Sodom Destroyed
Genesis 19-21
Sodom Destroyed, Genesis 19-21. God Remembered Abraham! God does not
forsake His children. Just as God was faithful to Abraham, so He is
faithful today in answering our prayers and in guiding and keeping us
until that day we go to live with Him forever.
19:1 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 bowed himself with his face to the
earth 2 and said, “My lords, please turn aside to your servant's house
and spend the night and wash your feet. Then you may rise up early and
go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the town
square.” 3 But he pressed them strongly; so they turned aside to him and
entered his house. And he made them a feast and baked unleavened bread,
and they ate.
15
As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Up! Take your wife
and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the
punishment of the city.” 16 But he lingered. So the men seized him and
his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to
him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. 17 And as
they brought them out, one said, “Escape for your life. Do not look back
or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept
away.” 18 And Lot said to them, “Oh, no, my lords. 19 Behold, your
servant has found favor in your sight, and you have shown me great
kindness in saving my life. But I cannot escape to the hills, lest the
disaster overtake me and I die. 20 Behold, this city is near enough to
flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there—is it not a little
one?—and my life will be saved!” 21 He said to him, “Behold, I grant you
this favor also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have
spoken. 22 Escape there quickly, for I can do nothing till you arrive
there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.
23 The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.
24 Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the
Lord out of heaven. 25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the
valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the
ground. 26 But Lot's wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a
pillar of salt.
27 And Abraham went early in the morning to the place
where he had stood before the Lord. 28 And he looked down toward Sodom
and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley, and he looked and,
behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
29
So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God
remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when
he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.
Genesis 19:1-3 & 15-29, English Standard Version
Sodom Destroyed
Genesis 19-21
The Scripture shown above is not the whole account of our theme today; it would be well, if you have the time, to read the entire three chapters. Remember when we left Abraham in our last devotional, he was pleading with God for the city of Sodom; God had promised that He would not destroy the city for the sake of 10 righteous people. What a sad commentary that the only righteous found there were Lot, his wife, and his two daughters.
Sodom Destroyed: Angels Seize Lot and Family and Pull Them Out
Even
Lot and his family were reluctant to leave the city though the angels
who visited them told them it would be destroyed. The two angels
literally seized Lot, his wife, and two daughters and pulled them out of
the city of Sodom. The angel's directions were very explicit, “Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.”
Sodom Destroyed: Lot Moves to Zoar
You
would think that would be enough to convince you to run quickly. But Lot did not want to run to the hills; he chose rather
to escape to the small city of Zoar. If you are familiar with this story, you know what happened next,
The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven. And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But Lot's wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
How difficult would it be for you to leave your home and everything
there and move to a city where you must start over without a thing and
without knowing anyone? It was just too difficult for Lot's wife, she
could not resist looking back one more time, in disobedience to God's
command. She payed dearly for her mistake with her life.
Sodom Destroyed: Application to Us
What
is the application for us today? How much are we affected by the world
around us? How single-minded are we about living for the Lord? God is a
jealous God; He accepts no competition. He calls us to leave the world
behind and live totally and completely for Him. He may not pull us out
of our current location, but He still commands that our lives be totally
and completely dedicated to Him. Do you find that difficult, or even
almost impossible? Go to Christ! Christ alone saves us and keeps us
faithful to God.
Sodom Destroyed: God Remembered Abraham
I love Genesis 19:29,
So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God
remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when
he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.
God
Remembered Abraham! God does not forsake His children. Just as God was
faithful to Abraham, so He is faithful today in answering our prayers
and in guiding and keeping us until that day we go to live with Him
forever.
Praise God for His faithfulness to His people.
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