Chapters18,19 constitute one integrated story, but we shall consider this episode in the Abraham narrative section by section. Like the Flood story, it has a chiastic structure, this time focusing on the announcement of the destruction of Sodom ( Genesis 19:12-13). [1] Again there is a mass destruction with only one man and his family escaping. Both stories end with intoxication and shameful treatment by children that have consequences for future generations. [2][source]
We perceive the Lord"s gracious initiative toward Abraham in His visit to eat with the patriarch in his tent. This was a sign of intimate fellowship in Abraham"s culture. On the basis of that close relationship God guaranteed the soon arrival of the promised heir. In response to Sarah"s laugh of unbelief the Lord declared that nothing would be too difficult for Him. [source][source][source]
This chapter and the next may seem at first reading to be extraneous to the purpose of the Abraham narrative, which is to demonstrate God"s faithfulness to His promises to the patriarch, but they are not. Chapter18 contributes the following. [source][source][source]
1.It records another revelation (the sixth) in which God identified for the first time when the heir would appear ( Genesis 18:10; Genesis 18:14). With this revelation God strengthened Abraham"s, and especially Sarah"s, faith.2.It fortifies Moses" emphasis on God"s supernatural power at work to fulfill His divine promises in spite of apparently impossible circumstances ( Genesis 18:9-15).3.As a literary device it provides an interlude in the story line and heightens suspense by prolonging the climax. We anticipate the arrival of the heir with mounting interest.4.It presents Abraham as an intercessor, one of the roles of the prophets of whom Abraham was one of the first (cf. Genesis 20:7).5.It records God"s announcement of judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah ( Genesis 18:16-33), which follows in chapter19. [source][source][source]
"The noon encounter in this chapter and the night scene at Sodom in the next are in every sense a contrast of light and darkness. The former, quietly intimate and full of promise, is crowned by the intercession in which Abraham"s faith and love show a new breadth of concern. The second scene is all confusion and ruin, moral and physical, ending in a loveless squalor which is even uglier than the great overthrow of the cities." [3][source]
"There is also a blatant contrast between how Abraham hosted his visitors (ch18) and how the Sodomites hosted the same delegation (ch19)." [4][source]