Bold Enough to Ask and Humble Enough to Remember
Bold Enough to Ask and Humble Enough to Remember: an original Genesis 18:27-32 KJV devotional with biblical context and practical application.
“And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the LORD, which am but dust and ashes: Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it. And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty’s sake. And he said unto him, Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there. And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the LORD: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake. And he said, Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.”
Genesis 18:27-32 KJV
Abraham's conversation is both persistent and humble. He continues asking, yet he remembers who is speaking to whom. His concern does not turn into a demand that God submit to his preferred way of handling the situation.
Read the passage carefully
The repeated appeal should not be treated as a technique for negotiating the Lord into agreement. Abraham approaches on the basis of God's revealed justice and remains conscious of his own place. The passage displays an earnest concern carried before a righteous God. It does not teach that enough repetition gives human words power over the divine will. Prayer is dependence upon the Lord, not management of Him.
We need that balance. Some people hesitate to bring a real burden because they imagine reverence requires distance without honesty. Others speak as though confidence means refusing to accept any answer except the one they have chosen. Scripture gives us a better way through Christ. Believers may come boldly to the throne of grace because of the Saviour, while remaining humble about their knowledge and dependent upon God's wisdom. We can ask earnestly without pretending that our understanding is complete.
Carry this truth into the day
Bring the person or situation on your heart before the Lord. Let Scripture shape the request, and remain willing to obey in whatever practical responsibility belongs to you. Do not use prayer as an excuse to avoid action that is already clearly required. Nor should you assume that an outcome you do not understand means the Lord failed to hear. Abraham's reverence and persistence belong together. A heart can care deeply, speak honestly, and still leave the government of the answer with the God whose wisdom reaches far beyond its own.
Why the setting matters
Abraham continues his appeal concerning Sodom while acknowledging his own lowliness before the LORD. His persistence is joined with reverence rather than a claim of authority over God.
Continue in the Word
Read further: Genesis 18 in the King James Bible.