7576. Sodom. The oldest Biblical painting includes some surprising onlookers. She says that there is plenty of evidence of looting, tunneling through the ash, excavating, etc. According to Seneca, the quakes lasted for several days. For another three to six centuries after 1650 B.C., the settlements 100 acres lay fallow. One enters House 26 through a brick doorway near the insulas elegant columned central courtyard. The excerpt from Feder (included at Paleojudaica, but not in the abstract at BAR) is much more realistic on this one , View all posts by David Meadows ~ rogueclassicist. 100 Bible Verses about Pompeii. Vesuvius erupted, the city of Pompeii housed 10,000 to 20,000 people, including many wealthy Romans who owned summer homes there. Vesuvius (seen in the background of this photo of Pompeiis ruins). Artwork was shrouded over by locked metal cabinets. And as we reported on a year ago, new discoveries are corroborating the biblical account of what happened at Sodom and Gomorrah. Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and from the caldera of the Mount Vesuvius towering ominously above the city, a tremendous force was unleashed.. After the destruction, the site was subject to looting. Know then the wrath of the heavenly God.6. Among the other []. Sodom and Gomorrah: Directed by Robert Aldrich, Sergio Leone. An indication that the answer is yes is a painting found in excellent condition on the walls of another, more elegant house. Simon Turpin, executive director and speaker for Answers in GenesisU.K., argues, The only way for proponents of Tall el-Hammam to synchronize it with biblical Sodom is to revise the biblical date of the Exodus, embrace a short Israelite sojourn in Egypt, and significantly reduce the lifespans of the patriarchs., RELATED: In time for Hanukkah, archaeologists reveal battle-scarred stronghold against Maccabees. from Italy, and it will sack the great Temple of God This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. We are no more righteous than the people of Pompeii, Richard Palmer wrote. Was there special kosher garumgarum made only from fish with scales? Before Mt. Jewish historian Josephus wrote about the knowledge of such prophecies among the ancients, of two worldwide destructionsthat the world was to be destroyed at one time by a quantity of water (Noahs Flood), and another time by the force of fire (Antiquities of the Jews, 1.2.3). Its a myth that the city was frozen in time. The tone is plainly apocalyptic. The book of Ezra records that at the dedication of Zerubbabels temple, those who had seen the First Temple wept (Ezra 3:12). Mount Moriah. The Bible chronology watchdogAnswers in Genesis, along with many others such asBryant Wood, editor of Bible and Spade, are rather candid in putting the fall of Sodom some two centuries off. Thats not exactly the question I want to raise, however. I am sure these have recycled aka reincarnated many times over until they hear the Glad Tidings, the Saving Testimony, that Yahuwshua is Yahweh. As the old adage goes, Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Did Sodom and Gomorrah actually exist, or is the story an allegory for what will be going on in the last days? Photo: Hershel Shanks. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. This book is a critical analysis of religion in general and Islam in particular. As Ezekiel 33:11 makes clear: As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. The question of whether Pompeii's destruction was divine punishment has been. God did destroy Pompeii, just as He destroyed Jerusalem for their wrongdoing in their denial and threat to crucify Jesus. I looked back [from his flight from Misenum] We had scarcely sat down when a darkness came that was not like a moonless or cloudy night, but more like the black of closed and unlighted rooms. It is almost as if some supreme God was at work. 79 absolutely incinerated the city with intense heat and pyroclastic flow, leaving decimated buildings and carbonized human forms frozen in their last moments of panic before death. COPYRIGHT 2023 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY 5614 Connecticut Ave NW #343, Washington DC 20015-2604. There were frequent rumblings, some of them subterranean, that resembled thunder, and some on the surface, that sounded like bellowings; the sea also joined in the roar and the sky re-echoed it. The violent and fiery destruction of the Temple in August 70 C.E. It would seem that this inscriptional reference to Sodom and Gomorrah was the work of a Jew, which leads to the question whether there were Jews living in Pompeii. Gerald R. Flurry, All Rights Reserved. Why Sodom? Price lists indicate that prostitution services were generally cheaper in Pompeii than other parts of the Roman Empire (evidently, there was a lot more competition within the citys confines). RESPONSE: So as you found out, Pompeii is in Italy and Sodom and Gomorrah in Israel, about 1400 miles apart, and about 2000 years apart in history. The city was destroyed by fire from heaven in the time of Abraham and Lot ( Genesis 19:24 ). About 90% or more of the inhabitants had already left when the city was buried. There, too, no little fear was occasioned, that lasted for several days, since the people did not know and could not imagine what had happened, but, like those close at hand, believed that the whole world was being turned upside down, that the sun was disappearing into the earth and that the earth was being lifted to the sky.2. First the dates: The Romans destroyed the Second Temple (Herods Temple) on the same date that the Babylonians had destroyed the First Temple (Solomons Temple) in 586 B.C.E. House 26 is like the others in the insuladark, destroyed, with vestiges of paintings on the walls, but mostly nothing. Thus Josephusundoubtedly a highly biased interpretation of what happened. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. in the land of Italy, reaches to broad heaven . Christians are familiar with the story. It attacked the core of Roman society and, as if to emphasize the point, it extended all the way to Rome, Shanks said. YouTube. The Destruction of PompeiiGods Revenge? Also, God left many ruins that He destroyed as reminders and warnings, like Pompeii and the Mayan ruins in Mexico, all of them were wrongdoers and polytheists, many of whom also sacrificed children and people to their gods. Comparative Analysis of The Last Days of Pompeii The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. is one of the most infamous volcanic eruptions in history. The imagery of what happened to Lots wife, as she longingly looked back on the city, is illustrated by the carbonized victims of Pompeii and Herculaneum. (RNS) What everyone agrees on is that something unusual happened at Tall el-Hammam, an ancient settlement near the Dead Sea. With Stewart Granger, Pier Angeli, Stanley Baker, Rossana Podest. 2023 The main brothel, or Lupanar (she-wolf den), was located near the center of the city. The grafitti reads "Sodom and Gomorra." In Shanks's opinion, the text is proof that a Jewish visitor to the ruins believed its fate followed that of the two sin cities that the Bible says were destroyed by God. This is a good article. Simcha, The Naked Archaeologist, had some interesting, and graphic, things to say about Pompeii. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Classics in Crisis? While speculatory and inconclusive, the article did help to highlight the wider questiondid the ancients believe the disaster was punishment from God (or the gods)? and showers will fall from heaven like red earth. Stephen's Gate. He set sail to save some boatloads of people nearer Vesuvius and headed toward Stabiato no avail. COPYRIGHT 2023 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY 5614 Connecticut Ave NW #343, Washington DC 20015-2604. Beard says that in fact there was probably plenty of warning. Fish sauce producers, if they cared at all about catering to a specific clientele, even a small one, could, I think, have directed a specific product to them . The Tall el-Hammam Excavation Project is a joint venture by Trinity Southwest University and Veritas International University. 3. Pliny the Younger, Letters, 6.16, 6.20. That story of Sodom and its sister city Gomorrah is one of the Bibles best-known stories. Photo: Giordano and Kahn, The Jews in Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae and in the Cities of Campania Felix (Bardi Editore, 2001). 5. with the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70? The Naples/Pompeii port was the gateway to ancient Rome. Vesuvius (which brought life to an abrupt end in that . As in Judaism and . Photo: Luxus und Dekadenz, (Verlag Philipp Von Zabern, 2007). In 79 C.E. We know its exact location, what much of its culture is like and how it was buried. Other scholars have suggested that Sodom and Gomorrah rose to prominence in the early Bronze Age and that they were located in different regions near the Dead Sea. Woe unto their soul! Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabia and other nearby sites occurred, according to most commentators, on August 24 or 25 in 79 C.E. Shanks said a fresco of King Solomon, the most ancient depiction of a biblical scene, is located not far from where the Sodom and Gomorra graffiti was found. Much smoking ashes will fill the great sky And showers will fall from heaven like red earth. Masada II, The Latin and Greek Documents, (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1989), p. 166. Little is said about Herculaneum, but Pompeii seems to be the main subject. Did anyone connect all this to the Jewish God? Many raised their hands to the gods, and even more believed that there were no gods any longer and that this was the one last unending night for the world I believed that I was perishing with the world, and the world with me, which was a great consolation for death.4. . Required fields are marked *. An indication that the answer is yes is a painting found in excellent condition on the walls of another, more elegant house. A modern visitor to Pompeii doesn't have to look very hard to see evidence of the moral climate of the city. Go to godsdigitalbible.com