I beg you, my brothers: I beg you is literally “Please do not.” My brothers is used as a friendly address form in which Lot seeks to establish solidarity with the men of Sodom. Lot is unrelated by kinship to these men, and so the word brothers is not to be taken literally. English, like many other languages, uses brothers in this extended sense. However, if readers are likely to understand that Lot is addressing his kinsmen, another form should be used. Good News Translation says “friends,” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Bible en français courant “my friends.”

Do not act so wickedly: that is, “Don’t be so evil,” “Don’t do such a bad thing.” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy is more concrete, with “Don’t do such a perverse thing.” Some translations say “Don’t commit such a crime.” Two examples of the way this verse may be expressed are “No, my friends. You don’t want to do any bad things to these strangers” and “Friends! This behavior is no good! Please don’t do this!”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .