Genesis 19:28 · Bible study
Genesis 19:28 Commentary: The Smoke of Sodom
Hebrew · 7 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
What does Abraham's look at Sodom's smoke teach about intercessory prayer, God's justice, and the righteous within judgment? Commentary from church history.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Abraham sees the aftermath of Sodom's destruction; the smoke ascending like a furnace confirms God's judgment and the deliverance of Lot.
- Key words: qitor (smoke, linked to incense), kibshan (furnace/kiln), shaqaph (looked down from a height).
- Main debate: The relationship between Abraham's intercession and the deliverance of Lot: did the prayer cause the mercy, or did it simply align Abraham with God's existing mercy?
- Theological theme: Intercessory prayer, God's justice, and the preservation of the righteous within judgment.
- Best use: A pastoral text for praying with hope while trusting God's justice in situations where judgment seems inevitable.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of the plain, and he saw the smoke rising from the land like smoke from a furnace.
WEB World English Bible 2000
He looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and saw that the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.
KJV King James Version 1769
And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the Plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and he looketh on the face of Sodom and Gomorrah, and on all the face of the land of the circuit, and seeth, and lo, the smoke of the land went up as smoke of the furnace.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and lo, a smoke went up from the land as the smoke of a furnace.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
He looked towards Sodom and Gomorrha, and the whole land of that country: and he saw the ashes rise up from the earth as the smoke of a furnace.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y miró hacia Sodoma y Gomorra, y hacia toda la tierra de aquella llanura miró; y he aquí que el humo subía de la tierra como el humo de un horno.
E olhou até Sodoma e Gomorra, e até toda a terra daquela planície olhou; e eis que a fumaça subia da terra como a fumaça de um forno.
Il porta ses regards du côté de Sodome et de Gomorrhe, et sur tout le territoire de la plaine; et voici, il vit s’ élever de la terre une fumée, comme la fumée d’ une fournaise.
und wandte sein Angesicht gegen Sodom und Gomorra und alles Land der Gegend und schaute; und siehe, da ging Rauch auf vom Lande wie ein Rauch vom Ofen.
En hij zag naar Sodom en Gomorra toe, en naar het ganse land van die vlakte; en hij zag, en ziet, er ging een rook van het land op, gelijk de rook eens ovens.
guardò verso Sodoma e Gomorra e verso tutta la regione della pianura, ed ecco vide un fumo che si levava dalla terra, come il fumo d’una fornace.
I spojrzał ku Sodomie i Gomorze, i ku wszystkiej ziemi onej równiny, i obaczył, a oto wychodził dym z onej ziemi, jako dym z pieca.
и посмотрел к Содому и Гоморре и на все пространство окрестности и увидел: вот, дым поднимается с земли, как дым из печи.
向 所多瑪 和蛾摩拉與 平原 的全 地 觀 看，不料，那地方 煙氣 上騰，如同 燒窯一般。
And looking in the direction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the lowland, he saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of an oven.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Genesis 19:28
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
The commentators agree that Abraham's early morning journey to the place of intercession shows his continued vigilance after prayer. Matthew Henry describes Abraham looking 'humbly adoring it and acquiescing in it,' not with the curiosity or regret of Lot's wife. Wesley echoes this, adding that Abraham's look was one of humble adoration. Keil and Delitzsch emphasize that Abraham's intercession had not been in vain, for Lot was delivered. Cambridge notes that the word for smoke (qitor) is the same used for incense, giving the scene a sacrificial character. The consensus is that Abraham saw both the severity of judgment and the faithfulness of God to remember his prayers. Judgment fell completely, but mercy remembered the righteous.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Abraham's intercession did not prevent the judgment of Sodom, but God delivered Lot, showing that judgment and mercy coexist in God's response to prayer.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Abraham's intercession and Lot's deliverance | God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out before the overthrow (v29). Both facts appear in the text. | Some traditions (e.g., Reformed) see Lot's deliverance as a free gift of grace independent of Abraham's prayer; others (e.g., Arminian) see it as a direct answer to Abraham's specific intercession. All agree the prayer was part of God's plan. |
| Abraham's attitude toward judgment | He did not look with regret or rebellion, but with submission to God's justice. | Matthew Henry emphasizes 'humble adoration'; Gill focuses on Abraham's expectation to see the outcome of his prayer. Both see a posture of faith, but the emotional emphasis differs. |
| Symbolism of the smoke | The smoke signifies complete destruction, as a furnace consumes all. | Cambridge notes the word <em>qitor</em> is used for incense, suggesting a sacrificial dimension to judgment; others (e.g., Keil) read it purely as a sign of wrath. Both readings find textual support. |
| The fate of the righteous within judgment | Lot was delivered but lost everything; the righteous are not always spared temporal suffering. | Some view Lot's deliverance as proof that the righteous will be removed before final judgment (a pretribulation reading); others see it as a pattern of God preserving faith through suffering. 2 Peter 2:7-9 supports both possibilities. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Abraham went up early to the place where he had stood before Yahweh (Gen 18:22). This was a height near Hebron, with a view eastward across the Jordan Valley toward the Dead Sea. The plain (kikkar) mentioned here was the same well-watered area Lot chose in Genesis 13:10, described as like the garden of Yahweh. Now it was a smoking waste.
