19:9 “Out of our way!” 1 they cried, and “This man came to live here as a foreigner, 2 and now he dares to judge us! 3 We’ll do more harm 4 to you than to them!” They kept 5 pressing in on Lot until they were close enough 6 to break down the door.
19:14 Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters. 7 He said, “Quick, get out of this place because the Lord is about to destroy 8 the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was ridiculing them. 9
1 tn Heb “approach out there” which could be rendered “Get out of the way, stand back!”
2 tn Heb “to live as a resident alien.”
3 tn Heb “and he has judged, judging.” The infinitive absolute follows the finite verbal form for emphasis. This emphasis is reflected in the translation by the phrase “dares to judge.”
4 tn The verb “to do wickedly” is repeated here (see v. 7). It appears that whatever “wickedness” the men of Sodom had intended to do to Lot’s visitors – probably nothing short of homosexual rape – they were now ready to inflict on Lot.
5 tn Heb “and they pressed against the man, against Lot, exceedingly.”
6 tn Heb “and they drew near.”
7 sn The language has to be interpreted in the light of the context and the social customs. The men are called “sons-in-law” (literally “the takers of his daughters”), but the daughters had not yet had sex with a man. It is better to translate the phrase “who were going to marry his daughters.” Since formal marriage contracts were binding, the husbands-to-be could already be called sons-in-law.
8 tn The Hebrew active participle expresses an imminent action.
9 tn Heb “and he was like one taunting in the eyes of his sons-in-law.” These men mistakenly thought Lot was ridiculing them and their lifestyle. Their response illustrates how morally insensitive they had become.
10 tn Heb “and he went to her.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.