Genesis Chapter 19 Bible Study – The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

The Arrival of the Two Angels in Sodom

Genesis 19 opens with the two angels arriving at Sodom in the evening, where Lot is sitting at the city gate (Genesis 19:1). Sitting at the gate indicates a position of leadership or authority in ancient cities, as seen later in Ruth 4:1-2. This suggests that Lot, though living in a corrupt city, held some influence in its affairs.

When Lot sees the angels, he rises to meet them and bows his face to the ground, a gesture of honor similar to Abraham’s greeting of the three visitors in Genesis 18:2. This shows that Lot recognizes their importance, though the text does not explicitly state whether he realizes they are angels.

Lot’s Urgent Hospitality

Lot invites the visitors to stay in his house, wash their feet, and spend the night before rising early to go on their way (Genesis 19:2). The angels initially refuse, saying they will stay in the street. Lot insists strongly until they agree to enter his home (Genesis 19:3). His insistence reflects both the ancient Near Eastern custom of hospitality and his awareness of Sodom’s dangers after dark.

Lot prepares a feast, baking unleavened bread, and they eat. The mention of unleavened bread suggests haste, as in Exodus 12:39 when Israel left Egypt quickly.

The Men of Sodom Demand the Visitors

Before the visitors lie down, the men of Sodom surround the house, from young to old, demanding that Lot bring them out so they may “know” them (Genesis 19:4-5). The word “know” here clearly refers to sexual relations, indicating the city’s moral depravity. This event confirms the earlier description in Genesis 13:13 that the men of Sodom were “wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.”

The severity of their wickedness is further emphasized in Jude 1:7, which identifies Sodom and Gomorrah as examples of those who indulge in gross immorality.

Lot’s Desperate Offer

Lot goes out to the men, shutting the door behind him, and pleads with them not to act wickedly (Genesis 19:6-7). Shockingly, he offers his two virgin daughters to the mob instead, saying they may do to them as they please, but not to harm the guests (Genesis 19:8). While this reflects the extreme value placed on hospitality in that culture, it also shows a deeply troubling moral compromise.

This mirrors the later account in Judges 19:22-24, where a host offers his daughter and a concubine to protect his guest from abuse. In both cases, the offer demonstrates the brokenness that can occur when societal norms clash with moral principles.

The Angels’ Intervention

The mob rejects Lot’s plea, accusing him of acting as a judge and threatening to treat him worse than the visitors (Genesis 19:9). They press hard against Lot, nearly breaking down the door. At this point, the angels pull Lot inside, shut the door, and strike the men outside with blindness, preventing them from finding the door (Genesis 19:10-11).

The blindness here likely refers to a sudden, disorienting loss of vision, similar to the blinding of the Syrian army in 2 Kings 6:18. This supernatural act both protects Lot’s household and demonstrates God’s power over the wicked.

The Urgent Call to Escape

The angels ask Lot if he has any other family in the city—sons-in-law, sons, daughters—and urge him to bring them out because God is about to destroy the place (Genesis 19:12-13). The destruction is due to the “outcry” against Sodom, a phrase also used in Genesis 18:20, indicating extreme injustice and sin.

Lot goes to speak with his sons-in-law, who had married or were betrothed to his daughters, and warns them to flee, but they think he is joking (Genesis 19:14). This disbelief parallels the scoffing at Noah’s warnings before the flood (Matthew 24:38-39) and shows how deeply people can be blinded to impending judgment.

Lot Hesitates, the Angels Take Action

At dawn, the angels urge Lot to take his wife and two daughters and leave, lest they be swept away in the punishment of the city (Genesis 19:15). Yet Lot lingers, showing the pull that worldly attachments can have even in the face of imminent danger.

In mercy, the angels seize Lot, his wife, and his daughters by the hand and bring them out, setting them outside the city (Genesis 19:16). This act of divine intervention reflects the truth in 2 Peter 2:7-9, where Lot is described as a righteous man rescued from the judgment on the wicked.

The Command to Flee to the Mountains

Once outside, the angels tell Lot to flee for his life, not to look back, and not to stay in the plain, but to escape to the mountains lest he be destroyed (Genesis 19:17). The instruction not to look back emphasizes total separation from sin, similar to Jesus’ teaching in Luke 9:62 that no one who looks back after putting their hand to the plow is fit for the kingdom of God.

Lot Requests to Flee to Zoar

Lot pleads that he cannot flee to the mountains without disaster overtaking him and asks to escape instead to a small nearby city, which he calls Zoar (Genesis 19:18-20). His request reflects both fear and a desire for a less radical separation from his current way of life.

The angel grants his request, promising not to destroy Zoar because of Lot’s plea (Genesis 19:21-22). This shows that God, in His mercy, sometimes accommodates human weakness while still accomplishing His purposes.

The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

As Lot enters Zoar, the Lord rains down brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven upon Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:23-24). This dual mention of “the Lord” has been seen by some as an indication of the complexity of God’s nature, possibly hinting at the distinction within the Godhead.

The destruction is total—God overthrows the cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants, and even the vegetation (Genesis 19:25). This thorough judgment is later used as a biblical example of God’s wrath against sin (Deuteronomy 29:23; Luke 17:28-29).

Lot’s Wife Looks Back

In Genesis 19:26, Lot’s wife looks back from behind him and becomes a pillar of salt. Her act of looking back is more than a glance; it signifies longing for what she left behind. This serves as a lasting warning, echoed by Jesus in Luke 17:32: “Remember Lot’s wife.”

The transformation into a pillar of salt symbolizes both judgment and memorial—a stark reminder of the cost of divided loyalties.

Abraham Sees the Aftermath

Genesis 19:27-28 records Abraham rising early to the place where he had stood before the Lord and seeing the smoke of the land rising like the smoke of a furnace. This imagery parallels the smoke from God’s judgment in Revelation 19:3 and confirms the outcome of God’s earlier disclosure in Genesis 18.

God Remembers Abraham and Rescues Lot

In Genesis 19:29, the text notes that God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow. This shows that Lot’s deliverance is partly in response to Abraham’s intercession in Genesis 18:23-33, illustrating the power of prayer for others (James 5:16).

Lot’s Fear and His Daughters’ Sin

Lot, afraid to stay in Zoar, goes up to live in the mountains with his two daughters (Genesis 19:30). This fear may stem from seeing God’s judgment on the plain and realizing Zoar’s proximity to it.

In Genesis 19:31-32, the daughters, believing there are no men left to marry and preserve their family line, conspire to make their father drunk and lie with him to conceive children. Their plan reflects desperation but also moral compromise. Similar desperate acts appear in other biblical accounts, such as Rebekah’s deception in Genesis 27, though with very different motives.

The daughters carry out their plan on two successive nights, and both conceive (Genesis 19:33-36). Lot is unaware of the events due to his drunkenness, highlighting the dangers of intoxication, as warned in Proverbs 20:1 and Ephesians 5:18.

The Birth of Moab and Ammon

The older daughter bears a son named Moab, ancestor of the Moabites, and the younger bears a son named Ben-ammi, ancestor of the Ammonites (Genesis 19:37-38). These nations later become frequent adversaries of Israel (Numbers 22:1-6; Judges 10:6-7). Yet God’s grace still extends to them in certain ways—Ruth, a Moabite woman, becomes part of the lineage of David and ultimately of Christ (Ruth 4:13-22; Matthew 1:5).