Genesis 19 · Verse 24

Genesis 19:24

Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;
Genesis 19:24, King James Version

Genesis 19:24 in other translations

BSBThen the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.
WEBThen the LORD rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of the sky.
ASVThen Jehovah rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Jehovah out of heaven;
YLTand Jehovah hath rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Jehovah, from the heavens;
DARBYAnd Jehovah rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Jehovah out of heaven,
BBEThen the Lord sent fire and flaming smoke raining down from heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah.
WebsterThen the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;

What does Genesis 19:24 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
24. Then the Lord rained ... brimstone and fire from ... heaven--God, in accomplishing His purposes, acts immediately or mediately through the agency of means; and there are strong grounds for believing that it was in the latter way He effected the overthrow of the cities of the plain--that it was, in fact, by a volcanic eruption. The raining down of fire and brimstone from heaven is perfectly accordant with this idea since those very substances, being raised into the air by the force of the volcano, would fall in a fiery shower on the surrounding region. This view seems countenanced by Job [Job 1:16; 18:15]. Whether it was miraculously produced, or the natural operation employed by God, it is not of much consequence to determine: it was a divine judgment, foretold and designed for the punishment of those who were sinners exceedingly.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 24 The Lord rained - brimstone and fire from the Lord - As all judgment is committed to the Son of God, many of the primitive fathers and several modern divines have supposed that the words ויהוה vaihovah and מאת יהוה meeth Yehovah imply, Jehovah the Son raining brimstone and fire from Jehovah the Father; and that this place affords no mean proof of the proper Divinity of our blessed Redeemer. It may be so; but though the point is sufficiently established elsewhere, it does not appear to me to be plainly indicated here. And it is always better on a subject of this kind not to have recourse to proofs which require proofs to confirm them. It must however be granted that two persons mentioned as Jehovah in one verse, is both a strange and curious circumstance; and it will appear more remarkable when we consider that the person called Jehovah, who conversed with Abraham, (see Genesis 18)., and sent those two angels to bring Lot and his family out of this devoted place, and seems himself after he left off talking with Abraham to have ascended to heaven, Gen 19:33, does not any more appear on this occasion till we hear that Jehovah rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Jehovah out of heaven. This certainly gives much countenance to the opinion referred to above, though still it may fall short of positive proof. Brimstone and fire - The word גפרית gophrith, which we translate brimstone, is of very uncertain derivation. It is evidently used metaphorically, to point out the utmost degrees of punishment executed on the most flagitious criminals, in Deu 29:23; Job 18:15; Psa 11:6; Isa 34:9; Eze 38:22. And as hell, or an everlasting separation from God and the glory of his power, is the utmost punishment that can be inflicted on sinners, hence brimstone and fire are used in Scripture to signify the torments in that place of punishment. See Isa 30:33; Rev 14:10; Rev 19:20; Rev 20:10; Rev 21:8. We may safely suppose that it was quite possible that a shower of nitrous particles might have been precipitated from the atmosphere, here, as in many other places, called heaven, which, by the action of fire or the electric fluid, would be immediately ignited, and so consume the cities; and, as we have already seen that the plains about Sodom and Gomorrah abounded with asphaltus or bitumen pits, (see Gen 14:10), that what is particularly meant here in reference to the plain is the setting fire to this vast store of inflammable matter by the agency of lightning or the electric fluid; and this, in the most natural and literal manner, accounts for the whole plain being burnt up, as that plain abounded with this bituminous substance; and thus we find three agents employed in the total ruin of these cities, and all the circumjacent plain: 1. Innumerable nitrous particles precipitated from the atmosphere. 2. The vast quantity of asphaltus or bitumen which abounded in that country: and, 3. Lightning or the electric spark, which ignited the nitre and bitumen, and thus consumed both the cities and the plain or champaign country in which they were situated.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 19:1-29

Lot was good, but there was not one more of the same character in the city. All the people of Sodom were very wicked and vile. Care was therefore taken for saving Lot and his family. Lot lingered; he trifled. Thus many who are under convictions about their spiritual state, and the necessity of a change, defer that needful work. The salvation of the most righteous men is of God's mercy, not by their own merit. We are…

Read the full comment on Genesis 19:1-29 →

Genesis 19:24 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַֽיהוָ֗הva.Yah.wehand YahwehH3068
הִמְטִ֧ירhim.Tirhe caused to rainH4305
עַל\־'al-onH5921
סְדֹ֛םse.DomSodomH5467
וְעַל\־ve.'al-and onH5921
עֲמֹרָ֖ה'a.mo.RahGomorrahH6017
גָּפְרִ֣יתga.fe.RitsulfurH1614
וָאֵ֑שׁva.'Eshand fireH784
מֵאֵ֥תme.'Etfrom withH854
יְהוָ֖הYah.wehYahwehH3068
מִן\־min-fromH4480
הַשָּׁמָֽיִם\׃ha.sha.Ma.yimthe heavensH8064

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 19:24

  • Deuteronomy 29:23

    And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the Lord overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:

  • Isaiah 13:19

    And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

  • Jude 1:7

    Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

  • Amos 4:11

    I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord.

  • 2 Peter 2:6

    And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;

  • Jeremiah 50:40

    As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

  • Jeremiah 20:16

    And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide;

  • Ezekiel 16:49-50

    Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.

  • Hosea 11:8

    How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee, Israel? how shall I make thee as Admah? how shall I set thee as Zeboim? mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled together.

  • Psalms 11:6

    Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.

  • Luke 17:28-29

    Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

  • Zephaniah 2:9

    Therefore as I live, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the Lord.
De 29:23; Job 18:15; Ps 11:6; Isa 1:9; 13:19; Jer 20:16; 49:18; 50:40
La 4:6; Eze 16:49,50; Ho 11:8; Am 4:11; Zep 2:9; Mt 11:23,24
Lu 17:28,29; 2Pe 2:6; Jude 1:7
brimstone.The word rendered "brimstone," (q.d. brennestone, or brinnestone, {id est} burning-stone,) is always rendered by the LXX. "sulphur," and seems to denote a meteorous inflammable matter.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Genesis 19:23

    The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.

  • Genesis 19:24

    Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;

  • Genesis 19:25

    And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

Read all of Genesis 19

Genesis 19:24 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Entonces llovió Jehová sobre Sodoma y sobre Gomorra azufre y fuego de parte de Jehová desde los cielos;
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et l’ Éternel fit pleuvoir des cieux sur Sodome et sur Gomorrhe du soufre et du feu, de la part de l’ Éternel;
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und Jehova ließ auf Sodom und auf Gomorra Schwefel und Feuer regnen von Jehova aus dem Himmel;
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Igitur Dominus pluit super Sodomam et Gomorrham sulphur et ignem a Domino de cælo: