Posted by
aurorawatcher on Thursday, July 02, 2009 4:44:15 PM
I have a confession to make. I don't particularly care for large cities and would, given a choice, never live in one. That's one reason I live in Alaska. I like that moose still wander down my alley and eat my birch trees (though I am less sanguine when they jump the fence and eat my lilacs). Whenever I visit the "Lower 48" it's usually to go to some sort of city-like place -- my mother-in-law lives in Manchester, NH, my sister-in-law lives in Boston, my father-in-law lives in Austin, TX, and my mother's family all migrated to Seattle during WW2. Yes, even the Emerald City is still a city. What I find is that most people, upon hearing that I'm from Alaska, get a rather wistful look on their face and ask me what it is like to live in such an unspoiled wilderness. They long to quit the city with its high crime rates, people and pollution, encroaching buildings, noise, smells, crowds and congestion. I've heard there's a "back to the country" trend in some parts of the nation, spurred on by telecommuting.
Maybe not too surprisingly, cities were not presented in the best light in Genesis. Cain built the first city, naming it after his first son, after he'd been told he'd be a vagabond the rest of his life (Genesis 4:12-17). In spite of the fact that mankind had been commanded to populate the earth, fallen mankind huddled together and began to build the city of Babel with its tower. Conversely, Abraham was called to leave urban life to live the life of a sojourner in Canaan.
Lot, who chose to live in the city of Sodom, was about to lose everything: his wife and family, his honor, and all he had worked for. Abraham, living far from the cities of the plain, watched with grief as this destruction was wrought. Does this not indicate that separation involved fleeing from the city? Some think so. But Lot’s downfall did not occur in the sick and secular society of Sodom, but in a secluded cave. The problem was ultimately not with a city, but with a soul.
Genesis 19 is perhaps the most tragic portion of this book for it describes the destruction of a city with all those living there. Far worse, it depicts the downfall of a saint. Had it not been for the words of the Apostle Peter, we may never have known with certainty that the pathetic personality known as Lot was a true believer (2Peter 2:7-8).
If we are candid with each other, we must admit that in the church of Jesus Christ the ‘Lots’ far outnumber the ‘Abrahams.’ Truthfully, we would have to say that our own lives evidence far more of Lot than Abraham, the friend of God. Don't believe it? How many church members do you know who will skip Sunday morning service to catch the Superbowl? Yeah, it's true and if this is true, then the description of the destruction of Lot contains a warning for every true Christian.
"The two angels came to Sodom in the evening while Lot was sitting in the city’s gateway. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face toward the ground.
He said, "Here, my lords, please turn aside to your servant’s house. Stay the night and wash your feet. Then you can be on your way early in the morning."
"No," they replied, "we’ll spend the night in the town square."
But he urged them persistently, so they turned aside with him and entered his house. He prepared a feast for them, including bread baked without yeast, and they ate." Genesis 19:1-3
The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening. Lot, who was sitting at the city gate, identified them as mortal men and strangers, but not as messengers of destruction. Since the elders of the city sat as judges at the gates of the city (Job 29:7-12), it is likely that Lot, over a period of time, had gained prominence and power. Maybe that isn't too surprising. Shortly after Lot moved to Sodom the city was sacked and carried off, only to be rescued by the heroic efforts of Abram (Genesis 14:1-16). Lot’s popularity and power may have derived from his relationship to Abraham.
This doesn't detract from the genuine hospitality Lot offered the two strangers. The parallel with Abraham’s hospitality in the previous chapter can hardly be coincidental. This act, more than any other, evidenced Lot's righteousness as Peter indicated in his epistle. The apparent reluctance of the angels to accept until gently pressed by Lot is more a matter of culture and custom than anything else (Luke 24:28-29).
The narrative suggests that Lot's persistence was motivated as much by fear for the strangers' safety as by his generosity. Lot knew well the fate of those who did not have a haven for the night in depraved Sodom.
Lot may have hoped his guests had entered his home unnoticed, but he was greatly disappointed. The men of the city had keen eyes for strangers to go with their corrupt motives and their sick intentions. Shortly, the entire city had gathered outside Lot’s house seeking sex with the strangers. This was not the ‘broad-minded’ tolerance of a city whose laws permitted such conduct between consenting adults in private. It was not even the shameless solicitation to sin ala Las Vegas. These men clearly sought to rape these strangers -- who, let us not forget, were seen in male form. Surely judgment was due!
Lot’s response, typical of his spiritual state, was a strange blend of courage and compromise, strength of character and situationalism. The crowd demanded Lot turn over his guests, an unthinkable violation of the protection guaranteed one who comes under the roof of your house. Lot stepped outside, closing the door behind him, hoping to defuse the situation. He pleaded with them not to act wickedly, and, just as we are about to applaud his courage, he offered to surrender his two daughters to the appetites of these depraved degenerates. Lot’s virtue (his concern for his guests) became a vice (a willingness to substitute his own daughters for the strangers). We may breathe a sigh of relief that the crowd refused Lot’s offer, but the consequences for this compromise will only be seen later.
Lot had lived in Sodom for 20 years, yet he was still an alien to the men of the city. I suspect that the reason Lot had been left alone was that these people still remembered the military might of uncle Abraham. Attacking Lot meant the wrath of Abraham and they feared that. Sadly, having stood aloof from the sin of the city for decades, Lot had not rebuked it. Now he judged it, speaking out against their wickedness. This was too much for the mob who promptly turned on him with intentions to take the strangers by force. Somewhat humorously, the protector of angels was rescued by them. Their words identified them and their task to Lot while the men of the city were blinded and thus unable to carry out their crime of force (2Kings 6:18).
"Then the two visitors said to Lot, "Who else do you have here? Do you have any sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or other relatives in the city? Get them out of this place because we are about to destroy it. The outcry against this place is so great before the Lord that he has sent us to destroy it." Genesis 19:12-13
In the twilight hours before sunrise, Sodom witnessed more missionary activity from Lot than in the prior two decades. His efforts were aimed at a frantic and futile effort to save his own family, whom he had neglected to win. He woke his sons-in-law and warned them of the impending doom. They took his wild-eyed ravings a some kind of joke (Genesis 19:14). Why would they not take Lot seriously? I think Lot may never have mentioned his faith before. He was offering new and novel ideas in the middle of the night and they probably thought he'd had too much to drink (Acts 1).
Morning came without one new convert, let alone one righteous soul who would flee the wrath of God. Time was up. The angels ordered Lot to take his wife and his two daughters and get out of the city before judgment fell.
The unbelief of the citizens of Sodom was predictable -- sinners like their sin and rarely want to give it up -- but Lot's reluctance seems incredible. Has anyone ever tried so hard to keep from being saved? Perhaps in Lot's carnal state he was not fully convinced that judgment truly was coming. Maybe he hoped his delay would stall for time and preserve friends and family. Clearly, however, Lot was so attached to "this present world" of friends, family and things that he just could not bear leaving it. Lot was literally dragged from the city by the angel.
"At dawn the angels hurried Lot along, saying, "Get going! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or else you will be destroyed when the city is judged!" When Lot hesitated, the men grabbed his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters because the Lord had compassion on them. They led them away and placed them outside the city. When they had brought them outside, they said, "Run for your lives! Don’t look behind you or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains or you will be destroyed!"
"But Lot said to them, "No, please, Lord! Your servant has found favor with you, and you have shown me great kindness by sparing my life. But I am not able to escape to the mountains because this disaster will overtake me and I’ll die. Look, this town over here is close enough to escape to, and it’s just a little one. Let me go there. It’s just a little place, isn’t it? Then I’ll survive." Genesis 19:15-20
Sunrise came just as Lot, with his wife and daughters, approached Zoar. With Lot safely out of reach of the devastation, the Lord rained down fire and brimstone from heaven upon the cities of the valley. Many suggestions have been made as to the mechanics employed to bring about this destruction. Natural elements (lightening, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions) probably were involved, but this makes it no less a miracle. This was judgment from the Lord and He was in full control of its extent and timing (verses 22-25). In a picture of complete devastation, the destruction included the four towns, right down to the soil on which they were built. It was a picture of complete devastation (Deuteronomy 29:23).
The death of Lot’s wife was tragic! Within sight of safety, she lingered behind her husband, perhaps mourning the loss of her sons and daughters who had remained behind or the loss of her possessions and status in the city. Her glance back differed from Lot’s actions only in degree, not in kind. Like Lot, her heart was in Sodom. A momentary glance backward and it was too late. The destruction meant for Sodom struck her as well, and only steps from safety and those she loved. Regardless of her motive, she directly disobeyed a clear command of the angelic messenger and she paid for it.
"Abraham got up early in the morning and went to the place where he had stood before the Lord. He looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of that region. As he did so, he saw the smoke rising up from the land like smoke from a furnace.
"So when God destroyed the cities of the region, God honored Abraham’s request. He removed Lot from the midst of the destruction when he destroyed the cities Lot had lived in." Genesis 19:27-29
Abraham, like God, did not delight in wickedness nor in the destruction of sinners. Both had compassion on the righteous. Abraham had made his appeal to God. I do not think that he went to the same spot as the day before in order to pray, but to watch God answer his prayers. He was genuinely concerned over the outcome of his prayers. These verses also reveal the real reason Lot was spared. While a just God would not destroy the righteous with the wicked, these verses stress that ‘the prayers of a righteous man avail much’ (James 5:16). It was Abraham’s faithfulness, not Lot’s, which resulted in Lot’s deliverance. Humanly speaking, there was little reason for sparing Lot other than the character of God and the concern of Abraham over his fate.