In Genesis 18 and 19 we find the history of the destruction of the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah: an event that is still well-known at least in Western Civilization.

Theories abound about exactly how the destruction occurred, especially among people who have a problem with “miracles” and seek some natural explanation for everything. The destruction was with “sulfur and fire,” according to Genesis, brought on the “Cities of the Plain” by YHWH, the Lord God of Israel, for their evil. Today, it is generally agreed that these and the other three cities “of the plain” are located in the south bay of the Dead Sea, on the border between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. (Though there are people who argue otherwise.)

Nathan, what does this have to do with liberty and politics?

A lesser-known part of the incident was Abraham, the future father of the nation of Israel (and many other nations including the dozen or so Arab nations) negotiating with YHWH over the decision to destroy these evil cities. Abraham asked God, “will you destroy the righteous along with the unrighteous?” The good along with the evil?

The bargaining started at 50 righteous (good) people in the two cities, and Abraham finally “jewed” (yes, a slang term, sometimes viewed as derogatory – especially since Abraham was not a Jew!) the Lord down to just 10.

Unfortunately, as events seemed to confirm, there were not even ten righteous people in Sodom and Gomorrah. In fact, given what happened to the one family helped to escape (Lot, Abraham’s nephew, and his wife and daughters) – specifically, what they did – there appear to have been NO righteous folks there. (Lot’s wife was told not to look back as the cities were destroyed: she did and was turned into a pillar of salt. Lot got drunk and his daughters seduced him and had children by him. Of course, Lot had previously offered them to a mob to abuse them sexually to distract the mob from sexually abusing guests in his home.)

Now, except for their sexual proclivities and aggression against people, we know very little about these two towns. They were wealthy enough to be the targets of raiders – government raiders from hundreds of miles away across areas that even then were deserts. (And remember, in those days, there were actually kings and warlords that looted other people more than their own people. Too bad we don’t have more of that kind and less of the kind that just rob from their own people.)

Almost certainly, we can be sure that the Cities of the Plain were ruled by autocrats. Tyrants and kleptocrats that had more in common with the “elite” in other cities and jurisdictions than they did with the lower classes of their own city: merchants, technicians, workers, and peasants. To say nothing of indentured servants and slaves. Yet even among the lower classes, Abraham was unable to find just ten just and righteous people. Ten out of what? A thousand, ten thousand? Unlikely there were more than that in the two cities.

(Why? Pre-industrial cities were mostly very small by modern standards. There were exceptions: some Indian and Chinese and even Mesopotamian cities had hundreds of thousands or even millions, as did Rome. But most were small. And even the big cities like Rome (see Galbraith here) sometimes had only a corporal’s guard of residents. London was the same.)

So if there were five thousand in each city, yet Abraham was unable to find 10 good people in the two? 1/100 of one percent. How corrupt and viciously evil those cities must have been.

Do we have so many in 330 million Americans and residents? Do we have just 1/100th of 1 percent who are truly good? Just one in a thousand? Are there 330,000 Americans who are not evil and vicious purveyors of wickedness?

I’d like to think so – indeed, pray that such is so. But we must face the truth.

Think about these things.