Genesis 18:30

30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord now be angry if I shall speak; peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it if I find thirty there.

Genesis 18:30 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 18:30

And he said unto him, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I
will speak
He feared, through his importunity, he should be wearisome to him and incur his displeasure; this being often the case among men, especially when inferiors are soliciting their superiors, and, not content with one favour, are pressing for more:

Peradventure there shall thirty be found there;
the abatement is larger than before; he only made an abatement of five at a time, now ten at once, and so he proceeds;

and he said, I will not do [it], if I find thirty there;
not destroy the place for their sake.

Genesis 18:30 In-Context

28 peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.
29 And he spoke unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty’s sake.
30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord now be angry if I shall speak; peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it if I find thirty there.
31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord; peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake.
32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once; peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.
The Jubilee Bible (from the Scriptures of the Reformation), edited by Russell M. Stendal, Copyright © 2000, 2001, 2010