And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

GENESIS 19:17KJV
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Genesis 19:17 (KJV)

What does Genesis 19:17 mean?

Genesis 19:17 describes the urgent warning given to Lot and his family after they are brought out of Sodom. Reaching the edge of the city is not yet safety: they must leave the whole plain and reach the mountains before the destruction comes.

After the rescue in verse 16, one of the rescuers gives a series of commands. “Look not behind thee” and “neither stay” make the escape an immediate, uninterrupted journey. “Lest thou be consumed” explains the danger of remaining within reach of the coming destruction.

The Hebrew behind Genesis 19:17

  • “Escape” — מָלַט (malat): The word carries the sense of getting away from danger. Its use again later in the verse keeps attention on reaching safety, not merely leaving the city.
  • “plain” — כִּכָּר (kikkar): The word can describe a broad, circular district or region. Here it points to the area around the cities, not just the streets Lot has left.
  • “consumed” — סָפָה (safah): The word can mean being swept away or destroyed. It pictures Lot and his family being caught in the destruction that is about to fall on the area.

Why Genesis 19:17 matters

  • The warning treats the surrounding region as dangerous, not just Sodom itself. The command is to avoid staying “in all the plain.”
  • Lot’s later request changes the destination but keeps the urgency of escape in view. In verses 18–22, he asks to flee to the small city of Zoar instead of the mountain.
  • The instruction not to look back becomes important later in the account. Verse 26 says Lot’s wife looked back and became a pillar of salt.

Where else these words appear

“consumed” Hebrew H5595 · used in 20 verses

  • Genesis 18:23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
  • Deuteronomy 32:23 I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them.
  • Proverbs 13:23 Much food is in the tillage of the poor: but there is that is destroyed for want of judgment.

“for” Hebrew H5921 · used in 48 verses

  • Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
  • Genesis 32:11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
  • 1 Chronicles 9:28 And certain of them had the charge of the ministering vessels, that they should bring them in and out by tale.

“plain” Hebrew H3603 · used in 55 verses

  • Genesis 13:10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
  • 2 Samuel 18:23 But howsoever, said he, let me run. And he said unto him, Run. Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the plain, and overran Cushi.
  • 1 Chronicles 29:4 Even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses withal:

“look” Hebrew H5027 · used in 67 verses

  • Genesis 15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
  • Psalms 22:17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.
  • Isaiah 38:11 I said, I shall not see the LORD, even the LORD, in the land of the living: I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world.