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'''Sodom''' was one of five ancient [[Canaanite]] (Gn. 10:19) "cities of the Plain", (Gn. 13:10), along with its sister city of iniquity, [[Gommorah]], and  Admah, Zeboim and Lasha. The Bible records that Sodom and Gommorah were destroyed because, among other sins, they, "and the cities about them in like manner, [were] giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh", and thus  "are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7 [[KJV]]) Biblical texts confirm that "the cities about them" would be or would include Admah, and Zeboim. (Dt. 29:23; Hos. 11:8) Their destruction was by means of brimstone (thought by some to be hot [[lava]]) and fire from heaven, but which was preceded by the confirmation of the wickedness of Sodom by angels of God (appearing as men), and deliverance of righteous Lot and those of his family who went with him. Lot's wife however, disobeyed the command of the angels not to look back, and was turned into a pillar of salt. This region later became part of the Holy Land of Israel.   

'''Sodom''' was one of five ancient [[Canaanite]] (Gn. 10:19) "cities of the Plain", (Gn. 13:10), along with its sister city of iniquity, [[Gommorah]], and  Admah, Zeboim and Lasha. The Bible records that Sodom and Gommorah were destroyed because, among other sins, they, "and the cities about them in like manner, [were] giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh", and thus  "are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7 [[KJV]]) Biblical texts confirm that "the cities about them" would be or would include Admah, and Zeboim. (Dt. 29:23; Hos. 11:8) Their destruction was by means of brimstone (thought by some to be hot [[lava]]) and fire from heaven, but which was preceded by the confirmation of the wickedness of Sodom by angels of God (appearing as men), and deliverance of righteous Lot and those of his family who went with him. Lot's wife however, disobeyed the command of the angels not to look back, and was turned into a pillar of salt. This region later became part of the Holy Land of Israel.   

==Dr. Bryant Wood's Archaeological Investigation in Relation to Sodom==

==Archaeological and Sodom==

[[Image:sodom1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Location of the Ancient City of Sodom near the Dead Sea.]]

[[Image:sodom1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Location of the Ancient City of Sodom near the Dead Sea.]]

The following is reported by Probe Ministries in regards to archaeological work relating to the biblical city of Sodom:

According to archaeologists, the city of Sodom has been plausibly identified with [[Tall el-Hammam]] by the archaeologist [[Steven Collins]],<ref>Collins, Steven, and Latayne C. Scott. Discovering the City of Sodom: The Fascinating, True Account of the Discovery of the Old Testament's Most Infamous City. Simon and Schuster, 2016.</ref> a site that sits north-east of the [[Dead Sea]] in the [[Jordan]]. Tall el-Hammam was destroyed by an airburst event during the Middle Bronze Age II, which, according to the great egyptologist [[Kenneth Kitchen]],<ref>Kitchen, Kenneth Anderson. On the reliability of the Old Testament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2003. 313-372.</ref> the time of the patriarchs took place and thus the time when Sodom should have been destroyed in the archaeological record.

{{cquote|Most intriguing was evidence that a massive fire had destroyed the city. It lay buried under a coating of ash several feet thick. A cemetery one kilometer outside the city contained charred remains of roofs, posts, and bricks turned red from heat.

Dr. [[Bryant Wood]], in describing these charnel houses, stated that a fire began on the roofs of these buildings. Eventually the burning roof collapsed into the interior and spread inside the building. This was the case in every house they excavated. Such a massive fiery destruction would match the biblical account that the city was destroyed by fire that rained down from heaven. Wood states, "The evidence would suggest that this site of Bab edh-Drha is the biblical city of Sodom."<ref>[http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4227395/k.3D9E/Archaeology_and_the_Old_Testament.htm Archaeology and the Old Testament by Patrick Zukeran]</ref>}}

The main reasoning of Steven Collins regarding the identification of the city of Sodom is the text of Genesis 13:1-12, which describes [[Lot]]'s itinerary and travel to the city of Sodom before departing from [[Abraham]], and thus describes the exact geographical pathway one must take to get to Sodom, therefore giving a very detailed sequence of geographical features in order to identify the location of the city of Sodom.

Dr. Wood provides some additional material in relation to archaeological evidence for the biblical city of Sodom.<ref>[http://www.johnankerberg.com/Articles/_PDFArchives/science/SC3W0903.pdf The Discovery of the Sin Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Part 1 of 2]</ref><ref>[http://www.johnankerberg.com/Articles/_PDFArchives/science/SC3W1003.pdf The Discovery of the Sin Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah—Part 2]</ref>

''Genesis 13:1-12: Then Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev—he, his wife, and all he had, and Lot with him... He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been, to the site where he had built the altar. And Abram called on the name of Yahweh there... At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land. Then Abram said to Lot, “Please, let’s not have quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives. Isn’t the whole land before you? Separate from me: if you go to the left, I will go to the right; if you go to the right, I will go to the left." Lot looked out and saw that the entire Jordan Valley as far as Zoar was well watered everywhere like the Lord’s garden and the land of Egypt. This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. So Lot chose the entire Jordan Valley for himself. Then Lot journeyed eastward, and they separated from each other. Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot lived in the cities of the plain and set up his tent near Sodom.''

 

Genesis 13:1-12 says that Lot went from Egypt to the Negev-he, and then went from there to a location situated between the two cities of [[Bethel]] and [[Ai]]. After this, Lot travels eastward from Bethel and Ai, eventually getting to Sodom. East of Bethel and Ai leads to the plain north of the Dead Sea in the Jordan, where [[Jericho]] is located on the left, and a cluster of other cities, including Tall el-Hammam, is located on the right. The Bible makes an evident distinction between Jericho and Sodom. Tall el-Hammam is the largest site in the entire plain (kikkar) of the Jordan, and because the Bible likely reveals Sodom to be the most considerable city of the entire plain of the Jordan,<ref>see ref. 2, pg. 159</ref> Collins identifies Tall el-Hammam with Sodom. Tall el-Hammam underwent a destruction event from a fiery airburst even, plausibly confirming the destruction of Sodom as described in Genesis 19:24.

==The story of Sodom==

==The story of Sodom==