Sodom and Gemorrah
Summary
In the second part of the Torah portion of Vayera, another story occurs.
“Vayera” means God appeared.
Remember we learned that Lot, Avraham’s nephew, chose to live in the South, in Sodom.Now, the messenger Gabriel, came to tell Avraham that God wants to destroy Sodom and Gemorrah.
In Sodom and Gemorrah (a town nearby) the people were not kind. They were extremely mean to each other and would never welcome guests into their homes. They never helped each other in any way. God wanted to destroy all the people in Sodom and Gemorrah.
Avraham pleaded with God to be merciful and argued with God saying: ”But what if there are 50 righteous people there? Will you destroy everyone?”God agrees not to destroy the towns if they could find some good people. Avraham argues from 50, to 45 all the way down to 10 righteous people. 10 is an important number in the Jewish religion.
But, there were not even 10 righteous people to be found. Avraham asks God to save Lot and his family before the town is destroyed. God warns them NOT to look back before they leave the town. Lot’s wife, however, looks back and is turned into a pillar of salt.
Vocabulary
God appeared
Sodom
Gemorrah
Lot’s wife
Pillar of salt
Righteous people
Justice justice you shall pursue
Activities
Quizlet:
Crossword puzzle:
What does the story teach us:
- There are consequences for bad behavior.
- Avraham teaches us that we should pursue justice.
Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof
- We need 10 people over the age of Bar /Bat mitzvah in order to recite certain prayers. This is called a Minyan.
- Lot chose Sodom which was a pretty place on the outside but the people were bad inside of the city. We learn that we can not “judge a book by it’s cover.”
To think about:
- Where was Sodom located? Describe the place and the people?
- How many righteous people were needed in order for God to save the cities of Sodom and Gemorrah?
- Why did God tell Lot and his family to pack their bags and leave Sodom and to NOT look back at the suffering?
- What happens to Lot’s wife?
- How did Avraham pursue justice?