Sodom and Gemorah
Initially it was Lot, his wife and his two daughters who where escaping Sodom and Gemorah, but his wife, against the orders of the two angels, held back and perished…
[Here’s the backstory]
Genesis 19:1-17
The Voice (VOICE)
1 The two heavenly messengers arrived in Sodom that evening, and Lot was sitting at the gate of the city.
When Lot saw them, he went out to meet them and bowed low, his face touching the ground.
Lot: 2 Please, my lords, take time to come into your servant’s house to spend the night and wash your feet. Then you can rise early and be on your way.
Messengers: No, we will be fine spending the night in the city square.
3 But Lot persisted and urged them to come home with him and enjoy his hospitality.
They agreed finally and came with Lot to his house.
Lot prepared a huge meal for them, served with unleavened bread, and they ate until they were full. 4 But before they could lie down to rest for the night, the men of the city—that is, the men of Sodom, young and old alike, every last one of them—surrounded the house 5 and called out to Lot.
Men of Sodom: Where are the men who came with you to your house tonight? We saw them go in with you! Bring them out here. We want to have sex with them!
6 Lot slipped out of the door to address the men, shutting it firmly behind him.
Lot: 7 Look, I beg you, brothers, don’t do this. Don’t sink to this level of depravity!
8 Look—I have two daughters. Both are virgins. How about this: I’ll bring them out for you instead. You can do with them as you please. But please don’t do anything to these men. They are my guests. They deserve the protection of my home.
[NOTE: Lot leaves the safety of his home to negotiate with the men of the city, all of whom seem determined to have sex with his guests.
Although his courage is commendable, his solution is deplorable—offering his virgin daughters for the deviant pleasures of his neighbors.
But Lot knows their sexual preference is for his guests, not his daughters; so the offer is safe, and he has bought some time.]
Men of Sodom: 9 Get out of the way, man!
(to each other) Look, this guy came to our city as a stranger. He’s not one of us, and yet he thinks he has the right to judge all of us!
(to Lot) You better watch out, or we’ll treat you far worse than we will your guests!
They came at Lot and pushed him hard against the door until it was about to break. 10 Just then the men inside reached out and pulled Lot into the house with them, shutting the door securely to block the men of Sodom out.
11 Then the heavenly messengers struck all of the men pressing at the door with blindness—both young and old alike. It wasn’t long before they exhausted themselves blindly groping for the door.
Messengers (to Lot): 12 Do you have anyone else here in the city—sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or any other members of your family—whom you want to save?
If so, you need to get them out of here right now! 13 We are going to destroy this place. Because of the immense outcry the Eternal One has received regarding the depravity of this city, the Eternal has sent us here to destroy it.
14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, “Get up, get out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city!”
But to his sons-in-law he seemed to be joking.[NOTE: Abraham had negotiated God down to agree that if there were 10 righteous souls in the city that God would forego the destruction of Sodom and Gemorah.
What was going on in Abraham’s head, and why did he stop at 10 souls?
I believe that it was because Abraham was concerned for Lot and his family.
[NOTE: Apparently, Lot not only had 2 virgin daughters, who were not married and were still living at home; but he must also have had three daughters that were married too (hence these son-in-laws); and if you do the math, Lot, his wife, his 2 virgin daughters, plus 3 married daughters and their husbands, all together that would have added up to 10 souls]
Lot: Get up, and get out of this place. The Eternal One is going to destroy the city!
But his sons-in-law thought he was kidding and wouldn’t budge.
15 At dawn, the heavenly messengers urged Lot to action again.
Messengers: Lot, you need to get up and take your wife and two daughters out of here. Otherwise you will be consumed along with the rest of the city.
16 But Lot kept procrastinating, so the two heavenly messengers grabbed him, his wife, and his two daughters by the hand. They took them outside the city, a safe distance away, because the Eternal decided to show mercy to Lot and his family.
17 As they were leading them to safety, one of the messengers gave this instruction:
Messenger: Now run! Run for your lives! Don’t look back or stop anywhere in the plain. Head for the hills, or you’ll die along with everyone else.
Here are the ruins of Sodom and Gemorah today:
Here’s a warning that Peter gives,
in the New Testament, about the prevalent feelings and beliefs of the unbelievers, in the last days, just before Jesus returns:
2 Peter 3:1-9
The Voice (VOICE)
3 This is now, my dear friends, my second letter to you. In both of them, I have tried to inspire you to a sincere and pure way of thinking by reminding you of what you already know.
2 Remember the words spoken earlier by God’s holy prophets and the commandment that our Lord and Savior gave to you through your emissaries.
3 Above all, be sure to remember that in the last days mockers will come, following their own desires and taunting you, 4 saying, “So what happened to the promised second coming of Jesus?For everything keeps going just the way it has since our ancestors fell asleep in death; since the beginning of creation, nothing’s changed.”
[These believers face persecution every day and eagerly await the day when Jesus will return and judge their enemies. But what is taking so long?]
5 When they make fun of you, it’s as if the scoffers are deliberately forgetting that long ago when God spoke the word, the heavens came into existence and the earth formed from water and by water.
6 The waters later flooded and destroyed that world. 7 By that same word, the heavens and earth we see now are being reserved for destruction by fire, preserved until the time comes for the godless on the day of judgment.
8 Don’t imagine, dear friends, that God’s timetable is the same as ours; as the psalm says, for with the Lord, one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day.
[Scoffers use the delay in His second coming to question if He is going to return at all.Peter responds by saying that God’s perspective on time is not like ours.
What seems long from a finite, human perspective is incredibly short from an eternal one.
Peter also describes how God is not slow, but patient. God wants to allow the time needed for as many sinners as possible to turn from their sinful ways.
Unlike some depictions of God as vindictive and enjoying inflicting punishment on people, the God we see here desires that ALL be saved and not destroyed.
If we had true spiritual insight, we would not be amazed by the severity of eternal judgment but by the intensity of God’s mercy.
Peter responds by saying that God’s perspective on time is not like ours.What seems long from a finite, human perspective is incredibly short from an eternal one.
Peter also describes how God is not slow, but patient. God wants to allow the time needed for as many sinners as possible to turn from their sinful ways.
Unlike some depictions of God as vindictive and enjoying inflicting punishment on people, the God we see here desires that ALL be saved and not destroyed.
If we had true spiritual insight, we would not be amazed by the severity of eternal judgment but by the intensity of God’s mercy.]
9 Now the Lord is not slow about enacting His promise—slow is how some people want to characterize it—no, He is not slow but patient and merciful to you, not wanting anyone to be destroyed, but wanting everyone to turn away from following his own path and to turn toward God’s.
The Bible admontages us, “Seek the Lord while He may be found, and to Call upon Him while He is near” (Isaiah 55:6).
So come along with us and join this grand Adventure, while the door is still open!
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