The verse doesn't just list mundane activities; it highlights how the people of Lot's day were deeply absorbed in the "buying and selling, planting and building" of their lives, implying a level of societal advancement and complex, ongoing pursuits that made them oblivious to the impending disaster. This detail suggests that the destruction wasn't just a surprise to those engaged in basic survival, but to a whole civilization immersed in its own progress and commerce.
Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus uses the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as a stark illustration of how suddenly and completely divine judgment will fall. Just before this, he's explained that his coming won't be a visible spectacle but rather a discerning event that separates people. This comparison to Lot's time emphasizes that the ungodly will be utterly engrossed in ordinary life—eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building—completely unaware of the impending doom that will sweep them away.
Jesus uses a vivid, even shocking, comparison to describe the days leading up to destruction. What does this tell us about how people live when they ignore God?
Jesus points to the days of Lot to illustrate the state of the world when judgment comes. It wasn't a time of overt wickedness that everyone recognized as evil, but a time of profound normalcy.
The Mundane Mask
People were caught up in the everyday rhythm of life: eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building. These aren't inherently bad activities; they're the fabric of a functioning society. They represent provision, commerce, growth, and security.
A Deeper Disconnect
However, the text implies that this intense focus on the 'normal' masked a deep spiritual disconnect. The inhabitants of Sodom, and by extension the world Jesus is describing, were so absorbed in their daily routines and comforts that they were oblivious to God's impending judgment. They lived as if there were no tomorrow, no divine reckoning, and no need for repentance. This ordinary life became a camouflage for a dangerous indifference to God's truth and justice.
The normalcy described in the verse is contrasted with an abrupt end. What does this suddenness reveal about God's timing and the nature of His judgment?
The comparison to Lot's day isn't just about normalcy; it's about the shocking contrast between that normalcy and the suddenness of divine intervention.
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A World Unprepared
The people of Sodom were completely unaware of the imminent destruction. They were engrossed in their businesses and homes, assuming a future of continued prosperity. This illustrates how divine judgment can arrive unexpectedly, catching the unsuspecting population off guard.
The Stark Divide
Jesus uses this to show that the day of His return will also bring a sudden separation. While people are caught up in their ordinary lives, some will be 'taken' (often interpreted as taken away in judgment) and others will be 'left' (those who remain to inherit the kingdom). The routine activities described in the verse become the backdrop against which this profound, irreversible separation occurs.
Understand the original words
Lot · Hebrew Proper Noun
A person of moral and righteous character living in the midst of a notoriously wicked city, whose deliverance serves as a testament to God's care for the righteous while punishing the ungodly.
Sedom · Hebrew Proper Noun
An ancient city known in the Bible as a symbol of extreme moral depravity and rebellion against God, resulting in catastrophic divine judgment.
pyr kai theion · Greek Noun Phrase
A frequent Old Testament motif representing divine judgment and the manifestation of God’s holiness and wrath against sin and impurity.
apokalyptetai · Greek Verb
Literally an 'unveiling' or 'apocalypse'; it refers to the climactic point when Christ will no longer be hidden from the world but will be made manifest in His power, glory, and judicial authority.
Jesus uses the destruction of Sodom as a vivid parallel to the suddenness of His return and the final judgment, highlighting how people are often engrossed in daily life, oblivious to impending divine reckoning.
c. 2000-1900 BC— this verse
Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, along with other nearby cities, were destroyed by a cataclysmic event involving fire and brimstone raining from the sky. This event is described in Genesis 19 and is referenced by Jesus in Luke 17 as an example of sudden divine judgment.
c. 1800-1700 BC
Patriarchal Period in Canaan
This era saw the presence of Abraham and Lot in the land of Canaan, a time marked by nomadic life, interactions with local peoples, and the development of God's covenant promises.
c. 1446-1406 BC
Exodus and Wilderness Wanderings
The Israelites' liberation from Egyptian slavery and their subsequent 40-year journey through the desert, culminating in God's judgment on generations that refused to enter the Promised Land.
c. 782 BC
Assyrian Captivity of Northern Israel
The Northern Kingdom of Israel began to fall under Assyrian influence, leading to deportations and a weakening of their society, a precursor to larger exiles.
586 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and Babylonian Exile
Nebuchadnezzar's Babylonians conquered Judah, destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple, and exiled a large portion of the population, plunging them into a period of judgment and reflection.
c. AD 30-33
Jesus' Ministry and Crucifixion
Jesus traversed the land, teaching, healing, and proclaiming the coming kingdom of God, often warning of impending judgment and the need for watchfulness.
This is the direct Old Testament account of the events Luke is referencing, showing the normalcy and prosperity of Sodom just before its destruction.
Matthew 24:38Jesus uses the same comparison to the days of Noah, highlighting the indifference and absorption in daily life that characterized the pre-flood world, mirroring the point made about Lot's time.
2 Peter 2:7Peter explicitly refers to God rescuing righteous Lot, emphasizing Lot's deliverance from the wicked people of Sodom whose unrighteous conduct he was tormented by, underscoring the judgment that fell on them.
Ezekiel 16:49This prophetic passage describes Sodom's sin as pride, excess, and neglect of the poor, providing context for the 'eating, drinking, and building' that masked deep corruption.
Luke 21:34Jesus warns His followers here against being weighed down by 'surfeiting and drunkenness, and the cares of this life,' which directly relates to the 'eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building' that characterized the people of Lot's day and indicates a call to vigilance.
calvinLuke 17:26-37: "And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man."
- But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38. For as in the days that came before the deluge, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, till the day when Noah entered into the ark, 39. And knew not until the deluge came, [160] and took them all away: so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40. Two men shall then be in the field…
gillLuke 17:28: "Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;"
Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot,.... When he lived in Sodom, and before, and at the time of the destruction of that city with other neighbouring ones: they did eat, they drank; See Gill on Luke 17:27, and Ezekiel 16:49. This is to be understood of the inhabitants of Sodom, and the other cities that perished with it: they bought, they sold: they trade…
The verse doesn't just list mundane activities; it highlights how the people of Lot's day were deeply absorbed in the "buying and selling, planting and building" of their lives, implying a level of societal advancement and complex, ongoing pursuits that made them oblivious to the impending disaster. This detail suggests that the destruction wasn't just a surprise to those engaged in basic survival, but to a whole civilization immersed in its own progress and commerce.
Jesus uses the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as a stark illustration of how suddenly and completely divine judgment will fall. Just before this, he's explained that his coming won't be a visible spectacle but rather a discerning event that separates people. This comparison to Lot's time emphasizes that the ungodly will be utterly engrossed in ordinary life—eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building—completely unaware of the impending doom that will sweep them away.
Jesus uses the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as a stark illustration of how suddenly and completely divine judgment will fall. Just before this, he's explained that his coming won't be a visible spectacle but rather a discerning event that separates people. This comparison to Lot's time emphasizes that the ungodly will be utterly engrossed in ordinary life—eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, and building—completely unaware of the impending doom that will sweep them away.
"Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— so will it be on…" — The verse doesn't just list mundane activities; it highlights how the people of Lot's day were deeply absorbed in the "buying and selling, planting and building" of their lives, implying a level of s…
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Last reviewed October 2026
