Genesis 18: 16-33 Essay

In the Genesis, God uses destruction as a tool to test his creations and help them grow intellectually. In the passage Genesis 18:16-33, God talks to Abraham about the impending burning of Sodom. God uses discussion of His plans and preparations for the destruction as a teaching moment for Abraham, who He decides is worthy of such a conversation. God’s motivation for talking to Abraham about the burning of Sodom shows that teaching Abraham is His purpose. We hear God’s internal dialogue in which He says to Himself, “Shall I conceal from Abraham what I am about to do? For Abraham will surely be a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. For I have embraced him so that he will charge his sons and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham all the He spoke
Far be it from You! Will not the judge of all the earth do justice?” (Genesis 18:25-26) This is significant because Abraham’s use of repetition makes it seem like he is ridiculing God. This is a surprising stance because God’s almighty power usually induces fear. Abraham shows that he is aware of this power dynamic when just a few lines later he says, “Here, pray, I have presumed to speak to my Lord when I am but dust and ashes,” (Genesis 18:27-28) as a disclaimer of his inferiority to God. God responds by saying that He will not destroy the city if there are fifty innocent people within. (Genesis 18:27-28) This shows that God is humoring Abraham’s questioning. By not dismissing Abraham’s thoughts and going so far as to take them into consideration He is encouraging the discussion to continue. This seems purposeful on God’s part because up until this point He has not appeared to ask for anyone’s input on