That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
This verse comes from one of the most striking conversations in the Bible: Abraham, the founding patriarch of the Jewish faith, pushing back against God. In Genesis 18, God reveals to Abraham that he is about to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because of their extreme wickedness. Abraham's nephew Lot lives in Sodom. So Abraham does something startling — rather than accepting the announcement, he challenges it. In this verse, he appeals not to sentiment but to God's own character: Will the Judge of all the earth not do what is right? Surely you will not sweep away innocent people along with the guilty? It is an argument built on the premise that God's justice is trustworthy and that God's own nature requires him to act rightly. Remarkably, God engages the challenge and listens.
God, you are the Judge of all the earth, and I trust that you do right — even when I cannot see it and the math does not add up. Give me Abraham's courage to bring my honest questions to you, and Abraham's faith to believe your character holds even when your ways are beyond me. Amen.
Abraham essentially corners God with God's own character. He does not say 'please be merciful' — he says 'you are just, so act justly.' There is an audacity here that is almost shocking. An ordinary human being standing before the God of the universe, making a legal argument. And God listens. Engages. Responds. What does that tell us about the kind of God behind the universe? Not a divine autocrat who demands silence and compliance, but someone who apparently welcomes the conversation — even when it arrives in the form of a challenge. Most of us have had a 3 AM moment, staring at the ceiling, wondering why something terrible happened to someone who did not deserve it. Abraham's prayer gives you permission for that conversation. You are allowed to bring your confusion about justice to God — not because you can out-argue him, but because the capacity to care about what is right came from somewhere. It came from him. Abraham did not receive a neat answer that night. He negotiated, he pushed, and the story still ended in grief. But he brought it honestly. There is more faith in a wrestling prayer than in polite silence.
Abraham appeals to God's own character — 'Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?' — as the foundation of his argument. What does it reveal about the nature of Abraham's faith that he believed God could and should be held to his own stated nature?
Have you ever argued with God, or wrestled honestly with something he allowed that you did not understand? What was that experience like, and looking back now, what do you make of it?
This passage raises a genuinely difficult question: is it ever appropriate to challenge or question God's actions, or does that cross a line? Where does that line sit for you, and how did you arrive at it?
Abraham's intercession was on behalf of someone else — his nephew Lot. How does his example shape your thinking about praying boldly for others, especially in situations where you have no practical power to help them?
Is there a justice question — personal or global — that you have been afraid to bring honestly to God because it felt too angry, too confused, or too doubting? What would it look like to actually bring that conversation to him this week, without cleaning it up first?
For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
John 5:22
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Hebrews 12:23
Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.
Job 34:10
I can of mine own self do nothing : as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
John 5:30
But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance? (I speak as a man)
Romans 3:5
He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.
Deuteronomy 32:4
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:10
Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
Isaiah 3:10
Far be it from You to do such a thing—to strike the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right [by executing just and righteous judgment]?"
AMP
Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
ESV
'Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are [treated] alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?'
NASB
Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
NIV
Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
NKJV
Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”
NLT
Wouldn't you spare the city for the sake of those fifty innocents? I can't believe you'd do that, kill off the good and the bad alike as if there were no difference between them. Doesn't the Judge of all the Earth judge with justice?"
MSG