The sin of sodom and gomorrah. The dirty story of Sodom and Gomorrah is the false testimony of the Jews to the history of the ancient Slavic cities that died from a natural cataclysm

Among the many cursed cities, the most famous are Sodom and Gomorrah. Even those who are not familiar with the 19th chapter of Genesis know about them. These cities have become symbols of sin and vice. But few people know that the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah, in fact, is a historical reality, and not a beautiful and instructive legend.

The book of Genesis speaks with confidence about the boundless love of God for man, but at the same time it is reminded that there is a limit to God's long-suffering. And if humanity does not learn to live without sin, then it may suffer the fate of the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

The coast of the Dead Sea is a rather strange place: birdsong is not heard here, the air, due to the intensive evaporation of water, is filled with a mysterious haze. And the color of the sea is unusual - the water blue has a metallic sheen. The Dead Sea has a very high concentration of mineral salts, and when water evaporates in the air, it often smells of sulfur, and the high air temperature (not lower than 40 ° C) makes staying on the coast uncomfortable. The area adjacent to the southern side of the Dead Sea is wild and deserted. Gloomy mountains and unattractive landscape: rugged cliffs framing the oily water of the sea give way to salt marshes. Everyone who has visited these places claims that some ominous impression remains from the visit.

Let us first try to consider this difficult task from a scientific point of view. The surface of the Dead Sea is 390 meters below the level of the Mediterranean Sea. The greatest depth of this salt pond is 790 meters. 30% of mineral salts are dissolved in water (most of all sodium chloride). The largest deposits of sulfur and oil are located in the sea area. These circumstances are fatal for the fauna and flora of the area: it is difficult to find any vegetation here, in the sea it is not possible to find either a shell or a piece of algae.

Geologists have discovered traces of volcanic eruptions in the Jordan Valley, the Arabian Desert and off the coast of the Red Sea. It was possible to determine the date of the natural cataclysm - 2 millennia BC (the biblical times of Abraham).

According to legends, in those distant times, the area where the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were located was famous for its fertility and prosperity. The inhabitants of these cities were very proud of their wealth and the presence of numerous property. They began to unceremoniously deal with people who visited the prosperous cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and offend them with their neglect. The Lord God decided to punish them for this by depriving them of everything they had. According to the Bible, he brought down lightning on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and burned them to the ground with the inhabitants. Since then, this area cannot bear fruit: any plant planted here by a human hand dies. Instead of crowded cities and fertile plains, now there is scorched earth and the ruins of buildings.

According to the geographer of antiquity Strabo, the cause of the Dead Sea is the catastrophe that occurred with Sodom and Gomorrah. During the disaster, all settlements near these "cursed cities" were swallowed up by water.

The Roman historian Pliny also argued that the events described in the book of Genesis with Sodom and Gomorrah actually took place: the catastrophe led to the fact that a previously beautiful oasis turned into a gloomy desert.

In 1964, the Italian archaeologist Paolo Mattia was lucky to discover the ancient city of the kingdom of Ebla during excavations in Syria, which was destroyed around 2050 BC. The scientist considered the found library, consisting of twenty thousand tablets, to be the most valuable find. When deciphering the information printed on these tablets, references were also found to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, which died in the fire. Researchers involved in the history of "cursed cities" are still referring to the unique find of the archives of the city of Ebla.

In the 18th century, an ethnographic scientific expedition went to Palestine. Employees, according to local residents, wrote down legends that were passed down from generation to generation, as well as the names of geographical places. It turned out that the Arabs called the Dead Sea Lot. They pointed to the ruins that existed, calling them ancient Sigor. It was believed that Lot took refuge behind the walls of this city. None of the semi-savage tribes living at that time were familiar with the Bible, but they exactly repeated the description of the events that are narrated in the Holy Book.

The first scientific expedition was sent to these places by the US government in 1848. The group of scientists was led by Dr. VF Lynch. It was he who drew attention to the natural and geological features of the Dead Sea and to the flows of solidified lava, traces of which were deposited on the calcareous surface of the plain.

The next expedition began its work from these places only in 1924. It was headed by one of the outstanding scientists - Dr. W. Albright.

As a result of excavations on the southeastern coast of the Dead Sea, under the hill of Bab ed-Dra, the ruins of an ancient fortified structure were found. Presumably, earlier there was a religious center. According to experts, life in it ceased about 2200 years before the birth of Christ. It was at this time that sudden climatic changes occurred in the area, turning fertile fields into a scorched desert. The ruins of the ancient city of Sigor were also discovered.

In 1958, scuba divers exploring the bottom of the Dead Sea discovered the remains of a dam. Pilots provided invaluable assistance to archaeologists, who from the air noticed the contours of the ruins, moreover, in the place where, according to legend, the cursed cities were located.

The fact that the ruins found were indeed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah was confirmed by a chemical analysis of the remains of the settlements. But, only scientists suggested that, according to the analysis, the cities were destroyed by a strong earthquake with the ignition of sulfur. These conclusions were prompted by the discovery of a large amount of ash at the site of the proposed location of Sodom. Despite the fact that the tragedy took place about 3900 years ago, the ashes are very well preserved. Small sulfur balls found in the ashes indicate that the combustion temperature was about 3500 ° C. A similar temperature level is possible only during a volcanic eruption.

Another find confirmed the words of the Bible. The scripture says: “And the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah ... And he overthrew these cities, and all this region, and all the inhabitants of these cities, and the growth of the earth. Lot's wife looked behind him and became a pillar of salt."

