Genesis chapter 19.
Scripture Reading: Genesis 19
Genesis chapter 19. We're going to take up the last section, verses 30 to 38, but I will begin reading in chapter 19 at verse 1. Remember the first 11 verses highlight the demonstration of Sodom's wickedness. Verses 12-22, the deliverance of Lot, the destruction of Sodom as indicated in verses 23-29.
And then tonight, the descendants of Lot in verses 30-38. But beginning in verse 1, Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. And he said, Here now, my lords, please turn into your servants' house and spend the night, and wash your feet.
Then you may rise early and go on your way. And they said, No, but we will spend the night in the open square. But he insisted strongly, so they turned into him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter surrounded the house. And they called to Lot and said to him, Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may know them carnally. So Lot went out to them, through the doorway, shut the door behind them, and said, Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly.
See now, I have two daughters who have not known a man. Please, let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them as you wish. Only do nothing to these men, since this is the reason they have come under the shadow of my roof.' And they said, stand back. Then they said, this one came in to stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge.
Now we will deal worse with you than with them. So they pressed hard against the man lot and came near to break down the door. But the men reached out their hands and pulled Lot into the house with them and shut the door. And they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they became weary trying to find the door.
Then the men said to Lot, have you anyone else here? Son-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in the city, take them out of this place. For we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before the face of the Lord. And the Lord has sent us to destroy it.
So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, get up, get out of this place, for the Lord will destroy this city. But to his sons-in-law, he seemed to be joking. When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city. And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife's hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him.
And they brought him out and set him outside the city. So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, escape for your life. Do not look behind you, nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.
Then Lot said to them, Please, know, my lords, indeed now your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy which you have shown me by saving my life. But I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me, and I die. See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Please, let me escape there.
Is it not a little one? And my soul shall live. And he said to him, see, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken. Hurry, escape there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.
Therefore, the name of the city was called Zoar. The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zoar. Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of the heavens. So he overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord. Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the plain. And he saw and behold the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace.
And it came to pass when God destroyed the cities of the plain that God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt. Then Lot went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountains, and his two daughters were with him, for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. And he and his two daughters dwelt in a cave. Now the firstborn said to the younger, our father is old, and there is no man on the earth to come into us as is the custom of all the earth.
Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him that we may preserve the lineage or the seed of our father. So they made their father drink wine that night, and the firstborn went in and lay with her father, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. It happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger, Indeed, I lay with my father last night. Let us make him drink wine tonight also, and you go in and lie with him that we may preserve the lineage or seed of our father.
Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab.
He is the father of the Moabites to this day. And the younger, she also bore a son and called his name Ben-Ammi. He is the father of the people of Ammon to this day. You can turn over to 2 Peter chapter 2. 2 Peter 2, I have referred to this passage along the way as we've studied this particular section.
I just want to flesh out or fill out what we know of Lot concerning this situation. In 2 Peter 2, we'll look at this passage later on this evening, but specifically in verse 6, We read, "...and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly, and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked. For that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds." Amen.
Introduction
So we have the divine comment on Lot as a whole. And certainly, as we look at this particular passage in Genesis 19, verses 30 to 38, it certainly seems to challenge that statement concerning Lot and his righteousness. But it is important that we sort of work our way through this passage to see what it says and what it doesn't say. So
The Daughters of Lot
in the first place, I want to look at the daughters of Lot in verses 30 to 35, or 30 to 36, and then the descendants of Lot in verses 37 to 38. Now,
Lot's Relocation to the Mountains
in the first place, the fact that the daughters are with him is a good sign. Remember, his wife is not with him. His wife looked back, according to chapter 19 and verse 26, and she became a pillar of Saul. So the fact that his two daughters are with him indicates that they were more aligned with him rather than with his wife.
In verse 30, we see that he relocates to the mountains. This is contrasted with verses 18 to 20. Go back for just a moment in verse 18. Then Lot said to them, please know my lords, indeed now your servant has found favor in your sight and you have increased your mercy, which you have shown me by saving my life, but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I die.
