Amplified Bible
Genesis 19:20
20Now look, this town [in the distance] is near enough for us to flee to, and it is small [with only a few people]. Please, let me escape there (is it not small?) so that my life will be saved.”
Genesis 19:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
- New International Version (NIV)Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Behold, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there—is it not a little one?—and my life will be saved!"
- New King James Version (NKJV)See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one; please let me escape there (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.”
Context of Genesis 19:20
18But Lot said to them, “Oh no, [not that place] my lords! 19Please listen, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your lovingkindness (mercy) to me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, because the disaster will overtake me and I will be killed. Now look, this town [in the distance] is near enough for us to flee to, and it is small [with only a few people]. Please, let me escape there (is it not small?) so that my life will be saved.” 21And the angel said to him, “Behold, I grant you this request also; I will not destroy this town of which you have spoken. 22Hurry and take refuge there, for I cannot do anything [to punish Sodom] until you arrive there.” For this reason the town was named Zoar (few, small).
Read all of Genesis 19Genesis 19:20 word by word
הִנֵּה־נָ֠א הָעִ֨יר הַזֹּ֧את קְרֹבָ֛ה לָנ֥וּס שָׁ֖מָּה וְהִ֣יא מִצְעָ֑ר אִמָּלְטָ֨ה נָּ֜א שָׁ֗מָּה הֲלֹ֥א מִצְעָ֛ר הִ֖וא וּתְחִ֥י נַפְשִֽׁי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Behold now, this cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- nearקָרֹבqârôb qârôb · nearH7138
- to fleeנוּסnûs · to fleeH5127
- unto, and itהוּאhû' hîy' · he/she/itH1931
- a little oneמִצְעָרmits‛âr · littleH4705
- Oh, let me escapeמָלַטmâlaţ · to escapeH4422
- and my soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: lifeH5315
- shall liveחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
Cross-references for Genesis 19:20
- Genesis 19:30Now Lot went up from Zoar, and lived in the mountain together with his two daughters, for he was afraid to stay [any longer] in Zoar; and he lived in a cave with his two daughters.
- Proverbs 3:5Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart And do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
- Amos 3:6If a trumpet is blown in a city [warning of danger] will not the people tremble? If a disaster or misfortune occurs in a city has not the Lord caused it?
- Genesis 12:13Please tell them that you are my sister so that things will go well for me for your sake, and my life will be spared because of you.”
- Psalms 119:175Let my soul live that it may praise You, And let Your ordinances help me.
- Isaiah 55:3Incline your ear [to listen] and come to Me; Hear, so that your soul may live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you, According to the faithful mercies [promised and] shown to David.
Commentaries on Genesis 19:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20It is a little one - Probably Lot wished to have it for an inheritance, and therefore pleaded its being a little one, that his request might be the more readily granted. Or he might suppose, that being a little city, it was less depraved than Sodom and Gomorrah, and therefore not so ripe for punishment; which was probably the case.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-38Verses 1-38 - The Destruction of Sodom and Amorah 9. גשׁ־ gesh -hāl'âh “approach to a distant point,” stand back. 11. סנורים sanevērı̂ym “blindness,” affecting the mental more than the ocular vision. 37. מואב mô'āb Moab; מאב mē'āb “from a father.” בן־עמי ben -‛amı̂y Ben-ammi, “son of my people.” עמון ‛amôn Ammon, “of the people.” This chapter is the continuation and conclusion of the former. It records a part of God‘s strange work - strange…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-22Lot asked the angels for permission to live in the small town of Zoar (which means "little place") even after they saved him.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-381. there came two angels--most probably two of those that had been with Abraham, commissioned to execute the divine judgment against Sodom. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom--In Eastern cities it is the market, the seat of justice, of social intercourse and amusement, especially a favorite lounge in the evenings, the arched roof affording a pleasant shade.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 19:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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