This Week’s Focus Passage: 2 Peter 2;7 ‘And delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivio
This Week’s Focus Passage: 2 Peter 2;7
‘And delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivious life of the wicked.’
The larger context of our ‘focus verse,’ just above, is 2 Peter 2:4-9: For if God spared not angels when they sinned, but cast them down to hell, and committed them to pits of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; and spared not the ancient world, but preserved Noah with seven others, a preacher of righteousness, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, having made them an example unto those that should live ungodly; and delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivious life of the wicked (for that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their lawless deeds): the Lord knowing how to deliver the godly out of tempt-ation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment unto the judgment.
It is challenging, is it not, to any reader of the Scriptures, having been given though that reading over the years, to know some of the history of Lot, to account for the adjective before his name, making him to be righteous Lot?
Taking view of his behavior, in his history, recorded for us, in Genesis, it is indeed, extremely difficult to reconcile that sad behavior with righteousness. The very first mention of the man, Lot, is in chapter eleven of Genesis, and the 27th verse, where we may read of his genealogy; Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and) Haran begat Lot. Moving ahead to verse 31, we find, And Terah took Abram, his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan. Not too long afterward, we read of both the men, Abraham and Lot, And Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents (13:5). And again (verse 7), And there was a strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdsmen of Lot’s cattle.
In view of this strife, Abram pointed out that there was plenty of land before them, and that they should separate; one going to the left, and the other to the right. giving to Lot, first choice. This is when we first are given some intimation of, perhaps, the heart of Lot. We are told that Lot beheld all the Plain of Jordan, that it was well-watered everywhere, and so was his choice. There was no deference given from Lot to Abram, Lot simply took what he deemed to be what was best for Lot, to which Abram compliantly acquiesced.
Thus, it follows (Gen. 13:11, 12), Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the Plain, and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against Jehovah exceedingly.
Now, the sequel to these questionable choices made by Lot, brings us to the encounter with the angels whom God had sent to rescue Lot and his family, in chapter nineteen of this first book in our Bibles. And this was prefaced by the visit of the ‘three Angels’ in chapter eighteen. In that chapter, these three Angels met Abram, and informed him, that his wife Sarai would have a son.
And, more than that, they told him that they had come to destroy the city of Sodom, for its wickedness. Hearing that, we read of Abraham’s intercession. His name was changed in chapter seventeen from exalted father, to, father of a multitude. That ‘famous’ intercession, where Abraham graciously interceded for that city. We next find (chapter 19), ‘two angels,’ the third was Jehovah [see 17:1], who remained with Abraham, as the patriarch interceded.
The ‘plot thickens, as they say, in chapter nineteen, where we see the two angels approaching Lot as he ‘sat in the gate’ (an expression, which is generally found in the Scriptures to denote, a gathering place for the elders, see Ruth 4, when Boaz called together the elders to make a determination regarding which kinsman, he or another, would be taking Ruth for their wife).
So Lot is sitting in the gate of Sodom. It would certainly not be entirely unfair for the reader of the Word, to infer that this nephew of Abraham, was part of this community of Sodom—we don’t know that, but it seems to be possible.
He invites these ‘men’ to his home, from where they are attacked by a crowd of Sodomites, attempting to beat down the door of Lot’s dwelling. They want him to ‘bring out the men, that we may know them.’ Lot offers his daughters to them, and it is clear what their purpose is, for he tells them that the young women ‘have not known men; do to them as is good in your eyes.’ Where is Lot’s righteousness in this? Was this a righteous behavior? And beyond this, it is recorded for our knowledge that, after their escape from the destruction of Sodom, and having fled to Zoar, that Lot, under the influence of wine given by his daughters, because they wished to preserve seed of their father,
The text does state that he didn’t know what he was doing. It says, he knew not when she [each of them] lay down, and when she [they] arose. Verse 36 informs us, Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
Seeking help of commentaries grants small help from this dilemma. In fact, we find some serious distinctions between the understandings of some of these commentators. Many of them are decidedly firm in their hold upon the ‘righteousness’ of Lot.’ Luther even writing the following defense;
In his remarks on verse 7, and delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivious life of the wicked, where he has written the following:
“Was it not a great aggravation that they rushed publicly and shame-lessly not only into whoredom and adultery, but also in sins that dare not be mentioned, insomuch that they did not even spare the angels that came to Lot? And they rushed on thus in their course, both young and old, in all the corners of the city. Against this, righteous Lot daily preached and warned them [where is that to be found; was Luther confusing Lot with Noah?]. But it was all in vain, except that he is silenced by them, so that he had to cease preaching and he could not help the evil, just as is the case with us at present. For there is now no more hope to reform or help this grievous course of life that the world leads.”—Luther.
David Farmer, elder
Fellowship Bible Church
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