Genesis 19:17-29

17When they had reached a place outside the city, one of the angels said, ‘Now run! Your lives are in danger. Do not look behind you! Do not stop anywhere in this valley. Run up into the mountains or you will die.’

18But Lot said, ‘No! Please, my lords, I cannot do that!

19I am your humble servant and you have been very kind to me. You have saved my life. But I cannot run away into the mountains. If I try to do that, this punishment will catch me before I reach there. Then I will surely die.

20Look! See that town over there. It is near and I can run to it safely. And it is a small town. So please let me run there. You can see that it is only a small place. If I go there, I will stay alive.’

21The angel said to Lot, ‘OK, I will let you do what you have asked. I will not destroy that town.

22But run there quickly. I cannot do anything until you arrive in the town.’ (The name of the town became ‘Zoar’, because it was small.)

23Lot reached Zoar at the time when the sun was rising that morning.

24Then the Lord poured sulphur that was on fire down on Sodom and Gomorrah. It fell from the sky like rain.

25In that way God destroyed those cities and everything in the valley. He killed all the people who lived in those cities. And he killed all the plants that grew on the land.

26But as they ran away, Lot's wife looked back at the city. When she did that, she became a large piece of salt, like a pillar.

27Early in the morning, Abraham returned to the place where he had spoken with the Lord.

28He looked towards Sodom and Gomorrah and the whole valley. He saw thick dark smoke that was rising from the land. It was the smoke from a big fire.

29When God destroyed the cities of the valley, he saved Lot from that punishment. God remembered what Abraham had asked him. He took Lot away from the cities where he had lived. Then God destroyed those cities.