Lot

I must admit Lot has always been a source of discomfort for me. Just how does the last OT commentary of/on the life of a righteous man contain incest? I suggest that the whole of Christendom owe a great deal to the Apostle Peter for without his testimony (2 Peter 2:7) one would be hard pressed to see Lot as being righteous. What is interesting though is Lot was oppressed by his circumstances. The AV translates ‘kataponeo’ as “vexed” however the force of the word is lost in today’s understanding. The force of the word is oppression and ‘kataponeo’ as a passive, present tense, verb, means he was continually being oppressed (or dominated) by the citizens of Sodom i.e. the “sensual conduct of unprincipled men.” This may explain his son’s in law’s response who thought him to be “jesting.” 

So one may have a hard time understanding how Lot came to this predicament. For that understanding one must go back many years to Gen 13 where, as a result of strife between Abram and Lot they decided to part company with Abram giving Lot first choice.  The actions of Lot in verse 10 bear striking similarity to Eve in chapter 3 in that they both “lifted their eyes” both saw it as a “delight to the eye and good for food,” and they both “departed.” Now it should be inserted here that the well watered plan of the Jordan was not in itself bad, but what Lot displays here is lust or covetousness thereby leading him to base his decision with the wrong motive. And so begins that unnoticed downward spiral that ultimately ends in a cave of drunken incest (Gen 19) with Lot as the progenitor of the Moabites and the Ammonites who would be a source of oppression to the children of Israel many years to come.


So back to our question of the righteousness of Lot, we can only conclude that God is merciful to whom He chooses (Ex 33:19; Rom 9:15) and thank Him for it.