Sodom & Gomorrah

by Brad Scott

I have decided to address these two words as kind of one unit. They usually go together anyway. Sodom and Gomorrah, the cities that were historically destroyed sometime in the middle of the 21st century B.C. and were, according to Scripture, leveled because of the debauchery and perverse practices of the inhabitants. I brushed by the provocative meaning of Sodom previously under Sodium in this section. I believe that there is a very thought provoking, prophectic meaning in these words when we take the time to research them together.

The city Sodom is listed of unknown derivation in many Americanized lexicons. Many translate its meaning as something burning. I believe that the base of the samech (ס), dalet (ד) and mem (מ) is from the Hebrew word sod (סד), a samech and a dalet. This word means something hidden or unseen, and if you will, an unseen burning or inflammation. This is why it is the basis for yesod, which means foundation, or that which is hidden under the ground. We get the English word sod and code from this Hebrew word. It is not hard to trace the word sodomy from this word, as well. I believe, as many others do, that the practice of sodomy comes from this event recorded in B^ere’shiyt (Genesis) 19.

The city of Gomorrah comes from the root 'amar, an agricultural term referring to the gathering of sheaves. It is also the root of the counting of the 'omer during the 49 days of counting from the head of the harvest (erroneosly called first fruits) until Shavu'ot (Pentecost). It is equally not hard to see that we eventually end up with the English word gonorrhea, a sexually transmitted disease, from this word. Mems and nuns are both nasals in the Hebrew and many times are interchanged when going from one language to another. The English word gonorrhea is from the Greek word spelled almost the same. The gono part means where something begins. It forms the first letters of Genesis and generations. The rhea part means a flow or discharge. In a nutshell, this word means where the discharge or flow comes from. Gonorrhea is a disease, a festering gathering of bacteria in warm, moist places.

But there is one other revelation contained in these words that I would like to point out. Many well known Hebrew words are actually contractions of two Hebrew words. We have talked about the Hebrew word 'even or stone in the past as being a contraction of 'av/father and ben/son. Is it possible that sodom is a contraction of sod/hidden and dam/blood? Could our omniscient Creator have known way back then that these two words, that are usually mentioned together, actually mean a disease hidden in the blood?

Shalom Alecheim! ◊