- 1And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;
- 2And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.
- 3And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
- 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:
- 5And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.
- 6And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
- 7And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
- 8Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
- 9And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door.
- 10But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door.
- 11And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
- 12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:
- 13For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it.
- 14And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
- 15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.
- 16And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.
- 17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
- 18And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:
- 19Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
- 20Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
- 21And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken.
- 22Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
- 23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
- 24Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;
- 25And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
- 26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
- 27 And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD:
- 28And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.
- 29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.
- 30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.
- 31And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:
- 32Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
- 33And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
- 34And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
- 35And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
- 36Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
- 37And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.
- 38And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Ben-ammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.
KING JAMES VERSION
GENESIS 19
Read the chapter, follow a linked verse, and continue into related Watchman 33 teaching.
CHAPTER VISUAL
Genesis 19 — Lot escapes the destruction of the cities of the plain, but the chapter closes under the weight of judgment and loss.
About this illustration
The artwork depicts the flight and destruction without showing the threatened sexual violence or the later cave episode. Lot’s wife is represented symbolically at the moment of looking back, with no graphic bodily detail.
Scripture basis: Genesis 19:1–38King James Version · Standardized 1769 text with Strong’s numbering · Public domain outside the United Kingdom
EXPLORE THE MESSAGE
Related Watchman 33 Resources
Archaeological Evidence
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEManuscript
Late second or early third century AD
P.Oxy. IV 656: An Early Greek Genesis Codex
Four papyrus leaves from a late-second- or early-third-century Genesis codex preserve Abraham, Lot, Isaac, and Jacob passages together with revealing gaps and later additions at divine-name locations.
Genesis 14:21–23 · Genesis 15:5–9 · Genesis 19:32–38
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEInscription
before or during the AD 79 destruction of Pompeii, if the reading and ancient dating are correct
Pompeii Sodom and Gomorrah Graffito
A now-lost or poorly preserved wall graffito from Pompeii traditionally read as naming Sodom and Gomorrah. Potentially witnesses first-century knowledge and reuse of the Genesis destruction tradition in a Roman city.
Genesis 19:23–29 · Luke 17:28–32 · 2 Peter 2:6–9
Sermons
No Looking Back
Pastor Dean Odle uses an old family plow to illustrate Jesus’s warning in Luke 9:62 about following Him without looking back. Beginning with Romans 8 and John 10, he argues that discipleship requires continually hearing Christ’s voice, resisting the flesh, and surrendering self-will. He examines the excuses in Luke 14, shares personal accounts of ministry decisions, correction, and restoration, and turns to 1 John 2 and Proverbs 3 to urge trust in God’s direction. The sermon closes with warnings drawn from Lot’s wife and the parable of the talents, calling listeners to examine their faith, abide in Christ, and move forward in obedient, fruitful service.
Christian LivingSalvation and the GospelHoly Spirit and Spiritual GiftsDoctrine and Discernment
View sermon The Garden and the Deceiver
Pastor Dean Odle uses the Garden of Eden to warn that the deceiver’s oldest lie still promises that sin carries no final consequence. Moving through Genesis 3, Titus 2, Hebrews 10, Jude, and other passages, he argues that salvation is God’s unearned gift while believers remain responsible to obey Christ, reject habitual sin, and continue in sound doctrine. He contrasts the Spirit’s transforming grace with teachings that excuse lawlessness, addresses contemporary religious deception and disputed end-times claims, and urges listeners to stay in Scripture, prayer, humility, and fellowship with Jesus. The message closes with a call to step away from the tree of sin, repent when one falls, and keep choosing Christ to the end.
Doctrine and DiscernmentChristian LivingApostasy and Deception
View sermon Spiritual Warfare #2 - The Fall of Satan & His Angels
In “Spiritual Warfare #2 - The Fall of Satan & His Angels,” Pastor Dean Odle presents a Scripture-centered message about Satanic opposition, angelic messengers, eternal life and hope. Drawing especially from Isaiah 6, Genesis 6, Ezekiel 28, Isaiah 14, the teaching emphasizes that Satan’s work is described through deception, accusation, temptation, and opposition to God’s purposes. Odle connects that foundation with the conviction that angelic activity is examined within the biblical passage and its prophetic sequence.
Spiritual WarfareBiblical CreationChristian Living
View sermon Showing 1–3 of 6 sermons