Zoar
A place in the Bible
A small city near Sodom, where Lot took refuge. In the Douay-Rheims it is called “Segor.”
What happened here
- The refuge: Lot asked to take refuge in that small city, and the angel told him he would not destroy it.
- The arrival: Lot reached Zoar as the sun was rising. Then sulfur and fire fell on Sodom.
- The cave: afterward, Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, and he went with his two daughters to live in a cave in the hills.
Today
The exact place is not known. It was by the Dead Sea, on the east or southeast side.
Where it appears in the Bible
Genesis 19:22; Genesis 19:20-21; Genesis 19:23-24; Genesis 19:30
What the Bible says
Genesis 19:22
Make haste and be saved there, because I cannot do any thing till thou go in thither. Therefore the name of that city was called Segor.
Genesis 19:20-21
20There is this city here at hand, to which I may flee, it is a little one, and I shall be saved in it: is it not a little one, and my soul shall live? 21And he said to him: Behold also in this, I have heard thy prayers, not to destroy the city for which thou hast spoken.
Genesis 19:23-24
23The sun was risen upon the earth, and Lot entered into Segor. 24And the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrha brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.
Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.
Source: Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897), “Zoar”