The Hyperlinked Bible
Intertextuality Pair
Allusion
Later text
if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes as an example of what is coming on the ungodly; and if He rescued Lot, a righteous man distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—
Earlier text
When the men got up to leave, they looked out over Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them off. And the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and through him all the nations of the earth will be blessed. For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has promised.” Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great. Because their sin is so grievous, I will go down to see if their actions fully justify the outcry that has reached Me. If not, I will find out.” And the two men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD. Abraham stepped forward and said, “Will You really sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous ones in the city? Will You really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous ones who are there? Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” So the LORD replied, “If I find fifty righteous ones within the city of Sodom, on their account I will spare the whole place.” Then Abraham answered, “Now that I have ventured to speak to the Lord—though I am but dust and ashes— suppose the fifty righteous ones lack five. Will You destroy the whole city for the lack of five?” He replied, “If I find forty-five there, I will not destroy it.” Once again Abraham spoke to the LORD, “Suppose forty are found there?” He answered, “On account of the forty, I will not do it.” Then Abraham said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak further. Suppose thirty are found there?” He replied, “If I find thirty there, I will not do it.” And Abraham said, “Now that I have ventured to speak to the Lord, suppose twenty are found there?” He answered, “On account of the twenty, I will not destroy it.” Finally, Abraham said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak once more. Suppose ten are found there?” And He answered, “On account of the ten, I will not destroy it.” When the LORD had finished speaking with Abraham, He departed, and Abraham returned home.
Earlier text
Genesis 19BSB
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Earlier text
Genesis 19:1BSB
Now the two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them, bowed facedown,
Earlier text
So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, He remembered Abraham, and He brought Lot out of the catastrophe that destroyed the cities where he had lived.
Peter's handling of the Sodom narrative demonstrates his hermeneutical method of extracting exemplary patterns from OT judgment stories to address pastoral concerns. He reads Lot's righteousness and rescue back into the Genesis account more explicitly than the original narrative, emphasizing themes of divine knowledge and discriminating judgment. The key theological move is Peter's conclusion in verse 9: God simultaneously knows how to rescue the godly and hold the unrighteous for punishment, proving His ability to distinguish and deliver His people even amid widespread corruption. This becomes crucial for Peter's readers facing false teachers—they can trust that God will rescue them and judge their opponents, just as He rescued Lot from Sodom. The phrase "an example of what is going to happen" transforms historical judgment into eschatological certainty, establishing past acts of judgment as guarantees of future judgment.