  Genesis 18:1-19:38 “Those shameful acts against nature, such as were committed in Sodom, ought everywhere and always to be detested and punished. If all nations were to do such things, they would be held guilty of the same crime by the law of God, which has not made men so that they should use one another in this way". Saint Augustine (Confessions 3:8:15) [A.D. 400]).1 “Saying that the last recorded acts of the Sodomites -- the demands for same-gender sex -- are proof that they were destroyed for homosexuality is like saying that a condemned man cursing his guards on the way to his execution is being executed for cursing the guards. Sodom was judged worthy of destruction before the incident with Lot and the angels.” Inge Anderson.2 Prologue This is a sensitive topic! In exegeting the passage on Sodom and Gomorrah in a quite non-traditional way, I am taking the risk to be misunderstood. Though it is humanly impossible, I will try to approach the passage, Genesis 18-19, without any preconceived conclusions.
Most Christians worldwide believe that Sodom and Gomorrah were overturned because of their homosexual tendencies. I will faithfully study the passage in question and survey the Bible to separate fact from fiction. I always thought I knew precisely why Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed on that fateful night. I was brought up a Muslim. My father, a respected Islamic Sheik, taught me Islam early on. It is common belief in Islam that the People of Lot, Sodom and Gomorrah, were destroyed because of their homosexual practices Sodom Sodom was the most well known of the Cities of the Plain.
Other cities included Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim and Zoar which was spared. The Cities of the Plain were most likely located the S part of the Dead Sea. Some archeologists identified the ruins of Bab edh-Dhra and Numeira which were discovered in 1973 as Sodom and Gomorrah, respectively. The Case Against Sodom Islam teaches that Qaumu Lut, the People of Lot, were the first homosexuals. Whether this is a fact or merely a hyperbole is beside the point. What is apparent in the Qur’an is that the reason God destroyed these people was that they were practicing homosexuality.
In fact, the Muslim holy Book says nothing about lesbian behavior but it is pretty clear about gays. The Qur’an* says: “We also (sent) Lut: He said to his people: "Do ye commit lewdness such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you? "For ye practise your lusts on men in preference to women : ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds. " 7:80-81. "Of all the creatures in the world, will ye approach males, "And leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? Nay, ye are a people transgressing (all limits)!” 26: 165-166.
“He [Lut] said: "I do detest your doings. " "O my Lord! deliver me and my family from such things as they do! " So We delivered him and his family,- all Except an old woman who lingered behind. But the rest We destroyed utterly. We rained down on them a shower (of brimstone): and evil was the shower on those who were admonished (but heeded not)!
Verily in this is a Sign: but most of them do not believe. And verily thy Lord is He, the Exalted in Might Most Merciful.” 26: 168-175. John Chrysostom also wrote in AD 390 "[The pagans] were addicted to the love of boys, and one of their wise men made a law that pederasty . . . should not be allowed to slaves, as if it was an honorable thing; and they had houses for this purpose, in which it was openly practiced.
And if all that was done among them was related, it would be seen that they openly outraged nature, and there was none to restrain them. . . . As for their passion for boys, whom they called their 'paedica,' it is not fit to be named" (Homilies on Titus 5).4 When I first read the Bible at age 15, I found nothing to challenge by belief about Sodom and Gomorrah, the “sexual perverts”. When the Lord found me at age 18, I was more convinced than ever that Sodom and Gomorrah were annihilated because of their sexual orientation.
However, I never challenged my preconceived conviction. “Don’t the Hebrew and the Messianic Bibles and the Qur’an as well teach that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed for gay and lesbian behavior?” I always asked myself. To this day, the vast majority of the adherents of these faiths believe Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed for sodomy. I am not flattered by what the majority believes for the majority can be dead wrong many times. Most scientists once thought that the earth was flat! Though it is clear in the Bible,* in its totality, that homosexuality is sinful and displeasing to God, the Genesis passage often quoted as a proof seems a victim of eisogesis.
Following passages teach the unnaturalness and sinfulness of same-sex sexual relations: “Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable.” Leviticus 18:22. " 'If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.” Leviticus 20:13. Talking about the godless, apostle Paul wrote, “God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.
Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.” Romans 1:26-27. Surveying The Bible The first significant mention of Sodom is seen in connection with Lot's choosing a pleasant place to live. The warning given says, “Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD” Genesis 13:13. A few chapters later, we see that the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah was so great that the Lord had to come and see for himself. In fact, the cities were so wicked that even ten righteous people could not be found there. It is noteworthy though to see that the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah was sealed long before the angelic visit.5 These towns were marked for death before their attempted gang rape: “Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that 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. " Genesis 18: 20-21. Two angels whose mission included saving Lot and his family were therefore dispatched to Sodom: “The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. "My lords," he said, "please turn aside to your servant's house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.
" "No," they answered, "we will spend the night in the square. " Genesis 19:1-2. As Genesis 28:11 bears witness, it was not uncommon then travelers to spend the night in the open. Lot, because of his hospitality would not allow even aliens to sleep in the open and he took them home with him. It is significant case that no one else in the vicinity extended a hospitable hand to the traveling strangers. It is also possible that Lot feared that some people from town would molest and mistreat the travelers.
But can we deduce from the demand of the attackers to "know" the visitors that all people in Sodom were entirely or largely homosexuals? Probably not but one clear thing is that they did not treat strangers well with respect. When Lot stood up to defend his guests, the people referred to him as an alien, too, as a sufficient ground to abuse him. "Get out of our way," they replied. And they said, "This fellow came here as an alien, and now he wants to play the judge! We'll treat you worse than them.
" They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.” Genesis 9: 9. The prophets said a number of times that the sins of the Israelites were as bad as or even worse than the sins of Sodom. Could this mean that the prophets implied that the Israelites were largely homosexual? I absolutely not! “Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.
Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.” Isaiah 3:6-9. “And 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. " Jeremiah 23:14.
“Your older sister was Samaria, who lived to the north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lived to the south of you with her daughters, was Sodom. You not only walked in their ways and copied their detestable practices, but in all your ways you soon became more depraved than they. As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD , your sister Sodom and her daughters never did what you and your daughters have done.” Ezekiel 16: 46-48. After accusing the Israelites of committing sins worse than the people of Sodom had committed, he continues to name the sins of Sodom. Though the list cannot be considered exhaustive, he must have named the core sins of Sodom otherwise his specification would be worthless. Homosexuality is missing from the list: “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.” Ezekiel 16: 49-50. And in the following texts, Sodom is listed as a "sister" of Israel, indicating the similarities of their sins. Thus, if same-gender sexual practices were the special sins of Sodom, there should be some evidence that they were the sins of Israel as well. Yet the Bible leaves no such record. While many people do not think that the Capernaumians were more sinful than the people of Sodom, Jesus indicates that the people of Sodom were less hardened than the people Capernaum!
“And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.” Matthew 11: 23. It seems to me that that Jude records the strongest evidence that the people of Sodom were destroyed for their homosexual lifestyle, depending of which version of the Bible you read. Therefore, according to the following versions of the Bible, the people of Sodom were guilty of NIV: perversion. NASB: strange flesh.
MSG: ruin. NLV: sinful acts of the body. WE: wrong things. YLT: other flesh. NIRV: sins of the worst possible kind—take your pick! “In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion.
They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.” Jude 7. The Reason for the Destruction According to the above passages, it seems that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed for committing a number of disturbing sins. To say that homosexuality was the chief sin for the destructions is certainly an error. In fact, the sins committed by these people are very common in today’s affluent societies. These sins include, among others, pride, self-sufficiency, sexual immorality, gluttony, greed, hypocrisy, cruelty, judgmental attitude, inhospitality,6 and general rebellion against God. Focusing on one particular sin, like homosexuality, or attaching some value to “number ten”, as some do, is missing the mark.
The Babylonian Talmud, which dates back to the Babylonian Exile in the 6 BC, offers an interesting perspective on the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah: “A certain maiden gave some bread to a poor man, hiding it in a pitcher. On the matter becoming known, they daubed her with honey and placed her on the parapet of the wall, and the bees came and consumed her. Thus it is written, And the Lord said, The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah, because it is great (rabbah): whereupon Rab Judah commented in Rab's name: on account of the maiden (ribah).” 7 The Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 109a. It is not even implied in the context of Genesis 18-19 that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed solely for homosexual trespasses,8 the claim itself shows a deep-rooted obsession with sexuality, especially homosexuality. This should not raise many eyebrows given the early history of the church where sex became synonymous with sin and celibacy with sainthood. It was John Chrysostom who wrote: "If you [O, monk] are young in either body or mind, shun the companionship of other young men and avoid them as you would a flame.
For through them the enemy has kindled the desires of many and then handed them over to eternal fire, hurling them into the vile pit of the five cities under the pretense of spiritual love.. At meals take a seat far from other young men. In lying down to sleep let not their clothes be near yours, but rather have an old man between you. When a young man converses with you, or sings psalms facing you, answer him with eyes cast down, lest perhaps by gazing at his face you receive a seed of desire sown by the enemy and reap sheaves of corruption and ruin. Whether in the house or in a place where there is no one to see your actions, be not found in his company under the pretense either of studying the divine oracles or of any other business whatsoever, however necessary"9 (The Renunciation of the World [A.D. 373]). Epilogue Though homosexuality was one of the sins committed by the people of Sodom, elevating this one sin above others is unwarranted. It is obviously silly and hypocritical to consider homosexuality a worse sin than heterosexual sin, adultery and fornication—and this is precisely what many Christians do.
In fact, under the Hebrew Bible, all who committed sins like homosexuality, adultery, fornication and bestiality, etc) were to be stoned to death. Leviticus 20. As I indicated above, there are several passages in both testaments that teach the sinfulness of same sex intimacy. As Christians, we should be content with these and abstain from reading into the Bible to make sure it says what we want to hear—this is eisogesis, which is the chief sin in biblical hermeneutics. In short, there were certainly homosexuals in Sodom and Gomorrah, but that their sin far exceeds same sex intimacy is seen throughout the Bible as I have demonstrated above. The people of Sodom and Gomorrah were certainly spoiled and overfed and ungrateful to the Lord.
The Babylonian Talmud also says that they were very cruel to one another and extremely mean towards traveling foreigners. The Talmud best illustrates this by saying that “... they had beds upon which travellers slept. If the guest was too long they shortened him by lopping off his feet; if too short, they stretched him out...”10 No wonder travelers preferred to spend the night in the open! *Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotations are from the NIV. All the Qur’an quotations are from the Qur’an as translated by Yusuf Ali. Source: BLib 297 Footnote 1. http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_bibg.htm March 15th 2.
Ibid. 3. http://www.christiananswers.net/q-abr/abr-a007.html March 19th 4. http://www.bible.ca/H-homosexuality.htm March 16th 5. Weston W. Fields. Sodom and Gomorrah: History And Motif in Biblical Narrative. Sheffield Academic Press: England. 1997.
PP. 69-72. 6. J. A. Loader. A Tale of Two Cities.
J.H. Kok Publishing House, Kampen: The Netherlands. 1990. PP. 36-39 7. http://www.iwgonline.org/docs/sodom.html March 16th 8. Robert Ignatius Letellier.
Day In Mamre Night In Sodom. E.J. Brill, Leiden: The 9. http://home.pacbell.net/perozich/Church_Fathers.html March 15th 10. http://www.iwgonline.org/docs/sodom.html March 19th Bibliography 1. Fields, Weston W. Sodom and Gomorrah: History And Motif in Biblical Narrative. Sheffield Academic Press: England. 1997.
2. Jordan, Mark D. (Ed.). The Invention of Sodomy in Christian Theology. University of Chicago Press. 1997.
3. Letellier, Robert Ignatius. Day in Mamre Night in Sodom. E.J. Brill, Leiden: The Netherlands, Holland. 1995.
4. Lincicome, Forman. A Lot in Sodom. Repairer Pub Co.: Atlanta, Georgia. 1932. 5.
Loader, J. A. A Tale of Two Cities: Sodom and Gomorrah in the Old Testament, Early Jewish and early Christian Traditions. J.H. Kok Publishing House, Kampen: The Netherlands. 1990.
6. Lyons, William John. Canon and Exegesis: Canonical Praxis and the Sodom Narrative. Sheffield Academic Press: London. 2002. 7.
The International Critical Commentary: Genesis. Charles Scribner’s Sons: New York. 1910. 8. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Volume Two. Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan.
1990. 9. Walton, John H. Genesis. The NIV Application Commentary: From Biblical Text to Contemporary Life. Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan. 2001.
10. Westermann, Claus. Genesis: A Practical Commentary. Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan. 1987. 11.
Word Biblical Commentary. Volume I. Word Books Publisher: Waco, Texas. 1987. 12. Ibid.
II. 1994. 
