“Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” These are Abraham’s words to God in Genesis 18:28, pertaining to the judgment God was considering for Sodom and Gomorrah. I’ve been slowly reading through Genesis and recently came to the interaction between God and Abraham about these two cities.
I’ve read and studied this conversation between God and Abraham many times over the course of years. What stands out to me this time is Abraham pleading for God’s mercy on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham’s intercessions don’t just happen in a casual, happenchance conversation with God. If you look at Genesis 18:23-33, Abraham really sticks his neck out to plead for these cities—pressing God about being just and considering how many righteous people could be there.
When you look at Abraham’s intercessions, he starts with asking God if He would destroy these cities if there were fifty righteous people in them. Would God kill so many righteous people, including them in His punishment for all the wickedness that was happening? In verse 23, Abraham asks, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?” Furthermore, Abraham really presses into God’s character in verse 25 to plead for those who might be righteous in Sodom and Gomorrah. “Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?”
This is the starting point for Abraham’s pleas for mercy on behalf of specific numbers of righteous people. Abraham starts with fifty people to see if God has a threshold for limiting His punishment or judgment. When God relents and says He won’t destroy the cities if there are fifty righteous people in them, Abraham begins a dialogue in incremental intercession. From fifty people, Abraham asks God if five fewer people would make a difference in His judgment. When God relents at forty-five people, then Abraham presses God with five fewer people. Would God destroy the cities if there were forty people?
Abraham’s intercession continues from forty to thirty to twenty to ten. All total, Abraham petitions God six times in dwindling numbers. This is interesting to think about because Abraham was clear that there was plenty of wickedness happening in Sodom and Gomorrah. But his words demonstrate intercession rather than condemnation. When God let Abraham know that He was going to check on how truly wicked Sodom and Gomorrah were, Abraham didn’t immediately advise God to obliterate these evil cities. Instead, Abraham interceded by pleading on behalf of potentially righteous people.
I think such intercession is pleasing to God, considering that Jesus is our ultimate Interceder! To that end, let’s think about our own perspective with the evil and wickedness in our world. Is our first petition for God to judge, punish and eradicate wicked people? Or do we intercede for them and ask God to have mercy and give them the opportunity to make different choices? And which of these reactions most accurately reflects God’s heart? Do we petition God for mercy or punishment?
What Abraham did causes me to pause and reflect. Is my first response to be critical and judgmental, or do I react with compassion and mercy? I know that I can be appalled at the depravity of humanity, but I also know that I can choose to intercede and press into God’s lovingkindness for the human race. Let’s respond less with punishment and more with intercession!
