Justin Houtz

Genesis 18-19; Psalm 3; Luke 7

DateVersionReading Plan
January 7, 2026ESV (2016)ESV Life Journal Plan – 2026

Genesis 18-19

Observation & Interpretation

Gen. 18:2-5 – Abraham saw three men standing in front of him and he bowed to the ground and said, “Lord, if I have found favor in your sight…”

  • Abraham is presented as the ideal host. He sees three men—actually God and two angels (19:1)—to whom he eagerly extended greeting and showed proper respect by calling them “my lord” (Hb ’adonai; a term that can refer to God) and bowing to the ground. (CSB Notes)

Gen. 18:20-21 – There was a great outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and their sin was very grave, prompting God to go down to see whether they had done altogether according to the cry that had come to Him.

  • The Lord would investigate Sodom and Gomorrah for two reasons: the outcry coming from their victims was immense, and the cities’ sin was extremely serious. According to Ezk 16:49–50, the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah included self-centered pride, neglect of the poor and needy, and doing unnamed detestable things. According to Gn 19:5–9, one of the “detestable acts” was attempted homosexual gang rape. Through his appointed representatives the Lord would experience what justified the cry that had come up to him. (CSB Notes)

Gen. 19:1 – The two angels came to Sodom and interacted with Lot, but it does not mention that the Lord was with them as He was with Abraham.

  • Whereas Abraham met with three divine guests, including the Lord, Lot met with two angels. (CSB Notes)

Gen. 19:4-5 – All the men of Sodom, both young and old to the last man, surrounded Lot’s house and called to Lot that they may know the men he was hosting. The pervasiveness of sin in Sodom was entire.

  • Not every last person in a literal sense; rather, this rhetorical statement shows that the men of Sodom were living up to their ungodly reputation (Gen 13:13; 18:20). (FSB)

Gen. 19:11 – The angels staying with Lot struck the Sodomite men with blindness, displaying that they had divine power to inflict physical maladies.

  • …a miracle saved the day; the angels struck the Sodomites with a temporary, confusing blindness. (BBC)

Luke 7

Observation & Interpretation

Luke 7:4-5 – The elders of the Jews sent by the centurion told Jesus that He should heal the centurion’s servant because he loved their nation and built their synagogue. By this, the elders grounded the centurion’s worth in what he had done for them.

  • The Jewish elders were willing to intervene with Jesus because they considered the centurion a truly worthy man. Though he was a Gentile, he loved Israel and had spent time and money constructing a synagogue in Capernaum. (CSB Notes)

Luke 7:29 – Luke records that the people and the tax collectors declared God just for Jesus having been baptized with the baptism of John.

  • In believing John’s message and acting upon it, they justified God, that is, they reckoned God to be righteous in demanding that the people of Israel should first repent before Christ could reign over them. (BBC)

Application

Luke 7:47 (ESV) Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”

Jesus told Simon, the Pharisee, that the many sins of woman who had kissed His feet and anointed Him with oil were forgiven, contrasting her great love and forgiveness with those who love little and little forgiveness. Only when we realize of what we have been forgiven will we extend forgiveness to others. It is when we realize the depth of our sin and desperate plight before a holy and righteous God are able to grasp and appreciate the forgiveness offered in Christ such that it leads to relating to others with Christlike compassion.

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