Recently, archaeologists conducting excavations in Jordan, among the many salt columns, found a salt sculpture of a woman. It turned out to be a real person. Inside the salt sculpture, special methods were used to find internal organs, the heart. If you follow the text of Genesis, this is obviously the wife of Lot, whom the Lord turned into a pillar of salt. The age of this salt mummy is about 4000 years, which corresponds to the time of the catastrophe. The discovery was made not far from the places where the ruins of the cursed cities were previously found.

Although many finds confirm the reality of the events described in the book of Genesis, it is still too early to put an end to the research. It is possible that new, unexpected and interesting discoveries await humanity.

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The biblical story of Sodom and Gomorrah looks like fantasy. In fact, the story of two cities that were destroyed by "fire and brimstone" for the sinful behavior of their inhabitants seems far-fetched. However, they confirm the fact of the existence of these cities and their terrible death.

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah shows us the early period of Jewish history, long before the people of Israel settled in the Promised Land. The ancestors of the Jews had a semi-nomadic way of life, trading with neighbors, they moved from one region of the Middle East to another in search of new pastures for livestock. Their leader in the time of Sodom and Gomorrah was the patriarch Abraham, revered as a founding father through his son Isaac by all Jews, and through another son of Ishmael by all Arabs. Abraham plays a prominent role in both the Old Testament and the Qur'an, where the story of his life is essentially the same. If we literally interpret biblical chronology, the events described took place around 2100 BC. e.

Abraham was born in "Ur of the Chaldees", which is generally considered to be the Sumerian city of Ur in southern Mesopotamia (today's Iraq). His family moved from there to Harran (northern Mesopotamia), where his father died. It was at that time, as Genesis 12:1–5 says, that God revealed to Abraham his destiny Abraham was to leave Mesopotamia and settle in Canaan (modern Palestine): “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will magnify your name." Taking his wife and kinsman Lot along with their household, Abraham went to Canaan. After a short stay in Egypt (while there was a famine in Canaan), Abraham and Lot settled in the south of Canaan and began to raise cattle.

Between the shepherds of Abraham and Lot there was a conflict over the right to use pastures, so Abraham proposed to separate. Lot and his family traveled further east to the plains on the other side of the Dead Sea (now Jordan) and pitched their tents near the city of Sodom. The plain was watered like a garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt. Today, the area is a barren wasteland with an oppressively hot climate and extremely scarce water resources. But in the time of Lot, there were 5 prosperous cities on the plain: Sodom, Gomorrah, Seboim, Adma and Sigor. They were ruled by 5 kings and were powerful and wealthy enough to attack and defeat the coalition of Mesopotamian rulers.

According to the book of Genesis, all this should have changed in one day. The Bible talks all the time about the "wickedness" of the inhabitants of the five cities, especially Sodom and Gomorrah. The nature of this depravity, which is usually mistaken for a propensity for sexual perversion, remains not entirely clear. But among the sins of the sodomites, inhospitality was at the forefront, and their fall was only accelerated by the rough treatment of the two angels whom Lot invited into his house as guests of honor. The inhabitants of Sodom began to demand that Lot take them out into the street, and began to break the door, but were blinded by the angels, who announced to Lot that God had sent them to punish the city; he must immediately gather his family and seek refuge in the mountains, and leaving in no case looked back.

Lot, taking his wife and daughters, left the city, which soon turned into smoking ruins. His wife, as you know, violated the ban, turned to look at the city and turned into a pillar of salt. Lot's daughters with their father took refuge in a mountain cave; they were afraid that they were the only living people in the world.

Then follows one of the colorful, but not quite decent passages that are often found in the texts of the Old Testament. Lot's daughters got their father drunk and slept with him in turn; as a result, both conceived sons from him. These sons became the ancestors of the Moabites and the Ammonites, the Jordanian tribes who eventually became the sworn enemies of the Israelites.

After that, we don't hear from Lot anymore. As for Abraham, he watched the catastrophe from a safe distance from southern Palestine. When he looked in the direction of Sodom and Gomorrah, he "... saw: behold, smoke rises from the earth, like smoke from a furnace." All the cities on the plain were destroyed by an angry God.

No matter how you treat this story, it is replete with colorful details. The episode about Lot and his daughters is clearly a Hebrew "moral story" invented with an almost comical purpose: to explain what "wicked" enemies of the Israelites from the tribe of Moabites and Ammonites were, literally and figuratively. It is not difficult to guess the origin of the idea of ​​turning Lot's wife into a pillar of salt.

The Dead Sea is so rich in salt that fish are unable to live in it, and its shores are dotted with columns of crystalline salt of various shapes. An accidental resemblance between one of these columns and a human figure may well have given rise to the story of a man turned into a pillar of salt. These places are also very rich in native sulfur, which is sometimes found in the form of small balls. Could this circumstance give rise to the legend that God once brought down sulfuric (fiery) rain on the earth?

Analogies with the story of Sodom and Gomorrah can be found in the myths of other nations. For example, in the Greek myth of Orpheus, he managed to save his wife Eurydice from Hades only on the condition that she did not look back when she left the Lower World; she looked back, and Orpheus lost her forever.

The story of the visit of two angels is very similar to another story from ancient myth in the retelling of the poet Ovid. It tells how the gods Mercury and Jupiter, disguised as mortals, came to a city in Phrygia (now central Turkey) and were unpleasantly surprised by the hostility of the local population. In retaliation for the mistreatment of the gods, an entire city was destroyed, sparing only a couple of elderly poor people who received them in their house and offered them food.