See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Please let me escape there. Is it not a little one, and my soul shall live? When the deliverance occurs, and he settled in Zoar, we learn in verse 30, he went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountains, and his two daughters were with him. for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar.
Maybe Zoar was much more like Sodom than he had anticipated, and perhaps he thought divine judgment would in fact fall upon that particular city. It doesn't tell us why, but just simply suggests or tells us that he did in fact relocate. Now
The Firstborn's Plan
notice the plan of the firstborn daughter. She is the one that orchestrates the whole situation here. She is responsible not only for her lying with Lot, but also has provoked or instigated the younger daughter to lie with Lot as well. In the first place, she highlights the old age of Lot.
Verse 31, now the firstborn said to the younger, our father is old and there is no man on the earth to come into us as is the custom of all the earth. Now that's an intriguing statement as to why she says that he's old. Some suggest that he's old or he's getting to the point where he will no longer be able to engage in sexual congress, so we have to engage in this plan right away. Others take it, I think, more correctly as to suggest that in his old age he would not have the ability to find them husbands, to find men for them that would satisfy the requirement to marry them and then to procreate with them. when she says there is no man on the earth to come into us as is the custom of all the earth.
I do not think she believes there's no human being left on the earth. Zohar obviously was a city spared by God because righteous Lot had maintained occupancy there. So there were certainly persons in Zoar. I don't think it's a total statement that there's no more human beings on the face of the earth, but men that are uniquely fit and qualified for what we are looking for at this particular juncture of our lives.
Our father is old. He is unable with the spirit or the strength that is left within him to go out and find us men so that we can indeed procreate. Now notice what her intention is in verse 32. She says, come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him that we may preserve the seed of our father.
Now, this is an absolutely wicked practice on her part. To try to get her father drunk so that he would lose all inhibition and all sensibility and all responsibility so that she could lie with him was an affront to all things godly and upright. Now, I'm going to mention a few things tonight that are probably not going to make you very comfortable, but just follow the line of argumentation. I want to suggest, first of all, that the laws prohibiting incest were not given at this particular point.
Remember that initially, when the earth was young, they did engage in brothers and sisters marrying and having children with one another. The fact that she knows that she should get him drunk indicates that nevertheless, though the law had not been given, it was still taboo. You didn't lay with your father. You didn't have relations with your father in order to procreate and produce a seed.
So though the law hasn't been given yet, restricting or prohibiting incestuous relationships, That will come later, Leviticus 18, Deuteronomy chapter 22, and then Deuteronomy chapter 27. Incest is strictly prohibited by God's law at this particular juncture. It had not been, but nevertheless the fact that she wants to get drunk indicates that he's not going to go for this while he's responsible while he is in possession of his faculties and while he is in his right mind. So she knows she has to apply him with a drink so that he will engage in this activity.
So verse 32, Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him that we may preserve the seed of our father. Now, the decision to lie with him, again, it's wicked and it's vile. The specific purpose, however, is not wicked and it's not vile. The fact that she wants seed, that's not a bad thing.
Now
Messianic Expectation in the Sin
Gill mentions that there was a strain of thought that indicated that these girls thought perhaps in terms of the seed of the woman, Genesis 3.15. So perhaps they had a messianic expectation in terms of having children. Gill explains, Wherefore, this might rather arise, as Bishop Patrick and others have thought, from an eager desire after the Messiah they might hope would spring from them, their father being a descendant of Shem, a son of Abraham's elder brother, and now remarkably saved from Sodom, which they might conclude was for this purpose. And they knew of no way in which it could be brought about, but in this they proposed." Now, before we balk, at this messianic expectation, you have to understand that there is a messianic emphasis in this particular passage.
