Genesis 19:8

Summary

Lot offers his two virgin daughters to the men of Sodom surrounding his house, urging them to do with the daughters "as is good in your eyes," while pleading that they not harm the two visitors, because — he explains — those visitors have come under the protection of his roof.

Key words

• hinneh ("here!", H2009) + na ("please", H4994) — a double particle of entreaty opening the speech; hinneh draws attention to the offer, na softens it into a plea rather than a bare statement.
• yade'u ("they have known", H3045) — qal perfect, negated by lo' ("not", H3808); this verb of "knowing" functions as an idiom for sexual intercourse, so the phrase describes the daughters as never having had relations with a man ('ish, H0376G).
• 'otzi'ah ("let me bring out", H3318H) — hiphil, causative stem, cohortative-type form ending in -ah; expresses Lot's self-directed intention/willingness to act, "I will bring them out."
• ta'asu ("you do", H6213A) — qal, here negated by 'al ("may not", H0408) to form a jussive-type prohibition, "you must not do," contrasting with the earlier plain imperative 'asu ("do", same root) used for the daughters.
• tzel ("shadow of", H6738) construct with qorati ("my roof-beam", H6982) — a construct chain literally "shadow of my roof-beam," an idiom describing the shelter/protection a host provides to guests inside his house.

What the text says

The verse is built as a chain of imperative and volitional forms. Lot first uses hinneh na to introduce his offer, then the qal perfect yade'u negated by lo' to characterize his daughters as sexually inexperienced. The hiphil form 'otzi'ah (with a second na) expresses his own resolve to act — "let me bring them out" — followed by the plain imperative 'asu ("do") granting the men freedom to treat the daughters "according to the good in your eyes" (ka-tov be-'eineikhem), an idiom placing the daughters' treatment entirely in the visitors' judgment.

The turn to the two men is marked by rak ("only," H7535), introducing a restriction, and by the negated jussive-type form 'al ta'asu ("you shall not do") applied to davar ("anything," H1697I) — a broader, unspecified object than the earlier permission clause. The reason follows in a causal clause introduced by ki ("for," H3588C) and 'al ken ("therefore/thus," H5921B + H3651B): the men "have come under the shadow of my roof-beam" (tzel qorati), a construct phrase expressing that their presence inside the house places them under Lot's protective responsibility as host.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders davar ("anything") as μηδὲν ἄδικον ("nothing unjust"), adding a qualifier of injustice not present in the Hebrew's unqualified "anything." The Hebrew singular construct qorati ("my roof-beam") appears in the LXX as τῶν δοκῶν μου, a plural "my beams," and the Vulgate's culminis mei ("of my roof-peak") also uses a singular noun, differing slightly in image from the plural Greek. The SBLIBRE Spanish translation adds "porque son mis invitados y están bajo mi protección" ("because they are my guests and are under my protection"), an interpretive expansion not present in the Hebrew clause, which states only that the men came under the shadow of the roof-beam.