Genesis 19

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 When the two angels reached Sodom in the evening, Lot was sitting at the gate of Sodom. As soon asLot saw them, he stood up to greet them, and bowed to the ground.	1 And the two Angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting at the gate of the city. And when he had seen them, he rose up and went to meet them. And he reverenced prone on the ground.
2 'My lords,' he said, 'please come down to your servant's house to stay the night and wash your feet.Then you can make an early start on your journey.' 'No,' they said, 'we shal spend the night in the square.'	2 And he said: “I beg you, my lords, turn aside to the house of your servant, and lodge there. Wash your feet, and in the morning you will advance on your way.” And they said, “Not at all. But we will lodge in the street.”
3 But he pressed them so much that they went home with him and entered his house. He prepared ameal for them, baking unleavened bread, and they had supper.	3 He pressed them very much to turn aside to him. And when they had entered his house, he made a feast for them, and he cooked unleavened bread, and they ate.
4 They had not gone to bed when the house was surrounded by the townspeople, the men of Sodomboth young and old, al the people without exception.	4 But before they went to bed, the men of the city surrounded the house, from boys to old men, all the people together.
5 Cal ing out to Lot they said, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Send them out to us sothat we can have intercourse with them.'	5 And they called out to Lot, and they said to him: “Where are the men who entered to you in the night? Bring them out here, so that we may know them.”
6 Lot came out to them at the door and, having shut the door behind him,	6 Lot went out to them, and blocking the door behind him, he said:
7 said, 'Please, brothers, do not be wicked.	7 “Do not, I ask you, my brothers, do not be willing to commit this evil.
8 Look, I have two daughters who are virgins. I am ready to send them out to you, for you to treat asyou please, but do nothing to these men since they are now under the protection of my roof.'	8 I have two daughters who as yet have not known man. I will bring them out to you; abuse them as it pleases you, provided that you do no evil to these men, because they have entered under the shadow of my roof.”
9 But they retorted, 'Stand back! This fel ow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play thejudge. Now we shal treat you worse than them.' Then they forced Lot back and moved forward to break downthe door.	9 But they said, “Move away from there.” And again: “You have entered,” they said, “as a stranger; should you then judge? Therefore, we will afflict you yourself more than them.” And they acted very violently against Lot. And they were now at the point of breaking open the doors.
10 But the men reached out, pul ed Lot back into the house with them, and shut the door.	10 And behold, the men put out their hand, and they pulled Lot in to them, and they closed the door.
11 And they dazzled those who were at the door of the house, one and al , with a blinding light, so thatthey could not find the doorway.	11 And they struck those who were outside with blindness, from the least to the greatest, so that they were not able to find the door.
12 The men said to Lot, 'Have you anyone else here? Your sons, your daughters and al your people inthe city, take them away,	12 Then they said to Lot: “Do you have here anyone of yours? All who are yours, sons-in-law, or sons, or daughters, bring them out of this city.
13 for we are about to destroy this place, since the outcry to Yahweh against those in it has grown soloud that Yahweh has sent us to destroy it.'	13 For we will eliminate this place, because the outcry among them has increased before the Lord, who sent us to destroy them.”
14 So Lot went off and spoke to his future sons-in-law who were to marry his daughters. 'On your feet!'he said, 'Leave this place, for Yahweh is about to destroy the city.' But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.	14 And so Lot, going out, spoke to his sons-in-law, who were going to receive his daughters, and he said: “Rise up. Depart from this place. For the Lord will destroy this city.” And it seemed to them that he was speaking playfully.
15 When dawn broke the angels urged Lot on, 'To your feet! Take your wife and your two daughterswho are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.'	15 And when it was morning, the Angels compelled him, saying, “Arise, take your wife, and the two daughters that you have, lest you also should perish amid the wickedness of the city.”
16 And as he hesitated, the men seized his hand and the hands of his wife and his two daughters --Yahweh being merciful to him -- and led him out and left him outside the city.	16 And, since he ignored them, they took his hand, and the hand of his wife, as well as that of his two daughters, because the Lord was sparing him.
17 When they had brought him outside, he was told, 'Flee for your life. Do not look behind you or stopanywhere on the plain. Flee to the hil s or you wil be swept away.'	17 And they brought him out, and placed him beyond the city. And there they spoke to him, saying: “Save your life. Do not look not back. Neither should you stay in the entire surrounding region. But save yourself in the mountain, lest you also should perish.”
