October 26, 2024
We don’t know much about Lot. He is mentioned just 26 times in Genesis, primarily in chapters 13 and 19.
We know that his father was Haran and that he joined the household of his uncle Abram and aunt Sarai after the death of his father (interestingly, it was one of Abram’s servants – and not Lot – whom Abram chose to make his heir).
We know that he went to Egypt with Abram and that he had flocks and herds.
We know he chose to “pitch his tents near Sodom.” Years before its ultimate destruction, the reputation of Sodom was already well known, and yet, Lot chose – INTENTIONALLY – to move there.
We know he was captured and taken hostage and that he was rescued by Abram and his band of merry men.
Many years went by – at least 15.
In that time, Lot went from pitching his tents near Sodom to becoming an elder of some influence at the city gate (19:1).
The final and sad story of Lot begins, however, where we left off last week; with Abraham walking down the road with his 3 visitors as they began to make their way toward Sodom (18:16).
Yahweh had chosen Abraham and his descendants to be beacons of justice and righteousness in the world, so he chose to disclose to Abraham what was about to happen.
Yahweh: "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."
Did Yahweh really not know what was going on in Sodom and Gomorrah? Of course he did. This is legal language. An investigation must occur before a judgment can be rendered (also see Genesis 3:9; 6:5-6; 11:5-6).
As the angels turned toward Sodom, Abraham and Yahweh lingered and thus begins one of the great conversations in scripture.
Before getting to the conversation proper, I want to quickly address Genesis 18:22.
In most Bibles the passage reads: “The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD.”
In that culture “standing before,” indicated social status – it was the position of a servant (see Genesis 43:15; Exodus 9:10; Leviticus 9:5), so it seems right that Abraham would “stand before” Yahweh.
However, Genesis 18:22 contains a textual note inserted by the Masoretes (Jewish Scholars = Masoretic text) which suggests that, in the original manuscript, it was Yahweh who stood before Abraham. They were correcting earlier scholars (the Sopherim – this is the same group who changed Yahweh or Jehovah into “the Lord” out of a superstitious fear of pronouncing the divine name of God) who had changed the original for theological reasons – they believed it irreverent and disrespectful to place God in the subservient position.
The theological implications of this cannot be underestimated. Just like he had chosen to place himself in the subservient position when he walked amongst the carcasses (15:9-17), Yahweh was choosing to place himself in the position of servant before Abraham (see Mark 10:42-45; Philippians 2:5-8), which makes the following conversation all the more incredible…………….
Yahweh: "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."
Abraham: "Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are 50 righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the 50 righteous people in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing -- to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
Abraham was interceding on behalf of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah – on behalf of his nephew, Lot.
Indiscriminate punishment is not divine judgment and Abraham knew that Yahweh would never act in an impulsive way. He was not questioning Yahweh’s ability or right to judge but was appealing to his righteousness and justice – that he was always going to do the right thing in every situation.
Yahweh: "If I find 50 righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
Abraham: "Now that I, who am nothing but dust and ashes, have been so bold as to speak to Yahweh…. what if the number of the righteous is 45? Will you destroy the whole city because of 5 people?"
Yahweh: "If I find 45 I will not destroy it."
Abraham: "What if there are only 40?"
Yahweh: "For the sake of 40 I will not do it."
Abraham: “Don’t be angry…. What if only 30 can be found there?"
Yahweh: "I will not do it if I find 30 there."
Abraham: "Now that I have been so bold…. What if only 20 can be found there?"
Yahweh: "For the sake of 20, I will not destroy it."
Abraham: "Don’t be angry…. What if only 10 can be found there?"
Yahweh: "For the sake of 10, I will not destroy it."
10 (the number of a community) was as low as Abraham could go and out of his extravagant grace and mercy, God agreed – if there were just 10 righteous people, He would spare everyone.
What do you suppose God’s heart was toward these people? Was he excited to finally be able to get out his big stick? I don’t think so….
• Genesis 6:6 - The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain.
• Ezekiel 18:23, 32 - Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? …. For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!
• Ezekiel 33:11 - Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?'
The Story – 19:1-38
It was evening when the 2 angels arrived at Sodom’s gate. When Lot saw them, he greeted them and invited them to stay at his home for the night.
The angels declined, stating they would spend the night in the square. Lot insisted so strongly, that they finally agreed and went home with him.
After the evening meal, they began to hear the sounds of a gathering crowd. Apparently, all the men of the city – both young and old – had surrounded Lot’s home.
"Where are the men who came home with you? Bring them out so that we can have sex with them." They shouted.
Lot went outside, shutting the door behind him. "Friends. Don't do this wicked thing. Look, I have virgin two daughters. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof."
"Get out of the way!” they shouted. “You came here as a stranger, and now you want to play the judge! We'll treat you worse than them!"
Slowly they moved forward, intent on breaking down the door. The angels pulled Lot back inside and shut the door. Then they struck the men outside – every last one of them – with blindness.
Turning to Lot they said, “Are there any other members of your family in the city? Get them out now. We have been sent to destroy the city because the outcry before Yahweh is so great….."
Lot went quickly and spoke to the men who were betrothed to his daughters, but they thought he was joking.
As dawn approached, the angels message became urgent. "Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters or you will be swept away when the city is punished."
Lot hesitated…. He HESITATED!
The angels took hold of Lot, his wife and his daughters, and led them out of the city, then one of them said, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!"
Did Lot obey? No. He negotiated, "No, my lords, please! I have found favor in your eyes, and you have shown me great kindness, but I can't flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I'll die. There is a town near enough to run to (Zoar), and it is small. Let me flee to it -- Then my life will be spared."
The angel replied, “Fine, I will grant this request. I will not overthrow the town you speak of. Go quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it."
By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen. Then Yahweh rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah – destroying everything….. But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
The Hebrew verb for “looked” (nabat), indicates a prolonged, intense gaze. It was a look of pleasure and pain as she remembered all that she had been dragged away from – a life she loved – a life she was going to miss – a life she would still have if she hadn’t been forcibly removed. In that one action, her allegiance was made clear.
Early the next morning Abraham got up and looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.
Because of Yahweh’s promise, Abraham knew that He had been righteous and just in His judgment. Yahweh had sought AND NOT FOUND even 10 righteous people.
The sad truth is there was barely 1 righteous person.
According to 2nd Peter, Lot was tortured daily by what he saw around him. HOWEVER, he had been so desensitized to sin, that he failed to see that offering his virgin daughters to the crowd, “to do with as they saw fit,” was equally grievous in the sight of God. The wickedness of the city may have caused Lot pain, but instead of being an INFLUENCER, he had become the INFLUENCEE. He had squandered his knowledge of God. His very presence in the city and his own actions say – if nothing else - “acceptance” of the swamp he had chosen.
But the sad story does not end there……….
Lot and his 2 daughters left Zoar and settled in a cave in the mountains.
One day, the older daughter said to her sister, "Our father is old, and there is no man here to lie with us. Let's get our father drunk and then lie with him and preserve our family line."
And that is exactly what the older daughter did. Lot was completely unaware of what happened.
The next night the younger daughter did the same things, and again, Lot had no idea…
Both daughters became pregnant by their father.
• The older daughter named her son, Moab – he is the father of the Moabites (Number 22; Judges 3; 10:6; 11; 1 Kings 11:7; Amos 2).
• The younger daughter named her son Ben-Ammi – he is the father of the Ammonites (Judges 10:6; 1 Sam 14:47; Zeph 2).
Dan Augsburger – Among the more important things to consider in the Christian life is the power that comes in “beholding.” We become changed into the likeness of the things we “behold.” “Beholding” good things causes us to become like those positive thing(s) we are beholding. “Beholding” bad things causes us to become like those bad things we are beholding. I am not sure most of us realize to what degree we are influenced, either for good or for bad, by the things we “behold.”
That truly is the danger of dancing with the devil. First you abhor sin than you accept sin than you embrace sin.
Until next time…………….
