Know יָדַע

When Abram let his nephew decide where he wanted to live Lot chose to live in Sodom because of how great it appeared to him on the outside. We know that Lot was righteous in the relative sense compared to those who were wicked around him in Sodom. Our word for today is the word God uses to describe in what way the people of Sodom were wicked. יָדַע know, notice, learn, reveal, be or become known, have intercourse with. It is used 939 times in the Old Testament. Even though the word means to know in a general sense the context in our chapter and other places in the Old Testament make it clear that sexual intercourse is the specific way the word know is meant. We can find this in the book of Genesis itself. Genesis 4:1 Now Adam יָדַע knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain. Genesis 4:17 Cain יָדַע knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. Genesis 4:25 And Adam יָדַע knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth. Then the very next time it is used in Genesis is our chapter today. Genesis 19:4-5 all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can יָדַע have sex with them.” God does not call sex when Adam and Eve know each other in marriage a bad thing but here in our chapter we see God call it wicked. (Be sure to check out my previous pod cast on the word for wicked). God will make this very clear throughout the rest of the Bible. Leviticus 18:22 Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable. Romans 1:27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. Now that is very serious stuff. We’re talking eternal life and death level serious. But here is the good news. God speaking through Paul address this sin and many others with the solution which is in the very next verse, verse 11. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. The good news is that we were sinners separated from God but when we accepted Jesus’ death in our place for our sins we became justified, that is declared not guilty because none of us are righteous in an absolute sense we have to have God’s righteousness given to us through Jesus. But notice the verse also has we were washed and sanctified this is where the relative righteousness comes in God also changes us so that we become more like him we become different from who we used to be in how we live our lives because of God’s spirit working in and through us to wash us and sanctify us. We will look at several of these words in the days to come. But for today let me encourage you that we don’t just have to be overcome by evil until it get’s so bad that God has to destroy us. Jude 1:7 In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. No, we can allow God’s spirit to stop evil from taking over our life. I’ll leave you with a very practical passage that I use myself. Romans 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. God has given us spiritual weapons to fight our spiritual battles.