18 'Oh no, my lord!' Lot said to them,	18 And Lot said to them: “I beg you, my lord,
19 'You have already been very good to your servant and shown me even greater love by saving mylife, but I cannot flee to the hil s, or disaster wil overtake me and I shall die.	19 though your servant has found grace before you, and you have magnified your mercy, which you have shown to me in saving my life, I cannot be saved on the mountain, lest perhaps some misfortune take hold of me and I die.
20 That town over there is near enough to flee to, and is small. Let me flee there-after al it is only asmal place -- and so survive.'	20 There is a certain city nearby, to which I can flee; it is a little one, and I will be saved in it. Is it not a modest one, and will not my soul live?”
21 He replied, 'I grant you this favour too, and wil not overthrow the town you speak of.	21 And he said to him: “Behold, even now, I have heard your petitions about this, not to overturn the city on behalf of which you have spoken.
22 Hurry, flee to that one, for I cannot do anything until you reach it.' That is why the town is namedZoar.	22 Hurry and be saved there. For I cannot do anything until you enter there.” For this reason, the name of that city is called Zoar.
23 The sun rose over the horizon just as Lot was entering Zoar.	23 The sun had risen over the land, and Lot had entered into Zoar.
24 Then Yahweh rained down on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire of his own sending.	24 Therefore, the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah sulphur and fire, from the Lord, out of heaven.
25 He overthrew those cities and the whole plain, with al the people living in the cities and everythingthat grew there.	25 And he overturned these cities, and all the surrounding region: all the inhabitants of the cities, and everything that springs from the land.
26 But Lot's wife looked back, and was turned into a pil ar of salt.	26 And his wife, looking behind herself, was turned into a statue of salt.
27 Next morning, Abraham hurried to the place where he had stood before Yahweh,	27 Then Abraham, rising up in the morning, in the place where he had stood before with the Lord,
28 and looking towards Sodom and Gomorrah and the whole area of the plain, he saw the smoke risingfrom the ground like smoke from a furnace.	28 looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and the entire land of that region. And he saw embers rising up from the land like smoke from a furnace.
29 Thus it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he did not forget Abraham and herescued Lot from the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities where Lot was living.	29 For when God overthrew the cities of that region, remembering Abraham, he freed Lot from the overthrow of the cities, in which he had dwelt.
30 After leaving Zoar Lot settled in the hill country with his two daughters, for he dared not stay at Zoar.He lived in a cave, he and his two daughters.	30 And Lot ascended from Zoar, and he stayed on the mountain, and likewise his two daughters with him, (for he was afraid to stay in Zoar) and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters with him.
31 The elder said to the younger, 'Our father is an old man, and there is no one here to marry us in thenormal way of the world.	31 And the elder said to the younger: “Our father is old, and no man remains in the land who can enter to us according to the custom of the whole world.
32 Come on, let us ply our father with wine and sleep with him. In this way we can preserve the race byour father.'	32 Come, let us inebriate him with wine, and let us sleep with him, so that we may be able to preserve offspring from our father.”
33 That night they made their father drunk, and the elder slept with her father though he was unaware ofher coming to bed or of her leaving.	33 And so they gave their father wine to drink that night. And the elder went in, and she slept with her father. But he did not perceive it, neither when his daughter lay down, nor when she rose up.
34 The next day the elder said to the younger, 'Last night, I was the one who slept with our father. Letus make him drunk again tonight, and you go and sleep with him. In this way we can preserve the race by ourfather.'	34 Likewise, the next day, the elder said to the younger: “Behold, yesterday I slept with my father, let us give him wine to drink yet again this night, and you will sleep with him, so that we may save offspring from our father.”
35 They made their father drunk that night too, and the younger went and slept with him, though he wasunaware of her coming to bed or of her leaving.	35 And then they gave their father wine to drink that night also, and the younger daughter went in, and slept with him. And not even then did he perceive when she lay down, or when she rose up.
36 Both Lot's daughters thus became pregnant by their father.	36 Therefore, the two daughters of Lot conceived by their father.
37 The elder gave birth to a son whom she named Moab; and he is the ancestor of the Moabites of ourown times.	37 And the elder gave birth to a son, and she called his name Moab. He is the father of the Moabites, even to the present day.
38 The younger also gave birth to a son whom she named Ben-Ammi; and he is the ancestor of theBene-Ammon of our own times.	38 Likewise, the younger gave birth to a son, and she called his name Ammon, that is, ‘the son of my people.’ He is the father of the Ammonites, even today.