Why this story matters

(commentary on Genesis 18-19)

(Page 2 of 5)

Sodom and Abraham

The incest story and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah are closely linked events. This is partly because the incest story happens right after the cities are destroyed, but also because Lot's life is saved by his uncle, Abraham, who is central to the Sodom and Gomorrah story. 

Abraham loved his nephew and they only lived apart because of a quarrel their shepherds had had over land. The quarrel didn't appear to affect their feelings for each other. In a related story, Abraham rescued Lot from captivity at great personal risk (Gen. 14). And then, just prior to the decimation of the two cities, Abraham intervenes a second time to spare his nephew's life.

Just before the cities are destroyed, Yahweh briefly takes human form and comes down to earth. He meets Abraham in person, and even has a meal with him (Gen. 18: 1-15). After the meal, Yahweh informs Abraham that he is going to check to see if things in Sodom are as bad as he’s heard: “I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know” (Gen. 18:21). Now, how could an omniscient being not already know? And why would he have to "go down" to the city to see how bad things were? Regardless, Abraham bargains with Yahweh and Yahweh agrees not to destroy the city if he can find just ten good men. Apparently he can't. Lot is the only righteous man there. That's one bad city. But what was is it about Sodom that made it so bad? What were the people doing?
 

Sodom and homosexuality

The sin of the Sodomites is commonly thought to be homosexuality. This has been the favored interpretation of conservative Christians, including church fathers like Aquinas. Over time, the word sodomy came to be considered synonymous with anal intercourse. Sodomy laws have been common in western legal history starting with the 1533 British “Buggery Statute” (defining sodomy as including both homosexual sex and bestiality) right up to a sodomy law in the state of Georgia which was only struck down in 1998. This law stated that, “A person commits the offense of sodomy when he or she performs or submits to any sexual act involving the sex organs of one person and the mouth or anus of another.”

But equating homosexual sex with the destruction of Sodom would be a subjective interpretation, and it would also be in conflict with other passages in the Bible. The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are actually named for their state after destruction rather than any activity the townspeople engaged in. They were destroyed for a variety of reasons, and not specifically for male homosexual sex. Ezekiel 16:49-50 includes arrogance, gluttony, and a lack of charity in its short list of the sins of Sodom: "Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen." While this condemnation does include “detestable things” it’s not clear that this refers to homosexual sex. Jeremiah 23:14 specifically mentions adultery and says nothing about homosexuality: "...among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen something horrible: They commit adultery and live a lie. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his wickedness. They are all like Sodom to me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah." Jesus weighed in on the subject as well. He said that in the end times, things will be just like they were in the days of Lot. What were the people doing in the days of Lot? According to Jesus, they were doing such terrible things as buying and selling, and planting and building: "It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building” (17:28). Jesus also compared the sin of Sodom to inhospitality, declaring that a city that will not receive his disciples in a hospitable manner will fare worse in judgment than Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew 10:14-15). It should be noted, too, that Jesus never condemned homosexuality.

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