Where were Sodom and Gomorrah?

Definitely NOT south of Dead Sea.

Finding clues in Bible itself, Genesis chapters 13-19

According to Bible, Sodom and her sister cities lay north (west to east) of Dead Sea.
Proof for this is the mentioning of Lot moving eastwards to the Jordan Valley,
living close to Sodom.

Abram living in Hebron, having his altar in the groove of Mamre, was able to
see the smoke coming up from the (Jordan) plain, so was close enough to see.
As a comparison, distance between Jerusalem and Dead Sea: 39 km.

Hebron to Dead Sea should be shorter than that.

21st Century King James Version (KJ21) from Bible Gateway.

 Genesis 13 

⁵ And Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks and herds and tents.

⁶ And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together; for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.

⁸ And Abram said unto Lot, “Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me.

¹⁰ And Lot lifted up his eyes and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah), even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as thou comest unto Zoar.

¹¹ Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east, and they separated themselves the one from the other.

¹² Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.

¹⁸ Then Abram removed his tent and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the Lord.

Genesis 18 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)

18 And the Lord appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day ¹⁶ And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.

Genesis 19 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)

19 And there came two angels to Sodom at evening.

 

Within same day, 1. At midday (heatest time of day) receiving angels (lead by God) 2. Sarah preparing a meal. 3. Angels eating and conversing with Abram. Probably they were not in such a hurry, so could calmly 4. Be on their way towards Sodom accompanied by Abram. 5. At evening, angels reaching City of Sodom.

That is: not so long distance from Hebron to Sodom, as the angels could walk the distance in just a few hours: 2 maybe 3?

 

Now Destruction of Sodom is at hand:

 

 ¹⁷ And it came to pass, when they had brought them (Lot and his family) forth outside, 

that he (an angel) said, “Escape for thy life! Look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain. Escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed!”

¹⁸ And Lot said: ²⁰ Behold now, this city (Zoar) is near enough to flee unto,

Biblical Archaeology , Bill Schlegel, locating Zoar --- Zoar is located south of the mouth of the Zered River.The Zered River, which drains into the southeastern part of the Dead Sea 

 Collins’s attempt to move Zoar from near the mouth of the Zered to near the mouth of the Arnon is faulty as well (by the way, the Arnon River is depicted on the Madaba Map, further north)

²³ The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.

²⁴ Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire, from the Lord out of heaven;

²⁵ and He overthrew those cities, and all the plain and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

²

²⁷ And Abraham got up early in the morning to the place (his altar in groove of Mamre in Hebron) where he stood before the Lord;

²⁸ and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld. And lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.

 This picture showing sight span looking eastwards from Bethel-Ai. But as it seems, Abram, stood at Hebron when looking towards the plain that morning. Put the dotted lines from Hebron, then he saw across to the area of Arnon river. Where some scientists think is the place for Sodom and Gomorrah.

 

 

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