Rashi on TanakhGenesis 19

Two. One to destroy Sedom and one to save Lot. The third one who came to foretell to Sarah [of her giving birth]— once he fulfilled his mission—departed.

Angels. Elsewhere they are called men. When the Divine Presence was with them they are called men. Another explanation: In relation to Avraham whose power was great and angels were as common to him as men, they are referred to as men. But, relative to Lot, they are called angels.

In the evening. Did it take that long for the angels [to travel] from Chevron to Sedom? But, they were angels of mercy, and they procrastinated— perhaps Avraham will succeed [in his attempt] to defend them.

While Lot was sitting at the gate of Sedom. It is written יָשַׁב [without a ו because] on that day they appointed him to be their judge.

Lot saw. He had learned from the house of Avraham to seek out travelers.

Behold now my lords. [Meaning:] “Behold, you are now my masters since you have passed by me.” Another explanation: “Behold, now, you must be careful in regard to these cruel people that they not become aware of you.” And, therefore, this is the proper advice.

Please turn. Turn off the main road to my home [by means] of a roundabout way so that they not become aware that you are entering there. It therefore says “turn.”

Stay over night, bathe your feet. But, is it the manner of people to first lodge overnight and then to wash afterward? And, furthermore: Avraham told them to first wash their feet! But, this is what Lot thought: If, when the Sedomites come, they will see that they already washed their feet they will make accusations against me and will say, “Two or three days have already passed since they have come into you home and you did not notify us.” He, therefore, thought: Better that they remain here with the dust on their feet so that they appear to have just arrived. He, therefore, said, “Lodge overnight,” first, and “wash” afterwards.”

They said, “No.” Whereas to Avraham they said, “Do [as you said].” From this [we may derive] that one may decline the offer of an inferior but should not decline the offer of a superior.

We will spend the night in the street. Here, כִּי is used to mean “but,” for, in effect, they said, “We will not veer off to your home, but will lodge in the city street all night.”

They turned in to him. They took a roundabout way to his home.

And baked matzos. It was Pesach.

They had not yet lain down when the men of the city, the men of Sedom. It is thus expounded in Bereishis Rabbah. Before they lay down and [already] the people of the city were being discussed by the angels; they were asking Lot about their character and their deeds and he answered them that the majority are evil. As they were discussing them “And the men of Sedom,” etc. However, the plain explanation of the verse is: The people of the city who were evil people surrounded the house. Because they were evil people, they are referred to as Sedomites as Scripture states: “The people of Sedom were wicked and sinful.”

All the people from one end to the other. [Meaning:] from one end of the city to the other. There was not one who protested because not even one righteous person was among them.

That we may know them. For the purpose of homosexuality as in: Who have never known a man.

These. [הָאֵל] is the same as הָאֵלֶּה [these].

Since, after all, they came. Do this favor out of respect for me since [כִּי] they have come under the shelter of my roof [lit. beam]. Onkelos translates it: In the shade of my beam. The Targum of קוֹרָה is שֵׁרוּתָא — beam.

They said, “Step back out of the way!” Back away! As if to say: “Step aside and distance yourself from us.” So, too, wherever הָלְאָה appears in Scripture it has the meaning of distance, as in, “Scatter הָלְאָה —afar” or: “Behold the arrows are some distance from you.” Thus, גֶשׁ הָלְאָה [means] “Draw yourself aside,” in Old French: Retire-toi de nous. It is a contemptuous way of saying, “We are not considering you at all.” Similar to this: “Step aside, do not come near me.” Similarly: “Step aside and I will dwell there,” [meaning] draw aside for my sake so that I may dwell where you are. [The Sedomites were, in effect saying:] You are interceding for the travelers; how dare you do that! In response to what he said of his daughters they said to him, “Step aside,” gently, in a calm manner, [but] for his interceding on behalf of the travelers they said [harshly], “This one came as an immigrant,” [in effect saying:] “You are the only stranger among us who has come [only] to sojourn.” “And now he wants to be a judge.” [Meaning:] and you have become our chastiser.

The door. This is [the door] that swings [on hinges] to close and open [the entrance].

The entrance. That is the opening though which [people] enter and exit.

With blindness. [This is] an affliction of blindness.

Young and old alike. The young ones were the first in this wrongdoing as is written “Young and old alike,” therefore, the punishment began with them.