In fact, the story of the city being destroyed to the ground for the sins of its inhabitants was quite popular. One does not have to look far for examples, so one is tempted to interpret the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in a purely folkloric sense.

The best description of the surroundings of the Dead Sea in the 1st century. n. e. belongs to the Jewish historian Josephus Flavius, who retold the history of his people for Greco-Roman readers. As you can see, Joseph was a witness to what he wrote about: “The area of ​​\u200b\u200bSodom adjoins it (the Dead Sea), once rich in its fertility and the well-being of cities, now it is completely scorched. She, as they say, due to the sinfulness of her inhabitants was destroyed by lightning. Even now there are traces of God-sent fire, and even now you can see the shadows of the five cities. Each time, the ashes reappear in the form of unknown fruits, which seem to be edible in color, but as soon as they are felt by hand, they turn into dust and ashes. Thus, the ancient legends about the Sodom country are confirmed visually.

The Bible scholars themselves had little to offer in favor of the hypothesis of the reality of Sodom and Gomorrah. The Rev. T. Cheyne, Professor of Oriental Studies and Scripture Interpretation at Oxford University, in his 1903 Encyclopedia of the Bible article, interpreted the story of Sodom and Gomorrah as a variant of the familiar myth of a cataclysmic flood where the sins of the people are punished by a global flood.

In 1924, a team of archaeologists led by William Foxwell Albright found the remains of a Bronze Age settlement at a site called Bab el-Dahra. After collecting a few clay shards, the name "Bab el-Dahra" was put on the archaeological maps of the Jordan.

But only in the 70s. XX century, archaeologists began to realize the true significance of the discovery. Under the sands and dust of the desert was a large settlement dating back to the early Bronze Age (approximately 3100-2300 BC).

Bab el-Dahra is now known as one of the oldest Palestinian cities. Archaeologists unearthed a temple there, other cultural centers and the remains of a powerful protective wall, which is about 7 meters thick, built of stone and clay bricks. However, the most unexpected discovery was the nearby cemetery, one of the largest in the Middle East. According to various estimates, about half a million people are buried there (about three million pots with funeral gifts were also found there).

Even before the excavations, it became clear that Bab el-Dahra was destroyed by fire - pieces of spongy charcoal were scattered everywhere in the vicinity of the settlement. Subsequently, Bab el-Dahra remained abandoned for 2000 years, until the beginning of the Hellenistic era.

This is not the only settlement in Palestine that has suffered such a fate. Not long after excavations began in 1975, archaeologists Walter Wrest and Thomas Schaub found Numeria, another early Bronze Age settlement 11 kilometers to the south, also littered with spongy charcoal that could be collected handfuls from the ground. Destroyed by fire around the same time as Bab el-Dahra, Numeria also remained abandoned for 2000 years.

So, a certain regularity appeared in the excavations. By 1980, Rest and Schaub presented preliminary findings: the settlements they found were the five "cities in the plain" spoken of in Genesis (Sodom, Gomorrah, Seboim, Adma, and Segor).

There was a murmur in scientific circles. One academic immediately threatened to deprive the expedition of Rest and Schaub of financial support if they were really going to identify their excavation sites with the biblical "cities on the plain." Fortunately, this hysteria did not affect the continuation of the work, and after about 20 years, experts stopped breaking spears in the discussion about Sodom and Gomorrah.

What caused the destruction of five prosperous cities around 2300 BC? e.? Are there points of contact between archeology and religion?

The Bible says that God rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and the neighboring cities. Lightning strikes are often accompanied by a sulphurous smell, and some of the ancient authors, including Tacitus, believed that it was lightning that caused the death of cities. Josephus refers to "thunderbolts", or simply "lightning bolts".

As geologist Dorothy Vitaliano noted, “it is unlikely that a lightning bolt alone could have caused a fire in which 4 cities could have died.” (This refers to 4 cities, because some have argued that the city of Sigor survived the catastrophe.)

However, let's consider another factor. It has been known since antiquity that the area of ​​the Dead Sea is rich in oil. The Book of Genesis speaks of "tar pits" in the valley of Siddim near Sodom, and in the time of Josephus Flavius, the Dead Sea was generally called Asphalt Lake because of bitumen floating in it. Their number increased dramatically after earthquakes; some reports report blocks the size of a house.

Sodom and Gomorrah were actually on a powder keg. Moreover, they were erected on a large fault in the earth's crust - the valley of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea is a continuation of the Great Rift in Africa, one of the main zones of seismic activity on Earth. An earthquake, of course, can lead to a fire.

Dorothy Vitaliano agrees with the assumptions of her predecessors: “A powerful earthquake occurred in the valley of Siddim about 2000 BC. e. It was accompanied by emissions of natural combustible gases and bitumen that ignited from fires in domestic hearths. If some rocks with a high bitumen content were used during the construction of external walls or buildings, they became additional fuel for a fire.”

It is interesting to note that she wrote this in 1973, before the publication of Rast and Schaub's discovery. And recent research has confirmed that earthquakes played a key role in the destruction of cities.