Ruth, the Moabitess, is in the lineage of Jesus Christ our Lord. So whether we like it or not, the Moabites that result from this ungodly union nevertheless is the line from whence the Messiah Christ springs. The book of Ruth indicates this, as does Matthew chapter 1, with reference to Ruth in verse 5, and with reference to a couple of other fellows we're going to look at later on in Genesis, in Matthew 1, 3. And so, with reference to this messianic sort of expectation, whether they had it consciously or not, it's certainly there.
It is certainly something that connects with the Savior. The Lord Jesus is connected to Genesis 19 verse 37 in a way that perhaps you and I might not always be comfortable with. There are some odd things in the genealogy of our Lord Jesus Christ. There's a harlot in that genealogy.
We need to remember that when God deals with humanity, it's not like a surgeon who's dealing with sterilized instruments. There's no sterilized instruments in the world. It's a messy, sinful world. And even men who are called righteous and who are righteous nevertheless have their faults.
Every single one of us who are righteous in Jesus Christ in terms of the imputed righteousness, and every single one of us who have the Holy Spirit in us, working in us both to will and to do that which is pleasing to God, nevertheless fall short in a whole host of ways. It's just the way it is. So God doesn't reach down like a surgeon into this bowl of already sanitized instruments and sort of do things in a way that is consistent with His holiness and beauty. Rather, He takes jaded things, He takes spotted things, He takes messed up things, and He nevertheless accomplishes His purpose through those particular things.
Now, in terms of the actual incest itself, Matthew Poole explains it this way. He says, this, though an incestuous and abominable action, yet they thought was made lawful by the supposed necessity. As in the beginning of the world, the marriage of brethren and sisters was lawful because necessary. And when it ceased to be necessary, because of the increase of mankind, it became incestuous.
So he recognizes that again. There was a time and a season where it wasn't necessarily condemned or wrong for brothers and sisters to cohabit with one another. Now, at this particular juncture, she recognizes this is taboo, so she gets her father drunk so that he will, in fact, lay with her. Notice in verse 33, so they made their father drink wine that night.
And the firstborn went in and lay with her father. Now notice it says, he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. This does not exonerate Lot, but it certainly mitigates the circumstances. And you need to appreciate that that is a biblical concept.
You know, oftentimes, I don't mean the incestuous thing, I mean mitigating circumstances. Everything isn't always black and white. There's second degree murder. There's degrees of vileness. connected to certain crimes and sins.
And again, he is plastered, as far as we can tell, such that he doesn't even know what is happening or occurring. So again, it doesn't exonerate Lot, but it certainly mitigates the circumstances in terms of his responsibility or culpability with this particular situation. It mitigates the gravity on his part, certainly not on her part. Now, notice with reference to the younger daughter-in-law.
Again, it's the firstborn that instigates this. It's the firstborn that is driving this. And in verse 34, it happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger, Indeed, I lay with my father last night. Let us make him drink wine tonight also, and you go in and lie with him that we may preserve the seed of our father. in that you're reading such things in the Bible.
It's very unsavory. It's very ungodly. It's very unholy. It's very wicked.
But nevertheless, it is the way it is in a sinful, cursed, and fallen world. And the beauty and the glory is to see how God takes these things that are crooked and makes straight things out of them. And then in verse 35, it says, then they made their father drink wine that night also, and the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. Again, doesn't exonerate, but it does mitigate the gravity of the crime on his part.
Now, in verse 36, it tells us that their plan was successful. Now, we shouldn't depend or decide a matter in terms of its ethical rightness or wrongness as to whether or not it worked. That's not the way you do biblical ethics. What they did is wrong.
What they did was unrighteous. What they did in getting their father drunk, taking control out of his hands, irrigating that control to themselves, and then, you know, manipulating the situation and circumstances so that they could get what they want. But nevertheless, according to verse 36, we read, Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. Now, that
The Descendants of Lot
brings us to consider the descendants of Lot in verses 37 and 38. Now, the later history will indicate that the Moabites and the Ammonites were enemies with reference to Israel. But as we move through the sacred history, we never see they were enemies because they were conceived in incest. In other words, this is not what made them bad.
What made them bad is that they were bad and treated Israel bad. But it's not their birth or their conception that was ultimately held against them. You hear that a lot today in the abortion debate. We should have the right to kill babies conceived in rape or in incest. whatever.
Talk about holding something against the innocent party. I mean, that's absolutely reprehensible and wretched. You don't murder a baby because that baby is the product of rape. It's not the baby's fault.
And you're certainly doing no one any favors by compounding with murder the sin of rape. So when we look at the sacred record, the issue with Moab and Ammon isn't that they were conceived in incest. It's that they were wretched. And we need to appreciate that.
So
Moab and Ammon in Deuteronomy
turn with me to Deuteronomy chapter 2 for just a moment. Deuteronomy chapter 2. This is a rehearsal of how they got to the plains of Moab. Moses, on the plains of Moab, with the children of Israel, prior to entering into the promised land, is giving them a series of exhortations.
He's giving them a historical backdrop, how they got to where they got. Notice in 2.9 it says, Then the Lord said to me, Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle. For I will not give you any of their land as a possession. Notice, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.
So the territory that they possessed was a divine gift. Just like Canaan was to the children of Israel, so was this territory a gift from God given to Moab. And the same is true of Ammon in verse 19. And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.
Again, you don't see any sort of a hint that, well, they're accursed. They were conceived in incest. They're wretched. They're reprobate.
They're terrible. All bad things should always come upon them. No, their territory, their land that they possess is divine gift. It is bequeathed upon them by the living and true God, recognized as the lawful and legitimate descendants of Lot.
Now, the problem with Moab and the problem with Ammon is found in Deuteronomy 23. Deuteronomy 23 indicates what their issue was, and the issue was not that they were conceived in incest. Deuteronomy 23, verse 1, he who is emasculated by crushing or mutilation shall not enter the assembly of the Lord. One of illegitimate birth shall not enter the assembly of the Lord.
Even to the tenth generation, none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord. Now, with reference to Ammonite and Moabite, some connect it to the illegitimate birth of verse 2. I don't think that's the connection that's supposed to be made. He gives the specific reason as to why Ammonites and Moabites are disallowed from entering into the assembly of the Lord.
It has nothing to do with their illegitimacy, but rather it has to do with their wretchedness. Notice in verse 3, an Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord, even to the tenth generation, None of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever, because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Baalar from Pthor of Mesopotamia to curse you. It's not because they were conceived in incest. It's not because of what you see there in Genesis 19, 30 to 38.
It's not because of the instigation, the provocation, the wickedness of these daughters who got their father drunk. Their problem is that they were not courteous and hospitable to the children of Israel when they were wandering through the wilderness. As well, they hired that prophet for profit. Balaam to curse Israel.
That's why they're sort of the perennial enemies of Israel. It has nothing to do with their conception in incest. It has everything to do with the fact that they rebelled against God by treating Israel with disrespect. Verse 5, nevertheless, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves you.
You shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity all your days forever. So there is this favorable reference in Deuteronomy 2 with reference to Moab and Ammon. There's the specific reason given why Moab and Ammon are prohibited from the assembly of the Lord in Deuteronomy 23. Again, it has nothing to do with the conduct of their mothers, but rather it has everything to do with their conduct toward Israel at the time of the wilderness wanderings.
But another observation is the reality, we've already made this observation with reference to the Moabites and the Messiah. Turn to the book of Ruth. I'm not justifying incest, I'm not justifying what these girls did, I'm not suggesting for a moment that it's okay to get people drunk and do whatever it is you want to do with them while they're passed out. That is simply reprehensible and abominable, but as we trace from that point onward, we need to appreciate what Scripture says concerning both the Moabites and the Ammonites, And we need to appreciate what scripture says concerning the overall trajectory of the life of Lot.
Lot didn't get himself drunk. Now, some would arguably say, on the second night, it was even worse. I mean, he should have seen it coming. Yeah, he should have seen it coming.
