Genesis 19:31

Verse

One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to sleep with us, as is the custom over all the earth.

American Standard Version (1901)

And the first-born said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:

Bible in Basic English

And the older daughter said to her sister, Our father is old, and there is no man to be a husband to us in the natural way:

Douay-Rheims 1899

And the elder said to the younger Our father is old, and there is no man left on the earth, to come in unto us after the manner of the whole earth.

Free Bible Version

Sometime later the older daughter said to the younger one, “Our father is growing old, and there's no men left to give us children like everyone does.

Geneva Bible 1599

And the elder saide vnto the yonger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth, to come in vnto vs after the maner of all ye earth.

King James (Authorized) Version

And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:

One Unity Resource Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us in the way of all the earth.

Plain English Version

One day the oldest daughter said to her sister, “Our father is old, and we haven’t got any kids, and there are no men around here for us to marry.

Translation for Translators

One day the older daughter said to ◄the younger daughter/her sister►, “Our father is old, and there is no man in this area who can have sex [EUP] with us, as people all over the earth do.

Unlocked Literal Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man anywhere to sleep with us according to the way of all the world.

Noah Webster Bible

And the first-born said to the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man on the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth:

World English Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us in the way of all the earth.

Young's Literal Translation

And the first-born saith unto the younger, 'Our father [is] old, and a man there is not in the earth to come in unto us, as [is] the way of all the earth;

Context

Lot and His Daughters

³⁰Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains—for he was afraid to stay in Zoar—where they lived in a cave.³¹One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to sleep with us, as is the custom over all the earth.³²Come, let us get our father drunk with wine so we can sleep with him and preserve his line.”

Summary

This verse recounts the story of Lot's daughters, who, after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, believed that there were no men left on earth to father their children. In a misguided attempt to preserve their family line, they got their father Lot drunk and slept with him, resulting in both becoming pregnant. This disturbing account serves as a cautionary tale about the consequences of desperation and the dangers of straying from God's moral standards, even in extreme circumstances.

Commentary

Adam Clarke
John Gill

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

Our father is old - And consequently not likely to re-marry; and there is not a man in the earth - none left, according to their opinion in all the land of Canaan, of their own family and kindred; and they might think it unlawful to match with others, such as the inhabitants of Zoar, who they knew had been devoted to destruction as well as those of Sodom and Gomorrah, and were only saved at the earnest request of their father; and probably while they lived among them they found them ripe enough for punishment, and therefore would have thought it both dangerous and criminal to have formed any matrimonial connections with them.

John Gill Bible Commentary

Come, let us make our father drink wine,.... Meaning to excess, so as to be inebriated with it, and not know what he did: this wine might be brought with them from Sodom, with other provisions for their refreshment and support; or it may be rather from Zoar, where they furnished themselves with a quantity for their support in the mountain they betook themselves unto: and we will lie with him, that we may preserve the seed of our father; have children by him, and propagate and preserve the human species; this they might think lawful, such incestuous copulations being usual among their neighbours the Arabs, as appears from Strabo (s) and other writers, and especially when there seemed to them to be a necessity for it; and it may be this did not arise from a spirit of uncleanness, or a brutish lust prevailing in them, having been religiously educated, and having preserved their chastity among such an impure generation as the men of Sodom: wherefore this might rather arise, as Bishop Patrick and others have thought, from an eager desire after the Messiah, they might hope would spring from them; their father being a descendant of Shem, a son of Abraham's elder brother, and now remarkably saved from Sodom, which they might conclude was for this purpose; and they knew of no way in which it could be brought about but in this they proposed; and the rather this may be thought to be their view, as the above learned commentator observes, when we remark their former chaste life in Sodom; their joining together in this contrivance, which, had it been a lustful business, they would have been ashamed to have communicated their thoughts of it to one another; and their imposition of names on their children to perpetuate the memory of this fact, which they rather gloried in, than were ashamed of: to which may be added, that the ancient Jewish writers (t) interpret this of the Messiah; and they observe,"it is not said a son, but seed, that seed, which is he that comes from another place: and what is this? this is the King Messiah:''and Ruth, the Moabitess, who was of the race of the eldest daughter of Lot, stands in the genealogy of our Lord, Mat 1:5, however, let the intention be ever so good, it will, not justify an action so monstrously vile. (s) Geograph. l. 16. p. 538. Vid. Pocock, Specim. Arab. Hist. p. 337, 338. (t) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 51. fol. 46. 1. Midrash Ruth, fol. 35. 4.

Genesis 19:31

Lot and His Daughters

Scripture
Sermons
Commentary

Berean Standard Bible

One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to sleep with us, as is the custom over all the earth.

American Standard Version (1901)

And the first-born said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:

Bible in Basic English

And the older daughter said to her sister, Our father is old, and there is no man to be a husband to us in the natural way:

Douay-Rheims 1899

And the elder said to the younger Our father is old, and there is no man left on the earth, to come in unto us after the manner of the whole earth.

Free Bible Version

Sometime later the older daughter said to the younger one, “Our father is growing old, and there's no men left to give us children like everyone does.

Geneva Bible 1599

And the elder saide vnto the yonger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth, to come in vnto vs after the maner of all ye earth.

King James (Authorized) Version

And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:

One Unity Resource Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us in the way of all the earth.

Plain English Version

One day the oldest daughter said to her sister, “Our father is old, and we haven’t got any kids, and there are no men around here for us to marry.

Translation for Translators

One day the older daughter said to ◄the younger daughter/her sister►, “Our father is old, and there is no man in this area who can have sex [EUP] with us, as people all over the earth do.

Unlocked Literal Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man anywhere to sleep with us according to the way of all the world.

Noah Webster Bible

And the first-born said to the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man on the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth:

World English Bible

The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us in the way of all the earth.

Young's Literal Translation

And the first-born saith unto the younger, 'Our father [is] old, and a man there is not in the earth to come in unto us, as [is] the way of all the earth;

Adam Clarke
John Gill

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

John Gill Bible Commentary