1. Sodom perished

Today, we learn about the devastation of Sodom from Genesis 19. The story is referred several times in the New testament. Jesus preached in Capernaum, a city on the northern shore the Sea of Galilee, and performed many miraculous acts there. Nonetheless, inhabitants of the city denied the divinity of Jesus. Jesus referred to Sodom to blamed them ; - ¡ÈAnd you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be thrown down to the depths. If the miracles I did in you had happened in Sodom, its people would have stopped sinning, and it would still be a city today. But I tell you, on the Judgment Day it will be better for Sodom than for you.¡É(Matthew 11:23-24)

Sodom was destructed by God because of its sin, which is today¡Çs lecturing theme. The disaster occurred in around 2000 BC, in parallel toAbraham¡Çs life. The kingdoms of Sodom*1 was allied with the cities of Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim and Bela (called Zoar afterwards). These five cities were situated on the Jordan River plain in the southern region of the land of Canaan. Archeologists speculate that those cities sunk in the Dead Sea*2 because of deformation of the Earth’s crust. The Dead Sea is a lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are 423 metres below sea level. It is one of the world’s saltiest bodies of water*2. It is also called ¡Æthe Valley of Siddim¡Ç in the Bible.(see Genesis 14:3, etc.) Deformation of the Earth¡Çs crust might triggered explosions of gaze of piled asphalt and phosphor underground. The plain must be covered enormous fire, then sink. Location of the Great Rift Valley in Africa seems prove the theory.

Lot, the nephew of Abraham, lived in Sodom. Lot¡Çs parents died in his childhood so Abraham and his wife took care of the boy. Since then, Lot lived with Abraham¡Çs family and set out from Haran with them to go to the land of Canaan. (see Genesis 12:5) He simply followed his uncle, without God¡Çs direct calling. And he gat independent from his uncle afterward due to the shortage of water for flocks. Abraham said to Lot, ; - ¡ÈWe should separate. The whole land is there in front of you. If you go to the left, I will go to the right. If you go to the right, I will go to the left.¡É(Genesis 13:9)

Lot looked over the plain from a height and chose a place which seemed very prosperous. It was Sodom. As a matter of fact, the city was rich in natural resources, for example of salt, minerals and asphalt, a useful material for engineering works. In short, Lot changed his lifestyle from a nomad to a city labor. He gat married and formed his family there.

One day, the messengers of God came to Sodom. ; - The two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting near the city gate. … Lot said, “Sirs, please come to my house and spend the night.(Genesis 19:1-2)

The city gate is the place where the city elders gathered to hold meetings to deal with appeals and requests of citizens. Lot might become one of them after living there long years. Though the angels declined the invitation, Lot insisted on because he knew well that strangers were not secure in the city. The angels accepted to stay in his house. But, ; - Before bedtime, men both young and old and from every part of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house. They called to Lot, “Where are the two men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sexual relations with them.¡É(Genesis 19:4-5)

The word ¡ÆSodomy¡Ç came from that episode. Sexual moral in Sodom was degraded in that way. Naturally, Lot rejected their demand. They gat furious and cried, ;- ¡ÈMove out of the way!” Then they said to each other,"This man Lot came to our city as a stranger, and now he wants to tell us what to do!” (Genesis 19:9)

Lot lived almost 20 years in Sodom but he was not yet totally integrated in the community. Witnessing the undesirable scene, the angels understood that the city was hopelessly sinful. As a result, they decided to destroy the city and people. The angels made those aggressive persons blind and said to Lot, ; -¡È Do you have any other relatives in this city? …If you do, tell them to leave now, because we are about to destroy this city. So Lot went out and said to his future sons-in-law…, “Hurry and leave this city! The Lord is about to destroy it!” But they thought Lot was joking. (Genesis 19:12-14)

The reaction of Lot¡Çs future sons-in-law suggests that he was not respected so much even by his relatives.

*1 Sodom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodom_and_Gomorrah
*2 Dead Sea http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_sea

2. Lot and his family escaped

God¡Çs punishment started at dawn. Still, Lot was reluctant to run away. He was not yet sure that the city would be really destroyed. So much so, the angels hurried him. ; - They said, “Go! Take your wife and your two daughters with you so you will not be destroyed when the city is punished…. Run for your lives! Don’t look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Run to the mountains, or you will be destroyed.¡É(Genesis 19:15-17)

We recently experienced an earthquake in Tohoku in Japan. At that time, many persons underestimated the severity of the disaster and lost life. ¡ÆRun for your lives! Don’t look back or stop anywhere,¡Ç is exactly what we must learn from the calamity for times of emergency. But, Lot said, ; - “Sir, please don’t force me to go so far!… I can’t run to the mountains. The disaster will catch me, and I will die.(Genesis 19:18-20)

Among these five cities that I mentioned before, Bela (Zoar) alone survived. The concerning passage tells what happened then. ; - The sun had already come up when Lot entered Zoar. The Lord sent a rain of burning sulfur down from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed those cities. He also destroyed the whole Jordan Valley, everyone living in the cities, and even all the plants. At that point Lot’s wife looked back. When she did, she became a pillar of salt.(Genesis 19:23-26)

Lot¡Çs wife looked back, perhaps because she was warring about her daughters and future sons-in-law. Thus she was killed on the way to Zoar, likely by smoke and fire. We heard that some victims in Tohoku region drowned in high tides because they gat back again home after running away once. They also worried about their family who missed the chance to escape. Mere seconds of hesitation can determine life and death in that way. Though Sodom perished, Lot and his two daughters were saved.