I agree. I don't know why that second night happened. I can't sort of Monday morning quarterback. But again, being controlled by what we find in 2 Peter 2, we need to appreciate the connection between the Moabites and the Messiah.
The confession of Ruth, the Moabite. Notice in Ruth 1.16. Ruth said, and treat me not to leave you, or turn back from following after you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you lodge, I will lodge.
Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me. She gives her allegiance to Yahweh.
This Ruth the Moabitess is a woman who is converted to the God of heaven and earth. When you look at the end of Ruth, Ruth chapter 4 at verse 17, Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi. And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Now, this is the genealogy of Perez. Perez begot Hezron, Hezron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amenadab. Amenadab begot Nashon, and Nashon begot Salmon, Salmon begot Boaz, Boaz begot Obed, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David. That's the point of the book of Ruth.
Ruth is a wonderful book. It's a glorious book wherein the sovereignty of God is overarching. It is on display. It is most wonderful and most excellent.
The story of godly Ruth confessing allegiance to Yahweh, saddling up alongside of her mother-in-law, being there to support, being there to labor, being there to feed her, being there to be her comforter, and all that sort of stuff. It's all great, but it all leads to verses 18 to 22. This is the line of Messiah. In fact, John Gill describes the book of Ruth this way, The principal design of it is to give the genealogy of David, whom Samuel had anointed to be king of Israel, and from whom the Messiah was to come, and who therefore may be said to be the aim and scope of it, as he is all of Scripture, and whereby it appears that he sprung from both Jews and Gentiles, and is the Savior of both, and there is a good foundation for both to hope in him. and the call and conversion of Ruth the Moabitess may be considered as a shadow, emblem, and pledge of the conversion of the Gentiles." So going back to Genesis chapter 19, this is my point.
Moab, Ruth, and the Messiah's Line
the wretchedness that we see on display with reference to the firstborn and the younger, plying their father with drink to the point where he is so drunk, he is not even cognizant of the reality that he is having relations with his daughters. All of that mayhem, all of that wretchedness, nevertheless brings us to verses 36 and 37. Both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab.
He is the father of the Moabites to this day." You have to see this in connection with the Messiah. You have to see this in connection with Ruth the Moabitess, with Jesse, with David, with Jesus Christ our Lord.
Judah, Tamar, and Genesis 38
And then there's one other sort of parallel passage in the book of Genesis. Parallel conceptually in Genesis chapter 38. Good. I am not suggesting that it's okay to commit incest.
I'm not suggesting that it's okay to get people drunk and have your way with them. But what I am suggesting is that even in the most wicked and crass and abominable situations, the Lord God Most High is overruling those things for His glory and ultimately for the good of His people. This is a demonstration of Romans 8, 28. All things work together for good, even incest between Lot and his daughters.
All things work together for good, even incest between Judah and Tamar. And that is precisely what Genesis 38 records for us. Again, an unsavory passage of scripture, which it's so unsavory, I think I'll give it to you twice. We'll do it now, and then we'll do it when we actually get to chapter 38.
You hopefully know the story. Again, it's a story that's a bit difficult, but you have this girl Tamar married to Judah's sons, and Judah's sons were wicked, so God killed them. So the death of Tamar's husbands, Ur in chapter 38, verses 6 and 7, and then Onan in chapter 38, verses 8 to 10. You've probably heard of the name Onanism. referring to masturbation.
I do not think that's the issue. Again, I'm not validating or substantiating or suggesting that that's somehow a good practice, but I think the crime of Onan prefigures or foreshadows the law of the Leveret. He was to provide for his sister-in-law. He was to provide money, he was to provide seed, he was to provide for her in all things that the Leveret law would indeed dictate later on in the giving of the law.
So these two young men die, and then Judah promises Tamar that she can remarry his other son, Shala, when Shala grows up. Well, Shala grows up, and she doesn't get to marry him. So she disguises herself and lays with Judah. Judah thinks it's a harlot, and then Judah is incensed against her.