Two eminent specialists, D. Negev from the Israel Geological Survey and K. Ameri from the Woodshall Oceanographic Laboratory in Massachusetts, devoted a whole book to the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah. According to them, from a geological point of view, it is quite possible that in the history of the lost cities, echoes of the people's memory of a powerful seismic cataclysm at the end of the early Bronze Age have been preserved. Negev and Aymery believe that the main fuel for the fire was hydrocarbons pouring out of cracks in the soil. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that the bitumens in this area are very rich in sulfur. Streams of hot salt water spilled as a result of earthquakes could lead to the formation of a deadly mixture of combustible gases with a high content of sulfur and hydrogen sulfide.

So, can the riddle of Sodom and Gomorrah be considered solved? But let's not rush to send the topic to the archive.

It turned out that simultaneously with the earthquakes in the area located southeast of the Dead Sea, there were sharp climatic changes. Lands that were once abundantly moist and fertile have suddenly become drier and hotter. That is why, after the death of cities, these places were not inhabited for so long. A severe drought lasted for about 300 years, during which time barren wastelands formed.

It is now becoming increasingly clear that the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is just one small piece of a larger puzzle. Simultaneously with the sharp deterioration of climatic conditions, almost all the great urban centers of the Levant were destroyed, many of them as a result of earthquakes. In all of Turkey, at least 300 cities were burned or abandoned; Troy belonged to their number, which Schliemann considered Homer's Troy. At the same time, the Greek civilization of the early Bronze Age fell into decline. In Egypt, the era of the Old Kingdom and the great builders of the pyramids came to an end: the country slid into the abyss of anarchy. The level of the Nile has plummeted, and in the west the Sahara Desert has reclaimed vast areas that were once fertile and well irrigated.

Today, many facts show that the natural disaster in the Middle East at the end of the III millennium BC. e. was part of a global cataclysm. Moreover, some evidence leads scientists to look for an explanation beyond the Earth. There is one reason that can explain the sharp increase in seismic activity and climate change due to the release of huge amounts of dust into the atmosphere: the collision of our planet with large meteorites and fragments of comets. Thus, a relatively small piece of cometary matter that exploded over Podkamennaya Tunguska in Siberia in 1908 caused tremors, noted by seismographs around the globe, and devastated vast expanses of taiga. A larger celestial body that fell in the region of a fault in the earth's crust could lead to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

This consideration brings us back to the biblical description of events. What was the nature of the "heavenly fire" that, according to Genesis, destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah? The "lightning" in the chronicles of Josephus Flavius ​​is not ordinary lightning, as it might seem at first glance. Of the two Greek words he used to describe this event, keraunos ("lightning") and bolos ("projectile"), neither is used in the context of a typical thunderstorm, with thunder and lightning. In particular, the word keraunos was used to describe the sacred, most deadly weapon of the god Zeus, which he used only on special occasions. In the Hellenistic world, Zeus as the god of thunder was associated with a number of meteorite cults, and the "heavenly stones" were preserved and revered for centuries after their fall.

It may seem like a big stretch that Sodom and Gomorrah, located on the fault line of the earth's crust, and even above the deposits of combustible hydrocarbons, were also hit by a meteorite. But if the catastrophe, according to contemporaries, occurred during a heavy meteor shower, the causes and effects could well be reversed in people's minds. A meteorite or fragment of cometary material that fell elsewhere could cause seismic tremors, while smaller fragments that burned up in the atmosphere lit up the night sky ...

Thus, the much ridiculed story of Sodom and Gomorrah being destroyed by "heavenly fire" may be a curious example of human reaction in one small corner of the world to a global catastrophe.

N. Nepomniachtchi

Four cities: Sodom, Gomorrah, Adma and Seboim were destroyed from the face of the earth by fire from heaven. The wrath of the Lord was caused by the wickedness and heinous sins of the inhabitants of these cities. God announced to Abraham that Sodom would be destroyed, Abraham prayed for this sinful city, and the Lord promised him that he would not destroy the city if there were at least ten righteous people there. But they were not found. And that's what happened. Lot lived in Sodom, a righteous man with his wife and two daughters. God sent two angels to this city, who took human form. It was in the evening. The hospitable Lot received them in his house, not knowing that they were angels.

They had not yet gone to bed, like city dwellers, Sodomites, from young to old, all the people with all ends cities surrounded the house.And they called Lot, and they said to him, Where are the people who came to you at night? Bring them out to us; we get to know them.

Lot went out to them at the entrance, and locked the door behind him,and said, My brethren, do no evil;here I have two daughters who have not known a husband; I'd rather bring them out to you, do with them what you please, only don't do anything to these people, since they came under the shelter of my house.

But they said to him: come here. And they said: here is a stranger, and he wants to judge? now we will deal worse with you than with them. And they came very close to this man, to Lot, and came up to break down the door.Then the men stretched out their hands and brought Lot into their house, and they locked the door;and the people who were at the entrance to the house were smitten with blindness, from the smallest to the greatest, so that they were exhausted, looking for an entrance.

The men said to Lot, Who else do you have here? son-in-law, or your sons, or your daughters, and whoever you have in the city, bring them all out of this place,for we will destroy this place, because the cry against the inhabitants of it to the Lord is great, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.

And Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were taking his daughters for themselves, and said, Get up, get out of this place, for the Lord will destroy this city. But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

When the dawn broke, the angels began to hasten Lot, saying, Get up, take your wife and your two daughters that you have, so that you do not perish for the iniquities of the city.And as he hesitated, those men, by the mercy of the Lord, took him by the hand, and his wife, and his two daughters, and brought him out and set him outside the city.When they brought them out then one of them said: save your soul; do not look back and do not stop anywhere in this neighborhood; flee to the mountain lest you perish.

