Reading what Lot told the angel in , “Behold, here is this city that is "close" to run away to and it is small,” the Gemara asked what the word “close” meant, for if it was close in distance, surely the angel could already have seen that. Rather, the word “close” must indicate that its settling was close — that it had been recently settled — and therefore that its sins were few. Thus, Rava bar Meḥasseya said that Rav Ḥama bar Gurya said Rav said that a person should always live in a recently settled city, as its residents will not yet have had the opportunity to commit many sins there. Rabbi Avin taught that the words, “I will escape there please (, "na"),” in teach that Zoar was newer than other cities. The numerological value of "nun alef", the letters of the word , "na", is 51, while Sodom was 52 years old. And Rabbi Avin taught that Sodom's tranquil period during which it committed its sins was 26 years, as reports: “Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer and thirteen years they rebelled, and in the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer came.” The 12 plus 14 years during which they were enslaved were not years of tranquility, leaving only 26 tranquil years during which they were sinful.