Literary Devices – Bereshit 19/0

Literary Devices – Bereshit 19

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Key Words

איש (man)

Tanakh Lab demonstrates that the word "אִישׁ” is a guiding word of the story of the angels visiting Sedom in Bereshit 19:1-17.  The word--which is often used in Tanakh to connote gravitas and leadership--is used in relation to the angels, the residents of Sedom, and Lot, making one question: who in this narrative holds genuine power and what does it means to behave with moral authority and strength.

ידע (to know)

• The root “ידע“ (to know, sometimes with a sexual connotation) appears six times in the story of Sedom (18:16-19:38). While this is not one of the most frequently appearing words, it is thematically significant. It refers to the violent sexual knowledge sought by the men of Sedom and offered to them by Lot, Lot’s lack of knowledge when he is in turn abused by his daughters, and most significantly hearkens back to Hashem’s statement that he has “known” Avraham for his righteousness and that He will “know” if Sedom’s behavior warrants destruction.
• As with the usage of the word “איש,”, the various usages of the root "ידע" hint to the idea that the knowledge and power that people seek may not be knowledge worth having, and can ultimately be turned against them by God, Who is the source of all knowledge.

Articles

• For a general overview of the use of key words in the Biblical text, see Martin Buber’s דרכו של מקרא: עיונים בדפוסי-סגנון בתנ”ך. 
• For some online resources with discussion of the various functions and characteristics of key words and many examples, see The Multi-Purpose ‘Leading Word’ and the Problems of Its Usage, by Yairah Amit and Jeffrey M. Green, and Leitwort by Professor Yonatan Grossman.

Allusions

The story of the destruction in Sedom contains allusions to several earlier stories, including the Flood, the accounts of laughter in the Yitzchak narratives, and Avraham's prayer to save Sedom:

Flood

The story of the destruction of Sedom might allude back to the Flood narrative:

• The concordance demonstrates that the root "שחת" (meaning both destruction and corruption) pervades the stories of both the Flood and the destruction of Sedom. The first seven times that it appears in the Torah are in the context of the Flood, and the following nine times are in the context of Sedom. As such, usage of this word in Bereshit 18-19 alludes to both the earlier total destruction of the world, and the immoral behaviors that led to it.
• Another root which is shared by both stories and might be used to allude to the Flood story is "מטר", to rain down upon.  The root comes up only three times in Sefer Bereshit: in the story of Creation, the Flood and here.

Laughter

The word “מצחק” appears in 19:14 in the context of Lot’s sons-in-laws’ disbelief at his warning of the destruction of Sedom. This word calls to mind the many times in which the same root appeared in the narrative about the divine promise of the birth of Yitzchak. In the story of Yitzchak’s birth, the word represents disbelief at being blessed; here it represents disbelief at being cursed. This serves to highlight the difference between the character and legacy of Avraham and of Lot.

Avraham's Prayer

The descriptions of the actions of the people of Sedom recall the descriptions of Avraham’s prayer on their behalf, indicating that they seal their own fate of destruction through their actions. By Avraham, we read, "וַיִּגַּשׁ אַבְרָהָם וַיֹּאמַר... הֲשֹׁפֵט כׇּל הָאָרֶץ לֹא יַעֲשֶׂה מִשְׁפָּט." The people of Sedom tell Lot: "וַיֹּאמְרוּ גֶּשׁ הָלְאָה וַיֹּאמְרוּ הָאֶחָד בָּא לָגוּר וַיִּשְׁפֹּט שָׁפוֹט".  With their words they associate Lot with the "משפט" of Avraham, and separate themselves from both.¹

¹ See י. גרוסמן, אברהם: סיפורו של מסע (תל אביב, 2014): 194, who makes this point.