Sin of Sodom and Gomorrah
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them which are in Judea flee to the mountains.”
Luke 21:20, 21
. They
must not tarry but must escape.
There was a coming out, a decided separation from the wicked, an
escape for life. So it was in the days of Noah; so with Lot; so with
the disciples prior to the destruction of Jerusalem; and so it will be
in the last days. Again the voice of God is heard, bidding His people
separate from the prevailing iniquity.
The state of corruption and apostasy in the last days was presented
to the prophet John in the vision of Babylon, “that great city, which
reigneth over the kings of the earth.”
Revelation 17:18
. Before its
destruction the call is to be given from heaven, “Come out of her, My
people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of
her plagues.”
Revelation 18:4
. As in the days of Noah and Lot, there
must be no compromise between God and the world, no turning back
to secure earthly treasures. See
Matthew 6:24
.
The people are dreaming of prosperity and peace. The multitudes
cry, “Peace and safety,” while Heaven declares that swift destruction
is about to come upon the transgressor. On the night prior to their
destruction, the cities of the plain rioted in pleasure and derided the
warnings of the messenger of God. But that very night the door of
mercy was forever closed to the careless inhabitants of Sodom. God
will not always be mocked.
The great mass of the world will reject God’s mercy and will be
overwhelmed in swift and irretrievable ruin. But those who heed the
warning shall dwell “in the secret place of the most High,” and “abide
under the shadow of the Almighty.”
Psalm 91:1
.
[106]
Not long after, Zoar was consumed as God had purposed. Lot
made his way to the mountains and abode in a cave.
But the curse of Sodom followed him even here. The sinful conduct
of his daughters was the result of the evil associations of that vile place.
Lot had chosen Sodom for its pleasure and profit, yet he had retained
in his heart the fear of God. He was saved at last as “a brand plucked
out of the fire,” yet stripped of his possessions, bereaved of his wife
and children, dwelling in caves, and covered with infamy in his old
age. And he gave to the world, not a race of righteous men, but
two idolatrous nations, at enmity with God and warring upon His
people, until, their cup of iniquity being full, they were appointed to
destruction. How terrible the results that followed one unwise step!