When it comes time for her to disclose what has happened, and for her to disclose that it was in fact her, notice what Judah says in verse 26. Judah acknowledged them and said, She has been more righteous than I, because I did not give her to Sheolah my son, and he never knew her again. Again, I'm not advocating, I'm not suggesting, and I'm going to qualify this a thousand times so nobody thinks otherwise. These are bad things.
These are abominable things. But under a sovereign God, He orchestrates this and brings good out of it. This is, again, the line of the Messiah. Notice in verse 27, Now it came to pass at the time for giving birth that behold, twins were in her womb.
And so it was when she was giving birth that the one put out his hand, and the midwife took a scarlet thread and bound it on his hand, saying, This one came out first. Then it happened as he drew back his hand that his brother came out unexpectedly. And she said, How did you break through? This breach be upon you.
Therefore, his name was called Perez. Afterward, his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah. The line of the Messiah included some very unsavory people. Turn to Matthew chapter one for just a moment.
So on the one hand, we need to appreciate and understand and embrace, delightfully so, the absolute sovereignty of God in taking unsterilized instruments, very filthy, very dirty, very abominable instruments, and nevertheless bringing good from it. But as well, we need to guard against this idea that we're somehow a whole lot better than everybody that we find in our Bible, and somehow better than God. Oh, we would never use this Rahab the harlot, or we would never use this particular situation involving Judah and Tamar, or we would never use the incestuous relationship of Lot with the older daughter and see that Messiah would come from the Moabites. Well, we're not better than God, brethren.
And we ought not to irrigate that idea that this is somehow beneath God. God chose to do it this way, and God demonstrates His glory and His power and His majesty in doing so.
The Genealogy of Christ in Matthew 1
Matthew 1.1, the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. Notice, Judah begot Perez and Zerah by who? By Tamar.
Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nashon, and Nashon begot Salmon. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.
He didn't even mention Bathsheba. By her who had been the wife of Uriah. Uriah's mention in the genealogy of the Savior. Solomon begot Rehoboam.
Rehoboam begot Abijah. And Abijah begot Esau. Esau begot Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat begot Joram.
And Joram begot Uzziah. Uzziah begot Jotham. Jotham begot Ahaz. And Ahaz begot Hezekiah.
Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Ammon, and Ammon begot Josiah. Josiah begot Jeconiah, and his brothers, about the time they were carried away to Babylon. And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel begot Abiad, Abiad begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor.
Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Hakim, and Hakim begot Eliad. Eliad begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Mathan, and Mathan begot Jacob. And Jacob begot Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. You see, when you move through these genealogies, it's filled with unsavory characters, or unsavory incidents, or issues and problems along the way.
And the same obtains with reference to Genesis chapter 19, verses 30 to 38. What the daughters did was wicked. What the daughters did was abominable. But what ultimately ensues from that is part and parcel of the line of Messiah himself.
As we move through redemptive history, it's not the incest that is held against Ammon and Moab. It's their wickedness that's held against Ammon and Moab. The Lord God works in and through and with very unsterile beings in order to bring out His holy will and purpose.
The Righteousness of Lot: 2 Peter 2
Now, let's look finally at this righteousness of Lot in 2 Peter 2, because I think he has something to teach you and I. 2 Peter 2. Perhaps Sodom would blush if they saw how people in Canada actually lived. I mean, the sorts of things that go on unabated and unchecked in our own generation. Again, we look at these things, oh, those wicked homosexuals, and they were engaged in gang rape.
That stuff happens all the time here, too. It's not like we're this bastion of godliness and holiness and righteousness. What we see with reference to Lot, I think, is indicative of the way we ought to respond in like circumstances. Now, just to give you a bit of the context, it's a denunciation, ultimately, of false teachers.
That's what's happening. False teachers are being condemned in this particular situation. So there's a summary statement concerning these teachers in verses 1 to 3. There is then the judgment of God directed toward these false teachers in verses 4 to 11.
