What Was the Sin of Sodom?

The account of God’s messengers visiting Sodom was one of the most depraved accounts of human behavior ever listed in the Bible. In the account, God is grieved with Sodom and sends messengers to Lot to tell him to flee the city before it is destroyed. The people of Sodom, rather than treating these strangers with hospitality or repenting at the presentation of their message, desire to rape, abuse and sodomize these strangers. Lot, horrified at this prospect, offered his virgin daughters to the people of Sodom instead. But they would have no part of it – they were determined to sexually abuse God’s messengers. In return for this, God struck the people of Sodom with blindness to protect his people. This may have been the event that sealed Sodom’s doom – after Lot fled the city it was destroyed.  

What was the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah? Was it merely their sexual depravity that has gained them notoriety among the ancient cities of the Bible? This has made them famous throughout the world. Yet according to the prophet Ezekiel it was much more than sexual depravity that grieved God in dealing with Sodom:

 Ezekiel  16:49-52 – “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen. Samaria did not commit half the sins you did. You have done more detestable things than they, and have made your sisters seem righteous by all these things you have done. Bear your disgrace, for you have furnished some justification for your sisters. Because your sins were more vile than theirs, they appear more righteous than you. So then, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, for you have made your sisters appear righteous.”

First and foremost he mentions that they were arrogant. They were overfed. They were unconcerned about their neighbors. They did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty. Last, it mentions that they did “detestable things before me”. This may refer to their sexual immorality.

Why do we only see the sexual immorality? We filter out all the other reasons God was grieved with Sodom. Why? Perhaps because it is easy to pat ourselves on the back and feel justified that we are not depraved sodomizing rapists seeking to molest children or strangers who enter our towns, as was the case with Sodom during Lot’s time. But this situation is an extreme account of depravity. Events as heinous as sodomizing rape and the molestation of children still occur in present day society.

It’s easy to justify our arrogance, selfishness, unconcern for our neighbors and lack of care for the poor and needy when we compare ourselves to the extreme evil of rapists and molesters. Compared to offenders such as those we all appear as moral supermen! But this makes our hidden sins no less a grievance to God. Remember that the prophet Ezekiel addressed the “hidden” sins – arrogance, selfishness, unconcern and not caring for the poor and needy before he even mentioned “detestable things”. It’s not extreme sins like murder or rape that ruin the souls of most individuals. Rather it’s the little sins we tend to justify, the hidden sins that we may not even notice until God exposes them in our lives. If we simply look for someone who is "more evil" than we are, we will never change. If we justify ourselves by comparing ourselves to someone worse than we are, we will never be justified by Christ. The yeast of the Pharisees and the hypocrisy that Jesus fought so hard against in his ministry stem from this self-righteous attitude:

"Well at least I'm not like that person..."

What proof is there, one might ask, that these hidden sins are the deadliest of all? If we believe in the teaching of Christ, we have all the proof we need. The real Jesus had quite a few things to say regarding this matter.

"If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town. I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." (Matthew 10:14-16)

"And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you." (Matthew 11:23-24)
 

"Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
(Luke 14:12-14)

 

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. "Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’"Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’"The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’"Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’"They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ "He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." (Matthew 25:31-46)

 

"My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong? If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment! What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." (James 2:1-17)

"To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 18:9-14)

"Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy" (Luke 12:1)

How many souls will be lost, how many hearts will not change, how many evil things will be done in the name of God because of those words spoken by the Pharisee in Jesus' parable?

"God, I thank you that I am not like other men..."

According to Jesus, who was justified and who was not?