The Judge of All the Earth
Genesis 18:25b
“Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
In Genesis 18:25, Abraham prayed to God, asking, "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?" God had explained to Abraham how He was about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. We then read about Abraham's prayer, where he begs God not to destroy the cities if first 50, then decreasing numbers, and finally 10 righteous people could be found there. In hindsight, we know first that there was only one righteous person in the city – Abraham's nephew Lot, and, second, God did not destroy the righteous with the wicked because he saved Lot from the city.
It has been rightly said that Abraham's prayer was about getting to know the mind of God and His righteous nature. But notice that Abraham did not question that God had the right to be the Judge of all the earth. Why was that? The Law had not yet been given – that would be given via Moses. Did the people of Sodom know that their behavior was sinful? Indeed they did. First, God had put a conscience within them, as He has with everyone (Romans 2:15).
Second, God had given them the pattern, at the time of creation, that marriage was to be one man and one woman. And God could be the Judge of all the earth because He was the Creator of all the earth – He has the right to judge His creation and the right to show mercy where He wills.
Prayer: Thank You for Your loving mercy towards us, Lord God. You have not treated us as we deserve, but You have the right to judge because You are the Creator of all things. Amen.
Author: Paul F. Taylor
Ref: Leupold, H.C. (1942), Exposition of Genesis (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker), p. 550.
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