Finally the Lord's judgment falls on Sodom and Gomorrah. By the literal words of this verse the Lord Himself rains sulfur and fire on these cities "out of heaven." There's no question that Genesis means to communicate that this fire and brimstone came directly from the Lord as His judgment against the people of these cities for their grave sins. While the angels in the prior passages spoke of their role in destroying the city, those seem to have been "team" accounts, with the angels speaking as part of God's planned process for this event.

Human nature often balks at God's wrath. This, as it turns out, is why God went through the very process we see in Genesis; God proves in no uncertain terms that His wrath is justified. The sins of these cultures have been ongoing (Genesis 13:13), and well-known (Genesis 14:22–23). God even allowed Abraham to set his own conditions for Sodom's rescue—an incredibly weak standard which the culture failed to meet (Genesis 18:32).

What were the crimes of these people that made them worthy of destruction? The most obvious answer is found in this very chapter, as every man in the city gathered to homosexually rape two strangers in town (Genesis 19:5–7). Indeed, the modern word "sodomize" comes from its association with this ancient doomed city.

Ezekiel 16:49–50 goes beyond the obvious, though, in listing the other, additional crimes which made Sodom worthy of God's wrath: "Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them, when I saw it."

We must not fail to recognize God's indignation with Sodom's lack of care for the poor, her pride and arrogance, her gluttony and sloth, along with the homosexual immorality she became famous for. And we must not forget that, as was the case with Lot, we all depend on the grace of God to save us from His own wrath, through our faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:1–10).

In Scripture, fire and sulfur are associated with God's judgment on earth (Psalm 11:6; Ezekiel 38:22), as well as with His eternal judgment in hell (Revelation 21:8). Peter, specifically, references God's judgment on Sodom as an example of God's readiness and ability to judge the ungodly and to rescue the righteous (2 Peter 2:6–10). To this day, apparently, sulfurous fumes populate this area around the Dead Sea, along with deposits of asphalt. While we don't know for sure that those are directly tied to this divine act of punishment from the Lord, the symbolism is powerful.

Genesis 19:23–29 describes the utter destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah with sulfur and fire. Based on prior descriptions in the book of Genesis, this devastation is both overdue and well-deserved. The Lord's judgment wipes out the cities, all of the valley, all of the people, and all of the vegetation. God demonstrates that He will judge humans for their sinfulness when the time is right. He also demonstrates His grace and mercy, however, remembering His promises to Abraham in rescuing Abraham's nephew Lot.

Two angels, disguised as men, visit Abraham's nephew, Lot, in the city of Sodom. After the men of Sodom attempt to rape the angels in Lot's home, the angels rescue Lot and his family, forcibly removing them from the city. Then God sends fire and sulfur from heaven. This destroys all of the land and people in and around the cities. As stated in earlier verses, this is the result of their great and ongoing wickedness. Lot's wife is turned to a pillar of salt when she disobeys the angels by looking back on the destruction. Lot and his daughters flee first to Zoar, then to a cave in the hills. There, Lot's confused and frightened daughters get him drunk, have sex with him, and each become pregnant.

In the previous chapter, Abraham had bargained with God on behalf of his nephew Lot and the people of Sodom. The Lord assured Abraham He would not destroy the cities if He found ten righteous people there. Chapter 19 immediately demonstrates no righteous people are to be found. Every man of Sodom attempts to attack two visitors, who are God's angels in human form. As the angels rescue Lot, God's judgment falls, utterly destroying everything in the area around Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot and his daughters end up in a cave in the hills, where the daughters scheme to conceive children by making their father drunk. This ends Lot's role in the story of Genesis, with future chapters focusing exclusively on the life and descendants of Abraham.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 5/3/2024 3:56:39 AM

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