and get Free Digital Bibles & Bible Books. Hershel Shanks, former editor of Biblical Archaeology Review, published an interesting editorial in 2010 titled The Destruction of PompeiiGods Revenge? His premise was to examine if anyone at the time of the catastrophe believed it was retribution for the Roman destruction of the temple in Jerusalem nine years earlier (nearly to the day, as was then believedhowever, new research indicates the eruption occurred probably one to two months later). This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Sodom, Gomorrah and Pompeii. The grafitti reads "Sodom and Gomorra." In Shanks's opinion, the text is proof that a Jewish visitor to the ruins believed its fate followed that of the two sin cities that the Bible says were. But in a real sense you do. The lava and ash of a huge volcanic eruption, that happened two millennia ago, caught the inhabitants of that city. The Destruction of PompeiiGods Revenge? by Hershel Shanks originally appeared in Biblical Archaeology Review, July/August 2010. Painting by Pieter Schoubroek. Inscribed on one of the citys central meeting hall walls was the following text: If you are looking for sweet embraces in this town, you will find that all the girls here are available. Graffiti attests to homosexuality and even to child-rape (pederasty was common in the Roman Empire). Mary Beard, The Fires of Vesuvius (Cambridge, MA: Harvard Univ. 11. That was long after Sodom and Gomorrah. 89103, for an extended discussion of these issues. Photo: Hershel Shanks. Some Angels visited Lot and told him God was going to destroy the cities real soon and to get out of there right away!Before Lot left the city for good he tried to Warn his sons in laws of the Soon Impending Destruction of the cities, butthey laughed and told him he was crazy. Temple Mount. But besides the causes of the destruction, Tall el-Hammams link to the biblical events has another test that is perhaps more difficult to prove its date. I think the project was completed in around 63 AD. Know then the wrath of the heavenly God., The second piece of evidence cited by Shanks is ancient graffiti etched onto a fresco at a Pompeii building. Thanks for sharing. Disconsolate and aghast, he picked up a piece of charcoal and scratched on the wall in large black Latin letters: and the Second Temple, Herods Temple, in 70 C.E. One theory is an airburst event, caused by an exploding meteor. Not even their animals survived it (hense they practiced things with animals too) God only knows the consequences on the rest of humanity if he kept them to live and them spreading their diseases. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Sodom and Gomorrah were guilty of many other sins, but homosexuality was the principal reason God poured fiery sulfur on the cities, completely destroying them and all of their inhabitants. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. 931ff. The article was first republished in Bible History Daily on February 20, 2014. a. Theodore H. Feder, Solomon, Socrates and Aristotle, BAR, September/October 2008. Gods Digital Bibles, Old Testament Bibles, New Testament Bibles, Bible Commentaries, and author William Charnows books are all given away Free to anyone. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1-28). Note little is said about Gomorrah. The city remained amazingly preserved for almost two millennia. Then comes the same apocalyptic tone that we saw in Dio: There were some so afraid of death that they prayed for death. It will never be inhabited or lived in for all generations; no Arab will pitch his tent there; no shepherds will make their . All perished, including Pliny, as his nephew recounts: Ash was falling onto the ships, darker and denser the closer they went. But his troops, moved only by their passion, could not hear him (Jewish War, 6.249258). Seventeen-year-old Pliny the Younger was an eyewitness to the eruption and described it in terms similar to Dios. They did, however, have abstinences of particular foods for limited periods of time, usually during recurring festivals Recognizing a sauce as castum, therefore takes on more importance for [Jews]. It does not store any personal data. Thank you for your article. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. In a layer of ancient earth, archaeologists claim to have found evidence of an apocalyptic event: Melted rooftops. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But what about the wider United States? Excavations at Jordans Tall el-Hammam (a contender for the location of biblical Sodom) have revealed a fiery destruction and an instantaneous end of a once-flourishing civilization, dated roughly to the 1700s b.c.e. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". 2. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. To the Roman destruction of the Jerusalem Temple? Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. The Destruction of PompeiiGods Revenge? These Jews could not use garum that was made from fish without scales or from shellfish (see Deuteronomy 14:10 and Leviticus 11:10). They expected to be able to come back later, after the eruption was over, and resume their lives. Abraham looks back and sees dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace., RELATED: Earliest mention of Yahweh found in archaeological dump. See Carlo Giordano and Isidoro Kahn, The Jews in Pompeii Heculaneum, Stabiae and in the Cities of Campania Felix 3rd ed., Wilhelmina F. Jashemski, trans. 1. They were party animals in every sense of the word. Castimoniale refers to bodily purity.10 But the inscription is on a jar of garum, so even if this is the correct reconstruction, it would seem to refer to a kind of special or pure garum. Sodom, Gomorrah, and the surrounding cities in the plain of Jordan were destroyed by God due to perversion and sin. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. (LogOut/ The sin of sodomy was an offense against nature frequently connected with idolatrous practices. Must Pompeinians be very hopless that he vanished them from earth just like the rest of the hopless nations he vanished before. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. On the wall of House 26, an ancient observer, viewing the aftermath of the eruption, scratched the words Sodom and Gomor raha poignant Biblical reference to Gods vengeance on the two sinful cities of Genesis 19. Maybe rewording this article would be a good idea. 19 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. Thats all just in the U.S. Worldwide, over 1.5 billion babies have been aborted since 1980. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on . Of course, the bodies at Pompeii may well have been carbonized much differently from Lots wife. Thus against Caesars wishes was the Temple set on fire (Jewish War, 6.266). exercised restrictions of this kind [i.e., similar to the Jews]. His simple, three-word judgment says more about the city than many books that have been written about it. The people of Sodom and Gomorrah were the first on earth to commit a certain "indecency," and the Qurn states that they lusted after men instead of women (7:80-81). But even cherem with a het could also mean consecrated to God, or holy. On the face of it, you dont need to be a rocket scientist to see possible connections between Tell el-Hammam. Objects of daily life, carbonized pieces of wooden beams, charred grain, bones and limestone cobbles were burned to a chalklike consistency. The display was finally reopened in 2000 (but remains off-limits for children). I dont know where you came up with your religion, Yahuwaiiyd, but it certainly was not the Bible. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in c.e. In Shankss opinion, the text is proof that a Jewish visitor to the ruins believed its fate followed that of the two sin cities that the Bible says were destroyed by God. The proposed airburst was larger than the 1908 explosion over Tunguska, Russia, where a 50-m-wide bolide a meteor that explodes in midair detonated with 1000 more energy than the Hiroshima atomic bomb., These scholars, more than half with scientific posts, also claimed that the destruction matrix, which they put at around 1650 B.C., is highly unusual and atypical of archaeological strata throughout the ancient Near East.. The phallus, the de facto symbol of Pompeii, was used as a good luck charm and could be found literally everywherein all sorts of obscene forms. Photo: AKG-Images. See Mary Beards book about about Pompeii (well worth reading, even if you have read many other books on the subject). Photo: Hershel Shanks. (LogOut/ Once, it was possible to cross this region by walking. That is the date on which observant Jews, sitting on the floor of their synagogues, still mourn the destruction of the First Temple, Solomons Temple, in 586 B.C.E. I wondered about this. Such was the glut and normalcy of these sins, that even the daughters of righteous Lot were influenced to commit incest (Genesis 19:30-38). By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. many men and destroy the great land of the Jews. If the first meaning of cherem with a het was intended, this inscription, too, could refer to the destruction of Pompeii as Gods absolute condemnation of Pompeii for the prior Roman destruction of his Temple. However, now, the Vale of Siddim, where Sodom and Gomorrah were once situated, is covered by the flat surface of the lower part of the Dead Sea. But the dates are close enough to raise the question: Were these two catastrophic events connected, at least in the mind of some observers? Such was the assessment of the ancient citizen who scrawled the epithet on the city walls following the destruction. You had the scary white and dark soot as far as Rome. And there is no biblical link to a volcano causing the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The rabbis compromised and chose the 9th of Av (Tisha bAv). Sometime the next day the mountain above them erupted and before anyone could escape: For the next 6 hours hot Lava covered people, animals, and buildings in over 70 feet deep. Sodom and Gomorrah in Modern TImes. Erin the beginning of the article: The Romans