Q: The meaning of Genesis 18:20-21. I have checked several of my own sources, but none cover this. The LORD knows everything. Maybe the Hebrew is not translated well. Thanks for your help.
A: Genesis 18:20-21 reads, "Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."" The fact that it says God didn't know if the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was as bad as the outcry was saying it was doesn't take away from His omniscience. For instance, take a human example. If you're a parent and you hear your children roughhousing in another room you are able to hear what is going on and can probably make a good guess as to what they are doing. Yet, you don't have the details of exactly what they are doing. That is similar to the outcry God heard from Sodom and Gomorrah. If the parent chooses to go see what damage the children are causing they are perfectly able to do so. That doesn't take away from their role as parents. That is similar to what God was doing as He was responding to the outcry. Many times, as a parent, you don't want to see what your children have been doing because you fear the havoc they have caused. A perfectly holy God can't stand the presence of sin. Therefore, it makes sense that He would not exercise His full omniscient powers because He didn't want to be confronted with the level of sin that was taking place.
This example in Genesis 18 is not the only example we see where God refrains from using His omniscient ability. In Genesis 2, the Bible records the time when God let Adam name the animals. "He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name (Genesis 2:19)." Why does it say God wanted to see what Adam named the animals? Didn't He already know what Adam would name them? In Genesis 3 we have two more similar examples of God not exercising His all knowing abilities. After the Fall it says the Lord was walking through the Garden. Then we read, "But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you (Genesis 3:9)?"" Why would an all knowing God not know where Adam and Eve were located? Once He finds Adam and Eve, Adam says that they hid from God because they were naked. God replies, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from (Genesis 3:11)?" Again, didn't God know what had just happened? We shouldn't use these examples as evidence to question God's omniscience, but as proof that He is a living God.
Our God is a God who interacts with His creation. We see an example of Him almost being human-like in His response to the sin going on in Sodom and Gomorrah. It is as if He was taking His time in dealing with it because He knew what would have to be done once the depths of their sin was revealed. The same way many of us put off having to perform an unpleasant act. We see Him taking the time to learn from Adam as he named the animals, not unlike a loving Father allows his child to name the family pet. One could say that when He didn't know where Adam and Eve were at in the Garden that He was giving them privacy. Yet another attribute that we as humans can relate to. Now, these conclusions could be mistaken. However, there are only so many ways an infinite God can relate to His finite creations. Whether there are translational errors or just our lack of understanding we should take comfort in the fact that our God is a God who relates to us and interacts with us on a personal level. These are all acts of love on His part not moments to call into question His omniscience.
In 1 Corinthians 13, a chapter often referred to as the "love" chapter, we get a perfect description of God's love. In verse 4 we see that "love is patient." How patient was God when He listened to Adam name all the animals? How patient was God as He took His time going to Sodom and Gomorrah, even allowing Abraham the opportunity to plead with Him on behalf of the two cities (Genesis 18:22-33)? Love "does not delight in evil (1 Corinthians 13:6)." His actions towards Sodom and Gomorrah as well as banishing Adam and Eve from the Garden after their sin is, in reality, an act of love. Sin gone unpunished only increases and spreads. Eventually, it can be accepted as normal, ignored, tolerated and even promoted. God acting in ways that make Him seem less than God does not take away from the fullness of Him as God. It serves as a way in which we can get to know Him and have a relationship with Him. His ultimate expression of love is seen in Jesus Christ. Jesus, "being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness (Philippians 2:6-7)." If God can make "himself nothing" in order to become a man, it shouldn't surprise us if He occasionally is seen to not be using His omniscient powers in order to interact with man. Be blessed.
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