We are inclined to wonder sometimes how it will be in the world to come. In our wishful thinking, we imagine blissful reunion with dear ones we have loved and lost for a while. But then there sometimes comes the chilling thought that maybe God will not do it that way. After all He has not told us very much about our future relations with our loved ones. But we need not worry. The Judge of all the earth will do right. And that does not mean in a cold judicial sense, for the Judge is also our Father and what He does will be mixed with love and joy. We may be certain it will be lovingly and joyfully right, not just right. He knows now our frame and remembers that we are dust and He will know what is happily best when we are no longer dust but His resurrected children. Genesis 18:26 So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” Isa 6:13 10:22 19:24 65:8 Jer 5:1 Eze 22:30 Mt 24:22 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries JEHOVAH RESPONDS TO ABRAHAM'S INTERCESSION So the LORD (Jehovah = Yahweh; Lxx = kurios) said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous (saddiq; Lxx = dikaios) within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account - This is an amazing response. One would have expected Him to say He would spare the 50 righteous, but He says He will spare the righteous and the wicked. This is absolutely amazing grace. Bob Utley This verse is an example of the corporate nature of the Hebrew culture. Negatively - (1) Adam and Eve sinned and all creation suffered the consequences. (2) Achan sinned (cf. Joshua 7) and the army of Israel lost a battle (some died). Positively - (1) Righteous people affect the actions of God toward the whole city of Sodom (and the cities of the plain). (2) One righteous man could divert God's judgment on Jerusalem (cf. Jer. 5:1). (3) Adam's sin affected all creation. Jesus' life and death affect all creation (cf. Ro 5:12-21). This concept is the theological basis for the vicarious, substitutionary atonement of Isaiah 53. One innocent One's death can bring forgiveness (cf. Leviticus 1-7; Mark 10:45 John 1:29; 2 Cor. 5:21). Genesis 18:27 And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes. I have ventured to speak: Ge 18:30-32 Ezr 9:6 Job 42:6-8 Isa 6:5 Lu 18:1 dust: Ge 2:7 3:19 Job 4:19 Ps 8:4 144:3 Ec 12:7 Isa 6:5 64:8 Lu 5:8 1Co 15:47,48 2Co 5:1,2 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries ABRAHAM HUMBLES HIMSELF IN RESPONSE And Abraham replied, “Now behold (hinneh) I have ventured to speak to the Lord ('adonay; Lxx = kurios), although I am but dust and ashes - Abraham’s intercession, far from being manipulative, reflects his humble attitude and compassionate concern for the people (cf his attitude in Ge 13:8,9+). Bob Utley "I am but dust and ashes" This is obviously an allusion to Genesis 3 where humans come from dust and return to dust. Abraham knew the traditions about creation! However, it is also possible that this phrase was a Semitic idiom of the day (i.e., Job, a contemporary of Abraham uses the same phrase in Job 30:19; 42:6). Genesis 18:28 “Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Suppose: Ge 18:30 Judges 6:39 Pr 15:8 Isa 42:6,7 Jas 5:15-17 1Jn 5:15,16 I will not: Ex 32:9,10,14 33:13,14 34:6,7,9,10 Nu 14:11-20 Job 33:23 Ps 86:5 Isa 65:8 Mic 7:18 Mt 7:7 Eph 3:20 Jas 5:16 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries WHAT ABOUT 45 RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE? Suppose the fifty righteous (saddiq; Lxx = dikaios) are lacking five, will You destroy (shachath; Lxx = apollumi) the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy (shachath; Lxx = apollumi) it if I find forty-five there Destroy (corrupt)(07843) shachath means to decay, to go to ruin, to corrupt, to destroy (Sodom and Gomorrah = Ge 13:10, Ge 18:28, 31-32), to lay waste (Egypt from swarms of flies -Ex 8:24). Shachath is used of Israelites who worshiped the golden calf (Ex 32:7; Dt 9:12; 32:5, Hos 9:9). God warned He would destroy Israel if they were turned away from following Him (Nu 32:15). Shachath describes Israel's behavior as more corrupt after a judge died (Jdg 2:19). Shāchath is used to describe the action of annihilation, for example, the action associated with the flood (Gen. 6:17), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (19:13), the extermination of the Ammonites (2 Sam. 11:1), the devastation of Zion (Lam. 2:8) and the end of Babylon (Jer. 51:11). Buildings (48:18), land (Judg. 6:5), walls (2 Sam. 20:15), a spring (Prov. 25:26) and plants (Nah. 2:2) are among objects which are destroyed by actions expressed by this verb. Shachath in Pentateuch - The flood in Genesis 6 & 9 = Gen. 6:11; Gen. 6:12; Gen. 6:13; Gen. 6:17; Gen. 9:11; Gen. 9:15; Gen. 13:10; Gen. 18:28; Gen. 18:31; Gen. 18:32; Gen. 19:13; Gen. 19:14; Gen. 19:29; Gen. 38:9; Exod. 8:24; Exod. 12:13; Exod. 12:23; Exod. 21:26; Exod. 32:7; Lev. 19:27; Num. 32:15; Deut. 4:16; Deut. 4:25; Deut. 4:31; Deut. 9:12; Deut. 9:26; Deut. 10:10; Deut. 20:19; Deut. 20:20; Deut. 31:29; Deut. 32:5 Genesis 18:29 He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.” Eph 6:18 Heb 4:16 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries NO DESTRUCTION IF 40 RIGHTEOUS FOUND He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” - Abraham is illustrating 1 Th 5:17+ where Paul commands us to continually "Pray (present imperative see our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) without ceasing." And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty Genesis 18:30 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” Ge 44:18 Judges 6:39 Es 4:11-16 Job 40:4 Ps 9:12 10:17 89:7 Isa 6:5 Isa 55:8,9 Heb 12:28,29 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries NO DESTRUCTION IF 30 RIGHTEOUS FOUND Then he said, “Oh may the Lord ('Adonay; Lxx = kurios) not be angry (charah) - The literal Hebrew reads “let it not be hot to the LORD” an idiom which means “may the LORD not be angry.” Abraham is now cautious and does not want to speak presumptively to the LORD. And I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” - One can imagine his voice as speaking rather softly by this point in the dialogue. And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” Become angry (burn) (02734) charah means to burn, to be kindled, to glow, to grow warm. Figuratively, it means to get angry or to become vexed. This word is related to a rare Aramaic root meaning "to cause fire to burn," and to an Arabic root meaning "burning sensation," in the throat, etc. The Hebrew verb is used in reference to anger. The meaning of the root differs from such words for "anger" as ʾānap, zāʿam, and qāṣap, in that it emphasizes the "kindling" of anger, like the kindling of a fire, or the heat of the anger, once started. Charah is used in reference to the anger of both man and God. The verb emphasizes the kindling and burning aspects of anger. This primary nuance is attested in Talmudic and Middle Hebrew. In the Qal stem, the noun ʾaph (nose) is usually the subject, yielding the Hebrew idiom, "nose was kindled." Although ʾaph is often omitted, e.g., "it was kindled." in the Hithpael, charah is used 4x (Ps 37:1, 7,8, Pr 24:19) always meaning "to worry" and describing the agitation, irritation or vexation resulting from active worry. Charah in the Pentateuch - Gen. 4:5; Gen. 4:6; Gen. 18:30; Gen. 18:32; Gen. 30:2; Gen. 31:35; Gen. 31:36; Gen. 34:7; Gen. 39:19; Gen. 44:18; Gen. 45:5; Exod. 4:14; Exod. 22:24; Exod. 32:10; Exod. 32:11; Exod. 32:19; Exod. 32:22; Num. 11:1; Num. 11:10; Num. 11:33; Num. 12:9; Num. 16:15; Num. 22:22; Num. 22:27; Num. 24:10; Num. 25:3; Num. 32:10; Num. 32:13; Deut. 6:15; Deut. 7:4; Deut. 11:17; Deut. 29:27; Deut. 31:17 Genesis 18:31 And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.” Ge 18:27 Mt 7:7,11 Lu 11:8 18:1 Eph 6:18 Heb 4:16 10:20-22 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries NO DESTRUCTION IF 20 RIGHTEOUS FOUND And he said, “Now behold (hinned) I have ventured to speak to the Lord ('Adonay; Lxx = kurios); suppose twenty are found there?” - Abraham speaks with the hope that surely there are 20 righteous men. And He said, “I will not destroy (shachath; Lxx = apollumi) it on account of the twenty - Twenty would be enough to withhold judgment of the total. Genesis 18:32 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.” Oh: Ge 18:30 Judges 6:39 Pr 15:8 Isa 42:6,7 Jas 5:15-17 1Jn 5:15,16 I will not: Ex 32:9,10,14 33:13,14 34:6,7,9,10 Nu 14:11-20 Job 33:23 Ps 86:5 Isa 65:8 Mic 7:18 Mt 7:7 Eph 3:20 Jas 5:16 Genesis 18 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries NO DESTRUCTION IF 10 RIGHTEOUS FOUND Then (NET = finally) he said, “Oh may the Lord ('Adonay; Lxx = kurios) not be angry (charah) - As in Ge 18:30 And I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” - Abraham asks if ten "salty" believers would preserve thousands of lives? The principle of preservation is found in Mt 5:13+ where Jesus says "“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men." Steven