Genesis 19 · Verse 33

Genesis 19:33

And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

Genesis 19:33, King James Version

Genesis 19:33 in other translations

BSB	So that night they got their father drunk with wine, and the firstborn went in and slept with her father; he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up.
WEB	They made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father. He didn’t know when she lay down, nor when she arose.
ASV	And they made their father drink wine that night: and the first-born went in, and lay with her father; and he knew not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
YLT	And they cause their father to drink wine on that night; and the first-born goeth in, and lieth with her father, and he hath not known in her lying down, or in her rising up.
DARBY	And they gave their father wine to drink that night. And the first-born went in, and lay with her father, and he did not know of her lying down, nor of her rising.
BBE	And that night they made their father take much wine; and the older daughter went into his bed; and he had no knowledge of when she went in or when she went away.
Webster	And they made their father drink wine that night: and the first-born went in and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

What does Genesis 19:33 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 33 And he perceived not when she lay down, nor when, etc. - That is, he did not perceive the time she came to his bed, nor the time she quitted it; consequently did not know who it was that had lain with him. In this transaction Lot appears to me to be in many respects excusable. 1. He had no accurate knowledge of what took place either on the first or second night, therefore he cannot be supposed to have been drawn away by his own lust, and enticed. That he must have been sensible that some person had been in his bed, it would be ridiculous to deny; but he might have judged it to have been some of his female domestics, which it is reasonable to suppose he might have brought from Zoar. 2. It is very likely that he was deceived in the wine, as well as in the consequences; either he knew not the strength of the wine, or wine of a superior power had been given to him on this occasion. As he had in general followed the simple pastoral life, it is not to be wondered at if he did not know the intoxicating power of wine, and being an old man, and unused to it, a small portion would be sufficient to overcome him; sound sleep would soon, at his time of life, be the effect of taking the liquor to which he was unaccustomed, and cause him to forget the effects of his intoxication. Except in this case, his moral conduct stands unblemished in the sacred writings; and as the whole transaction, especially as it relates to him, is capable of an interpretation not wholly injurious to his piety, both reason and religion conjoin to recommend that explanation. As to his daughters, let their ignorance of the real state of the case plead for them, as far as that can go; and let it be remembered that their sin was of that very peculiar nature as never to be capable of becoming a precedent. For it is scarcely possible that any should ever be able to plead similar circumstances in vindication of a similar line of conduct.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 19:30-38

See the peril of security. Lot, who kept chaste in Sodom, and was a mourner for the wickedness of the place, and a witness against it, when in the mountain, alone, and, as he thought, out of the way of temptation, is shamefully overtaken. Let him that thinks he stands high, and stands firm, take heed lest he fall. See the peril of drunkenness; it is not only a great sin itself, but lets in many sins, which bring a…

Read the full comment on Genesis 19:30-38 →

Genesis 19:33 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַתַּשְׁקֶ֧יןָva.tash.Kei.naand they made drinkH8248

אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853

אֲבִיהֶ֛ן'a.vi.Henfather theirH1

יַ֖יִןYa.yinwineH3196

בַּלַּ֣יְלָהba.Lay.lahin the nightH3915

ה֑וּאHu'thatH1931

וַתָּבֹ֤אva.ta.Vo'and she cameH935

הַבְּכִירָה֙ha.be.khi.Rahthe firstbornH1067

וַתִּשְׁכַּ֣בva.tish.Kavand she lay withH7901

אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853

אָבִ֔יהָ'a.Vi.hafather herH1

וְלֹֽא\־ve.lo'-and notH3808

יָדַ֥עya.Da'he knewH3045

בְּשִׁכְבָ֖הּbe.shikh.Vahwhen lay down sheH7901

וּבְקׄוּמָֽהּ\׃u.ve.ku.Mahand when arose sheH6965

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 19:33

Habakkuk 2:15-16
Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness! Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the Lord’s right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.
Leviticus 18:6-7
None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the Lord. The nakedness of thy father, or the nakedness of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
Proverbs 20:1
Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
Proverbs 23:29-35
Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

drink.
Le 18:6,7; Pr 20:1; 23:29-35; Hab 2:15,16

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Genesis 19:32
Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
Genesis 19:33
And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
Genesis 19:34
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.

Read all of Genesis 19

Genesis 19:33 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y dieron á beber vino á su padre aquella noche: y entró la mayor, y durmió con su padre; mas él no sintió cuándo se acostó ella, ni cuándo se levantó.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et elles firent boire du vin à leur père cette nuit-là; et l’aînée vint et coucha avec son père; et il ne s’aperçut ni quand elle se coucha, ni quand elle se leva.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und sie gaben ihrem Vater Wein zu trinken in selbiger Nacht, und die Erstgeborene ging hinein und lag bei ihrem Vater; und er wußte weder um ihr Niederlegen noch um ihr Aufstehen.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Dederunt itaque patri suo bibere vinum nocte illa. Et ingressa est major, dormivitque cum patre; at ille non sensit, nec quando accubuit filia, nec quando surrexit.