Bible Journaling - Genesis 19

Genesis 19 is yet another low point in the morality of society. We saw a low point in the story of Cain, reaching an all time low with his descendant Lamech. Then the flood followed in Noah's time, and God committed Himself to never again allow such a total destruction. Now, we see yet another low point in morality and ethics among the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. I once heard someone disregard the Bible as reliable because it wouldn't deal with 'real issues' such as rape. I was amazed. The Bible deals with these serious issues on more than one occasion. Genesis 19 has gang rape, rape, homosexuality, and incest in the pages of its short chapter. We explore the deplorable state of these cities in today's Bible Journaling journey.

There is also a short overflow onto the next page, which we will look at when we get to it.

Genesis 19 looks like this in the Inspire Praise Bible.

I treat the pages with a coating of Gesso.

This is what the pages look like once the gesso has dried.

I use a variety of pens and markers to colour the image in the right margin. For some reason, the Giotto Turbo Glitter markers, especially the red and blue, seemed to gather into deeper colours in some places. I suspect this may be as a result of the gesso I have prepared the pages with. The results leave me very nervous about using these markers in my Bible again, as the gesso is still the only Clear Gesso I have been able to find on the market.

I then turn my attention to the journaling. I use a metallic pen for this.

I continue to develop the illustration.

When I turn the page over, I discover to my horror, that the Giotto markers had bled through to the reverse side of the page, despite my having sealed both sides of the page with gesso before I started.

As the page has been treated with gesso, I decide to paint over the left margin with white acrylic paint.

When the paint dries, I find the mark is still slightly visible. I paint the margin again, but this time with white gesso.

When I next return to these pages, I have already journaled the previous chapter and my layout now looks like this.

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is familiar to most readers of the Bible, I believe. Having said that, whenever I read the story anew, I am once again dumbstruck by the level of sheer wickedness and violence that people seem capable of reaching. I am sure there must have been a good dose of mob hysteria involved in the unfolding of this story as well. Yet, as much as I wish to believe this is not true and part of human nature, newspaper headlines prove me wrong. Not even in Lot do I find a redeeming character. He offers his daughters to be gang raped in order to save the 'men' with him. I can not help but to be reminded of Abraham, who knew not to take matters in his own hands, but to rather take it to God in prayer. Lot stood in the physical presence of God (or His angels/representatives) and still forced his own solutions on the problem. And then, just as I am getting ready to condemn him for doing so, I am reminded of how often I do the same thing, with the Living God alive inside of me, in the form of the Holy Spirit. I do not wish to be too graphic in my depiction of the people who were destroyed. I use a fountain pen to draw an outline of figure in agony. The figure 'melts' into the bottom of the page. This figure represents the people who were destroyed, as well as Lot's wife, who was turned into a pillar of salt. I use Mont Marte Adult Colouring Duo Markers to colour the figure in shades of grey.

I then wish to illustrate the fire and sulfur that rained down on the cities. I use Sharpie Markers to do this. I start with yellow dots.

I add orange and red to develop these dots into flames.

My page layout now looks like this.

The chapter continues on the next page, which looks like this.

In the last verses of the chapter, we learn that Lot's daughters became concerned that they would now not find men to procreate with. They take it upon themselves to get their father drunk and then they have sex with him. Again the moral decay hits me between the eyes. Two nations are born from this incest, namely the Moabites and the Ammonites. It is interesting to follow their stories as it unfolds in the Old Testament. I find this part of the story so abhorrent, that I almost wish to not journal it at all. At last I decide to concentrate on the wine, rather than the people. I draw a wine bottle and glass with a fountain pen. In an attempt to restore some beauty to my troubled thoughts, I decorate the illustration with twirls and swirls.

I use metallic pens to add a bit of colour to the illustration.

The second page looks like this when I am done with chapter 19.

Turning back, the layout looks like this.

You can watch a short compilation video of the steps above on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/GFRHTLXKc5E

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2005,2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois, 60188. All rights reserved.

Inspire PRAISE South Africa edition copyright 2017 by Christian Art Publishers, PO Box 1599, Vereeniging, 1930, RSA. All rights reserved.

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.
Jy kan Kom Ons Teken en Verf Tuinstories hier koop.
Jy kan Kom Ons Kleur Tuinstories In hier koop.
Jy kan Tuinstories hier koop.
You can follow Miekie's daily Bible Study blog, Bybel Legkaart, here in English & Afrikaans.
You may prefer to follow the traveling blog, A Pretty Tourist.
For more crafty ideas and great product reviews, visit A Pretty Talent on Facebook.
If you are in a literary mood, follow Miekie's musings, stories and poetry on A Pretty Author - Miekie.
Remember to keep nurturing your TALENT for making life PRETTY.
You can subscribe to any of these blogs and receive regular updates by email. Simply register your email address at the top of the applicable blog.