HISTORY

Sodom And Gomorrah

In heated discussions about the Bible and sex, passages in Genesis 18 and 19 come up as proof of the sin of homosexuality. God singles out the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah as especially grievous, and many readers associate that with their attempt to sodomize their angelic visitors. But there’s a catch. God was planning to destroy those cities already.

In Genesis 18, God makes it clear that He has heard of the people’s sinful ways (without specifying exactly what they are) and is planning to destroy their cities if He doesn’t find at least 10 righteous people there. The angels arrive later, so destroying the city is not a spur of the moment decision based on an attempt to rape angelic visitors.

It is true that many men in the city were gay, but scholars read that as one aspect of other sins of the flesh the city was known for. It would be difficult to pin the entire destruction on only one type of sin present among the residents. Some scholars even think one of those sins could be inhospitality—that is, horrible treatment of guests was the final straw for God.