What actually happened at Sodom? We cannot imagine that almighty God is tied down to a time-table. Then why were his 'angels' in such a hurry? Or was the destruction of the city by some power or other fixed to the very minute? Had the count-down already begun and did the 'angels' know about it? In that case the moment of destruction would obviously have been imminent. Was there no simpler method of bringing the Lot family to safety? Why did they have to go into the mountains at all costs? And why on earth should they be forbidden to look round again?
Admittedly these are awkward questions about a serious matter. But since the dropping of two atomic bombs on Japan, we know the kind of damage such bombs cause and that living creatures exposed to direct radiation die or become incurably ill. Let us imagine for a moment that Sodom and Gomorrha were destroyed according to plan, i.e. deliberately, by a nuclear explosion. Perhaps—let us speculate a little further—the 'angels' simply wanted to destroy some dangerous fissionable material and at the same time to make sure of wiping out a human brood they found unpleasant. The time for the destruction was fixed. Those who were to escape it—such as the Lot family—had to stay a few miles from the centre of the explosion in the mountains, for the rock faces would naturally absorb the powerful dangerous rays. And—we all know the story— Lot's wife turned round and looked straight at the atomic sun. Nowadays no one is surprised that she fell dead on the spot. 'Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrha brimstone and fire ...'
And this is how the account of the catastrophe ends (Genesis 19:27-28):
'And Abraham got up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the Lord: And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrha, 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.'
We may be as religious as our fathers, but we are certainly less credulous. With the best will in the world we cannot imagine an omnipotent, ubiquitous, infinitely good God who is above all concepts of time and yet does not know what is going to happen. God created man and was satisfied with his work. However, he seems to have repented of his deed later, because this same creator decided to destroy mankind. It is also difficult for us enlightened children of this age to think of an infinitely good Father who gives preference to 'favourite children', such as Lot's family, over countless others. The Old Testament gives some impressive descriptions in which God alone or his angels fly straight down from heaven making a tremendous noise and issuing clouds of smoke. One of the most original descriptions of such incidents comes to us from the prophet Ezekieclass="underline"
'Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened... And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire unfolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings. And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass.'
Ezekiel gives precise details of the landing of this vehicle. He describes a craft that comes from the north, emitting rays and gleaming and raising a gigantic cloud of desert sand. Now the God of the Old Testament was supposed to be omnipotent. Then why does this almighty God have to come hurtling up from a particular direction? Cannot he be anywhere he wants without all this noise and fuss?
Let us follow Ezekiel's eye-witness account a little further:
'Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces. The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryclass="underline" and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work were as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel. When they went they went upon their four sides: and they turned not as they went. As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round about them four. And when the living creatures went, the wheels went by them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.'
The description is astonishingly good. Ezekiel says that each wheel was in the middle of another one. An optical illusion! To our present way of thinking what he saw was one of those special vehicles the Americans use in the desert and swampy terrain. Ezekiel observed that the wheels rose from the ground simultaneously with the winged creatures. He was quite right. Naturally the wheels of a multipurpose vehicle, say an amphibious helicopter, do not stay on the ground when it takes off.
More from Ezekieclass="underline"
'Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.'
The narrator heard this voice and hid his face in the ground in fear and trembling. The strange apparitions addressed Ezekiel as 'son of man' and wanted to talk to him. The account goes on:
'... and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the Lord from this place. I heard also the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of great rushing.'
In addition to his precise description of the vehicle, Ezekiel also noted the noise the novel monstrosity made when it left the ground. He likens the din made by the wings and the wheels to a 'great rushing'. Surely this suggests that this is an eye-witness account? The 'gods' spoke to Ezekiel and told him that it was his task to restore law and order to the country. They took him with them in their vehicle and confirmed that they had not yet forsaken the country. This experience made a strong impression on Ezekiel, for he never tires of describing the weird vehicle. On three more occasions he says that each wheel was in the middle of a wheel and that the four wheels could go 'on their four sides ... and turned not as they went'. And he was particularly impressed by the fact that the whole body of the vehicle, the backs, the hands, the wings and even the wheels were 'full of eyes'. The 'gods' reveal the purpose and goal of their journey to the chronicler later when they tell him that he is living in the midst of a 'rebellious house' which has eyes to see and sees not and ears to hear and hears not. Once he has been enlightened about his countrymen, there follow, as in all descriptions of such landings, advice and directions for law and order, as well as hints for creating a proper civilisation. Ezekiel took the task very seriously and handed on the instructions of the 'gods'.
Once again we are confronted with all kinds of questions.
Who spoke to Ezekiel? What sort of beings were they?
They were certainly not 'gods' in the traditional sense of the word, or they would not have needed a vehicle to move from one place to another. This kind of locomotion seems to me to be quite incompatible with the idea of an almighty God.
In this connexion, there is another technical invention in the Book of Books, which is worthwhile examining impartially.
In Exodus xxv, 10, Moses relates the exact instructions which 'God' gave for building the Ark of the Covenant. The directions are given to the very inch, how and where staves and rings are to be fitted and from what alloy the metals are to be made. The instructions were meant to ensure that everything was carried out exactly as 'God' wanted it. He warned Moses several times not to make any mistakes.
'And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.' (Exodus xxv, 40.)