Bargaining
/Then Abraham came near and said, "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous 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? - Genesis 18:23-25
What a remarkable conversation Abraham and Almighty God have over the future of Sodom and Gomorrah! The reputation of both cities was a disgrace to everyone. God wanted to find out what was true. Abraham sent trusted friends on ahead while he and God talked it over. Who would dare bargain with God? Who would engage in helping God do the “right thing”? Well … God asked, and Abraham began this fascinating bargain with God to see if God would respond favorably if there were people in these towns that were good folks, not all bad, as their reputation suggested.
There is wonderful rich humor in this story! We can imagine this story being recited by a lively rabbi, with a flair for theater, giving the count down of how many needed to be righteous, with a twist of rye challenge to God, as they sat under the shade trees on a hot summer’s Sabbath day. And maybe there would be some enthusiastic shouts of encouragement given to Abraham to keep on with this holy auction, as the stakes grew higher and higher until all were saved. Of course they all knew where it was headed. God is merciful! God does not give up on people, especially when they ask on behalf of others, when their prayers spread out to the community, when their words and their actions reflect who God is.
Can we still bargain with God? Of course! : with respect, with words and actions we know are part of who God essentially is ….. like mercy, and forgiveness, and love.