But in the midst of this judgment of God upon the false teachers, the Lord nevertheless watches over and preserves his godly ones in the midst of these destructive judgments. Notice verse 4, for if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness to be reserved for judgment, and did not spare the ancient world, but, here it is, saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly. And then turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly. and delivered righteous lots." You see, God sends his judgment to bear upon these false teachers, these wretched people, these reprobate. But in the midst of these judgments, God spares his elect who find themselves in the midst of these sorts of tumultuous times.
In fact, that's the emphasis there in verse 9. Notice, then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. So if God has shown himself faithful in the past, in the midst of his severe judgments poured out upon the world, but he was able to spare Noah in the midst of it. or His judgment poured out upon Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities and the plain, and yet He was able to spare a lot, then you Christians living in a situation that's messed up and is targeted by the wrath and fury of God, then the Lord knows how to deliver you. He knows how to protect you.
He knows how to sustain you, just the way He does with Noah. just the way he does with God. Maybe not just the way in terms of the obliteration of the entire world or the cities on the plain, but the point obtains that if God, who faithfully preserved his people in the midst of tumultuous times, was able to do it then, he's certainly able to do it now. Now, in terms of Lot, we see his deliverance by God in the overthrow of Sodom. Notice in verse 7, and delivered righteous Lot.
We see that in Genesis 19.16, the Lord being merciful to him. Now, the identification of Lot as righteous. Again, I think that is the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, but whenever one receives the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, that means what Christ has done for us, but then we receive the power of the Holy Spirit working in us and working in our hearts and lives so that we will follow God in a righteous way. Now that's expressed more fully as we move on.
Notice what it says, delivered righteous lot who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked, or he was sore distressed. One commentator, D. Edmund Hebert, a good Arminian actually, I think he's with the Lord now. an Arminian that was a good exegete. If you ever pick up Ebert's commentary, it's probably the only Arminian I think I'll ever recommend.
In terms of outlines and in terms of getting the sense of the text, in terms of just exegetical responsibility, I mean, you could do a whole lot worse than Heber when it comes to the general epistles. But he says, sore distressed, pictures Lot as being worn down and exhausted with toil, hence deeply distressed and oppressed by the life of his fellow citizens. The present passive implies that their evil lives continued to be a burdensome weight upon him personally. He had not allowed his conscience to become so dulled that he was no longer pained by what he witnessed.
Application: Lot's Example for Believers
And I think that's the lesson that we ought to glean from Lot. As many foibles as we may see in the life of Lot, he never gave in to the heartbeat of Sodom. He didn't become a homosexual. He didn't become a sexual deviant.
He didn't become a pervert. He didn't become one that was engaged in the sorts of lawless deeds that typified and characterized these men in Sodom. Notice what it goes on to say in verse eight, for that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds. See, the fear that I have for my own heart and a fear that I think might obtain in the lives of others is that we almost become dull to how wicked it really is.
We almost become desensitized with how vile it really is. It almost becomes commonplace. Things that are absolutely disgusting and vile and wretched and reprehensible are sort of becoming the norm, and it's sort of simmering around us, and we're not as incensed as we once were about these sorts of things. Well, you can't say that about lot.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Peter tells us that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds. He never made peace with it. He never embraced it. He never normalized it.
He never said, well, you know, that's just the way they do things here in Sodom. That's just the way they roll here. No, he didn't do that. It was oppressive to him, and it seized upon his soul.
Another man, Bauckham, makes the observation, it, Lot's experience in Sodom, goes beyond the common apocalyptic theme of the suffering of the righteous at the hands of the wicked and their deliverance from this suffering. He says, Lot suffers not because he is a victim of the wicked, but because he is a genuinely righteous man. Excuse me. I guess I don't notice the cold when I'm not talking at a Bible study or preaching.
So back to the quote. It goes beyond the common apocalyptic theme of the suffering of the righteous at the hands of the wicked and their deliverance from this suffering. So what he's saying is there's this common theme in apocalyptic. You're going to suffer. when God's judgment comes, but the Lord is going to spare you.
