Comentario sobre Génesis 19:29

ויזכר אלהים את אברהם GOD REMEMBERED ABRAHAM — What bearing has God’s remembering Abraham upon the rescue of Lot? He remembered that Lot knew that Sarah was Abraham’s wife and that when he heard that Abraham said in Egypt regarding Sarah, “She is my sister”, he did not betray him because he had sympathy with him. For this reason God had mercy upon him (Lot) (Genesis Rabbah 51:6).

AND G-D REMEMBERED ABRAHAM, AND SENT LOT OUT FROM THE CATASTROPHE. The purport of this verse is that Lot had shown kindness towards the righteous one²⁵⁹Abraham. by going with him and roaming here and there, following him wherever he went. This is the intent of the verse, And Lot went with him,²⁶⁰Above, 12:4. meaning that he went at Abraham’s command. Therefore he had the merit to be saved on account of Abraham’s meritoriousness as it was on account of him that he lived in Sodom, and were it not for Abraham he would have still been in Haran with his family. Now it is inconceivable that some evil should overtake him [Lot] because of Abraham who had left his country at his Creator’s command. This was also the reason why Abraham endangered himself by pursuing the kings on account of him.²⁶¹Ibid., 14:14.

מתוך ההפכה בהפוך את הערים, seeing that he had escaped by the merit of Avraham from the destruction of these cites, a process which had begun even before Lot had been outside the outer perimeters of the valley due to his laziness. (compare verse 16) As a result, he was afraid to settle in Tzoar thinking that its destruction had been delayed only on account of his having taken refuge there.

ויהי בשחת, the reason why the Torah phrases this thus is to remind us that Lot’s having been saved was due to the merit of Avraham. Even though, by comparison to the people of Sodom he was relatively righteous, he was not righteous enough to have deserved G’d extending Himself to save him as a result of his own merits. G’d now wanted to put Avraham’s mind at rest by indicating to him that Lot had indeed been saved from this conflagration.

בהפוך את הערים אשר ישב בהן לוט, “when He overturned the cities wherein Lot had dwelled.” The meaning is as if the Torah had written: “in one of which Lot had dwelled.”

ויהי בשחת אלוקים, ”it was when G’d destroyed, etc.” The word אלוקים here refers to the angel of G’d who performed this task.
ויזכור אלוקים את אברהם, “G’d remembered Avraham.” Here the word אלוקים refers to G’d Himself.
וישלח את לוט, “He sent away Lot, etc.” As soon as the name of Avraham is mentioned G’d saves those who cleave to him. The meaning of the verse is that had it not been for Avraham, Lot would still have been in Charan, his land and his birthplace. He left his birthplace only for the sake of Avraham and in his honour. This is what the Torah testified in Genesis 12,4 “Avraham went as G’d had told him, and Lot went with him.” Having this in mind, the Torah says here that G’d remembered Avraham and that as a consequence He saved Lot. The Torah is careful not to say that Lot was saved because G’d remembered Avraham. This what our sages meant when they said (Tanchuma Vayera 9) “one may save the cover of a book together with the book itself just as one may save the bag containing the phylacteries together with the phylacteries contained therein even if there was also money inside that container at the same time” (in case of a fire on the Sabbath). The reason for this is that the container or cover respectively lend additional distinction to the phylacteries or the sacred text inside the cover. From these words of the Tanchuma we learn “hail to the righteous as well as to those who support them.” We can support this from Genesis 8,1: “G’d remembered Noach and all the creatures that were with him inside the Ark.”

How does the remembering of Avraham affect Lot? He remembered... [Rashi is answering the question:] Whenever it says, “Hashem remembered,” the one who needs the deliverance is remembered. For example (30:22): “Elokim remembered Rochel,” and (Shmuel I, 1:9): “Hashem remembered her [Channah].” But here, why is Avraham remembered, while Lot is delivered? Therefore Rashi explains that Hashem indeed remembered Lot, who needed the deliverance. And when it says את אברהם, it means that Hashem remembered for Lot the kindness he did “with Avraham.” Thus, את אברהם is to be understood as עם אברהם (with Avraham). (R. Meir Stern)

Während in der ganzen Erzählung der Name ׳ה genannt ist, steht hier Gott als Richter. Lot gegenüber war seine Rettung ein Akt der Barmherzigkeit, Abraham gegenüber gehörte seine Rettung ebenso wie Sodoms Untergang zur Gerechtigkeit Gottes, wie sie eben Abraham erschaut hatte, die um des nahestehenden Gerechten willen des Schuldigen schont, um in seinem Untergange nicht den Gerechten mit leiden zu lassen.

אשר ישב בהן לוט, “in which Lot used to live;” he had not lived in all of them but in one of them. We find a similar construction in Judges 12,7, where Yiftach is reported as having been buried “in the cities of Gilead,” and it clearly does not mean that he had been cut up and been buried in different parts of the region of Gilead. [The Book of Judges merely makes the point that any of these cities would have been proud to have provided his grave. Ed.] Compare also Zachariah 9,9: ועל עיר בן אתונות, “and on a male donkey foaled by one of the sheasses.”

וישלח את לוט מתוך ההפכה, He had sent away from the midst of this upheaval, i.e. immediately preceding it.

And he did not betray him because he was sympathetic towards him. Re’m asks: Why is the [greater] kindness of Lot leaving his country and birthplace to follow [i.e., accompany] Avraham wherever he went, not mentioned [instead]? It seems to me that this is no question on Chazal’s statement [that Hashem remembered only Lot’s kindness to Avraham in Egypt], because the answer is: When Lot went with Avraham, he did not go for Avraham’s good but for his own good. For if Avraham would die, Lot would inherit his property! As Rashi explains [that Lot’s herdsmen thought] as much, on (13:7), “There was a quarrel between the herdsmen of Avram’s flocks...” But when Lot did not reveal who Sarah was, this was indeed considered to be for Avraham’s good. The whole reason he went with Avraham was to inherit him, so he should have told them that Sarah was Avraham’s wife, so they would kill Avraham, and he would inherit him. After all, he had set his eyes on Avraham’s money. Therefore, [because Lot did not reveal this to Pharaoh,] it was considered a [true] kindness.

בהפך את הערים, when He was about to turn these cities inside out, for the angel had told Lot that he could not carry out his task until he had brought Lot to safety. (verse 22).