3. Intercession by Abraham

The story about the destruction of Sodom is an origin-myth which explains how and why Sodom, a prospered ancient city, perished. It tells also the origin of strange and huge pillars of salt found there. Presumably, Yahwists*1 compiled certain legends concerning the place then conceived the story of Abraham and Lot. As I said before, today¡Çs scholars stipulate that the city was destructed by an earthquake. However the ancient Jewish people took the incident as the punishment of God and the story was inscribed as the reminder of the lesson.

However the main theme of the story is not God¡Çs punishment to Sodom but the survival of Lot and his family. Because God¡Çs mercy and forgiveness are far more important than his severity. Today¡Çs invocation verse is Genesis 18:32 ; - Then Abraham said, “Lord, please don’t be angry with me, but let me bother you this one last time. What if you find ten there?” He said, “If I find ten there, I will not destroy it.”

Though we read the passage from chapter 19, the story about Sodom starts from chapter 18:20. Two messengers of God came to Abraham and told at first that God promised him the prosperity of his family. And the message continued. ; - Then the Lord said, “I have heard many complaints against the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. They are very evil. I will go down and see if they are as bad as I have heard. If not, I will know.¡É(Genesis 18:20-21)

Hearing that, Abraham began the bargain. ; - … ¡ÈDo you plan to destroy the good people along with the evil ones? What if there are fifty good people in that city? Will you still destroy it? Surely you will save the city for the fifty good people living there.¡É(Genesis 18:23-24)

Abraham felt deeply involved in the issue because the family of Lot lived in Sodom. To his question, God¡Çs answered ; - “If I find fifty good people in the city of Sodom, I will save the whole city because of them."(Genesis 18:26) And Abraham kept bargaining likewise until God said, ; - “If I find ten there, I will not destroy it.¡É(Genesis 18:32) As the result, ; - God destroyed the cities in the valley, but he remembered what Abraham had asked. So God saved Lot’s life, but he destroyed the city where Lot had lived.(Genesis 19:29)

God saved Lot and his family not because of Lot¡Çs righteousness but of Abrahams¡Ç intercession. Indeed, Lot didn¡Çt behave always rightly. For example, after the disaster he gat drunk and had sexual relations with his own daughters, even though unknowingly. (see Genesis 19:33)
According to the Bible, the children born form those relations formed the peoples of neighbor lands, the Moabite and the Ammonite. (see Genesis 19:37-38)

And the Lord didn¡Çt disdain descendants who were born in the incestuous way. Ruth, a Moabite woman, married her deceased husband’s kinsman Boaz and bore a son, Obed, the grandfather of King David. (see the Book of Ruth) Furthermore, Solomon, a son of David had an ammonite wife Naamah with whom he had his successor Rehoboam. And Jesus was born in the family tree of that Rehoboam. I means that Jesus had in body blood of Moabite and Ammonite .

I repeat again that the point of the story was not the destruction of Sodom but the God¡Çs rescue of Lot and his family from the catastrophe.

Dr Hirose Hirotada, an honored professor of the Tokyo Female University, is one of authors of the column in Asahi-Shinbun. And he wrote the article on the 21st June 2011 about surviving victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku region. It reads:
— Those who survived a disaster feel very often powerless because they live by aids and helps of others. Consequently, they choose self-denying lifestyle. But, instead, they must live more actively because they were capable to overcome difficulties. They survived very dangerous and harsh situations. For that reason, they must appreciate the life more positively than before. They must feel themselves powerful and live energetically. They were given again the precious life which should have been lost.—

¡ÈCash for work¡É system is now pondered as a new method to restore the devastated region. It consists that surviving victims work by themselves for the restoration as employed workers. The plan can fulfill two aims, the economical revival of the region and financial independence of victims. Those persons can find hope in future thanks to direct participation to restoration works. And stable incomes must give them the sense of dignity. The similar project seems producing good results abroad too. Those who were saved and given a new life must play leading roles for the restoration.

A new life is born from an almost lost one. It is the good news message of today¡Çs lecture about Sodom. Jesus said to the woman who had committed adultery, ; - “I also don’t judge you guilty. You may go now, but don’t sin anymore.” (John 8:11)

The past does not have much importance. Future is the prior issue for all in life. The core of Genesis 19 is the survival of Lot, not the destruction of Sodom. That understanding gives us the power to live by focusing on the future, not the past.

*1 Yahwists http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahwists