Sodom and Gomorrah

Sodom was a town on the plain of the Jordan river, and Biblically the southeastern limit of the lands of the Canaanites (Genesis 10:19). Lot, a cousin of Abram (Abraham) chose to live in the city.

Sodom is famous because it was destroyed by God after an incident related in Genesis 19:

4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:

5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men [angels] which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. (KJV)

As the story goes, Lot refused to give the angels staying in his house to the men of Sodom, and instead offered them his two daughters. The men refused to accept this compromise, and Lot was only saved from assault by the angels. Lot and his family were then instructed to leave the city, and Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed with fire and brimstone by God.

Opinions on what the sin of Sodom (which caused its destruction) actually was differ. The traditional interpretation is that the men were guilty of homosexuality and of rape. A modernist view sees the sin of Sodom as violation of the Law of Hospitality, and rape, but not homosexuality. This is a hotly contested subject.

The Biblical account of Sodom has given us the English word "sodomy", meaning the act of anal intercourse, and also the word "sodomite", meaning one who practises the same. The account of Sodom is part of the basis for many Christian denominations' condemnation of homosexuality.

The existence of Sodom and Gomorrah is still in dispute by archaeologists, with some believing they never existed, some believing they are now under the Dead Sea, and others claiming that they have been found (under other names) in the region to the south-east of the Dead Sea.