Well, my dear friend, my quick response is that God destroyed these cities because of their great wickedness. Genesis 18:20 says: “And the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” The implication of this verse was clear to Abraham that God would destroy those cities if He determined that they were yet walking in depravity. It seems important to me to note that in Genesis 18, Abraham advocated for Sodom since his relative, Lot and his family lived there, asking whether God might spare the place if even ten men within the city were found to be righteous (Genesis 18:32). But, alas it was not to be so. And yet God showed His long suffering in that He did not simply obliterate the cities when they first sinned but did allow time for them to see the error of their ways. Looking at Genesis 19, we might note that the men of these cities did have Lot’s good example before them as Lot did live and was a prominent citizen among these people. And yet we see that they did not mend their ways. Genesis 19, especially verses 4-13, clearly outlines the continuing wickedness of the inhabitants of the cities. The two angels came in the form of men, but when they entered Lot’s home, the wicked men of the city came to the door and demanded that they be allowed to have carnal relations with the two strangers. Lot begged the men of the city not to do this wickedness (sodomy), and he even offered his daughters in the place of his guests (Genesis 19:8), but the men of the city ignored this and meant to have their own way with the two visitors such that the angels had to intervene to prevent the men of the city. Then we read that after witnessing the incredible depravity of the men of Sodom and Gomorrah, the two angels gave warning to Lot to tell his relatives that there would be judgment upon the place, and that they must flee these cities which were now destined for destruction. However, Lot was ignored. This part of the account is told in detail in Genesis 19:13-16. Note what happens in these verses: “For we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before the face of the LORD, and the LORD has sent us to destroy it.”  When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, “Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.” And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.” We plainly see that God demonstrated His mercy in that the two angels who witnessed the depravity of the place gave Lot fair warning to speak to his family telling them of judgment which would come. When Lot’s warnings were ignored by his sons-in-law and because Lot tended to linger, the angels had to actually take Lot and his wife and daughters by the hand and lead them out of the city in order to save them (see Genesis 19:16).

In order to truly understand why this judgment was necessary, we must understand that God is holy and cannot tolerate sin.  Sin must always be judged (see Romans 6:23; Proverbs 6:16-19). Furthermore, God’s judgments are absolutely righteous (see Psalms 19:9; Psalms 119:137). And yet thankfully God is not only righteous and just but is also gracious and merciful. In 2 Peter 2:6-9 we read a warning of coming judgment, likened to that of Sodom and Gomorrah, for all evil doers in our world today, and in 2 Peter 3:9 we see the mercy of God in delaying this judgment until everyone who will, has had the opportunity to repent and flee for the mercy of God by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. My dear friend, God has given our world very adequate warning for sure (see Acts 17:30, 31). And so, I would plead with all who may read this response that you consider the warning to our present-day world about the judgment which is yet to come upon the ungodly of the earth. There are many today who either do not believe that there is such a thing as sin and depravity, or else if they do, will simply not accept that we will be held accountable for our sins if we do not accept God’s offer of salvation (Romans 3:23), and that the sins of this world will lead to judgment and death for any who refuse God’s gift of salvation (Romans 6:23; Hebrews 10:26). We can only escape the judgment which is coming by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us on Calvary’s cross. John 5:24 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” I pray that you will believe on Christ Jesus today and be saved (Acts 16:31)! (SF)  (736.3)