Genesis 13:13

13:13 (Now ¹  the people ²  of Sodom were extremely wicked rebels against the Lord.) ³ 

Genesis 18:20

18:20 So the Lord said, “The outcry against ⁴  Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so blatant ⁵ 

James 5:4

5:4 Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.

¹ tn Here is another significant parenthetical clause in the story, signaled by the vav (וו) disjunctive (translated “now”) on the noun at the beginning of the clause.

² tn Heb “men.” However, this is generic in sense; it is unlikely that only the male residents of Sodom were sinners.

³ tn Heb “wicked and sinners against the Lord exceedingly.” The description of the sinfulness of the Sodomites is very emphatic. First, two nouns are used to form a hendiadys: “wicked and sinners” means “wicked sinners,” the first word becoming adjectival. The text is saying these were no ordinary sinners; they were wicked sinners, the type that cause pain for others. Then to this phrase is added “against the Lord,” stressing their violation of the laws of heaven and their culpability. Finally, to this is added מְאֹד (mÿ’od, “exceedingly,” translated here as “extremely”).

⁴ tn Heb “the outcry of Sodom,” which apparently refers to the outcry for divine justice from those (unidentified persons) who observe its sinful ways.

⁵ tn Heb “heavy.”