destroyed the Second Temple (Herods Temple). At the very least, he would have had to wonder about that. Is it therefore any surprise that the Bible prophesies an end-time fire and brimstone eventthis time worldwide? The first chapter covers the importance of critical sense over . The eruption of Mt. Science Integrity Digestpointed out that eight of the 21 authors are founders of the Comet Research Group, which has attempted to show that ancient cities were frequently destroyed by comets, and to do something about comets before your city is next., But Hoffmeier reminds us that scientific debate can proceed without ridicule. It was because of that Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem. Apocalipsis 142 subscribers Subscribe 89 Share 5.1K views 2 years ago Pompeii was destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah in the year AD 79. It too was a city known for debauchery, sin, and depravity, and for this it apparently suffered "divine wrath". Clay pottery fragments had melted into glass. Due to these horrific sins, God stated that the land itself vomited out her inhabitants (verse 25). Namely, homosexuality, (Gen 3:10, Gen 19). During this explosion, the city of Pompeii was completely buried in roughly nine feet of volcanic pumice and ash. Fascinating research. 7576. And if that doesnt qualify enough as child sacrifice: Over 2,500 abortions every day (nearly 1 million per year). One citizen of ancient Pompeii got one lesson rightthe man who scribbled "Sodom and Gomorrah" on one of the city's buried walls. It is almost certain there were some Jewish individuals, perhaps a fullyfledged Jewish community in Pompeii, that perished along with the citys gentiles. Even then Titus wanted to extinguish the conflagration. Theres very good reason to conclude there was a perceived connection and in the eyes of some, God was clearly at work.. in Roman times up to the 4th or 5th century. Thank You Mr.Shanks !! These warnings were designed to be heeded, so that the consequences wouldnt need to be repeated. On the other hand, poinium could also be understood as Greek poine, similar in meaning to the Latin poena; that is, punishment, which would fit nicely with the meaning of cherem as destruction or excommunication. See Giordano and Kahn, pp. Combine a one-year tablet and print subscription to BAR with membership in the BAS Library to start your journey into the ancient past today! But there may also be other evidence that a community of Jews lived at Pompeii. Perhaps I wasnt very clear., Curtis continued: The ancient sources on the cult practices of these pagan mystery cults are not very forthcoming, and the information that we do have is primarily from authors hostile to them. Discussion in ' Religious Debates ' started by robtex, Nov 7, 2005 . These biblical lessons were provided not to be gloated over or used as justification, but to be learned from. Outline of the charcoal "Sodom Gomorrah" inscription at Pompeii Thoughts From a Dead City A piece by the Atlantic titled " Pompeii and the Ancient Origins of Blaming the Victim " criticized "victim-blamers" and those who would seek to find moral reasons behind disasters. Now it rains bits of pumice, and rocks that were burned and shattered by the fire Broad sheets of flame were lighting up many parts of Vesuvius; their light and brightness were the more vivid for the darkness of the night Buildings were being rocked by a series of strong tremors and appeared to have come loose from their foundations and to be sliding this way and that. Its rather nice that the full article is also this particular issues freebie: While I like the idea of the oracle as a retrojective prophecy, the thing I cant buy into are the comments on the Sodom and Gomorrah graffito. Evidence of kosher garum (called garum castum or garum muria) suggests that there were enough Jews living in Pompeii to create a market for the special variety of kosher garum. Photo: Hershel Shanks. God sent two Angels to Sodom to spare Lot and his family from the destruction. Sodom and Gomorrah were known to be wicked places. Casualties of violence include 320,000 victims of rape and assault each year; 47 murders per day (2016); one child abused every 10 seconds, missing every 40 seconds, raped every 2 minutes, killed every 3 to 6 hours from abuse; and over 100,000 children prostituted annually. Idols were everywhere in homes and businesses. Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. Your email address will not be published. Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying the nearby cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in thick layers of volcanic ash. I didnt think he really meant that but in the online version of the article: One such person came back to a house in an area of Pompeii designated today as Region 9, Insula 1, House 26. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. The free eBook Life in the Ancient World guides you through craft centers in ancient Jerusalem, family structure across Israel and articles on ancient practicesfrom dining to makeupacross the Mediterranean world.