Genesis 18:30

30 And he said, "Please, let not my Lord be angry, and I will speak. What if thirty be found there?" And he answered, "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 Perhaps the fifty righteous are lacking five--will you destroy the whole city on account of the five?" And he answered, "I will not destroy [it] if I find forty-five there."

29 And {once again he spoke} to him and said, "What if forty are found there?" And he answered, "I will not do [it] on account of the forty."

30 And he said, "Please, let not my Lord be angry, and I will speak. What if thirty be found there?" And he answered, "I will not do [it] if I find thirty there."

31 And he said, "Please, now, I was bold to speak to my Lord. What if twenty be found there?" And he answered, "I will not destroy [it] for the sake of the twenty."

32 And he said, "Please, let not my Lord be angry, and I will speak only once more. What if ten are found there?" And he answered, "I will not destroy [it] for the sake of the ten."

Footnotes

• [a] Or "Perhaps"