Who else do you have here? The plain meaning of this verse is: “Whom else do you have in this city besides your wife and daughters in this house?”

A son-in-law, your sons, your daughters. [Meaning:] “If you have a son-in-law or sons and daughters get them away from this place.

Your sons. [Meaning:] your married daughter’s sons. The Aggadaic explanation for the word עֹד [is]: “Since they are doing such an abhorrent thing can you still have any basis for defending them?” For, all night he [Lot] was justifying them. It should be read מִי לְךָ פֶּה.

Sons-in-law. He had two married daughters in the city.

Who had married his daughters. Those to whom the ones at home were betrothed.

They urged. As Onkelos translates it: “They pressed,” [meaning] they hurried him.

Who are here. those who are already in the house whom you have the ability to save. There are Midrashic explanations, but, this is the plain explanation of the verse.

Swept away. [Meaning:] “You will be the end of.” [The verse] עַד־תּוֹם כָּל־ הַדּוֹר” is translated [by Onkelos]: Until the entire generation will be [סַף] finished.

He hesitated. In order to salvage his possessions.

[They] grabbed. One of them [the angels] had the mission of saving him while his fellow [angel had the mission] to overturn Sedom. It is, therefore, written: He said, “Escape!” and it does not say, They said.

Escape for your life. Let it suffice for you to save lives. Pay no heed to possessions.

Do not look back! You participated in their evil ways and only for the sake of Avraham are you saved. You are not worthy to see their punishment while you [yourself] are being rescued.

Anywhere in the valley. [This refers to] the plain of Jordan.

Escape to the mountain. Flee to Avraham who dwells in the mountain as it is said: “From there he moved to the mountain.” Now, too, he dwells there, as it is said: “Until the place where he originally had his tent.” And though it is written: “Avram set up his tents, etc.,” he had many tents which extended to Chevron.

The word הִמָּלֵט means to evade. So, too, every form of הַמְלָטָה in Scripture has the meaning émisser in Old French. Similarly: “She delivered a male baby,” meaning that the fetus slipped through the womb. [or] “Escaped like a bird” [or:] “They are unable to push the load through,” [i.e.,] to push the load of excrement in their bowels.

Please, not so my Master. Our Sages said that this Name is holy for about it [this name] it is said, “To keep me alive,” [referring to] the One who has it in His power to kill or to keep alive. The Targum [also] translates it: “Please, God,”

Please, not so. [Meaning:] please do not tell me to flee to the mountain.

Please. It has the meaning of making a request.

Lest the evil attach itself to me. [Lot thought:] When I was with the Sedomites, God saw my deeds and the deeds of the people of the city, and I appeared to be a righteous person and worthy of being rescued. But, when I will come to the righteous person I will be [seen] as an evil person. This, too, is what the woman of Zorfas said to Eliyahu: “Have you come to me to call attention to my sins?” [Meaning:] before you came to me, God saw my deeds and the deeds of my nation and I would be righteous compared to them. But, once you have come to me [then], compared to your deeds, I am an evil person.

This city is near [enough]. Settled “near” [in point of time], [meaning] recently settled. Therefore its measure has not yet been filled. How recent is it[s settlement]? From the generation of the Dispersion when humanity dispersed and began to settle, each in his place, which was in the year that Peleg died. From then till now there were 52 years, for Peleg died when Avraham was 48. How is this [calculated]? After Re’u was born, Peleg lived 209 years. Deduct from them 32 when Serug was born and the 30 years from Serug’s birth to Nachor’s birth giving you 62 years. And 29 years from Nachor’s birth to Terach’s birth giving you 91 years. 70 years from then to Avraham’s birth, giving you 161 years Add another 48 years, giving you 209 years. That was the year of the Dispersion. When Sedom was destroyed Avraham was 99 years old. Thus, from the generation of the Dispersion till this point, there are 52 years. The settling of Zoar took place later than the settling of Sedom and its sister cities by one year. This, then, is what is said, “Please [נָא] let me escape.” נָא having the numerical value of 51.

It is insignificant. [Meaning:] its sins are few, and You may, therefore, spare it …

And my life will be saved in it [the city]. This is the Midrashic explanation. However, the plain explanation of the verse is: It is a small city with few people; You should not mind sparing it so that I might live in it.

Also … regarding this. Not only will you be saved, but, I will spare the entire city for your sake.

Overturn. [Meaning:] “I overturn” as in עַד בּוֹאִי — “Until I come” [or as in] אַחֲרֵי רוֹאִי —“After I have seen.” [or] מִדֵּי דַבְּרִי בּוֹ —“When I speak of him.”

For I can do [nothing]. This was a punishment for the angels. Since they had said, “We are going to destroy this place, thereby, attributing themselves, they, therefore, could not leave from there until they were obliged to state that the thing was not in their control.

For I cannot. [לֹא אוּכַל] is in the singular form. From this you can learn that one destroys and the other rescues because two angels are not sent for one thing [mission].

The city was therefore called Zoar. Based on [Lot’s words:] “It is insignificant.”

Adonoy caused to rain. Where וה' [with a ו] appears in Scripture, [it represents] Him and His Heavenly Court.

To rain upon Sedom. At the advent of the morning, as it is said: “At the break of dawn.” It is the time when the moon is in the sky together with the sun. Since some of them worshiped the sun and some of them, the moon. God said: If I punish them by day, the moon-worshipers will say, were it at night when the moon rules, we would not have been destroyed. And if I punish them by night the sun-worshipers will say were it by day, when the sun rules, we would not have been destroyed. It, therefore states: “At the break of dawn”— he punished them at a time when both the sun and the moon rule.

Caused to rain … sulfur and fire. It began as rain and turned into sulfur and fire.

From Adonoy. It is usual for Scripture to express it so, as in “The wives of Lemech” and he did not say, my wives. Likewise, Dovid said, “Take your master’s servants with you” and he did not say, my servants. Likewise Achashverosh said, “In the name of the king” and he did not say, in my name. Here, too, it states, “from God” and it does not state, from Him.

From heaven. This is what Scripture means when saying: “For by them [the heavens] He punishes nations,” etc. When He comes to punish mankind He brings fire upon them from the heavens as He did to Sedom. And when He comes to cause Manna to fall [it was also] from the heavens. [As the verse states:] “Behold, I will cause bread to rain from heaven for you.”

He overturned these cities. The four of them were located on one rock [formation] and he turned them upside down, as it is said: “He reached for the rock,” etc.

His [Lot’s] wife looked behind him. [Meaning: in back] of Lot.

And she became a pillar of salt. She sinned with salt and she was punished with salt. He [Lot] said to her, “Serve some salt to the guests.” She said to him, “Even this evil custom, do you mean to introduce in this place?”

Heavy smoke. [Meaning] a column of smoke, torche in Old French.

Furnace. It is an excavation in which stones are burned for lime. This is the meaning every time. כִּבְשָׁן appears in the Torah.

Elohim remembered Avraham. How does the remembering of Avraham affect Lot? He remembered that Lot had known that Sarah was Avraham’s wife, and heard Avraham say in Egypt, about Sarah, “She is my sister,” and he [Lot] did not betray him because he was sympathetic towards him. Therefore, God took pity on him [Lot].

For he was afraid to live in Zoar. Since it was near Sedom.

Our father is old. If not now, when? He may die or cease having children.

And there is no man [left] on earth. They thought that the entire world was destroyed as it was in the generation of the Flood. (From Bereishis Rabbah.)

They urged wine, etc. Wine presented itself to them in the cave so that two nations might descend from them.

And slept with her father. Concerning the younger daughter it states: “And she slept with him.” In the case of the younger one, since she did not initiate the illicit relations, but, rather, learned it from her sister Scripture covers up for her and does not explicitly state her shame. Whereas, concerning the older daughter, who initiated the illicit relations Scripture explicitly publicizes it.

[Or that she] got up. The word וּבְקוּמָהּ of the older daughter is written with dots above it, to tell us that once she arose he [Lot] was aware [of what had happened] and, nevertheless, he was not careful not to drink on the following night. [R. Levi said: whoever is inflamed by illicit desires in the end will be made to eat his own flesh.

[They] became pregnant. Although a woman does not conceive from her first marital relations, [nevertheless,] these did it with themselves and deflowered themselves and conceived from the first relations.

Moav. This [daughter] who was not modest openly stated that he is of her father, but, the younger one named him euphemistically and was rewarded for this in the days of Moshe, as it is said concerning the Amonites, “Do not incite them”—in any manner. Whereas, concerning Moav it [the Torah] forbids only to wage war against them, but irritating them was permitted.