The sun rose over the earth, and Lot came to Segor.

And the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord from heaven,and he overthrew these cities, and all this region, and all the inhabitants of these cities, and all earth growth.wife Lotova looked behind him and became a pillar of salt.

And Abraham got up early in the morning and went to the place where he stood before the Lord,

It is believed that these destroyed cities were located on the site of the southern part of the Dead Sea. The expressions "sodom and gomorrah" are still used today to define debauchery, including the sin that God was so angry about, and which has been spreading more and more on earth in recent times.

I. THE BIBLE ON SODOM AND GOMORRAH

1. Historical and geographical data
Sodom . The name of the city is translated as "burning". Gomorrah . The name of the city is translated as "overflowing with water" or "submerged".
Sodom and Gomorrah are two of the five cities around Jordan that were destroyed by fire and brimstone. Five cities around the Jordan - Sodom, Gomorrah, Sigor, Adma and Seboim (Zevoim). They are mentioned in Genesis 10:19 « And the borders of the Canaanites were from Sidon to Gerar to Gaza, from here to Sodom, Gomorrah, Adme and Zeboim to Lasha».
All these cities were located in the valley of Siddim, where the Dead Sea is now located: Genesis 14:1-3 « And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goim, that they made war against Bera king of Sodom, against Birsha, the king Gomorrah, Shinava, king Adma, Shemevera, king Sevoimsky, and against King Bela, who is Seagor. All these were united in the valley of Siddim, where the sea is now Salt».

What was this area like?
Genesis 13:10 « Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the region around the Jordan, that it was, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, all as far as Segor irrigated with water like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt ».
Genesis 14:10 « In the valley of Siddim there were many tar pits».

2. Bible about the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah:

• Evil and very sinful: Genesis 13:13 « The inhabitants of Sodom were evil and very sinful before the Lord». Genesis 18:20-21 « And the Lord said: The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and their sin is very heavy; I will go down and see whether they are doing exactly what the cry against them is, ascending to Me, or not; recognize».
• Ten righteous people were not found in these cities for which God would not destroy these cities: Genesis 18:23-32.
• Proud, satiated, idle, unmerciful, and committing abominations: Ezekiel 16:48-50 « I live, says the Lord God; Your sister Sodoma did not do herself and her daughters what you and your daughters did. This is what was the iniquity of Sodom, your sister and her daughters: in pride, satiety and idleness, and she did not support the hands of the poor and the beggar a. And they were proud, and did abominations before me and seeing this, I rejected them».
• Proud of their sin: Isaiah 3:9 « The expression of their faces testifies against them, and they speak openly about their sin like the Sodomites do not hide: woe to their soul! because they bring evil upon themselves».
• Sexual debauchery culminated in Sodom and Gomorrah: Genesis 19:4-9 .

3. Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah .
The wickedness and lawlessness of the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah led to the incineration of these cities. The picture of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is described in Genesis 19:15-26.
Particular attention should be paid to the picture of the destruction of cities: Genesis 19:24-25 " And the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord from heaven, and overthrew these cities, and all this region, and all the inhabitants of these cities, and the growth of the earth". Also Genesis 19:27-29 « And Abraham got up early in the morning and went to the place where he stood before the Lord, and looked towards Sodom and Gomorrah and all the area around and saw: behold, smoke rises from the earth, like smoke from a furnace. And it came to pass, when God was destroying the cities of this region, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of destruction, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.».
Lot's attitude to what happened is described in Genesis 19:30 « And Lot went out of Segor and dwelt in the woe, and his two daughters with him, for he afraid to live in Sigor. And lived in a cave and with him his two daughters».

It is known that there were five cities in the valley of Siddim: Sodom, Gomorrah, Sigor, Adma and Seboim. How many cities were destroyed that day: two, three, four or all five? To answer this question, it is necessary to carefully read the story of the bringing of Lot's family out of Sodom: Genesis 19:15-26.
Firstly, special attention should be paid to the conversation between Lot and the angels Genesis 19:15-22 « When the dawn broke, the angels began to hasten Lot, saying, Get up, take your wife and your two daughters that you have, so that you do not perish for the iniquities of the city. And as he hesitated, those men, by the mercy of the Lord, took him by the hand, and his wife, and his two daughters, and brought him out and set him outside the city. And when they brought them out, one of them said, Save your soul; do not look back and do not stop anywhere in this neighborhood; flee to the mountain lest you perish. But Lot said to them: No, Lord! Behold, Your servant has found favor in Your sight, and great is Your mercy, which You have done with me, that You have saved my life; but I cannot escape to the mountain, so that trouble does not overtake me and I do not die; behold, it is closer to run to this city, it is small; I will run there, - he is small; and my life will be saved. And he said to him, Behold, I will do this also to please you: I will not overthrow the city of which you speak; make haste, save yourself there, for I cannot do the work until you get there. That is why this city is called Sigor».
According to the plan of God, all five cities of the valley of Siddim were to be destroyed by fire and brimstone. For this reason, the angels warned Lot not to stop in any city around the Jordan, but to flee to the mountains: “ Save your soul; do not look back and do not stop anywhere in this neighborhood; run up the mountain so you don't die» ( verse 17).
Lot was afraid of not having time to escape to the mountains and asked the angels to allow him to take refuge in Sigor - one of the five cities of the Siddim valley. The angels promised Lot that Segor would not be destroyed for his sake: And he said to him, Behold, I will do this also to please you; I will not overthrow the city of which you speak.» ( With. 21).
Secondly, attention should be paid to verses 23-25: « The sun rose over the earth, and Lot came to Segor. And the Lord poured out to Sodom and Gomorrah rain brimstone and fire from the Lord from heaven, and overthrew these cities, and all around this and all the inhabitants of these cities, and the growth of the earth". It describes the destruction of Sodom, Gomorrah, as well as the entire neighborhood of the Jordan, with the exception of Segor. Thus, we see that in addition to Sodom and Gomorrah, two more cities were destroyed that day.
This is also the subject of an excerpt from the book. Deuteronomy 29:23 « ... sulfur and salt, conflagration - the whole earth; neither is it sown, nor does it bring forth, and no grass comes out of it, as after the destruction Sodom, Gomorrah, Adma and Seboim which the Lord overthrew in his wrath and in his fury».

4. Symbolism of Sodom and Gomorrah
A. These two cities are symbols of debauchery and lawlessness:
Genesis 18:20-21 « And the Lord said, The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and their sin is very heavy.». Romans 9:29 « And, as Isaiah foretold: if the Lord of Hosts had not left us a seed, then we would have become like Sodom, and we would have been like Gomorrah».
Despite the fact that the passage from the book of Ezekiel 16:49 accuses Sodom of pride, selfishness and idleness, the main sin of the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah is homosexuality, which in the Bible is called "an abomination before the Lord" (Ezekiel 16:50). Exactly the same word ("abomination") is called the sin of homosexuality in Leviticus 18:22 « ».
Homosexual relationships were common among the Canaanites - the pagan tribes and peoples that inhabited Canaan. Fearing that their sinful lifestyle could be borrowed by the Jews, the Lord God, bringing the people of Israel into the promised land, commanded them to destroy all these peoples, which, by the way, they did not. But it will be much later than the events described. AT Genesis 15:16, « the measure of the iniquities of the Amorites is not yet full", but the debauchery of the two cities in the valley of Siddim - Sodom and Gomorrah- already crossed all boundaries.

B. Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is an example of what awaits the godless: 2 Peter 2:6 « ... and if the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, having condemned to destruction, turned into ashes, setting an example for the future wicked ». Jude 1:7 « Like Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, like them who committed fornication and went after other flesh, having undergone the punishment of eternal fire, set as an example ».
The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is an example and proof of how the Lord God judges and punishes sin.

C. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is a symbol of the end of the world.
Luke 17:28-30 « Just as it was in the days of Lot: they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all; so it will be on the day when the Son of Man appears».

D. The corruption of Sodom and Gomorrah became the talk of the town:
In other words, the names of Sodom and Gomorrah have become common nouns for all kinds of lawlessness and abomination before God.
Isaiah 1:9-10 « If the Lord of Hosts had not left us a small remnant, then we would have been the same as Sodom, we would have become like Gomorrah. Hear the word of the Lord, princes of Sodom; Heed the law of our God, people of Gomorrah!”
Jeremiah 23:13-14 « And in the prophets of Samaria I saw madness; they prophesied in the name of Baal, and led astray my people Israel. But I see a terrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem: they commit adultery and walk in lies, support the hands of villains that no one should turn from his wickedness; they are all before me like Sodom, and its inhabitants like Gomorrah».

E. The iniquity of Sodom and Gomorrah can be overcome:
Matthew 10:14-15 « And if anyone does not receive you and does not listen to your words, then when you leave that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet; Truly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city».
Mark 6:11 « And if anyone will not receive you and will not listen to you, then, going out from there, shake off the dust from your feet, as a testimony against them. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that city».
In other words, the punishment for refusing to accept the Good News of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ will be much worse than the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

II. THE BIBLE ON THE SIN OF HOMOSEXUALITY

1. Terminology
Homosexuality is understood as attraction towards people of the same sex. In women, this phenomenon is called lesbianism. Those people who follow a homosexual lifestyle are said to be gay (gay is an acronym that in English stands for " good as you- that is, "nothing worse than you." This is not just an abbreviation, but the ideological slogan of the homosexual movement); in clinical practice they are called "egosyntonic ** homosexuals."
The so-called sex minorities compare the struggle for their rights with the struggle for the emancipation of women or against racial discrimination. But the fact is that women or, say, blacks are really born this way and cannot change. With homosexuals, from a scientific point of view, the situation is somewhat different.

2. What causes homosexuality, what are its causes?
Illiterate people believe that people are just "mad with fat." Popular gay propaganda, on the contrary, claims that homosexuals are born. Both of these are incorrect. The development of homosexuality is a process, not an instantaneous event.
The hypothesis of the existence of a special "homosexuality gene" transmitted from the maternal "X" chromosome was not confirmed. Which is not surprising: after all, biologists have established that not only in humans, but even in higher mammals, sexual behavior is not genetically coded, but is the result of learning. Only a certain type of character can be inherited, which under certain conditions can lead to homosexuality.

Many homosexuals say: "For as long as I can remember, I have always been like this." But an experienced specialist, talking with them, can always identify the moment from which the deviations began, and what contributed to this.

What influences the formation of a person's homosexual worldview?

• Family relations play an important role, for example, when the boy's father is not an example for him, and his mother is overprotective. Such a child may never understand what it means to be a man. But at the same time, he is admired and attracted by those in whom there is this masculinity that he so lacks - other boys or men. Sooner or later, this admiration acquires an erotic character ...
• The negative experience of communication with peers (lack of friends and failures in relationships with the opposite sex) also affects the development of homosexual orientation.
• For women, things can happen in much the same way, but there is another decisive factor: most lesbians have experienced violence or severe insult inflicted by a man, and since then they have simply been afraid. Women's care and tenderness are especially attractive to them.
• The first sexual experience has a special influence on future sexual orientation. I'm not talking about the fact that homosexuality can be the result of a conscious choice. This is how they earn money. This is a challenge to society. They try it out of curiosity, for the sake of thrills.

In other words, homosexuals are not born.

3. What is wrong with homosexuality: what is its harm?
A. Negative impact on physical health.
Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is AIDS and its many famous and unknown victims. But it's not only that. In the United States, based on an analysis of obituaries, it was found that even in the absence of AIDS and with permanent partners, gay men live an average of 25-30 years less than heterosexual men. Because, in addition to AIDS, they are threatened by several dozen more specific diseases. Well, if AIDS is added, then, you understand ...

B. Negative impact on moral health.
There is a higher rate of suicide among homosexuals. They say that they, the poor fellows, are constantly subjected to pressure from society, but in the West, society has not been pressing anyone for a long time. It's just that in general there are more unfortunate people among them. Again, in the United States, where some statistics have already accumulated since the sexual revolution, it is estimated that only 2% of gay men have had less than 10 partners throughout their lives, 43% - more than 500, and 28% - more than 1000. Naturally, it is more difficult for homosexuals to find themselves "a couple". All this is still not so scary while young, but what awaits them in old age, when there is neither their former attractiveness, nor children, nor grandchildren?

B. Negative impact on society
And how does the ubiquitous distribution of “rainbow” love affect society? First of all, the very concept of the norm is blurred. And, please: sadism, masochism and other "strangeness" also no longer surprise anyone - you never know how people have fun. And in the West, pedophiles are already starting to fight for their rights - they say, why are we worse ... Normal people, on the contrary, find themselves in a strange position: for example, friendship between men already seems obviously suspicious - gays have convinced everyone that men cannot just be friends. And any teacher should think three times before asking a teenager if he has a girlfriend - a boy may, on the contrary, have a friend! And such a tactless question traumatizes the young psyche.
But this is so, "flowers" in comparison with the situation in which a fairly large group of people found themselves - namely, homosexuals who want to switch to a normal lifestyle. There are very few places where they can be qualified to help; they usually hear: “Why? It's your nature! Accept yourself as you are and enjoy it!” And they, poor fellows, want a normal family and children.

4. Biblical perspective on homosexuality
A. Old Testament teaching on marriage and the relationship of the sexes:
The book of Genesis lays out the foundations of the doctrine of marriage and the family: Genesis 2:18-24 « And the Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be alone; let's make him assistant corresponding to him. The Lord God formed from the earth all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air, and brought them to man to see what he would call them, and that whatever man called every living soul, that was its name. And the man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to all the beasts of the field; but for man there was not found a helper like him. And the Lord God brought a deep sleep upon the man; and when he fell asleep, he took one of his ribs, and covered the place with flesh. And the Lord God created from the rib taken from the man a wife, and brought her to the man. And the man said: behold, this bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken from man. Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother, and cling to his wife; and they will be one flesh ».

The Lord defined the family as the union of a man and a woman. Here are a few reasons why He ordained it this way:

• First, our bodies are designed in such a way that the anatomy of the female body complements the anatomy of the male, and vice versa.
• Secondly, the derivative of the union of a man and a woman is offspring. A homosexual union is not able to fulfill the commandment of the Lord God: "Be fruitful and multiply" ( Genesis 1:28).
• Thirdly, God has given men and women their (different) roles in the family, the fulfillment of which contributes to the strengthening of the family union. As known from Genesis 2:18 The wife was created to be the perfect helper to her husband.
• In addition, it must be remembered that the Lord created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Seva. If God didn't care who has sex with whom, then there would be no command that “a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife; and they shall be one flesh" Genesis 2:24). Husband and wife become one flesh, for Eve was taken from the flesh of Adam ( Genesis 2:23-24 « And the man said, Behold, this is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken from man. Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother, and cling to his wife; and they will be one flesh"). That is why homosexual relationships are called in the Bible " walking after other flesh» ( Jude 1:7).

The Lord God clearly forbade homosexual relations in His Word:
Leviticus 18:22 « Do not lie with a man as with a woman: this is an abomination».
Leviticus 20:13 « If anyone lies with a man as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: let them be put to death, their blood is on them.».

B. New Testament Teachings on Marriage and Sex Relations:
Jesus Christ : Speaking about marriage, Jesus referred to the teachings of the Old Testament, in particular, Genesis.

Matthew 19:4-6 « He answered and said to them: Have you not read that He who created male and female in the first place created them? And he said, Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh, so that they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no man separate». Mark 10:6 « At the beginning of creation, God created them male and female. Wherefore a man shall leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his wife, and the two shall be one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh».

Epistles of the Apostles
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 « Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, neither malakia*, nor sodomists, neither thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor predators - they will not inherit the Kingdom of God».
1 Timothy 1:9-10 « ... knowing that the law is not for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, the ungodly and sinners, the depraved and defiled, for offenders to father and mother, for murderers, for fornicators, homosexuals, predators, slanderers, bestiality, liars, perjurers, and for everything that is contrary to sound doctrine ...»

Homosexual relationships between the sexes is a sin that the Lord God will judge. However, one should not forget that those guilty of this sin reap the fruits of their iniquity while still alive, receiving in themselves the due retribution for their error: Romans 1:26-27 « Therefore, God gave them up to shameful passions: their women replaced their natural use with an unnatural one; likewise, men, leaving the natural use of the female sex, were inflamed with lust for one another, men on men doing shame and receiving in themselves due retribution for your delusion».
In addition, this passage indicates that homosexuality, firstly, is an "unnatural" phenomenon, that is, an anomaly. Secondly, homosexuality is not a genetic disorder, but a "delusion", that is, self-deception.
The cause of homosexual debauchery is godlessness: Romans 1:28 « And How they didn't care to have God in mind, then God gave them over to a perverse mind - to do indecency».

In the Bible, homosexuality and other sexual depravity is compared and equated with the shameless behavior of dogs. In Old Testament times, sexual debauchees were called "dogs": Deuteronomy 23:17-18 « There must be no harlot among the daughters of Israel, and there must be no harlot among the sons of Israel. Do not pay the wages of a harlot and dog prices into the house of the Lord your God without any vow, for both are an abomination to the Lord your God».
Revelation 22:14-15 « Blessed are those who keep His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life and enter the city through the gates. And outside - dogs and sorcerers, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and whoever loves and does unrighteousness»

5. How to deal with "gays"?
When a woman taken in adultery was brought to Christ, He neither justified nor accused her. Jesus said to her: Go ahead and don't sin". Subsequently, she became His devoted disciple.
Homosexuality, like adultery, is a type of the sin of fornication. We Christians should hate sin, but show God's love for sinners. This does not mean that we should encourage a sinful lifestyle and indulge sinners in their sin. It must be remembered that the Lord God is able to heal and free the repentant sinner from the sin of homosexuality.
Look at the words of the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 « Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor malakia, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor predators - will inherit the Kingdom of God. And some of you were; but washed, but sanctified, but justified by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God". As you can see, liberation from homosexuality is a reality that is within the power of our great Creator and Savior Jesus Christ.

For God, every person, regardless of his orientation, is infinitely dear. Christ died to give us all freedom from sin and the peace of God, so that souls tormented by despair might find peace and joy. The Lord is ready to accept any penitent sinner, so we - Christians - must testify to sinners about the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Perhaps someone's heart will respond, and there will be another forgiveness, and there will be another new life.

** Term "egosyntonic" refers to urges, desires, thoughts, etc., consonant with and compatible with the "I". The egosyntonic type of manifestation is characterized by the perception of one's sexual desires and preferences as natural and consistent with ideas about the subject's own personality.

Sodom and Gomorrah are two very famous cities in the Bible. Lot, Abraham's nephew, once decided to settle in Sodom. Genesis 13:10 says that the area was "watered with water, like the garden of the Lord." Obviously, this was a very rich and fertile land. The people who lived on it were probably rich, and their standard of living was higher than that of people from other areas. They did not lack either food or water, since their land was fertile and well irrigated with water. That is what attracted Lot to that land, and that is why he decided to live in it. As Genesis 13:10 says, “Lot lifted up his eyes and saw,” and based on what he saw, he made his choice. However, what we see as beautiful, "lifting up our eyes", the Lord can see in a completely different way (1 Samuel 16:7). And what Lot saw was significantly different from what the Lord saw, looking into the hearts of the people who lived in that land. In Genesis 13:13 we read:

Genesis 13:13
"The inhabitants of Sodom were evil and very sinful before the Lord."

While Lot saw an incredibly fertile land, the Lord saw extremely wicked hearts. As He says in Genesis 18:20:

Genesis 18:20
“The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and their sin is very heavy.”

And, in the end, saving the life of Lot, the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Leaving Sodom, Lot received advice from the Lord that was the exact opposite of what Lot had done in the beginning:

Genesis 19:17
“When they brought them out, one of them (the angel of the Lord - author's note) said: save your soul; do not look back…»

In choosing Sodom as a place to live, Lot made his decision after he "lifted up his eyes and saw." And now he had to flee and not "look back." As soon as Lot left, the Lord destroyed the area.

But what was the sin of Sodom? Ezekiel 16:49-50 says what the Lord saw:

Ezekiel 16:49-50
“This is the iniquity of Sodom, your sister and her daughters: in pride, satiety and idleness, and she did not support the hands of the poor and the beggar. And they became proud and did abominations before Me, and when I saw this, I rejected them.”

I was astounded to see that "satiety and idleness" were ranked with pride on the list of "the iniquities of Sodom." And although pride is usually condemned, at least outwardly, the other two vices - satiety (food) and idleness (when people live without doing anything) - the attitude is completely different. On the contrary, often even Christians consider them their goal. Of course, we do not mean that we need to be exhausted and hungry. However, despite what the world tells us, we SHOULD NOT strive for satiety and idleness. We must pursue the Lord, His Word, and His purposes. The meaning and purpose of our life should not be idleness and wealth, but the fulfillment of God's will. We must strive to know ourselves and help others to know the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. And just as Sodom and Gomorrah were wiped off the face of the earth, so this world will someday come to an end. And just as the Lord brought Lot out of that place before destroying it, so He will take us out of this world before doing to him what he did to Sodom and Gomorrah.

So let's be ready and vigilant. The Lord is coming. And “just as it was in the days of Lot: they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all; 30 So it will be in the day when the Son of Man appears... Remember Lot's wife. Whoever begins to save his soul will destroy it; but whoever destroys her will revive her” (Luke 17:28-33).