Sodom and Gomorrah
Where were Sodom and Gomorrah? Their exact site is unknown; the Bible places them in the Jordan plain by the Dead Sea, southern and northern theories.
- Today
- Unknown; south or north of the Dead Sea
- Country
- Uncertain (Dead Sea area)
- Status
- Location debated: Mount Sodom, Bab edh-Dhra and Tall el-Hammam proposed
- Identification
- Debated
Sodom and Gomorrah appear in Genesis among the cities of the Jordan plain; after parting from Abraham, Lot pitched his tent as far as Sodom. The Bible describes the wickedness and grave sin of these cities' people, and Abraham pleaded with God to spare the city if ten righteous people were found in it. In the end the LORD rained sulfur and fire from heaven; Lot and his daughters escaped, but his wife looked back and became a pillar of salt. The prophets, Jesus and the apostles recall this judgment as a warning.
Read the chapters
Related topics
Related people
- Jesus Christ
- Mary
- John the Baptist
- Abraham
- Joseph
- Noah
- Adam
- Eve
- Isaac
- Sarah
- Jacob
- Isaiah
- Elizabeth
- Martha
- Matthew
- Mary Magdalene
- Zacchaeus
- Methuselah
- Seth
- Abel
- Cain
- Ishmael
- Hagar
- Lot
- Rachel
- Zechariah
- John the Apostle
- Judas Iscariot
Related verse collections
- Bible Verses About Hope
- Bible Verses of Comfort
- Bible Verses About Fear and Anxiety
- Bible Verses About Forgiveness
- Bible Verses About Creation
- Bible Verses About Courage
- Bible Verses About Repentance
- Bible Verses About Family
- Bible Verses About Marriage
- Bible Verses About Generosity
- Bible Verses About Jesus
- Bible Verses About Justice
- Bible Verses About Holiness
- Bible Verses About Waiting on God
- Bible Verses About Witness
- Bible Verses About Loneliness
- Bible Verses About New Beginnings
- Bible Verses About Guidance
- Bible Verses About God's Protection
- Bible Verses About Trials and Testing
- Bible Verses About Joy
- Bible Verses About Healing
- Bible Verses About Strength
- Bible Verses About Peace and Rest
- Bible Verses About God's Promises
- Bible Verses About Work and Labor
- Bible Verses About Mercy
- Bible Verses About Honesty
Reading plans
- The Bible for Beginners — 10 Days
- Holy Week — The Final Days of Jesus
- Two Weeks in the Parables of Jesus
- Advent — 24 Days to Christmas
- The Bible in a Year — 365 Days from Cover to Cover
Books
Places in the Bible
Where were Sodom and Gomorrah, and where is that today?
No one knows for certain where Sodom and Gomorrah were; the Bible counts them among the cities of the Jordan plain around the Dead Sea, called the Salt Sea in the KK translation (Genesis 13:10-12). The traditional view places them at the lake's southern end, around Mount Sodom in Israel and Bab edh-Dhra and Numeira in Jordan. Some scholars instead propose the Tall el-Hammam mound in Jordan, north of the Dead Sea. None of these candidates has been conclusively proven.
Where are Sodom and Gomorrah today?
Their exact location is unknown. The traditional view places the cities at the southern end of the Dead Sea, where a mountain of rock salt is today called Mount Sodom, and the ruins of Bab edh-Dhra and Numeira on the Jordanian side are also proposed. Some scholars, pointing to Lot's view over the Jordan plain (Genesis 13:10), suggest Tall el-Hammam in Jordan, north of the Dead Sea; this view is also debated.
Why did Lot's wife become a pillar of salt?
According to Genesis, Lot's family was told not to look back as they fled (Genesis 19:17); Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26). Jesus also recalls her when warning against turning back (Luke 17:32).