Note: I've written this article as an interview for the Good Afternoon Zoar TV show. Use the hints and clue scattered about the article to figure out the mystery person's identity before the end of the article!
~Photobug
Good Afternoon Zoar: Good Afternoon once again to the residents of Zoar.I'm Izhar, your anchorman. We are still covering the breaking news story of why and how the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. Right here in the studio we have one of the few survivors from those fair cities. Welcome, Sodom Survivor!
Sodom Survivor: I'm glad to be here.
GAZ: I'm sure you are glad to be here, and not back in Sodom!
SS: Yes.
GAZ: Before you tell me about how you escaped, would you please tell me a little background about yourself?
SS: Of course. I am the nephew of one of the most wealthy and well-known patriachs, Abraham. When he left Ur, I came along with him. I even went down to Egypt with him, but when we came back we had accumalated too much stuff. We had accumalated too many servants, too many flocks and herds to dwell together. So Abraham said to me, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsman and mine, for we are brothers. Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left." [Genesis 12:4-5, 13:1-9]
GAZ: Wow!!
SS: Well, yes, I suppose you could say that. Anyway, I looked up and saw Zoar and the whole plain of the Jordan spread before me. It was well watered, so there wouldn't be any problems with my herdsman. It was just like the Garden of Eden! And adorning this area were the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. I mean, the choice was really simple. I moved and pitched my tents near Sodom. [Genesis 13:10-13]
Well as you know, later I moved into Sodom proper. In the course of time, wars were fought and as you know, the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and of course the king of Zoar allied themselves together and fought against Kedorlaomer and his allies, who were conquering just about everyone. Unfortunately Kedorlaomer and his allies won the batttle, and seized everything in Sodom and Gomorrah, including all the goods, food, and people--including me and my family! [Genesis 14:1-12]
From what I hear, someone escaped from the fray and reported to my uncle Abram all that had happened. He gathered his fighting men, and defeated Kedorlaomer and his allies, releasing everything and everyone, including me and my family. [Genesis 14:13-16]
GAZ: Wow! What a great uncle! Could you tell me now how you escaped from Sodom??
SS: Well, anyway, last night I was sitting by the Sodom's gateway when two strangers entered in. As you know, Sodom at night can be a very dangerous place at night. Evidently these strangers didn't know how dangerous Sodom was, as they told me they were going to spend the night in the square. But I insisted so strongly that after much pleading they did come and stayed at my house. I baked some supper for them, and we ate. [Genesis 19:1-3]
Right before we were going to hit the sack, all the men of Sodom surrounded my house and demanded to do wicked things with my guests. I stepped outside to reason with them, but they were beyond reason. I was offering them my daughters when they accused me of being an alien to Sodom and judging them! They were about to break in when my two visitors snatched me inside, and shut the door, meanwhile blinding all the men surrounding my house. [Genesis 19:4-11]
GAZ: Do you think you were making the right choices?
SS: It was at this time I started to realize that these weren't just any two ordinary visitors. They informed me that they were going to destroy Sodom because of its wickedness, and asked me if I had any family in the city. I went to talk with my soon-to-be son-in-laws about this warning, but they thought I was joking. [Genesis 19:12-14]
As the sun popped over the horizon this morning, these visitors--who I was sure were angels--urged me, my wife, and my two daughters to get out of the city before Sodom would be punished. I hesitated. I mean, why would I want to leave this city? My wife rather liked it here. The surrounding area reminded me of what the Garden of Eden was supposed to have been like. [Genesis 19:15, 26 & 13:10]
Evidently the angels thought that the situation was more urgent than I thought it was. The angels dragged us four out of Sodom, and told us to flee for our lives and to not look back on punishment of death. The angels told us to flee for the mountains, but I felt that the mountains would be too far away and we would be swept away in flight. I requested that we be able to flee here to Zoar, and the angels relented. [Genesis 19:16-22]
GAZ: So that's how you came here?
SS: Yes. Of course, it took most of the morning to get here, and when I got here just a little bit ago the sun was well risen over the land. Just after we got here the Lord rained down burning sulfur from the heavens on these two cities. While my wife and daughters did come with me, my wife's heart was still back with all her stuff in Sodom. She disobeyed the angel's commands, and she turned into a pillar of salt. (Sodom Survivor has trouble holding it all together at this point.) [Genesis 19:23-26]
GAZ: Wow! Your uncle's God must be in charge of everything. Well, thank you for coming, and I'm glad that at least you have escaped with your life from Sodom.
Sodom Survivor: Th-thank you. I do nn-need to go nn-now. I'm afff-afraid to stay here in Zoar for ll-long. Good-bye! [Genesis 19:30]
(Sodom Survivor exits studio.)
Good Afternoon Zoar: Well there you have it, folks. The story of a man put into very favorable circumstances, but at least it seems to me that he did not appreciate them at all and made a lot of unwise choices. This man's story also shows that even when we do sin, this man's uncle's god still looks after us. Wow. If you haven't guessed, this man's name is Lot. Now, what does our weatherman have to say??
Good Afternoon Zoar Weatherman: Reports and conjectures are still flying around like crazy. Whether it was burning sulfur or not, we do know that dense smoke continues to rise from the land, and will continue to do so for quite a while. Stay in your homes, or buildings, or get inside immediately if you're outside! Stay inside so you won't get sick. Izhar, back to you. [Genesis 19:28]
Good Afternoon Zoar (Izhar): Thank you Weatherman. Well, that about sums it up for us. Tune in to Good Afternoon Zoar this evening for the 5 o'clock news, where we'll have more breaking coverage on the disasters of Sodom and Gomorrah. So long!
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