The word for furnace (kibshan) refers to a lime or brick kiln, a common sight in Egypt (Exod 9:8,10) and used for pottery or smelting. The smoke (qitor) is a rare term; as Cambridge observes, it is not the ordinary word for smoke but corresponds to 'reek' or 'steam,' used especially of incense. Driver suggested it evokes the steamy mist that still rises from the Dead Sea due to rapid evaporation. The combination of terms paints a picture of total consumption: the land itself burned like a kiln.
The surrounding narrative shows a clear contrast. Lot's wife looked back with longing and became a pillar of salt (v26). Abraham looked forward with solemn faith. The judgment was comprehensive: cities, plain, inhabitants, and vegetation (v25). Yet verse 29 adds that 'God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out.' Abraham's location, the very spot where he had pleaded for Sodom, confirms that intercession is not a formula but a relationship. His prayer did not stop the judgment, but it shaped how mercy operated within it.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts. The main differences in English translations involve rendering kikkar as 'plain' (WEB, KJV) or 'valley' (interlinear), and qitor as 'smoke' or 'reek,' but these do not affect the essential meaning.
Reception History
The image of smoke rising from Sodom became a powerful symbol of divine judgment in Jewish and Christian tradition. The Wisdom of Solomon (10:6-7), cited in the Cambridge commentary, speaks of 'a smoking waste' that still witnesses to ungodliness. Clement of Rome, in his letter to the Corinthians, mentions the pillar of salt as a memorial of unbelief. Early church fathers used the smoke as a type of hell's torments. The book of Revelation echoes this imagery three times: the smoke of the abyss like a furnace (Rev 9:2), the smoke of Babylon's burning (Rev 18:9,18), and the smoke of torment that goes up forever (Rev 14:11). In hymns of judgment and mercy, this verse has been read as both warning and comfort: a warning of God's certain judgment on sin, and a comfort that intercessory prayer is not forgotten.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Place of Prayer, Abraham returned to the spot where he had stood before the Lord, showing that intercessory prayer demands follow-through and attention to God's answer.
- The Sight of Judgment, He saw the smoke rising like a furnace, confirming that God's justice on sin is real, thorough, and visible. This is not a passive observation but an act of sober worship.
- The Memory of Mercy, God remembered Abraham and delivered Lot. Judgment and mercy are not opposed; mercy rides on the back of justice.
Five-point outline
- Vigilance after prayer (v27), Abraham rose early and went to the place of meeting. Prayer does not end with amen; it expects an answer.
- The direction of the gaze (v28a), He looked toward Sodom. He did not turn away from the hard reality of judgment. Faith looks squarely at what God does.
- The symbolism of the smoke (v28b), The word qitor links judgment to sacrifice. The smoke of Sodom rises like incense, a terrible offering that nonetheless honors God's holiness.
- The fate of the righteous within judgment (v29), Lot was saved, but he lost everything. Salvation does not always mean preservation from loss; it means rescue from ultimate destruction.
- The lesson for intercessors, Abraham's prayer did not change God's plan, but it became the channel through which God worked mercy. Intercession aligns us with God's compassion.