He goes on to say, though, that Lot suffers not because he is a victim of the wicked, but because he is a genuinely righteous man, a man who loves righteousness, who longs to see righteousness done in the world, and is afflicted by its absence. So the suffering that Lot undergoes in the city of Sodom is not that he himself is getting gang raped. It's not that he himself is being abused by these persons. It's not that he himself is suffering under their vile criminal activity.
What causes him to suffer is the existence of vile criminal activity, the absence of righteousness, the absence of godliness, the absence of holiness. That's what torments his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds, their antinomianism. That's what affected Lot. And if it isn't the case with us, then we ought to pray to God to give us that sensitive conscience and that sensitive spirit.
Now, it can be overdone to the point where you say, well, I'm going to go live on top of Mount Sham and not have anything to do with those guilty, vile, disgusting sinners that populate Chilliwack. Please don't do that unless you have great survival skills and can actually function on the top of Mount Sham. Most of us can't. So for us to do that would be a fool's errand.
But the idea is that we're in the world, but we're not of it. We're in the world and we enjoy the things of the world that God has given lawfully to be enjoyed. You know, like we see in 1 Timothy 4, it's wicked to forbid steak. It's wicked to forbid marriage.
God's good. He loads us daily with benefits. We're given the prerogatives to enjoy that. In fact, one of the reasons why Israel suffered the judgment and chastisement of God when they went into the land If I were to ask you, what were the top five reasons?
Well, you'd say, they were sexually immoral. Yes. They engaged in idolatry. Yes.
They engaged in all manner of lawlessness. Yes. You know what other thing they weren't? Was full of thankfulness to the living God.
They were not thankful. God says, when you've eaten and are satisfied, then thank the Lord. They went into the land, they were eating and satisfied, but they were never thankful. God gives us good things to enjoy, according to 1 Timothy 4, and to thank Him.
So not everything that's in the world is necessarily wicked. Good stakes in marriage are not wicked. We get to enjoy that. Praise God Almighty.
But the perversion, and the iniquity, and the lawlessness, and the murder, and the mayhem, hopefully that sort of stuff works in our own hearts to the point where it torments our righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds. I mean, watch the news for about five minutes and you should be full of this and ready to go. Because the sorts of things that are happening today are vile and wretched and wicked. And I wouldn't doubt if men from Sodom got transported in a time machine to Canada today, they'd say, what do you mean you let people kill babies? up until they're born.
What do you mean you kill old people because they're old or sick people because they're sick? What do you mean you have gay pride parades? Even we felt a sense of shame and indignity doing those sorts of things. I mean, there is a lot lessness that we see in our own day and age that ought to promote this lot-like response in the hearts of God's people in our own generation.
Well, I don't know that I've answered everything. I hope that we at least get a sense of what's happened in Genesis 19. Horrible on the part of the girls, but God used it for good. God used it with reference to the Messiah himself, and in this we can rejoice.
Well, let's close in a word of prayer.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank you for your word and thank you for your absolute and comprehensive sovereignty. It does amaze us. It does cause us to marvel when we see wicked acts overruled by a gracious God and good things brought out as a result. We thank you for the Messiah.
We thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for his line in the Old Testament, for all those men and women that were involved in that. God, how we praise you that you brought it all to fruition in the fullness of the time when you sent forth your son, born of a woman and born under the law, that son of Abraham, that son of David, that covenant mediator that brought salvation to his people. We give praise to you for scripture.
We give praise to you that Christ is the scope of the whole and that, Father, you have blessed us with a saving interest in him. We ask that you would go with us now, watch over us in this week, help us to glorify you as we live, as we work, as we move, as we have our being. And God, may we reflect upon Lot and may we likewise respond to our godless age. May we be vexed and may we be distressed as we see the sorts of things that are going on.
But may these things promote in us prayerfulness and intercession at the throne of grace. And we pray these things through Christ our Lord. Amen.