Illustration hooks
- Watching news footage of a wildfire consuming a town, knowing people you prayed for are caught in the path.
- Waiting for a medical report after weeks of desperate prayer, and seeing both hoped-for and hard results.
- The moment when a friend faces the natural consequences of repeated bad choices, and you must stand by, trusting God's justice and mercy.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Did Abraham's prayer save Lot, or would Lot have been saved anyway?
- Why did God destroy women and children along with the guilty adults?
- How can we pray for God's intervention in judgment without becoming callous toward the suffering of others?
Leading a Discussion
Genesis 19:28 places us with Abraham on the mountain, watching smoke rise from a landscape that once held cities, families, and a whole way of life. He saw the answer to his prayer for Sodom's judgment and the answer to his prayer for Lot's safety in the same view. This moment asks us to consider how faith holds both justice and mercy together.
Discussion questions
- What do you notice about Abraham's posture in verses 27-28? Why did he go to the same place where he interceded?
- The smoke is compared to that of a furnace. What does this image communicate about the completeness of God's judgment?
- Compare Abraham's look toward Sodom with Lot's wife's look back in verse 26. What is the difference in their hearts?
- How does verse 29 explain God's action: 'God remembered Abraham'? What does 'remembered' mean in this context?
- Abraham begged for fifty righteous, then forty, then thirty, then twenty, then ten (Gen 18:23-32). Did that prayer accomplish anything? Why or why not?
- Lot is called 'righteous Lot' in 2 Peter 2:7-8, but he ended up in a cave committing incest (Gen 19:30-38). How do you hold together his righteous status with his later moral failure?
- How does this passage shape the way you pray for people or places that seem far from God?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Psalms 107:34 | and a fruitful land into a salt waste, for the wickedness of those who dwell in it. |
| II Peter 2:7 | and delivered righteous Lot, who was very distressed by the lustful life of the wicked |
| Jude 1:7 | Even as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, having in the same way as these given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are shown as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire. |
| Revelation of John 9:2 | He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit. |
| Revelation of John 14:10 | he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. |
| Revelation of John 14:11 | The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. |
| Revelation of John 18:9 | The kings of the earth who committed sexual immorality and lived wantonly with her will weep and wail over her, when they look at the smoke of her burning, |
| Revelation of John 18:18 | and cried out as they looked at the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What is like the great city?’ |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
7 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentary notes that the word for "smoke" here is unusual, normally used for incense or sacrifice, and may describe a steamy mist like the one travelers see rising from the Dead Sea. It also observes that this verse is the Priestly writer's brief summary of the destruction, using "God" rather than "the Lord."
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Bible highlights Lot’s backward glance as an act of lingering attachment to the city he once called home. By noting that he saw smoke rising like from a furnace, the notes emphasize the total and irreversible nature of God’s judgment. This visual detail confirms that Sodom and Gomorah were completely consumed, leaving no hope for recovery or return.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill notes that God likely hinted to Abraham the destruction would come that morning, so Abraham rose early and climbed a high place to watch for it. The smoke he saw rising from the plain was thick and steady, like the reek of a furnace or a lime kiln that never stops burning.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch propose that Lot's wife was not miraculously transformed into salt, but was killed by the fiery sulphur in the air and then encrusted with salt, forming a salt statue naturally. They compare this to how objects near the Dead Sea still become coated with salt today. Abraham's intercession, they add, was not wasted.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange reads Lot’s offer of his daughters as a desperate attempt to shield his guests by appealing to the mob’s unnatural lusts, which he likely knew would override any claim to hospitality. He suggests this act stems from confusion and anxiety rather than calculated cunning, highlighting how the threat of destruction triggered a spiritually awakened but morally compromised response in Lot.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry highlights that Abraham did not pray and then move on; he got up early to watch for God's answer, going back to the very spot where he had interceded. His gaze at Sodom’s destruction was not curious or critical like Lot’s wife, but reverent, accepting God’s judgment even after pleading for mercy.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley contrasts Abraham's look at Sodom with Lot's wife's: Abraham humbly adores God's judgment and submits to it rather than questioning it. He then notes that God heard Abraham's prayer for Sodom by sparing Lot, just as He earlier heard Abraham's prayer for Ishmael by blessing Isaac.